Care Cure Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine

How to Treat Allergies with Traditional Chinese Medicine by Bill Schoenbart and Ellen Shefi All ergies occur when the body's immune system misidentifies a normally harmless substance as a threat to the body. Common allergens (substances that produce allergic reactions) are foods, pollen, animal dander, mold, insect venom, drugs, and dust mites. An inflammatory reaction takes place in an attempt to eject this substance from the system, resulting in a variety of symptoms. A traditional Chinese medical treatment for pollen allergies, or hay fever , follows. Causes of Allergies Several Chinese patterns of disharmony may be involved in cases of allergies. In all cases, however, wind is part of the diagnosis, usually combining with another pathogenic influence in wind dampness, wind cold, or wind heat. Typical of patterns involving wind, allergy symptoms often occur without warning. In seasonal allergies, such as hay fever, the most common diagnosis is wind and dampness. This co...

The menopause is something all women go through. It signals a change in the body and a transition into another stage of life. This is a difficult time both mentally and physically and many women suffer during this time, but there are things that can be done to ease them through it and make it a little easier. What is the menopause?   In women around the age of 50, the menstrual cycle occurs less regularly and finally stops completely. This is the menopause. Some may notice such symptoms and signs as sensations of heat in the body, hot flushes, abnormal perspiration, night sweats, restlessness, irritability, palpitations, insomnia, dizziness, tinnitus, and lumbar soreness, weakness of the knees, constipation, oedema, loose stools and abnormal emotions close to or after menopause. The age at which the menopause occurs varies. However, it is usually between the ages of 45 and 55. Symptoms may last on average for up to 2 years, but as many as 20 per cent of women may experience sym...

What is Hay Fever? Hay fever (or allergic Rhinitis) is a seasonal disease occurring most commonly from late April to the end of September. The main symptoms, depending on the individual nature and their environment, include sneezing, running nose, itchy eyes, headache, sore throat, coughing, thirsty, feverishness, restlessness and general lethargy. What is cause of Hay Fever? According to Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), hay fever is classified as exogenous wind heat with superficial syndrome. People who have a hot body constitution easily suffer from hay fever in the warm and hot summer weather as the combination of external heat and internal heat create hay fever symptoms. On the contrary ， people who have cold body constitution and suffer from arthritis will feel better in this warm weather. The causes of hay fever are summarised as follows: 1. The British diet is often high in fat and heat. People eat a great quantity of high calorie food such as curry, chocolate, dair...

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...

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...

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...