Chinese Medicine has a unique perspective on treatment principles. Treatment principles are the general rules that guide doctors in the planning of all treatments.
Everything that we have discussed before, Yin-Yang Theory, the Five Elements, The Five Essential Substances, The Internal Organs and the Causes of Diseases are all important components to guide the treatment.
In one word, “Balance” is what we aim for in order to achieve a healthy body. In Chinese Medicine we have the following basic treatment principles:
1) Treat Cold with Heat
The “Cold” here is the nature of the disease and the “heat” here is the property of the medicine. Therefore, treating a “cold” pattern should use a medicine that is “heat” in nature.
2) Treat Heat with Cold
The “Heat” here is the nature of the disease and the “Cold” here is the property of the medicine. Therefore, treating a “Heat” pattern should use a medicine that is “Cold” in nature.
3) Treat Deficiency with Tonification
When there is a deficiency in Qi, Blood, Yin or Yang, we should use medicines or acupoints that can tonify the respective substances.
4) Treat Excess with Drainage
When there is an excess in Qi, Blood, Yin or Yang, we should use medicines or acupoints that can drain the respective substances.
Note: The above are only four basic principles that guide the planning of the treatment. In reality, it is much more complicated.
For example, there might be cases where although the patient has heat manifestation on the outside, the true nature of that patient is actually cold. This is due to the extreme Yin in the body expels Yang towards the surface of the body, leading to a false impression of heat syndromes.
Therefore, a thorough diagnosis must be done in order to accurately determine the status of the person. I will be doing an entire series regarding Chinese Medicine Diagnosis in the future.
This concludes this series regarding “Basic Chinese Medicine Theories”.
Now that you understand the foundations of Chinese Medicine, I can start writing regarding the “How” in terms of obtaining optimal health.
We sleep about 1/3 of the time in our lives. Therefore having a good quality sleep is important to achieving good health. Do you know in Chinese Medicine, “When” do you sleep is very important? Up next I will tell you the best timings to go to bed and why it is crucial.
Registered Acupuncturist (R.Ac), Alex Hui created this blog to share with the world the treasures in Chinese Medicine (CM).
Prevention is Better than Cure