Harmoniously Herbal

What is moxibustion?

Moxibustion is referred as the burning of mugwort. The plant mugwort is used widely throughout different cultures in the world, specifically for food, such as Ssukguk clam soup in Korea or Mugwort mochi from Japan and China. However traditionally, mugwort is more used along with acupuncture as an important healing method in Eastern medicine.

As a classic treating modality in Chinese medicine, the use of burning mugwort can be traced back to Eastern Zhou time(256 B.C.) according to the bamboo and silk documents excavated from Mawangdui (马王堆) tomb, Henan China.

How can moxibustion be used?

Among all the heating treatments in Chinese medicine, moxibustion is considered one of the strongest sources of heat connected to Fire. Mugwort can be rolled into a stick and lightened and directly put close to the acupuncture point on the body.

Fine and loose mugwort can be made into a triangle tower or a rice grain size, and applied either directly on the skin, or on top of a barrier that touches the skin such as a ginger slice, ointment or salt.

In some treatment methods, burned mugwort is wrapped around the acupuncture needle so the heat can be combined with the healing power of the needle itself. Over the thousand’s years of practice and development of different lineages, moxibustion has become not only a crucial healing modality in Asian medicine, but also a form of art integrated with smelling, visual, touching and temperature sensations.

What moxibustion can be used for?

As with most forms of traditional Chinese medicine, the purpose of moxibustion is to strengthen the blood, stimulate the flow of qi, and maintain general health. Specifically, the application of heat from the burning of the moxa can expel cold sensations, and relieve symptoms caused by excess cold or yin, such as edema, slow digestion, fatigue, aversion to cold, collapse of uterus, low libido, and so on.

Another popular uses of moxibustion is turning the baby from breech position(bottom first) to cephalic position(head first) for labor.

Why moxa therapy in the summer?

Because summer is considered the golden treatment period of moxibustion. Also known as San Fu Tian (Three Crouching Period三伏天), this period usually starts from mid-July and ends mid-August according to the lunar calendar. This is a time of the year when the Yin is being repressed underground by the Yang, making those days the hottest of the year.

With the use of moxa, this is the time when winter diseases are being treated, especially immunity related such as allergic rhinitis, bronchitis, asthma, cold hands and feet. For more information, please check this wonderful video on San Fu Tian moxa by AcuHeidiLovie or this article by Six Fishes.

What types of moxibustion can you find at The Herb Depot?

Check our moxibustion section on our website here. All orders over $99 qualify free shipping. We deliver across Canada and internationally. 

As the largest organ of the body, skin carries the job of reflecting our internal health. When there are rashes, eczema, acnes or hives, Chinese medicine never sees them as a problem of the superficial, and should not be dealt with by only “scratching the surface”.

Chinese medicine considers skin conditions as the result of both external and internal factors.

External factors

1. Wind

Wind is known as the “chief of the hundred disease”. When the person is lack of defensive Qi, wind can easily sneak into the Cou Li level, between the skin and the muscle, causing skin issues. Skin diseases related to wind commonly do not appear on a specific location and come and go. They can causes severe itchiness, dryness, and peeling of the skin.

2. Dampness

External damp environment and internal body dampness can both lead to damp-related skin conditions. They are characterized by blisters, fluid, erosion, and itchiness. Skin conditions caused by dampness usually have a long course of progression and hard to heal.

3. Heat

Heat and Fire are from the same source in Chinese medicine. Heat is the stage before Fire. With Heat, the skin feels itchy and with Fire, the skin feels burning. Typical heat related skin conditions occur on the upper portion of the body, and present with redness, swelling, pustules, and erosion.

4. Parasite

Chinese medicine consider fungal infection as a form of “Parasite” mainly because in ancient time, without the knowledge of microbiology, the itchiness caused by fungus infection lead people to think there was insects or parasite present. Ringworm, jock itch and athlete’s foot are under this category. Another skin pattern related to parasites is bug bite, causing redness, itchiness and topical inflammation.

