Acupuncture
Cupping
Exercise
Herbs
Massage
Meditation
Moxibustion
Nutrition
Qi Gong
Tai Qi

Chinese medicine has evolved many different ways to treat disease and to maintain health. Some you might not have heard of, for example, moxibustion and cupping. Still others come from a tradition that grew out of the Chinese Medical theory but then developed along its own path, such as Shiatsu.

Nutrition is one that you might think is irrelevant to us, since it is a subject of such interest in the West. But the Chinese attitude to it quite different and has insights that complement our Western Scientific tradition.

Acupuncture
Thin, flexible, non-hypodermic, usually steel needles, sterilised before use, are swiftly and almost painlessly inserted into what are called acupuncture points on the skin. For most people the sensation of insertion is minimal. The needle is inserted to whatever depth is necessary to obtain what is called 'deqi'. Once obtained, this needle 'sensation' shows that the treatment has begun, and the 'energy' is then 'dispersed', reinforced', tonified', or directed along the meridian of acupuncture on which the point lies.

Some acupuncture points do not lie on meridians but are important because of their effect locally at that site or elsewhere in the body. Most acupuncture points on meridians have been found to have a number of functions additional to whatever effect they may have locally, and are often used for their effect somewhere else in the body rather just than for their local effect. The needle is left in position for anywhere between a few seconds and half an hour. Acupuncture points are often used in combination, together achieving far more than could a single point on its own. After use, acupuncture needles are usually discarded. Acupuncture is based on the theory of Chinese Medicine, so that, in principle, someone who received a diagnosis from a practitioner of Chinese medicine could attend a practitioner of a different discipline who would be able to proceed with treatment without further questions, if he or she trusted the diagnosis. Traditional acupuncture relies on a theory of meridians and collaterals along which qi is said to move. When qi moves steadily and without constraint there is health. When there is too little, or too much, or the wrong kind of qi, disease arises. Acupuncture treats this by influencing the flow of qi along the meridians, but also by its effect on the zang-fu, blood and fluids.

Is Acupuncture safe?
Acupuncture is generally very safe. Serious side-effects are very rare - less than one per 10,000 treatments.

Does Acupuncture have side-effects?
You need to be aware that:

- Drowsiness occurs after treatment in a small number of patients, and, if affected, you are advised not to drive.
- Minor bleeding or bruising occurs after acupuncture in about 3% of treatments. Pain during treatment occurs in about 1% of treatments.
- Existing symptoms can get worse after treatment (less than 3% of patients).
- You should tell your acupuncturist about this, but it is usually a good sign.
- Fainting can occur in certain patients, particularly at the first treatment.

In addition, if there are particular risks that apply in your case, your practitioner will discuss these with you.

Is there anything your practitioner needs to know?
Apart from the usual medical details, it is important that you let your practitioner know:
- If you have ever experienced a fit, faint or funny turn.
- If you have a pacemaker or any other electrical implants.
- If you have a bleeding disorder.
- If you are taking anti-coagulants or any other medication.
- If you have damaged heart valves or have any other particular risk of infection.

Single-use, sterile, disposable needles are used in the clinic.

Cupping
In essence, cupping is this: cups are placed open end on the skin. Air is withdrawn from the cup, making the skin enclosed swell up towards and into the evacuated space inside. The cup is left in place for a period of time, after which the air is allowed back into the cup, which is removed, and the skin returns to its normal condition.

In practice, cups of various designs have been used over the millennia. In some cases the air inside the inverted cup is heated before placing on the skin, so that as the air inside cools, it contracts and draws the flesh in. In other designs, the air is withdrawn by means of a small hand-pump, or by means of a squeeze rubber balloon attached to the top of the cup through a tube. When pinched the balloon expels air so that when released and as it expands it draws air out of the cup. Cups have been made out of hollowed gourds or horns, from bamboo, but mostly nowadays are made of glass. As long as they do their job without damage to the patient, anything will do, including real tea-cups and jam jars!

Cupping is done in various ways. The cup can be left in place, or it can be slowly moved across the surface of the skin. (This only works where the skin is clear of long hair.) It can be used over a needle already inserted at the chosen acupuncture point. Cupping can be weak, medium or strong. It can be used on children and the elderly, although it is not always appropriate. If the patient has poor constitutional strength only very mild cupping may be beneficial: another kind of TCM treatment may be better.

However, cupping is a fantastic method of treatment for many kinds of disease. Cupping has been used in Chinese Medicine for thousands of years, and the Egyptians were using it before 1500BC. Early uses were to remove toxic or foreign matter from the body, like boils, carbuncles, or to encourage bleeding. (Nowadays, some Western hospitals have rediscovered leeches as a way of removing toxic material.) However, its use expanded greatly in the following centuries, and there is a Chinese saying to the effect that over half the ills of mankind are curable with acupuncture and cupping.

To understand what kinds of illness it can benefit, one should understand what cupping aims to do.

