Essays:
the flu & you

Correct use of MaHuang/Ephedra & the truth about Chinese Herbs, weight loss, and metabolism

Past Essays:

Lung Ailments, Air Quality, & Chinese Medicine

Coughing, wheezing, asthma, and allergic rhinitis all fall into the category of what is called in Chinese Medicine "Rebellious Lung Qi."

Qi—often loosely referred to as energy, or life force, or vital force, and these are part of qi but not its sum total, as it is a moment in time when energy becomes matter, and therefore a process rather than a measurable substance—has various natural means of movement in the environment and in our bodies. When qi moves smoothly through the body, health is balanced, and a person is free of pain. However, when qi begins to be blocked in its smooth movement, it moves in different directions—coughing, sneezing, and wheezing are all symptoms of lung qi moving upward (when it should naturally move downward).

Granted, the phenomenon of sneezing and coughing serves a  therapeutic function — it keeps pathogens (viruses, extremes in temperature, pollutants) from entering the body via the lung. However, for those with asthma, allergic rhinitis, or reactive airway disorder, this natural response is out of balance.

On the one hand, the patient's body may be out of balance. Especially as we age, lung ailments become more likely. On the other hand, the increase of air pollution, especially in the West coast states, may be increasing the incidence of lung ailments in the adult population (as well as the pediatric population).

Each person with such disorders may have a different diagnosis according to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)  principles. Also, a person who is older (forty or more ) may have constitutional changes that coincide with the decline of yin and essence (the nourishing fluids of the body that keep tissues moist).

I currently live in a valley with temperature inversions in both summer and winter; in the winter, particulate matter from wood burning stoves and slash burning (burning logging waste in forests) adds to the pollution from motor vehicles traveling the interstate. In the summer, weather patterns can bring the smoke from forest fires into our valley (the EPA has recently cited in studies that forest fire smoke contains not only particulate matter from the burned vegetation, but vaporised minerals from the soil, in the case of my region, this includes gold, tin, and mercury).

Acupuncture and chinese herbs offer a nourishing alternative to pharmaceuticals (such as asthma inhalers and allergy drugs). They not only correct the symptoms but nourish the body so that it can better withstand the onslaught of atmospheric pollutants and increases in airborne pollens during El Nino seasons.

Combining acupuncture and TCM with knowledge about outdoor (and indoor!) air pollution can significantly increase the quality of life for those whose lungs tell them that the air they breathe is no longer healthy. Increased quality of live increases energy levels — and increased energy levels give the opportunity for an individual to make the necessary changes to improve the air quality where they live.

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