5. Toxicity

Toxic stimulant in the food, medication, insects, paint etc. can trigger allergic or even poisoning reactions. Symptoms are usually inflammation, swelling, oozing, papule, hives, and erosions. In an emergency, urgent care should be given.

Internal factors

6. Blood stasis

Blood stasis related skin conditions are usually chronic. Macules or patches in the color of dark red and purple, or pigmentation on the skin are all signs of blood stasis.

7. Blood deficiency and dryness

This is another important mechanism of causing chronic skin issues. Caused by blood and yin deficiency due to lack of nutrients or agitation, skin conditions are characterized with dryness, scale-like flake, roughness and itchiness. Skin erosion or oozing rarely happen. Psoriasis, chronic eczema, and chronic itchiness of skin are commonly seen in this category.

8. Kidney and Liver Deficiency

Skin conditions caused by Kidney and Liver Deficiency are usually chronic. Dryness, roughness, scaling are typical conditions. Pigmentation, hair loss, warts and blood spots can also be indicated by Kidney and Liver Deficiency.

Here is a chart of using TCM diagnosis to help with choosing proper herb for your skin.

Source: 

Chen, H. (2018). External Medicine of Traditional Chinese Medicine Zhong Yi Wai Ke Xue 中医外科学 (第1版). China Press of Traditional Chinese Meidicine.

Most people recover completely within a few weeks after contracting COVID-19. However, some have noticed lingering symptoms such as fatigue, shortness of breath, dry cough, chest pain, lack of appetite, and insomnia weeks or even months after their recovery.

Learning from millenniums of fighting plague and pandemic throughout the history, Chinese medicine categorizes these “long hauler” conditions as Spleen and Lung injury, leading to Qi and Yin deficiency[1].

In the language of classic Chinese medicine, the treatment principal is to “reinforce the vital Qi and dispel the evil.”

Dispelling the evil, on the other hand, means to

• drive out the pathogenic factors in the Lung (boost immunity)
• clear the phlegm and dampness in the Spleen

It is important to first look at the functions of Lung and Spleen separately in Chinese medicine and how their dysfunction could lead to the lingering post-COVID symptoms.

Lung function

-Dominating qi and controlling respiration system

-Distribute defensive Qi (immune system) and body fluid to warm and moisten the muscle, skin and hair

-Dominating and regulate the water passages-water metabolism

Spleen function

-Digestion, absorption, and transmission of nutrient substance to ensure physical and mental energy -fatigue, lassitude, emaciation, poor appetite

-Keep the blood circulation in the vessels and prevent hemorrhage and bleeding

From the perspective of Chinese medicine, COVID impacts the respiratory system by causing the Lung to overwork fighting against the pathogenic factors (COVID-19 virus) and resulting in Lung Yin and fluid deficiency. And because of tremendous amount of energy focused on the Lung, Spleen’s nourishing function was neglected, causing phlegm and dampness, which lead to fatigue, mental restlessness, depression and anxiety.

Once we can pinpoint the organ in Chinese medicine related to the post-COVID conditions, it makes the usage of herbal formulas more easily tailored and efficient.

We would like to recommend following Chinese herbal patent formulae for “long-hauler” post-COVID conditions. Please consult with a Chinese medicine practitioner before deciding which product to take for your recovery. To learn more about each formula, please click into the name.

Spleen Qi deficiency

Qi & Yin deficiency

Boost Wei Qi(defense qi)/immunity

[1] http://www.scm.cuhk.edu.hk/zh-cn/articles-redirect/237-skypost/2120-2021-05-26-sc

As mentioned in Lara Briden’s book Period Repair Manual, your period is not just your period; it is an expression of your underlying health. Many holistic health practitioners would probably agree that if you fix your health, you will fix your period. So instead of crouching in bed every month questioning why, let’s take a step ahead using natural remedies to answer how?

