Hello readers,    

Today we are going to talk a little bit about anemia.

Anemia is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the condition in which the hemoglobin content in the blood is below normal as a result of the lack of one or more essential nutrients. In general, it can be defined as any disease where there is a decrease in the amount of red blood cells.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, blood is produced through the normal function of the Spleen and Kidney. It is said that the Kidney produces bone marrow (responsible for the raw material and “plant” for blood production in the body) and the Spleen transforms the raw material produced in the Kidney into blood itself.

The most common syndromic pattern found in patients with anemia is Deficiency of Spleen Blood, which can occur after major surgery, accidents with a lot of blood loss, poor diet or even genetics.

Chinese medicine can help patients with anemia, using kidney and spleen toning points, such as: KI-3,    KI-6, CV-4, BL-23, BL-52 and SP-6, SP-8, SP-10, BL-20. However, just using acupuncture in cases of anemia, of any kind, will not be enough to totally improve the patient.

This is due to the fact that anemia is a Deficiency Syndrome, so the patient’s goal is to nourish the blood, increase its production, a situation in which only acupuncture needles are unable to perform.

For a better result, the therapist should indicate foods that assist in the production of blood in the body, such as dark green vegetables and roots … In this list we can include: kale, spinach, broccoli, green beans, endive, yam, cassava , parsnips, sweet potatoes, etc … Some grains can also help, such as beans, soybeans and lentils.

If we associate therapeutic feeding with acupuncture, the results will be faster and more effective.

In addition, the herbal medicine Gui Pi Tang is indicated to strengthen the blood of the Spleen and is an ally in the treatment, provided that it has in its entirety, indication for the specific case of the patient.

In auriculotherapy, some points can be used, such as Spleen, Pancreas, Kidney, Metabolism and will keep the patient treated from one session to another.

The association between western and eastern medicines is important in the treatment of anemia. Not only in the supplements and medications that the western doctor can pass, but in particular, in the control by blood tests. To find out if the patient is really better, in addition to his feeling on a daily basis, it is extremely important that the blood test findings are in agreement;)

I hope I helped all of you! We continue taking care of our patients!

A big hug to everyone!

Profa. Fernanda Mara

Good morning Readers

Today we are going to talk a little about the view of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Hyperhidrosis.

Hyperhidrosis is a condition that causes excessive sweating, in which patients can sweat a lot even at rest.

According to Western Medicine, sweating is a normal condition of our body and helps to maintain the temperature. It is normal to sweat when it is hot, during physical activities or in certain specific situations, such as moments of anger, nervousness or fear. However, in hyperhidrosis, excessive sweating occurs even without the presence of any of these factors. This is because patients’ sweat glands are hyper-functioning.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Heart is the organ responsible for controlling sweat. Sweating is a consequence of the excess body fluids (Jin Ye) produced by the Stomach.

When the Heart has an energy imbalance, especially a Deficiency of Qi and / or Blood, there is a difficulty in absorbing the Jin Ye into the blood vessels, which will thus be expelled, resulting in sweat.

To treat hyperhidrosis in Chinese Medicine we need to know if the Heart is the cause or consequence of the imbalance. When it is the cause, key points of the meridian such as HT-7, HT-5 and HT-3 will already help in the symptoms, however, when the Heart becomes unbalanced due to the malfunction of another organ, we have to treat the causing organ.

According to Maciocia, we can know the origin of the imbalance according to the location of the sweat:

• On the head: Heat or Heat-Humidity in the Stomach.
• In the upper and lower limbs: Deficiency of Stomach and Spleen.
• Only in Hands: Deficient Lung Qi.
• Palms, Soles, Thorax = “Sweating 5 of palms” or Heat of 5 palms: Kidney Yin deficiency.

Remembering that all the above organs: Spleen, Lung or Kidney have connection with Heart through the 5 Elements.

Deficiency of Spleen leads to Deficiency of Heart (law of mother and child) – to tone the Spleen, SP-2 and SP-3 are good points.
Deficient Lung Qi will overload the Heart, leading to Deficiency in the medium term (law of contra dominance. Lung Deficiency will lead the Heart to excess and then exhaustion) – to tone the Lung Qi, the points are recommended Lu-7, Lu-9, BL-13.
Deficient Kidney Yin will lead to Deficient Heart Yin (as the Kidney nourishes the Yin of the whole body) – to tone the Kidney Yin, the KI-6 and CV-4 points are the best. You can also open the Ren Mai Wonderful Vase (LU-7-KI-6).
** If the problem is stomach humidity, points ST-40 and SP-9 are recommended.

In auriculotherapy we always use the points of the Heart associated with the points of origin of the problem, that is, Spleen, Lung, Kidney or Stomach. You can also add the points of greatest sweat occurrence, such as the hands, feet or spine.

That’s it folks. There are still many other issues to be discussed in hyperhidrosis, but without a doubt, this is a good start.

A big hug to everyone.

Profa. Fernanda Mara.