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Showing posts from 2010

What is eczema?

Eczema is a kind of common allergic inflammatory dermatitis. It is profoundly disturbing to patients because of extreme itching on the affected part of skin, polymorphic skin lesions, orrhorrhea and frequent recurrence. Some people have had eczema since their babyhood. They might have been treated with many types of creams and medicines, but no improvement has been made. The itching disturbs their sleep and the skin lesions hamper their walking. Remedy for Eczema by TCM According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), eczema is not caused by the skin itself, although it occurs on the skin. It is caused by internal pathogenic heat, dampness, wind, or mixture of them. The differentiation of these causes can be distinguished by the observation of the symptoms of affected skin, the colour of tongue and its fur, and physiological reaction. Different remedies are then used specifically to clean away heat, remove dampness, expel wind, moist the dryness or cool the blood. This approach h...

Stress and acupuncture

What is stress Stress is the effect of any event or experience which interferes with one’s physical and mental well being. Different individuals will experience carrying forms and symptoms of stress. These symptoms may include emotional upset, short temper, restlessness, headaches, insomnia, irritable bowels, skin rashes or lack of energy. Causes of stress Traumatic life events have a high stress rating for almost everyone, but the impact to one person may not be the same to the other. Stress may be caused by activities and circumstances which arouse emotion or which you perceive as threatening or annoyance, such as moving house, getting married, divorce, having a baby, the death of a friend, losing a job…etc. Effects of stress In terms of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), stress is linked with the function of the liver and kidney. One of the main physiological functions of the liver is to regulate mind and mood. TCM believes that the mental activities of human beings are contro...

Migraine

What is migraine? Migraine headaches are characterized by throbbing, frequent severe pain, usually on one side of the head. It may also be accompanied by dizziness, nausea and vomiting. It may last from a few hours to several days. However the headache caused by external wind is not classified as migraine. Causes of migraine Migraines affect about one in ten of the population and about 70% of all migraine sufferers are women. It is believed that changing hormone levels during menstruation, ovulation and menopause may trigger the pain. The migraine is thought to be caused by a spasm which occurs in the blood vessels of the brain. The concentration and expansion of the blood vessel result in throbbing pain. Certain types of food may also trigger migraine such as overripe cheese, citrus fruits, chocolate, red wine, coffee, red meat etc. The pill can also provoke migraine in susceptible women. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), there are different types of migraine. Its...

TCM for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E.)

What is M.E.? Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, M.E., is a disease characterized by disabling fatigue and exhaustion together with a diverse range of symptoms. “Myalgic” means pain in the muscles and “encephalomyelitis” means inflammation of the brain and nerves. The typical symptoms are mental and physical exhaustion, muscle pain and weakness, insomnia, palpitation, lack of concentration, eye pain and light sensitivity, gastrointestinal disturbance and abdominal pain, fever, chills and night sweats, etc. Because of the confusion over the definition and diagnosis of the disease, many different names are given to the disease. It is also called “chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome,” “Chronic Epstteinbarr Virus Syndrome,” “”Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome”.   What causes it in terms of TCM? Pathogenic dampness, complicated by antibiotics, is a root cause of M.E in terms of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).Dampness is heavy and turbid in nature. A damp di...

Healthy Living Timetable

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Traditional Chinese medicine could boost cancer treatment

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An ancient 1,800 year old Chinese herbal remedy may boost the effects of cancer treatment as well as reduce its side-effects, new research suggests. By Richard Alleyne, Science Correspondent published on "Health News Feed"-Telegraph.Co.UK URL:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/7952015/Traditional-Chinese-medicine-could-boost-cancer-treatment.html Published: 7:00PM BST 18 Aug 2010       Known as Huang Qin Tang, the mix of plant extracts, roots and fruit has been used for hundreds of years to treat stomach upsets and nausea. But now researchers have found that it not only does the same for patients on chemotherapy, it also increases the effectiveness of the treatment. The strong drugs used in chemotherapy cause a number of toxic side effects because it kills healthy cells as well as cancerous ones. This is particularly true in the digestive tract or intestines. The team from Yale University found that in mice the use of the Huang Qin ...