Cupping helps the following, where illness arises because of :

- excess, particularly in the early stage of a disease as it enters the body,
- stagnation of qi or blood, or body fluids
- pathogens that the body cannot clear out, including some boils and eczema

The early stages of almost any disease caught from someone else can benefit from cupping, for example, colds, chills, or fevers. Examples of stagnation include emotional 'tension' - a sensation of distension: poor circulation, many kinds of rheumatism, neuralgia and for the relaxation of muscles: it is excellent in many diseases of the digestive system, the respiratory system and for general circulation. It has a stimulating effect on the skin and its underlying tissues, can often help blood pressure, hardened arteries and stiffness, helps the body clear out toxic matter and disease, both old and new, moving lymph, bringing new blood to old or damaged tissues, and making the skin glow as a result of healthier blood coursing through the area. Not bad, eh?

Exercise
Neither too much nor too little about sums it up. But the purpose of exercise is to keep the Qi moving along the meridians, to prevent stagnation of Qi or Blood, and by so doing to nourish the zang-fu and tissues, leading to glowing mental and physical health.

Too much exercise can drain the Qi, leading to stagnation and deficiency. Too little exercise makes the Qi stagnate leading to many forms of illness. Over the Millennia, various forms of exercise have been promoted, from Qi Gung, which is really the granddaddy of them all as it uses the mind and breath to move the Qi, to Tai qi, which teaches a series of controlled and graceful movements that foster balance, mobility, inner calm, endurance and good health.

Building great muscular strength is not seen as beneficial to health. Using one set of muscles repeatedly until they tire, and then forcing beyond that point, is equally hazardous. One thinks of marathon runners and others who push themselves beyond the point of pain. In the immediate aftermath of the race there is exhaustion and jubilation, but in due course, some of those who pushed themselves too far will encounter damage that is hard to remedy. This could be structural, to the bones or joints (predominantly a Kidney energy problem, and/or Liver blood), or circulatory (Heart/Spleen).

Standing too long, or walking very slowly, is said to damage the Kidney zang energy. Lying damages the Spleen zang energy. Sudden or very sharp movements can damage the Liver Blood.

So the ideal is exercise that moves the Qi and Blood throughout the body, that maintains flexibility, and that strengthens the zang-fu and the Shen.

Herbs
Chinese Herbal Medicine is one of the oldest and most carefully worked out systems of medicine in the world. Based on the theories of Traditional Chinese Medicine, herbs have been evaluated for their qualities to treat the syndromes that lead to disease.

Differences between Chinese and Western herbal traditions
There are a number of important differences from Western Herbal Medicine, at least as practised in the UK and most of Western Europe and America. Although the main difference is in the theory, there are many other differences.

Modern Western herbalism is a mixture of folk medicine, Galenic attributions, early nineteenth century therapeutic classification, with a recent 'patch' from pharmacology. It does not have a coherent and worked-out philosophy behind it: it is not a complete medical system. Chinese herbs, on the other hand, are classified according to their energetic action according to the theory and principles of Chinese Medicine.

(For example, sage, Salvia Officinalis L, a herb of some importance in Western Herbalism (with culinary uses too), where the leaves are used, is said to be carminative, spasmolytic, antiseptic, astringent and anti-hydrotic because of the volatile oils it contains such as thujone, cineole, linalool, borneol, camphor, salvene and pinene. It is anti-inflammatory, excellent for laryngitis, pharyngitis and tonsillitis as a gargle, is carminative for dyspepsia, and reduces sweating when taken internally.

In 'The Energetics of Western Herbs', (now unfortunately out of print) Peter Holmes assays an assessment of Sage (Saliva Officinalis) according to the theory of TCM. He suggests that it affects the Spleen, Lung, Chong and Ren channels, is pungent, bitter and astringent, cool in action and drying, and increases Qi and replenishes deficiency, circulates the Qi and expels phlegm.

'Dan Shen', Chinese Sage root, a distant relation of Sage, is classified by its main action, that of invigorating Blood: it is a bitter, cold herb, that has a particular action on the Heart and Liver energies and on invigorating the movement of Blood.)

TCM and CHM apply a completely different understanding of disease, based on energy and the movement, or lack of movement, of energy in its various forms. Energy is recognised in terms of words such as heat and cold, moving or stagnant, whereas Western herbalism is based much more on the chemistry of the body. So TCM is more energetically dynamic.

Another difference is that most Chinese herbs are cooked in combination with other herbs. A given combination of herbs is based on a known formula, which is adapted, either by adding herbs to, or subtracting herbs from, the original formula. The original formula is based on thousands of years of experience: it is known to work, and alterations to its basic recipe make it specific to the patient.

