Shiatsudo Blog

I remember reading a bit about the history of acupuncture a little while ago. Something that caught my eye was that apparently, in the good old days in China, noblemen and women would employ an acupuncturist or physician to maintain their health. The acupuncturist would be given a stipend to ensure that their patient did not get sick. If and when the patient did fall ill, the acupuncturist would not be paid for the duration of the illness.

I don’t know if that is true or not, but just think about the implications of a health care system that would work like that. Rather than be paid to cure someone, physicians would only be paid if their patients remain in good health! That kind of incentive would radically alter the way medicine is practised.

From the physician’s point of view, it would make him very committed to their work. They would have to really get to know and work with their patients over an extended period of time. It would encourage daily check-ups, and an attitude where the physician listened to the patient and really tried to find the root cause of any problem and eliminate it. In this context, a “holistic” system of medicine is really the only one that could survive; and it kind of makes sense that Traditional Chinese Medicine is the way it is. The only way to minimise the chance of someone getting ill is to cover all the bases; take into account the individual’s constitution, their particular weaknesses and strengths, their habits and their lifestyle. Medicine would incorporate every aspect of a person’s life; diet, exercise, mental and emotional state, work life, home life and so on.

The responsibility would also pass onto the patients, since they would have to follow their physicians’ advice. If they didn’t and fell ill, their physicians could easily blame the illness on the fact that the patients had not done as advised. So the patients would become more intimately acquainted with their own health. Under the watchful eye of their physicians, patients would report daily on their diet, exercise, mental and emotional state. They would, by the very nature of taking time daily to check in with their body, become more aware of themselves, more in tune with their bodies and probably take more of an interest in staying healthy.

Often, people explore complementary therapies in an attempt to move back towards a system where healthcare is more about staying healthy day to day rather than ignoring their health for large stretches of time and then when a problem becomes chronic and impossible to ignore, running to a GP and expecting a magic pill to make it better.

Prevention is better than cure they say.

Tags:Acupuncture & TCM, healthcare, TCM

Here are 10 sites about Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture that I tend to visit regularly…

Acupuncture.com - A TCM and acupuncture super-site with information for the layman, practitioner and student. For the layman, there are answers to the most basic of questions like “what is acupuncture” through to more advanced topics about why your acupuncturist examines your tongue. It has a great section on various different conditions and how TCM and acupuncture would approach treating these, as well as some info on personal practices like qigong and yoga. For the practitioner, a library of syndromes, with some suggested formulas, sections on practice building and further education. For students, book reviews, a reference library and links to acupuncture schools. All in all, a site packed with information. This should be your first stop.

Acuxo.com - The best online site to find acupuncture points. The interface is self explanatory - select a meridian, select one of the points on the meridian and Acuxo displays a picture of the point, a picture of the whole meridian and then all the information about the point - Chinese name, descriptive anatomical location and point functions. There’s also a function whereby you can select syndromes and see the acupoints that can be used for the syndrome.

Acupuncturetoday.com - A site for the Acupuncture Today journal, but with a large amount of articles on-line for free. Basically a news source for acupuncture. Another large site with a lot of information and articles on it. It has a good section on the “ABCs of TCM and Acupuncture” which goes through much of the basic theory, explaining things like Yin Yang theory, pulse diagnosis, the ideas of Qi, Jing and Shen and lots more. Most important though are the news articles.

Jabinet.net - This one is a bit different - Robert Hayden is an acupuncturist who specialises in Japanese acupuncture. His pages here have some interesting information on the Japanese style and how it differs from Chinese acupuncture. He also has some great information on fukusho or abdominal diagnosis/palpation which is used a lot in Japanese acupuncture and is the basis of hara diagnosis used in shiatsu. There is also a great article on “Live Point Location” - the idea being that acupuncture points are not simply anatomical landmarks, but actually manifestations of conditions in the body. So acupuncture points only become “live” when associated pathologies are present. Well worth investigating, despite the site’s very basic design and layout.

