Tag: Qi

Acupuncture and Western Medicine

Nearly all of us have grown up with the same kind of medical treatments, and go to the doctor when we have a sore throat or a sore foot. American doctors, and in general, western medicine, have always been interested in the structure of the body, and how each individual organ structure should look when it is healthy. The tools western medicine have developed have been to see these structures better: the microscope, MRIs, and the x-ray camera. In contrast, Chinese medicine, the basis for acupuncture, has been interested in how natural forces, functioning both externally and internally, have affected people. Chinese medicine developed an understanding about how the circulation of blood and energy (called Qi) affect the state of health, and how seasons, emotions, and weather may disturb these flows. The result of this is that western medicine has developed a remarkable array of solutions based on anatomy, whereas the science behind acupuncture has developed many applications of a few basic principles based on physiology.

This study of health also is reflected in the analysis of body chemistry. Western medicine is again interested in the structure of many different fluids, and can tell you what the normal range for sodium ions is, or what shape red blood cells should and should not be. Chinese medicine and acupuncture focuses on Qi energy, the circulation of Qi, polarities (such as Yin and Yang), climatic conditions, and the connection between physical substances and energy. Chinese medicine considers fluids and tissues important, but mainly for their reactions to the more fundamental processes.

Western medicine also differs in a view of acceptable treatment. This can be seen by looking at how a viral infection is treated, where the main problem is the virus. Once the virus is rendered harmless, the patient is viewed as cured. In some special cases, such as transplant patients or HIV positive patients, there is considerable effort taken to address the immune system as well. The philosophy behind acupuncture considers that the most likely reason that the virus was able to flourish in the patient is due to an imbalance in the patient’s physical or emotional state, their personal habits, and possibly the climate. The virus is addressed, but the entire well being of the patient is much more important.

Another difference is in the way that Chinese medicine views emotional and mental problems. These have traditionally always been a part of any acupuncture diagnosis and treatment. An emotional imbalance may be a cause for a physical ailment, however, this is not looked upon as a “psychosomatic disorder” and dismissed. This emotional imbalance can also be treated with acupuncture, in order to restore the correct flow of energy, and hence the physical ailment and emotional ailment will both be addressed and treated. Western medicine has only started to treat mental illness as a component of physical health in the last thirty years, and again, by relying on such things as blood analysis.

Chinese medicine, acupuncture, and western medicine have all made great contributions to the healing arts. They come from two distinctly different viewpoints and methods of practice. Hopefully this discussion has given some insight into the differences between the two, and a starting point for thought the next time a health problem needs to be addressed.

Yin and Yang and Acupuncture

The ancient Chinese considered harmony to be the goal of our lives as individuals, and also as a society. When harmony is disturbed in our physical or emotional lives, it is restored by the use of acupuncture. Harmony is a continual balancing act between opposites: opposites in color, in energy, in actions, etc. This idea of opposites is seen even in the west with such ideas as positive and negative ions in chemistry and physics. The Chinese denote the opposite ends of each idea as “yin” and “yang”. They are not opposed to each other, but are the ultimate in each direction. For example, rest is Yin and exercise is Yang, or Yin is cold winter and Yang is hot summer. Life would not be in balance if it were entirely exercise or entirely rest, and so balance of Yin and Yang produces harmony. Notice that Yang is the active, warm, excitable, aggressive side, whereas the corresponding opposite Yin is restful, cool, calming, and passive.

Acupuncture is concerned with the optimal flow of the energy Qi. Harmony is disturbed by a lack of balance, and a lack of balance will constrict or overemphasize the flow of Qi at various points in the body. The acupuncture practitioner has four sets of diagnostic features, each of which have a yin end and a yang end. Three of these are specific: hot and cold, interior and exterior, and excess and deficiency. So, for example, someone who spends all of their time inside eating sweets has at least two imbalances that can be noted by the acupuncture practitioner. There is also a fourth, general set, for any other features that should be noted in the acupuncture diagnosis that are not covered by the first three: for example, an unusually passive person. A harmonious personality should have a balance between aggressiveness and passivity, each at the appropriate times.

It may be surprising that the treatment of acupuncture takes mental and emotional states into account, but the goal of acupuncture is to restore harmony to the whole person. A number of imbalances may not have caused a physical health problem, but rather such symptoms as strife within the family, a tendency to cry easily, or other social or emotional symptom. These are strong indicators and also need to be addressed.

The goal of is to restore harmony and redirect Qi energy to its normal flow. This energy is active and always moving, and hence has Yang qualities. So, if you were an acupuncture practitioner and had a client who noticed they where being unusually aggressive and angry lately, you would suspect a buildup in energy at some organ in the body. Whereas, if someone were depressed and listless, that would be an indication of a deficiency of energy at some organ or organs in the body. This, along with a diagnosis of physical symptoms, would give the best acupuncture treatment to address this.

So, by organizing objects, actions, conditions, and other attributes of life into “Yin” and “Yang”, the acupuncture practitioner can more easily fit mental, social, and emotional issues into the overall treatment plan for each of the clients. The method of acupuncture is to restore the normal flow of Qi, which in turn will restore harmony and balance into the patient’s life.

The Development of Acupuncture

Chinese medicine is thousands of years old. The earliest recorded use of acupuncture is from the reign of the Yellow Emperor, and is supposed to be from about 2600 BC. The ancient Chinese noticed that certain areas of the skin became more sensitive when a person had a certain health problem. Over time, the Chinese started recording the location of the sensitive areas for a particular symptom or set of symptoms. These areas were associated with the internal organs whose malfunction caused that particular symptom. When outlines of the human body were drawn, these sensitive points were connected in ways to explain the functioning of the human body. The functioning of the body includes the various major organs of the body, and also the entire functional system, including the energy for the organ.

