Articles

The TCM concept of “form complementing form, organ complementing organ” (yi xing bu xing, yi zang bu zang 以形補形、以臟補臟 ) is well known throughout Asian culture and cooking. For example, eating walnuts for brain tonification and cashews for the health of the kidneys, or drinking red wine to tonify the blood is common folk wisdom. In this recipe, we are honoring this concept by using pig's heart (Zhu xin 豬心) to nourish the heart.

As practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine, we understand the importance of balancing emotional and psychological health. Shen disharmony not only affects our emotional experience, but can also have a significant impact on our physical health. What follows is a discussion of four acupuncture treatments to harmonize the emotions and balance the Shen.

As the New Year begins, we can see light in the midst of darkness. The COVID-19 pandemic will likely fade into a less virulent disaster for communities around the world, as more people gain immunity through natural exposure and immunization. The suffering has been deep, devastating and global, combined with other major stressors like systemic injustice, natural disasters, poverty, violence, human displacement and long-neglected generational trauma. It has been a very hard year. We review the NADA ear acupuncture protocol and its effect on trauma.

Next live broadcast is January 11, 2021. This is an 8-course series teaching the art of custom herbal writing. The first course will begin with an introduction to the course material and will highlight the primary skills required for advanced herbal prescription writing. The remaining 7 courses cover TCM herb categories discussing the most frequently used herbs for each. Bundle discounts are available! Click for individual class dates.

The Lunar New Year in 2021 brings us the Year of the Metal Ox. After 2020, I’m sure we’re all glad to say goodbye to the pesky Rat! Let’s analyze what the Ox has in store. According to Chinese philosophy, we have the concepts of Yin and Yang, Heaven, Earth and Humanity. These are the building blocks of the universe. Every year, the energy of the year is determined by the energy of Heaven and Earth. Because we, as “Humanity” live in between Heaven and Earth, we are affected by their energies as well as by the energy of the specific year. The Heaven energy for 2021 is Metal. 2020 was also a Metal year, and because we have a Yin year and a Yang year for each element, 2020 was Yang Metal. 2021 is a Yin Metal year. Thus, we have the year of the Yin Metal Ox. You may also see 2021 referred to as the year of the White Ox, since the color of Metal is white, and some people refer to the energy of the Heavenly Qi by color...

The first known mention of herbal tonic wine is from the Wu Shi Er Bing Fang (Prescriptions for 52 Ailments), which was unearthed at Ma Wang Dui tomb, an archaeological site located in Changsha, China. It is believed to have been written around 200 BC, although the prescriptions are thought to be much older.

Explore 7 Yang Tonics to help practitioners quickly and easily compare formulas, their functions, indications, and ingredients.

One of the most common reasons that patients seek treatment from licensed acupuncturists is for musculoskeletal aches and mild pain (Tòng 痛), both acute and chronic. There may also be decreased range of motion, inflammation, swelling, and numbness. Primarily, these issues are due to minor injury or dysfunction of joints and related soft tissues, including tendons and ligaments. In traditional Chinese medicine, this often is interpreted as Obstruction Syndrome (Bì zhèng 痺症).

As with all clinical treatment, syndrome pattern differentiation is essential. With musculoskeletal complaints, we need to discern whether muscle or connective tissues, including tendons and ligaments, are the primary cause since they are treated differently. From the perspective of Traditional Chinese herbal medicine, treating connective tissue involves opening and circulating of the channels and collaterals to eliminate Wind, Cold, Heat, Dryness or Dampness, while muscle tissue generally requires the additional treatment principle of moving Blood. What follows is a quick practitioner's guide to three of Mayway's most popular herbal prescriptions for musculoskeletal discomfort.

The days are getting shorter, colder and wet. Today is a perfect day for having a warm bowl of chicken soup. Mothers and grandmothers all over the world recommend, “Give ‘em some chicken soup!” Chicken soup with Chinese herbs is particularly warming and nourishing. Here’s a traditional recipe and demo of how to create this wonderful dish for your entire family.

Explore 10 formulas for Wind-Damp Bi Pain to help practitioners quickly and easily compare formulas, their functions, indications, and ingredients.

Some clinics have returned to more normal rhythms, while others are working with patients via telemedicine and herbal practices. For those who are seeing folks in their clinics, they may have noticed that some patients have not returned as quickly and are preferring to remain close to home until there is more certainty about where the virus is headed and when it is safe to resume normal activities. But are your patients suffering in silence? And how can you safely help them?

Many practitioners wonder what the differences are between these two very popular formulas to prevent and treat common wind-heat invasion. One main difference is that Yin Qiao is exclusively for wind-heat invasion, whereas Gan Mao Ling, likely due to its ability to strengthen the immune system, can also be used for the initial stages of wind-cold. Therefore, Gan Mao Ling may be safely taken by a patient before a determination is made as to the etiology of an early stage wind invasion, as well as for short term prevention of a wind invasion. However, if Gan Mao Ling does not work in the first couple of days...

Chinese herbal medicine can be very helpful to control one of the most common skin conditions in the world, known in traditional Chinese medicine as Fen Ci (粉刺) or “white thorns”, which can have a variety of etiologies. In this article, Juliette presents a case of adult acne, as diagnosed by her dermatologist, in an American 24-year-old cis female of Chinese heritage.