It began in China over four thousand years ago. But its methods have no geographic bounds. Today, it is practiced the world over. Chinese herbs do not only come from China, they come from everywhere. For example, Cinnamon from Vietnam, cardamom from India, and even American ginseng from Wisconsin are now Chinese herbs.

The oldest known book about Chinese Medicine is The Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic. It was compiled before 200 BC. It's a summary of medical ideas and techniques that were in use long before the second century BC.

Today, Chinese Medicine has expanded far beyond the Inner Classic. Countless variations and innovations have appeared. But some principles are unchanging. These root principles, such as yin and yang, describe natural laws, the laws your body must ultimately obey. These root principles endow Chinese Medicine with a unique knowledge making it, in some ways, far more evolved than modern technological medicine.

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Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is more than 2,000 years old. The earliest medical text, The Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic also was known as Plain Questions and the Canon of Acupuncture . The book, summarizes and systematizes the previous millenia of medical experience and deals with the anatomy and physiology of the human body. This work lays the foundation for TCM.

Later important books also represent milestones in the history of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). They include:

The Herbal is the earliest classic on herbs. This materia medica was handed down from the Qin and Han dynasties (221 B.C--220 A.D.). It is the summary of pharmaceutical knowledge known before the Han. It discuss 365 kinds of drugs and offers the pharmacological theory of "jun, chen, zuo and shi " (monarch, minister, assistant and guide) indicating the actions of drugs in a prescription,"

Treatise on Febrile Diseases and Miscellaneous Diseases Zhang Zhongjing, (300 A.D) Differentiates febrile diseases according to the theory of six channels, miscellaneous diseases according to pathological changes of viscera and. Establishes diagnosis based on overall analysis of signs and symptoms. Its 269 prescriptions make up the basis for modern clinical practice.

Classic of Acupuncture and Moxibustion Huang Fumi (215--282 A.D.), 12 volumes, 128 chapters. The earliest classic specific to acupuncture and moxibustion in China. It summarizes information on the channels and collaterals, acupuncture points, needle manipulation, and contraindication. It lists the total number of the acupoints as 349, and discusses the therapeutic properties of each point.

General Treatise on the Causes and Symptoms of Disease 610 A.D., Chao Yuanfang, together with others. The earliest classic on etiology and syndrome. 50 volumes, divided into 67 categories, and list 1,700 syndromes. It expounds on the pathology, signs and symptoms of various diseases, surgery, gynecology, and pediatrics .

Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold for Emergencies Sun Simiao 581--682 A.D 30 volumes and 5,300 prescriptions. Also deals with acupuncture, moxibustion, diet therapy, prevention, and health preservation. Outstanding treatment of deficiency diseases.

The Medical Secrets of An Official Wang Tao 752 A.D. 40 volumes, introduces 6,000 prescriptions. A master's compendium of prescriptions available before the Tang dynasty.

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Chinese medicine is about qi. We study where it comes from, where it goes, and how it flows. Your body is nourished by, cleansed by, and dependent on flows. Think of your qi as all your body's energies, electrical, chemical, magnetic, and radiant.

Matter and energy, (flesh and qi), are governed by natural law. Natural forces such as gravity, time, inertia, friction, yin, and yang, all affect us, inside and out.

Qi must flow. Movement shows that qi exists. Warmth shows that qi is present.

There are many kinds of qi. There's qi of the channels and qi of the collateral channels, protective qi, digestive qi, central qi, and original qi. There's normal qi and perverse qi, kidney qi and lung qi and liver qi (every organ has its own qi).

Qi and blood nourish the body. Qi moves the blood, and blood is mother of the qi.

Normal flows of qi and blood are the basics of good health. When they are abundant and flowing, we are well. When blood or qi is weak or stuck, we become ill.

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Yin and Yang describe change.

Yin and Yang refer to the sides of a mountain.
In the morning, one side is in shade, the other in sunlight.
Later in the day, the sides have reversed.
Dark becomes light and light becomes dark.

Nature is like this, forever changing, undulating. In time, Yang turns to Yin. Yin predictably becomes Yang.

Change is certain, a basic law of nature you can count on, like gravity.

Yang and Yin support one another as they oppose each other. There is always yin within yang and yang within yin. You simply can' t have one without the other.

We see the body and its disharmonies in changing shades of Yin and Yang. This helps to understand where events come from and where they are going to.

This helps to understand the disease and the patient.

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Much of our body's energy flows along fourteen major channels and numerous minor channels. These flows influence the flow of all our body's fluids and energies.

Each one of these flows passes through and influences an internal organ. Typically, these rivers of energy are named according to the internal organs which they nourish. Thus we have the Liver Channel, Stomach Channel, Heart channel, etc.. To the acupuncturist, these channels provide access to the internal organs. Most of the 500 or so acupuncture points lie on major channels.

