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Chinese Medicine
Chinese traditional medicine: First Choice or Last Resort
Chinese herbal medicine: Top Chinese medicines
Acupuncture andTraditional Chinese Medicine: First Choice or Last Resort
You’re my last chance, doc.” “I’ve tried everything” As an acupuncturist for 25 years, I’ve heard that too many times. I can’t blame people, Oriental medicine may be very old, but in America, it’s new. People just don’t know about it, and what they do know might sound very strange, and let’s face it, the idea of someone sticking needles in you is a little scary.
Though acupuncture and Chinese medicine are now available almost everywhere in the USA, people just don’t think of trying it first. In some states they can’t try it first, because acupuncturists have to practice under the authority of an MD, and the few insurance policies that cover it require that it be prescribed by a doctor. But in California and several other states, acupuncturists are licensed as primary care physicians. In these and other states, you can see us first. If your problem is beyond our capability, we’ll refer you to an MD.
Acupuncture has been shown to be good for many condtions. Infertiliy for one. Studies such as Auricular acupuncture in the treatment of female infertility done at the University of Heidelberg in 1982, showed acupuncture to be more effective for infertility than hormone therapy and had no side effects.
Acupuncture helps reduce drug addiction. A placebo controlled study at the University of Michigan provided strong evidence that acupuncture could greatly enhance the success of alcoholic and drug abuse support programs.
Acupuncture can relieve angina pain. In 1992, at the Human College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 40 patients with angina were assessed during and after acupuncture treatments. After 7 treatments 63% of the patients' angina were alleviated both in extent, area, and duration of attack.
This doesn't mean you should see your acupuncturist first if you have chest pain. On the contrary, see your MD first if you have chest pain. The question arises as to which problems are best seen first by your acupuncturist or herbalist and which are not, It's my personal experience, and some of it is backed up by good research, that it makes sense to use Chinese medicine and acupuncture first for common colds, both food and airborn allergies, infertility, nausea and simple digestive problems, insomnia, hair loss, mild to moderate depression, back pain, arthritis, eczema, acne, psoriasis, substance abuse, and fatigue.
The Common Cold
The common cold accounts for more doctor visits than any other ailment. But just what can your doctor do for a cold? Nothing - or worse.
Some doctors, despite knowing better, still prescribe antibiotics that will be ineffective and have possible unwanted effects. They do it because the patient wants something, anything, to relieve their suffering. Doctors may rationalize, or I’d say fantasize, that a bacterial infection might be present for which the antibiotics might be effective.
Chinese medicine has not cured the common cold, but has come a lot closer.
In 1798 Dr. Wu Ju Tong published the herbal formula for Yin Chiao. Since then, daily use by millions of people over two hundred years is proof enough for me that this herbal masterpiece has probably relieved, shortened, or even stopped more colds than all Western drugs combined. Yin Chiao and several other Chinese cold remedies have done this reliably and with absolute safety for both children and adults.
Why haven’t we heard about it till now? Maybe good new travels slowly; maybe no one was paying attention; maybe drug companies can’t make a profit on an herbal remedy.
Remedies like Yin Chiao and its younger companion Gan Mao Ling, have found their way to your local natural food store. When you start to get your next cold, try them first, before running to your doctor. And don’t wait too long, the sooner you take these herbal remedies, the better they work. To learn more about this little known wonder visit www.yinchiao.com.
Reducing Stress
Acupuncture is a remarkable stress reliever. Modern society creates stress at almost every moment of our waking dat. Job insecurity, relationships, and the innumerable choices we must make, what to wear, where to go, what to do, all create stress in our lives. According to the Government's Health and Safety Executive (HSE), a total of 12.8 million working days were lost to stress, depression and anxiety in 2005. Research by JC Butler et al (2005) was conducted on 55 patients suffering from stress-related emotional disorders. All patients were treated with acupuncture for the condition and the total effective rate for the reduction of symptoms was 95.4%. If simple stress is causing you sleeplessness or anxiety, acupuncture can make tranquilizers and sleeping pills unnecessary. Why go down the road of addicting or dangerous drugs? Anyone who's tried it knows that acupuncture is comforting, and extremely safe. A pilot study cited in The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, June 2007.shows that acupuncture may also help people with posttraumatic stress disorder.
Infertility
Infertility is an increasingly common problem as more women in their thirties and forties try to get pregnant. Your doctor has only highly technical and very expensive procedures like In Vitro Fertilization to offer. Even if you do try IVF, a study at the University of Texas found that TCM increases your chances of success by as much as 50%. Aside from this study and the ones mentioned previously, the reality also is that most women in China will try a Chinese remedy for gynocological problems before seeking expensive Western medical help.
All this is not to say that you should try TCM first for every disease or suspected condition. Chinese medical doctors, despite some claims, cannot diagnose or cure cancer. TCM cannot look inside you or analyze your blood. High blood pressure, for example, is a serious killer, yet ancient Chinese doctors were not aware of it and had no way to measure it.
If you have or suspect a serious medical condition, see your doctor first. Modern medicine is the best kind of health care for diagnosing these conditions. Western medicine deserves our respect, yet TCM has survived for thousands of years perfecting itself and is not going away. If you want the best in health care, learn about both of these medical alternatives. Then choose where to go first.
A Patient's Guide to Chinese Medicine
by Joel Harvey Schreck
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copyright Joel Harvey Schreck 2009
excerpted from A Patient's Guide to Chinese Medicine by Joel Harvey Schreck
published by Bay Tree Publications, Point Richmond Califirnia
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