Looking at a text on acupuncture, there will be a number of spots, which relate to the sensitive areas described above. There will also be lines, or “meridians”, which connect the various organs and indicate how the energy of the organs flow from one to another. The concept of energy (the “Qi”) is fundamental to the application of acupuncture. According to the Chinese, we are given a certain amount of Qi at birth, and this is dissipated by daily living, and restored by ingesting food and air. In the foundation of acupuncture, the imbalance of this energy at various points in the body is the cause of illness. The absence of this energy at some point is death. The Qi circulates through the body in a cycle, moving from meridian to meridian and organ to organ. This energy is constantly moving, dissipating, and being restored.

The use of the needles in acupuncture is to affect the energy level, and so the functioning, of an organ by stimulating or reducing its action. Some organs respond more directly and quickly than others, such as the liver. Acupuncture can be used for pain control, for stress relief, and for a multitude of other physical symptoms and diseases.

China was where the technique of acupuncture and its medical foundations began. Japan also has an extensive history of acupuncture as an accepted and effective treatment for their people. Japanese acupuncture has the same foundations as Chinese acupuncture, but several interesting differences in technique. Acupuncture traveled to Europe in the seventeenth century, being brought back by Jesuit missionaries who had lived in Beijing. Acupuncture did not receive wide acceptance at that point, though there were pockets of practitioners in several places in the West. Acupuncture got significant attention here only when M. Morant from France published many writings on acupuncture in the 1940s. The detail and volume of his writings caught the attention of western physicians, who started considering it for pain control.

Currently, acupuncture is widely accepted by western physicians in several categories, including pain control and stress relief. Indeed, for some operations no anesthesia is needed at all, just the services of an acupuncturist. This is a distinct advantage, in that the normal operation of the patient’s organs is not altered by an artificial anesthetic. This work in the west has caused new interest and study in the land where acupuncture originated, in China. They have discovered many old, previously unknown texts, and are working on extending the applications. It is an exciting time for the field of acupuncture.

Acupuncture: A gain to the well Individual?

Do you ever feel like you know just enough about alternative medicine to be dangerous? Let’s see if we can fill in some of the gaps with the latest info from alternative medicine experts.
Acupuncture: A gain to the well Individual?

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Summary:
Before we begin a discussion about the benefits of acupuncture, lets talk about the origins of acupuncture. It was first used in China over 2000 years ago, and is one of the oldest medical procedures in the world. It is a family of procedures that stimulates the anatomy of the body and helps to b

Keywords:
acupuncture, health

Fairy tale Body:
Before we begin a discussion about the benefits of acupuncture, lets talk about the origins of acupuncture. It was first used in China over 2000 years ago, and is individual of the oldest medical procedures in the world. Live is a family of procedures that stimulates the anatomy of the body and helps to balance the energy flow throughout the body. It is this kind of acupuncture that is practiced in the United Sates today, through the use of tiny, metallic needles placed in affected areas and manipulated by hand or by electrical stimulation.
Acupuncture is the mere foundation for Traditional Chinese Medicine and is based on the belief that there are two incompatible and inseparable forces within our body. They are known because the Yin and Yang of the entire person. The Yin is representative of the cold, slow, or drowsy principle, and yang represents the hot, excited or active principle. A healthy state is achieved by maintaining a balance state of the yin and yang. This is done through vital pathways or meridians that allow for the flow of qi, or vital energy. The vital energy flow occurs along pathways known as meridians. These meridians connect over 2, 000 acupuncture points along the body. There are 12 main meridians, and 8 secondary meridians. Although traditional western medicine does not completely understand how acupuncture works, the proof that it does work has been shown in several studies conducted by western medical facilities.
Now, lets shift to the question of does existent work? According to the National Set about of Health, the answer would be yes. Acupuncture has been shown to be effective in many areas of health care. Areas such as postoperative nausea, chemotherapy side effects, osteoarthritis, low – back pain, headache, menstrual cramps, addiction, carpal tunnel syndrome, and asthma, just to name a few. The study revealed that acupuncture was able to provide pain relief, improve function and mobility of joints due to arthritis inflammation, again served to complement standard care.
Although there are many who would doubt the effectiveness of acupuncture, once they are a patient, they are believers. It has been proposed that acupuncture works and produces its effects through regulating the nervous arrangement. The theory proposes that since acupuncture produces its effect through regulation of the jittery system, existent induces the release of endorphins and unsusceptible system cells at individualizing sites on the body. There is also the theory that acupuncture alters the brain chemistry by the changing the neurotransmitters in the brain.
Without doubt acupuncture was a profit in the study, and as a patient myself, I can vouch in that the wonderful effect it has had on my back. Although acupuncture is classified as an alternative medicine therapy, and there is quiescent much to be understood about the way it works, it is a proven aid in maintaining optimal health.
But what about the well distinct, can acupuncture provide a benefit to them? Absolutely. Because acupuncture works off the assurance that we exigency maintain balance of our name-of-the-game energy flow in order to remain healthy, acupuncture serves as the tool over realignment. Our vital racket flow can be out of balance, and we still feel and appear quite healthy. It is in this capacity that acupuncture serves as a sort of surety medicine. Checking and balancing the flow of energy on the meridian points significance your body is like your car receiving a tune – up before it is in devoir of a repair. get more health and fitness articles at http://www.anabolic.ca and http://www.takingsteroids.com

Now you can understand why there’s a growing interest in alternative medicine. When people start looking for more information about alternative medicine, you’ll be in a position to meet their needs.