29/06/2020
Moxibustion
The book "Records from famous doctors" says “Silver wormwood are considered to have bitter, warm-natured and non-toxic properties, can treat many diseases.”
Wormwood is an herbaceous plant in the family Asteraceae. Its stems and leaves contain volatile aromatic oils, which can be used in herb medicine to increase the flow of vital energy and eliminate body dampness.
Moxibustion is a form of heat therapy in traditional Chinese medicine. The dried wormwood is usually compressed into sticks to burned indirectly on or very near the acupressure points on the skin to dispel certain pathogenic influences. It is typically administered in conjunction with acupuncture in view the fact that they have similar technique and therapeutic effect. The application of moxibustion started shortly after humans mastered the use of fire in stone age.
Moxibustion and acupuncture were established using Oriental medicine as a basis during the Yin and Zhou Dynasties of China (1500 BC to 700 BC). The Yellow Emperor and his retainers recorded many of their dialogues in an original medical text, called The Inner Canon of Huangdi. This is the world's oldest medical text, composed of sections such as the Basic Questions and the Spiritual Pivot (from approximately 1200 BC), and it records the effects of many drugs and medicines.
Methods such as these had the advantage of simplicity, as well as being the methods best suited to humans. These healing methods have a history of more than 3,000 years. In addition, the gradual addition of acupuncture and moxibustion to mainstream Western medicine is proof of the effectiveness of these healing methods.
Meridian System
Moxibustion is closely related to meridians and acupoints. Meridian system consists of channels and collaterals; they are pathways of communicating internal and external, contacting organs, running qi-blood, and regulating the whole body.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that a person is as a whole. The organs and limbs communicate and interact through the meridian system, which plays a very important role in physiological functions and pathological processes. Acupoints are the sites on the body surface, in which the qi (viral flow) of organs and meridians assembled, that act as target points and response points of treatment.
In the moxibustion treatment process, the acupoints are the terminals of the meridian system, as the receivers, by which moxibustion stimulations can be transmitted into the body. Through the meridian system, moxibustion can reinforce insufficiency and reduce excessiveness and directly correct the disease state of the human body or activate the meridian system self-healing function and play a therapeutic role. For example, the different acupoints can cure different diseases in moxibustion, and the same acupoints can get similar results regardless of acupuncture or moxibustion; all of these proved that the body meridian and acupoint system play an important role in the treatment of moxibustion. (Deng & Shen, 2013)
The thermal stimulation effect of moxibustion can lead to vasodilatation around the point and increase peripheral arterial blood flow and microvascular permeability. Thus, it’s usually used to treat:
• Pain due to injury or arthritis, especially in "cold" patterns where the pain naturally feels better with the application of heat.
• Digestive problems and irregular elimination
• Gynecological and obstetrical conditions, including breech presentation in late term pregnancy
• Protection against cold and flu strains
Practitioners often do both acupuncture and moxibustion in the same clinic session when appropriate to the diagnosis and treatment strategy. Practitioners believe that the therapies increase each other's effectiveness when used together.
Boost your immune system
Moxibustion has been used to boost the immune system for centuries. According to classic Chinese medicine texts, applying indirect moxibustion at acupressure point Zusanli (ST36, bilaterally) and Dazhui (GV14) is an efficient way to boost the immune system.
From the TCM standpoint, the spleen and stomach are the root of acquired constitution. They work together as the acquired source of energy in the body. The spleen and stomach transform the food and drink into energy and then transport it to where it is needed. A well-functioning spleen and stomach are essential for this process. By doing moxibustion on these points, we increase our body’s ability to absorb the nutrients, improves our energy, and ultimately boosts our immune system
Solar terms and moxibustion
Solar Terms is one part of the Chinese Calendar. There are 24 Solar Terms in one year. These Solar Terms are established from the orbits law of the Sun, the Earth, and the Moon. It is the important symbol of the seasonal changes. The special position of the Sun, the Earth, the Moon, and other celestial bodies are always in an irregular, continuous changes.
At the same time, this also cause the energy of the universe to change continuously. While this kind of changes is very obvious volatile before and after of a Soler term. According to the concept of Traditional Chinese Medicine – “The Unity of Human and Nature”, any changes of the “Nature” will inevitably affect the human body.
Solar Terms Moxibustion utilizes the heat stimulation from the of burning wormwood sticks, and the wormwood herb itself to warm the channels and meridians. This is to strengthen and stimulate the vital energy, Qi of the channels; regulating the body potentials energy; transforming the universe energy for body own use; establishing a relation between the human’s balance system and the natural’s system. All these lead to curing of diseases and improving the body’s resistance to disease and adaptability.
The usage for Solar Terms Moxibustion is very wide. It can be used in treatment for various sicknesses and diseases, particularly in the treatment of chronic diseases. This is also a natural and highly effective way of health care. (Acupuncture,2009)
Reference:
Deng H. & Shen X. (2013). The Mechanism of Moxibustion: Ancient Theory and Modern Research
http://newsacupuncture.blogspot.com/2009/09/solar-terms-moxibustion-great-model-of.html
I had mentioned in my earliest post on ‘Introduction to Traditional Chinese Medicine – Part 2‘, explaining about ‘The Unity of Human and Nat...
