About Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)

What is TCM?

Traditional Chinese Medicine is the oldest, continuously practiced, professional and literate medicine in the world. By basing treatment on patterns, which are groupings of signs and symptoms, rather than by disease, it allows the practit-ioner to treat the whole person. This fact also makes it the oldest 'holistic' medicine in the world with a history of more than 2500 years.

Chinese medicine is divided into 8 distinct yet interrelated branches:

1. Mindfulness
2. Diet
3. Exercise
4. Astrology
5. Feng Shui
6. Acupuncture
7. Chinese Medicinals
8. Tui Na Massage

Components of Chinese Medicine

The first three components (mindfulness, diet and exercise) are considered preliminary to all the others and should be addressed before using the more invasive procedures of acupuncture, Chinese medicinals, or massage.

The first three can also be addressed by a person in the privacy of the own home and should comprise 70% of the treatment being given. Acupuncture, medicinal therapy, and Tui Na therapy, however, should compromise only about 30% of total treatment.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is the act of centering for a specific amount of time everyday to relieve stress and re-connect back to our origins as human beings. It may consist of meditation, centering prayer, or simply listening stress reduction music. Done on a daily basis, it increases the Yin component of our bodies and can help us live longer healthier lives.

Diet

According to Sun Si-miao, a very famous and important 5th century Chinese medical doctor, diet is one of the three most important aspects of Chinese medicine. If a person did not spontaneously recover after regulating a person's lifestyle, including diet, work habits, and meditation, then methods like acupuncture or medicinals should be used. A standard TCM-style diet looks very much like the pyramid food plan adopted by the Surgeon General's office in the late 80's and 90's, with the primary emphasis on whole grains, fresh lightly cooked vegetables, and a minimal amount of meat and spices.

Exercise

Exercise can be anything that forces us to use our bodies and increases our heart rates. It may be gymnastics, aerobic training, swimming, running and/or walking, yoga, martial arts, etc. Since qi (pronounced "chee") is the fundamental essence of our being, and since Liver Depression Qi Stagnation, a major complicating pathological pattern, occurs within almost every adult, qi needs to be regularly 'coursed and discharged' in order for it to function appropriately. Exercise is one way to help ensure the proper rectification and regulation of the qi in our bodies.

Astrology & Feng Shui

Although no longer a part of TCM medicine in any formal way, these two aspects of our lives also need to be watched and nurtured. If astrology is considered the timing of our lives and feng shui the spatial element in our lives, it is easily seen why living harmoniously within our space-time environment would be important to our day-to-day health. We all know that, when we are pushing too hard and too fast to get something done or have waited until the last minute to do it, we put our minds-bodies-emotions under tremendous stress. Also living in an environment that 'clashes' or feels 'uncomfortable' can lead to stress. According to Western studies, stress is a major contributing factor to many of the illnesses that we face as Western people. Reducing our stress can then improve our immune systems and may actually help us live longer happier and healthier lives.

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is a treatment method using the insertion of thin filiform needles into specifically identified points of the body in order to help rebalance biological energies. The underlying belief in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is that illness is an expression of an imbalance of physiological energies, whether they are engendered by external pathogens or internal stresses. The insertion of needles can redirect and rebalance these energies to allow a movement towards regaining health.

Chinese Medicinals

The administration of Chinese medicinals is probably the most frequently prescribed method of treatment used in modern China, especially for complex, internal illnesses like autoimmune disorders, allergies, or mental-emotional disorders.

Throughout Asia, (China, Japan, Korea, etc.), Chinese medicinals are used side-by-side with Western pharmaceuticals for treating most of the illnesses treatable by Western medicine. Chinese medicinals are very effective when prescribed in its traditional manner.

Formulas are made from groupings of 3 to 25 medicinals, tailored for each unique individual in such a way as to alleviate the condition and mitigate potential side effects. Their effectiveness has been proven by literally up to 2500 years of clinical practice. Formulas can be taken as raw medicinals that are decocted into water, wine, or tea or powdered and mixed with honey or other binders to form pills. They are also presently available as powdered or tinctured extracts, which can then be placed into capsules or vials for administration.

Modern China has placed conservation laws into effect in order to protect endangered species from being made extinct because of their medicinal value. An example of this is the Tiger Bone, which is a very powerful medicinal for atrophy or arthritic syndromes. Since the tiger is an endangered species, the tiger bone has been replaced by water buffalo bone that acts in almost the same way.

Tui Na Massage

Tui Na (pronounced "two-AY nah") is a traditional adjunctive therapy in both the treatment of and prevention of disease. Tui Na literally means push and hold. It can be used in painful syndromes, abdominal and digestive complaints, women's and men's issues, colds and flus, and many other types of illnesses. It is based upon channel and muscular meridian theory. There are several techniques that can be used from simple massage techniques to more acupressure styles. Simple tui na techniques can be used by patients at home and can be a powerful adjunctive method in their recovery.

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Benefits of Chinese Medicine

Chinese medicine tends to produce almost no side effects in its treatment of illnesses. It helps people regain full functionality in their lives without having to give up any specific aspect of their daily living.

Chinese medicine can be used to treat many illnesses treatable by Western medicines without invasive surgery or pharmaceutical drugs.

The WHO (World Health Organization) has recognized and recommends acupuncture and moxibustion for the treatment of over 40 types of illness including:

• Internal illness:
  colds, asthma, bronchitis, hypertension, diabetes, hepatitis, digestive disorders, colitis
• Ear-eye-nose-throat disorders:
  deafness, tinnitus, poor eyesight, sinus infections, allergies
• Dermatological disorders:
  eczema, acne, herpes, psoriasis
• Neuro-muscular disorders:
  arthritis, neuralgias, bursitis, tendonitis, headaches, migraines, cerebral palsy, polio
• Reproductive issues:
  infertility, impotence, vaginitis, irregular menstruation, morning sickness
• Mental-emotional disorders:
  anxiety, depression, insomnia, stress

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History of Chinese Medicine

Chinese medicine is the oldest, continuously practiced, professional literate medicine in the world. Imperial schools, which were created to ensure quality and consistency in the teaching of this medicine, date back to about 300 - 400 AD, a practice maintained by the government up through today. These schools practiced side-by-side with the apprenticeship system of learning medicine.

The earliest, still extant written records date back at least 2300 years ago, although literary evidence suggests that these are a continuation of a much older written legacy, dating back prior to 500 BCE, when the then ruling emperor ordered the burning of all books written prior to his reign.

Chinese medicine has developed internally consistent methods of diagnosing, of creating treatment principles, and of prescribing treatment protocols to deal with most known human conditions. Most of the earliest books focused first on how to stay well and then how to treat illnesses; and TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine), to this day, emphasizes prevention above treatment after the fact.

TCM is the form of Chinese medicine taught in modern day China, and is an attempt to coordinate the various schools of treatment that still existing within China. It emphasizes the importance of correct 'pattern' diagnosis, which then leads to the formulation of the proper treatment principles, which then create the correct treatment procedures to restore health.

Over the last 50 years, China has developed very high Standards of Care within the TCM medical community, ensuring the best health care possible for its patients. These standards of care allow for peer review of treatments being performed by a practitioner for accuracy and appropriateness.

Currently in China, TCM is practiced side by side with Western medicine, with the practitioners of each learning the fundamentals of the other style of medicine. This has created a better system of health care than either one of these systems alone.

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