Recently, we have been told by a few customers that how acupuncture has helped with their menstruation, reduced their period cramp, and pre-menstrual syndromes. Chinese herbs have also been the essential go-to method for regulating menstruation and the “hormonal imbalance” for centuries.

In this article, we will discuss two types of imbalances (Deficiency type and Excess type) to demonstrate how Chinese herbs and food remedies can invite a pain-free and easy flowing period.

Note: Before you choose an herbal remedy, it is IMPORTANT to match your conditions with the symptoms associated with each TCM patterns. If possible, consult a professional TCM practitioner. This is the only way to find the suitable remedies that can help you.

Deficiency Pattern

Blood deficiency

Food suggestions: Avoid raw, cold-temperature foods and cooling fruits. Choose more warming food such as basil, onion, cardamon, cinnamon, leek, scallion, sweet rice, etc.  Small amount of animal products, eggs, fish may be necessary. Women with deficiency amenorrhea should avoid consuming large amounts of green and yellow vegetables, such as dark leafy greens, micro-algae, and vegetables containing carotene[1].

Spleen Deficiency

Food Suggestions: Avoid foods with cooling properties because they weaken the digestion. Take sweet and/or pungent food such as oats, spelt, sweet rice; onion, leek, ginger, fennel, garlic. Food must be chewed well and at least moderately well-cooked.

Food Suggestions: Avoid raw, cold-temperature foods and cooling fruits. Choose more warming food such as basil, onion, cardamon, cinnamon, leek, scallion, sweet rice, etc. Add pungent food such as onion, leek, black pepper, ginger, cinnamon, fennel, garlic, nutmeg. When using ginger, the dried form is better than fresh ginger for warming purpose.

Yin deficiency

Food Suggestions: Add foods that “build the yin”, such as mung bean, bean sprouts, string bean, seaweed, spirulina, millet, black bean, tofu, kidney bean, barley, and black sesame seed. Avoid alcohol, cigarettes, coffee, excessive and poor-quality meat, etc.

Excess Pattern

Liver Qi Stagnation

Food Suggestions: If you tend to overeat, eat less to reduce stagnancy. Moderately pungent food to stimulate the Liver out of stagnancy, such as onions, mustard greens and spices.

Blood Stasis

Food Suggestions: Food that disperses stagnant blood, such as Aduki beans, peach-seed, scallion, chives, cayenne and other red peppers, ginger, turmeric, vinegar, etc. Avoid cold, very sweet and highly mucus-forming foods including meat, dairy, eggs and ice cream.

Excessive Heat 

Food Suggestions: Cooling food such as spinach, Swiss chard, seaweed, celery, cucumber, and red raspberry tea. Restrict red meat, alcohol, coffee, and warming food in general.

The holistic view of our body, mind and soul is what makes Chinese medicine a beautiful healing tradition. This means that the healing of Chinese medicine is not merely focused on the end of a singular symptom (e.g. pain) but to rebuild the homeostasis of the body.

Usually once the whole-body system is running in balance again, the pain will automatically disappear, as well as other untold conditions. This process does not necessarily need to be long, and often can take place in a few treatment sessions with acupuncture and herbal medicines.

All of the products mentioned in the article can be found here: 

https://theherbdepot.ca/collections/healthy-menstruation

Reference:

1. https://www.americandragon.com/
2. Pitchford, P. (2002). Healing with whole foods: Asian traditions and modern nutrition. North Atlantic Books.p.400

We eat plants so that we can have a closer touch with the earth. Sourced from local farms Chinese herbs can nourish and tonify to make your vegetarian and vegan diet more complete. 

“There are no physical symptoms that do not affect the Shen(mind) and no emotional disorders that do not produce physical manifestations.”

"Where there is stasis, there is pain".

What does our pain say to us? And how do we respond?

Cooking instructions are for general use only. It is recommended to follow the instructions provided by your licensed TCM practitioner.