Chinese/East Asian Medicine
Historical Background Most people in the Western hemisphere who are not well acquainted with it underestimate the scope and power of Chinese medicine. Although its roots are in folk medicine, Chinese medicine is an art that has been practiced based on consistent underlying principles for many hundreds of years. Some herbs presently in use for specific conditions have their first recorded uses in those conditions as early as 4,000 years ago! There are herbal formulas (herbs are generally used in combination in Chinese medicine, rather than singly) currently in routine use in hospitals in Asia that have been used in their present form for many centuries. Traditional Chinese medicine is currently used routinely in most hospitals in Asia right alongside Western medical treatments. Stone acupuncture needles many thousands of years old have been found. Even the famous Bronze Age "Ice Man" had tattoos over acupuncture points that were apparently placed there in an effort to treat his health problems. Although spinal manipulation has been around in its present form only since about the late 19th century, it too has been used for treatment of various conditions in different areas of the world since prehistoric times. To automatically dismiss healing traditions with such extensive pedigrees would be an error for anyone who wishes to truly understand human health and illness. Even more, it would be a serious mistake for anyone seeking improvement in a medical condition, particularly for a condition for which conventional treatments are minimally effective or useless, to not at least give these traditions a closer look. --dr. diane holmes, D.C., L.Ac., M.A.O.M. Copyright © 2014 |