Gancao.net - Gancao is great to visit because of the well categorised section of “Aculinks” (a database of links to other acupuncture and related sites). Gancao also hosts some forums with some good case histories presented.

Sacredlotus.com - This has everything for the student of TCM; basic theory, 8 principles, zhang fu, diagnosis methods, meridian channel theory, acupuncture point descriptions and actions and a herb database. Good layout and a vast database of knowledge make this indispensable reading for any serious student of acupuncture and TCM.

YinYangHouse.com - Another good resource site with helpful information on different types of treatments. The site has some nice articles in their “Basics” section which answer questions like “why should I see an acupuncturist” and “why should I see a bodyworker”, going on to explain what conditions are treated and what styles exist (for example in the bodywork section, they explain a little about shiatsu, tuina, craniosacral, rolfing etc).

HarmonyMedical.co.uk - Online acupuncture supplies in the UK. From needles and moxa to cups and sharps boxes.

Acumedic.com - Another online shop in the UK. Acumedic has a huge selection of acupuncture, TCM and complementary health related books as well as herbs, needles and teas.

JCM.co.uk - The Journal of Chinese Medicine was established by Peter Deadman who wrote “A Manual of Acupuncture” and the related Point Cards. You can subscribe to the journal on the website, order past articles and browse through their online store selling some fine green teas, acupuncture books and needles and herbs.

Tags:Acupuncture & TCM, TCM, websites

My respect for tigers continually grows…….so says Calvin. But they are endangered. According to Care for the Wild, a century ago there were 100,000 tigers. We have about 4500 left. That’s disgusting. We are killing off a beautiful animal out of ignorance, stupidity and greed.

Why am I writing about tigers in a shiatsu blog? Well, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) traditionally uses tiger bone in many tonics and medicines to treat disease from arthritis and rheumatism to bone injuries, skin diseases and malaria. So tiger conservation is something all of us involved in disciplines based on TCM should care about.
Use of tiger bone in medicine is one of the contributing factors to the decline of the tiger population.

However, trade in tiger products is illegal in most countries - in the UK it is an offense under the Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Enforcement) Regulations 1997. And it should stay that way! In 1993, China outlawed all trade in domestic tiger products, but businesses who profit from selling tiger based products are pressurising the Chinese government to lift the ban and allow limited legal trading. Check out the recent Care for the Wild news article on this.

There are alternatives for tiger bone in TCM formulas. Several studies have found pig and cow bones to be good substitutes. There is also fake tiger bone - synthetically manufactured to reproduce the amino acid profile found in tiger bone. However, these don’t really address the underlying demand for tiger bone….the very concept of a substitute is flawed since it still carries the connotation that it is inferior and that using real tiger would result in a better and more effective medicine or tonic. This just maintains a demand for illegal tiger bone. And where there is demand, there will be supply.

A better way forward is to re-write our formulas. Change the perception that tiger bone is the preferred ingredient. The TCM herbalists have an opportunity to re-educate the public who are using their products. Stop telling them in hushed tones that tiger bone is better….Change the idea that tiger bone is the best ingredient for their ailment and we can eliminate the consumer demand. No demand means no profit to be made from selling it. No profit, no poaching, no trade….and hopefully an increasing population of tigers!

Your turn to do something - visit the links….give a donation to your preferred charity, add your photo to the great tiger mosaic….and never purchase anything that you suspect of having tiger as an ingredient.

WWF
Care for the Wild
Tiger mosaic
TRAFFIC
21st Century Tiger

Tigers are mean.
Tigers are fierce.
Tigers have teeth
and claws that pierce.

Tigers are great,
they can’t be beat.
If I was a tiger,
that would be neat.

Tigers are nimble
and light on their toes,
my respect for tigers
continually grows.

Tigers are perfect,
the e-pit-o-me
of good looks and grace
and quiet dignity.

Tigers are great!
They’re the toast of the town.
Life’s always better
when a tiger’s around!

Bill Watterson - Calvin and Hobbes - The tree house song

Tags:Acupuncture & TCM, TCM, tiger bone, tigers