How herbs are prepared
Chinese herbs are best made up from the raw ingredients for the formula. These are boiled and simmered until the quantity of liquid has reduced by half. The remaining liquid is drunk, warm, over a day or so, and the procedure is repeated regularly. Nowadays, because of inconvenience, herbs are often dispensed in powder or tablet form, but the most desirable method is still widely agreed to be as described above with the raw ingredients. (Western Herbal formulae are produced by considering the kind of disease to be treated, and adding herbs that deal with that disease syndrome. Western herbs are usually given cold, or slightly warm, and made up either from the raw herb, or more often, from a tincture.)

After an agreed period, usually two weeks, the situation is re-assessed by the Chinese herbalist and the prescription repeated or changed.

Adverse Symptoms
If you experience adverse symptoms after taking Chinese herbs as prescribed, you should stop taking the herbs and consult your herbalist.

The symptoms we mean are: severe tiredness, loss of appetite, diarrhoea, headaches, nausea, upper abdominal pain, feeling generally unwell, jaundice.

Do not restart taking the herbs until instructed to do so.

If you have any concerns about taking herbs, you might like to see the section on this website entitled Dangers of Herbs.

Onset of Acute disease during herbal treatment
Note that if you have an acute disease during the time when you are taking the herbs, you should stop taking the herbs until the acute disease has passed. Then start taking the original prescription again unless there has been a noticeable change, in which case contact your herbalist.

Massage
Chinese Massage therapy uses the acupuncture meridians, stimulating the points as necessary. It also understands, and may use, the concept of Qi in another way. Every body is, whilst alive, a repository of Vital Qi. One of the most important teachings in esoteric Chinese Medical and religious texts is about how to guard, and if possible, increase, that store of Qi.

When someone is ill, especially during a chronic illness, their reserves of Qi reduce. A healthy person who knows how to do it may be able to transfer some of their own energy to the sick patient, immediately enhancing it. This isn't exclusively a Chinese idea: transferring Qi has been an important thread running through Western Healing practice over the centuries. The difference is that the idea of Qi is vastly expanded into a whole theory of health and disease in Chinese medicine. A skilled massage therapist can do some remarkable things with his energy. This skill is rare to find in the West, however.

Meditation
You might not think that meditation was a therapy, but learning to meditate can bring enormous benefits, physically and mentally. We can teach you how to do this, but we do not at present run a regular class. In Edinburgh there are a number of schools of meditation, but you should know that most of them are connected with some form of religious or philosophical system.

We believe that it is possible to teach people the act of meditating without it needing to be associated with a particular philosophy or religion. However, anyone who reads much about the subject will realise that an ethical dimension goes well with learning to meditate and that ethical positions are developed through philosophical or religious considerations. So in teaching you to meditate we would probably wish to point you in the directions of a number of different traditions to help you decide for yourself.

Moxibustion
Artemesia chinensis, or Chinese Mugwort - Moxa - is a herb.

This is burned in such a way as to introduce heat into the body, either by conducting it down an acupuncture needle already in place, or by burning it over an acupuncture point or points. There are many techniques, all requiring some skill.

Moxa was originally developed, it is thought, in the cold North of China, where the benefits of warming treatments are self-apparent. Artemesia has a special property in that it burns at a very steady and predictable rate. Unless denied oxygen, it doesn't easily go out. It is used mostly to treat cold or deficiency in the body when it can greatly enhance the benefits of, for example, acupuncture treatment.

Nutrition
After birth, the rest of our energy in life comes mainly from the air we breathe and the food we eat. What we eat can both create and destroy our health.

The energy of food is different from its nutritional value. Chinese medicine acknowledges the important contribution of Western nutritional science to the understanding of food but, if the food comes from good sources and is uncontaminated, it still has to be of the right 'energetic' quality if health is to be maintained.

For many thousands of years, Chinese medicine has evaluated foods in terms of this quality, in much the same way as Chinese herbs are evaluated. Traditional foods have been classified into their different qualities. It is also known how cooking or preparing food for consumption alters its quality.

It is considered sensible to take foods that counteract one's known susceptibilities to disease. Someone who has a predisposition to disease can, by eating according to TCM, often prevent the onset of disease, or hasten its removal.

Conversely, eating harmful foods increases the likelihood of disease, or prolongs it.

Moreover, eating food that is harmful can negate treatment we are receiving. For example, if we are suffering from cold or deficiency, we should eat foods that are warming and strengthening. If we eat foods that are too cold or draining, we shall counteract the benefits of the treatment we are receiving.

As we grow healthier, the range of foods we can eat grows larger. The more ill we are, the smaller the range of foods we can eat. From this perspective, people who consider themselves well but, perhaps because of 'allergy' or sensitivity to certain groups of foods, can only eat a small range of foods, are not healthy at all. (See also Food under Causes of Disease.)

Qi Gong
A system of exercises and meditations which if performed properly can maintain health and even remove some diseases. It is best to receive training from someone who is skilled in this.

Tai Qi
A form of exercise originally invented by monks in China to assist in self-defence and to maintain health. Now widely taught in the West, it teaches one to be balanced, calm and self-controlled. It also teaches the right way to use one's body. Tai Qi classes are widely available.