Acupuncture points are used to regulate flow along these channels. The most powerful points on these channels lie on the extremities - below the elbows and knees. Five powerful points on the extremity of each channel are known as the five Shu points. They are likened to the flow of water and named the source points, well points, stream points, river points, and sea points.

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n Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the internal organs have the same familiar names as those we know - heart, liver, kidney etc. However in TCM these 'organs' include more than the flesh and blood of the viscera. Some of the organs also perform tasks which are not perceived by current instrumentation or understood in the West.

As Chinese medicine is largely about energy (qi), many of the organs involve the production, circulation, and storage of energy. To the Chinese doctor, the normal biological function of an organs is often secondary to how the organ is functioning in the creation or circulation of Qi. When the qi is normal, the organ will behave normally.

Chinese medical theory groups the organs into Yin/ Yang pairs. The Yin organs - the heart, spleen, lungs, kidneys, and liver are called the Zang are considered most important, structurally solid, and primarily responsible for the creation and storage of Qi and Blood.

The Yang organs, large intestine, small intestine, stomach, gall bladder, and urinary bladder are called the Fu and are considered less important. They are the hollow organs, responsible mainly for digestion transportation, and elimination.

There is another pair of organs which have energetic functions, yet have no physical reality. These are referred to as the Pericardium and Triple-Heater.

Functions of the Organs

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A Storm in the Mountains and the Valley is Flooded


Parts of the body are interdependent. The heart depends on the lungs for oxygen. If the kidneys don't work, all the organs suffer. The Five Elements help us understand these relationships. According to this principle, there exist five elemental types. They are known as Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, and Wood.

Each type corresponds to a major organ system. Fire corresponds to the Heart, Earth the Spleen, Metal the Lungs, Water the Kidneys, and Wood to the Liver. Each type also has a characteristic taste, color, body odor, or emotion. Some of these correspondences are:

1 - Fire/Red/Heart/Joy/Bitter/Scorched (acrid)
2 - Earth/Yellow/Stomach/Spleen/Worry/Sweet/Fragrant
3 - Metal/White/Lungs/Grief/Hot/Fleshy
4 - Water/Black/Kidneys/Fear/Salty/Putrid
5 - Wood/Green/Liver/Anger/Sour/Rancid

Each element relates to the other according to two cycles of influence- the generating cycle (clockwise) and the checking cycle. Disharmony in one element will create disharmony in others according to these cycles.

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Another way to see disharmony is according to the Eight Principles. These are four Yin / Yang conditions that assess the nature and location of the disharmony. Then, the treatment plan is usually simple - strengthen what is weak, cool the hot, moisten the dry, and so forth. These pairs are:

EXCESS/ DEFICIENT (shi/xu) Simply put, too much or too little. These terms describe both the disease and the patient. Sudden illness is excess. Chronic illness suggests deficiency. Symptoms of excess are stronger or more pronounced than those caused by deficiency. A severe sore throat suggests wind-heat excess (viral), while a persistent scratchy throat implies heat cause by a deficiency of coolness (yin).

INSIDE/ OUTSIDE (interior/exterior) Does the disharmony originate inside the body, or is it invading from the exterior? Diseases caused by deficiency, emotion, or stagnation are Interior. Airborne viruses, bacterial infections, or other pestilential diseases are Exterior. Exterior diseases can penetrate the body and become Interior disease.

HOT/ COLD People can be hot and cold. And just as it can be hot in Miami and cold in Siberia, the Liver can be hot while the Kidney is cold. Disease can also be called hot or cold according to the way it affects the body.

DAMP/ DRY Because life loves water, excessive dampness inside the body helps microscopic life such as bacteria, virus, fungus, etc to breed. Because your body is a whole world, you can have damp-heat in the south (a bladder infection) and dry conditions in the north (dandruff) Swollen tissue, excess phlegm or other fluids are also examples dampness. Dryness indicates a scarcity of fluids. Causes of dryness are Blood or Yin deficiency. Excessive heat scorches the yin fluids and leads to dryness. Prolonged exposure to dry weather will cause dryness inside the body as well.

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Emotions mingle in the mind/body with countless other currents. They affect the flow and rhythm of our organism by influencing the qi. The qi directly affects the organs.

When emotions are intense, they change our body in profound ways. The emotions correspond to the organs and the five elements. For example,

Joy (or a lack of it) is associated with the Heart (fire),
sadness (over contemplation) the Spleen/Stomach (earth),
grief the Lungs (metal),
fear the Kidneys (water),
anger the Liver (wood).

Strong emotions pervert the qi to create disease. Fear or anger lead to constraint of qi, which results in depression, stagnation, and a multitude of physical ailments.

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Disclaimer: The information provided on HealthFactor.co.uk Online Shop is for educational purposes only and IS NOT intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek professional medical advice from your physician or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.