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AcupunctureHuman bodies have bloods circulating in blood vessels, lymph fluids flowing within lymphatic system and nerve signals propagating in nerve systems. All those systems are visible anatomically. Though Qi or Chi (the closest English translation is Energy which is easily understandable) meridians system which acupuncture is based on is not salient in modern anatomy, numerous studies have shown acupuncture works probably by affecting chemical neurotransmitters in the body. Meanwhile how Chinese ancestors found those meridians and points still remain a mystery. I personally deem Acupuncture and Chinese Characters are two greatest contributions of Ancient Chinese to the world. With above said, no matter what others say about acupuncture, I firmly believe acupuncture works in various aspects based on my knowledge and experiences. Among all modalities, Acupuncture now is the primary one in western world.
There are dedicated acupuncture techniques such as Auricular Acupuncture, Scalp Acupuncture, Under Skin Acupuncture as well. |
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Chine Herbal MedicinesHuman Chinese herbology definition is wide or could be misleading. While plants are most commonly used substances, other materials such as mineral products and animal organs / skins / bones or even hairs. It is relatively easy to understand why herbs may work because chemical analysis is done on majority of them. One good example is Tu Youyou (2015 Nobel Prize winner in Physiology) and her team discovered artemisinin (Qing Hao Su) used to treat malaria. The foundation is based on a verse (“A handful of qinghao immersed with 2 liters of water, wring out the juice and drink it all”; 青蒿一握。以水二升渍，绞取汁。尽服之) in a classical book《肘后备急方》by Ge Hong (born in 283 AD) in Jin Dynasty. Of course modern pharmaceutical technology is used to extract artemisinin to achieve the final goal. In my opinion, to be a good herbalist, the practitioner needs to understand Chinese and Chinese culture as well. Also I want to clarify that any herbal product has some kind of side effect. Always take herbal products under a licensed professional’s supervision.
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Other Modalities
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