Keeping Healthy
 

Ken Morgan, BSc, MBAcC

Acupuncture can help to strengthen our defensive Qi system which in Chinese Medicine is what enables us to fight off infections such as colds and flu. If our defensive Qi system is weak, we are more prone to catching any passing infection.

There are various factors which are important in keeping healthy according to Chinese Medicine:

1) Adjusting your clothing to the seasons and weather. Wind, cold and heat can invade the body and cause disease. It is very important to wrap up in cold weather and to avoid draughts.

2) Diet is very important. Try to avoid refined foods. Organic foods are to be preferred. Our diet should comprise about 40 to 45% grains and beans, 35 to 40% vegetables and some fruit, and only 10 to 15% meat, seafood, eggs, dairy products, fats, oils and sugar.

See Daverick Leggett’s site Food Energetics for more information on diet from a Chinese Medicine perspective.

3) A correct balance is necessary between rest and exercise. Exercises like qigong, tai qi or yoga are particularly beneficial. Too much strenuous exercise or work can weaken our resistance to illness. Qigong (or Chikung as it is sometimes spelled) is one of the branches of Chinese Medicine and is recommended for everyone as a way to maintain health and also an aid in recovering from illness. Please see my qigong website Medical Qigong Education Centre for more information.

4) It is recognised in Chinese Medicine that excessive or unexpressed and unacknowledged emotions can be the causes of illness. The Canon of Medicine advises us to "keep the heart calm and cheerful and the mind free of worries." Various methods can be helpful here. Good friends that you can discuss things with and express your feelings are great. Meditation is helpful. Various self-help techniques like the Sedona Method are useful. If you cannot deal with some emotional issues on your own, then talking therapies like counselling and psychotherapy could be useful. Acupuncture is also very helpful in balancing the emotions. Another technique which you can use by yourself or with a practitioner is Emotional Freedom Technique which involves tapping on various acupuncture points whilst thinking of the emotional issue. You can find lots of free information on this technique at Gary Craig’s website http://www.emofree.com.