Acupuncture and Stop Addiction

Smoking, Drinking and Drug Acupuncture treatment is a very powerful tool for removing smoking addiction. This treatment is not very popular among the people who are planning to quit. However it is a very effective and reliable method for quitting smoking which has no side effects at all. Millions of dollars are spent every year on different types of medications for smoking cessation programs. However, not all these programs are beneficial. This is because all these programs do not provide any incentive to quit smoking. Acupuncture provides the extra impetus to the smoker to quit smoking for good. But how does acupuncture really work? Acupuncture uses small needles of different lengths and sizes to stimulate the skin in a particular area of the human body. The area for stimulation is chosen corresponding to meridian or pathway that provides energy to the affected body field or area. In case of smoking cessation, needles are inserted in the areas that will affect energy fl...

Acupuncture – The New Anti-wrinkle Treatment

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Forget Botox, FRA is the latest thing Botox is so last year, Facial Rejuvenation Acupuncture (FRA) is the new anti-aging, wrinkle banishing, celebrity obsession but does it actually work? Apparently so… What is it? FRA is a non-surgical facelift; it’s relatively new to the West but has been used in China for many years now. It rebalances the bodies motivating energy (Qi) halting and supposedly reversing the signs of ageing. As we mature the quantity of Qi and blood in the skin and underlying facial muscles slowly begin to decrease causing loss of nourishment, elasticity and moisture. What does it do? FRA smoothes fine lines, reduces wrinkles, evens out skin tone, reduces puffiness on the eyelids and jowl, lifts the brows and brightens the eyes, all without having to go under the knife. How does it work? The same as traditional acupuncture, whisker fine needles are inserted into wrinkles and frown lines in the face, slowly diminishing them by relaxing...

Acupuncture and Painrelief

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Acupuncture 'provides twice the pain relief of standard medicine' By SIMON CABLE Daily mail Back pain afflicts between 70 and 85 per cent of the adult population at some point Acupuncture is twice as effective at reducing lower back pain than conventional medicines, according to researchers. But pretend acupuncture, where the needles are inserted less deeply, has also been found to have a similar effect, suggesting that the pain relief could be psychological. Back pain afflicts between 70 and 85 per cent of the adult population at some point in their lives and accounts for the loss of almost five million working days each year in the UK. A trial of more than 1,162 people aged between 18 and 86 who had suffered from lower back pain for an average of eight years was carried out by German medics. They were divided into three groups, each of which was treated with either genuine acupuncture treatment, fake acupuncture or with drugs, pain-killers of physiotherapy. ...

Acupuncture and Infertility

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Acupuncture is the insertion of ultra-thin, sterile needles into specific acupuncture points on the body which reside on channels or meridians; these are pathways in both the exterior and interior of the body. These points, when needled, can regulate the way in which the body functions. Acupuncture helps by addressing problems that affect fertility such as under-functioning (hypothyroidism) or over-functioning (hyperthyroidism). Can acupuncture be used to treat infertility? Acupuncture, frequently combined with herbal medicine, has been used for centuries to treat some causes of infertility. For example, acupuncture and herbs will not work to address tubal adhesions which can occur as a result of pelvic inflammatory disease or endometriosis. However, in this situation, an individual could still benefit from acupuncture and herbs because of the potential effect of improved ovarian and follicular function. Additionally, it is shown that acupuncture can increase blood flow to the endom...

Yin and Yang & Methods of diagnosis

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Yin and Yang  The Chinese Yin and Yang symbol expresses the delicate balance of dark (Yin) and light (Yang), which embraces all opposites: female and male, cold and heat, passive and active, repose and motion. The black and white dots show the flow of one aspect into another. Methods of diagnosis Traditional Chinese doctors diagnose patients mainly by checking his/her appearance, tongue and pulse. Some small problems which western doctors usually neglect may suggest a lot for a Chinese doctor. For example, continual black circle under eyes may suggest bad function of spleen. Too much sweat can detect some serious problems at an early stage.

Introduction of traditional Chinese medicine

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Acupuncture points Acupuncture originated in china and the basis Chinese concept of disease is that it entails an imbalance in the system of energy flow within the body. Treatment in intended to restore equilibrium, and may include acupuncture or/and herbal medicine. Basic concepts of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) approach for health Holistic The cause of a disorder is not necessarily located in the region of the symptom. Therefore our physiological irregularities, psychological factors and general character are observed to identify a “pattern of disharmony”, which presides over any injury into cause and effect. Preventative TCM diagnoses and treats energy imbalances before they become physical. To prevent conditions from arising, we are encouraged to adopt a healthy living timetable and recommend some good activities that are supportive to good health. Natural TCM uses the natural healing forces or our body to help eliminate illnesses. Symptoms of disease are not ...