According to the theory of TCM, the causes of diseases can be assigned to 3 groups:
- weather conditions (cold, moisture, wind, heat, humid heat of
summer, dryness) – external
causes of diseases;
- emotions (anger, joy, fear, sorrow) – internal
causes of diseases;
- miscellaneous external causes – stress, insufficient
excercise, inadequate nutrition, injury, etc.
The diagnostic methods in TCM include visual inspection, listening, monitoring of behavior, examination of tongue (shape, colour, and moisture), palpation, and pulse diagnostics, which provide the main information about the condition of organs and meridians of the body.
Due to such approach, the practicioner of TCM understands the underlying mechanism of
disease, identifies the true causes and prescribes personalized treatment, which has a complex effect on the whole body, instead of focusing on the apparent symptoms.
The treatment itself may consist of a whole array of methods, which include the ingestion of medicinal
plants, massage, acupuncture, diet, and practicing of qigong. These approaches can resolve serious, chronic
medical conditions, radically improve health, and provide a basis for disease prevention.
Acupuncture (insertion of needles) is one of the most
widely used treatment methods in TCM. Its mechanism of
action is based on neuronal, neurohumoral, immune, and reflector
responses of body to the external irritant. This method
does not cause undesirable side effects and therefore acupuncture
can be employed both as a baseline therapy, as well as in
the role of adjuvant method for the treatment of various conditions, especially
those associated with intense pain.
This is a unique source, which
includes not only information and knowledge about medicine and methods
of treatment and prevention of diseases, but also
contains a large amount of other unique and useful information about astronomy, philosophy, biological
rhythms and other fields of knowledge that were developed in Ancient China, where the
human body was perceived as an integral part of the Universe.
In addition to external manipulations, an important part of any medical treatment is the active participation of
patient. According to a Chinese proverb: «There is no incurable disease, but some people are impossible to cure». For this reason, the majority of Chinese people practice qigong already from childhood. The excercises of qigong harmonize the body, improve the flow of qi along the meridians of body, alleviate stress from internal systems of the organism, improve the focus of attention and working capacity.
The teachings of TCM about the functions of
human body provides us with an alternative view about the causes of diseases, offering avenues for their treatment and prevention. This knowledge and methods, which are already widely used in clinical practice worldwide, are now also
available to us.