TCM & Accupuncture
Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture are some of the oldest and best-established medical practices available today. Chinese Herbal medicine employs an extensive arsenal of predominantly plant pharmaceuticals, to treat a great variety of disorders and diseases. Diagnosis plays a central role in Chinese Medicine. The aim is to draw a full picture of the patient’s health condition by carefully investigating all symptoms; past medical and family history; lifestyle and diet; behaviour of all the different systems in the body; sleep patterns and emotional states, as well as objective findings in patient's pulse, tongue and face. Diagnosis and treatment are unique to each patient's individual clinical circumstances.
Acupuncture makes use of the fascial and nervous system interconnections - energy channels or meridians, which link all the body tissues in an organic whole. The acupuncture points are the most active areas of the meridians, which regulate the functional state of the nearby structures. By inserting needles in the acupuncture points and stimulating them in a specific way, acupuncture regulates the activity of the body area local to where the needles are inserted, or changes the way the entire body system works. The effect of acupuncture is felt immediately, so as a treatment, it can be extremely beneficial for conditions with acute symptoms of pain, tension, fever, coughing, indigestion, exhaustion and others. In the long term, acupuncture can be used to gently build up general health and prevent serious diseases developing.
Accupuncture Points
Acupuncture Points are the high energetic (electric, electromagnetic, thermal, sound, mechanical, etc.) conductance points on the acupuncture meridians where the flow of energy (Qi) can be most easily influenced. Measuring electrical skin resistance, we find that all these points have a lower resistance than the surrounding skin. In 1991 a Superconducting Quantum Interference Device was used to map the lines of the force fields of electromagnetic energy generated by the human body. They were found to correspond exactly with the acupuncture meridians and acupuncture points, the way documented by the Chinese over five thousand years ago. Acupuncture treatment commonly involves needling of the acupuncture points by an acupuncturist in order to regulate the energetic state of meridians and treat a wide variety of health complains. Acupuncture points can also be stimulated by finger pressure (acupressure), electricity (electro-acupuncture, TENS), magnets, light (laserpuncture), heat, as well as subtle energies (Reiki and other energy healing).
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Chinese Herbal Medicine
Chinese Herbal medicine has thousands of years of history, gradually evolving into a well systematized, precise clinically effective modality. Chinese Herbal pharmacology is one of the oldest and richest to date, encompassing over 5000 medicinals, mainly plant but also some animal and mineral products. Herbal formulae are tailor-made to treat patient’s specific medical condition. Most commonly they are taken as decoctions or infusions, but can also be made into creams, ointments or pills.
Chinese herbs can be used to treat any health condition, both acute and chronic. They are essential part in the treatment of conditions in which strengthening and nourishing are requires – Blood, Energy (Qi), Essence, Yin and Yang tonic formulae. Often herbal treatments are combined with acupuncture to achieve faster and better therapeutic results.
Cupping
Cupping is sometimes used to clear away stagnation and congestion in the soft tissues and meridians, by placing a vacuumed jar on the body surface. It is another age-old treatment excellent for arthritic and muscle pain as well as for colds and flu.
Conditions Appropriate for Acupuncture Therapy
The World Health Organization, the health branch of the United Nations, lists more than 40 conditions for which acupuncture may be used.
Digestive
Abdominal pain
Constipation
Diarrhea
Hyperacidity
Indigestion
Emotional
Anxiety
Depression
Insomnia
Nervousness
Neurosis
Ear-Eye-Nose-Throat
Cataracts
Gingivitis
Poor vision
Tinnitis
Toothache
Respiratory
Asthma
Bronchitis
Common cold
Sinusitis
Smoking cessation
Tonsillitis
Musculoskeletal
Arthritis
Back pain
Muscle cramping
Muscle pain/weakness
Neck pain
Sciatica
Gynecological
Infertility
Menopausal symptoms
Premenstrual syndrome
Neurological
Headaches and Migraines
Neurogenic bladder dysfunction
Parkinson's disease
Postoperative pain
Stroke
Miscellaneous
Addiction control
Athletic performance
Blood pressure regulation
Chronic fatigue
Immune system tonification
Stress reduction
Source: World Health Organization. Viewpoint on Acupuncture. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization, 1979.