An Introduction to Oriental Medicine

What is Oriental Medicine?

Oriental Medicine is a distinct system of comprehensive health care that has evolved from the traditional philosophies and practices of China and southeast Asia, and which has been modernized, as needed, with current scientific knowlege and universally-recognized healthcare practices.  Oriental medicine utilizes multiple overlapping systems of evaluation, diagnosis, treatment, and disease prevention which emphasizes the causal relationship between inherent constitutional strengths and weaknesses, environmental factors, and their relationsip to the disease process.

The fundamental principle of Oriental Medicine is to identify and correct opposing natural forces that can cause disharmony, dysfunction, and disease. Practitioners utilize numerous constructs of symptomatic differentiation, both ancient and modern, to diagnose illness, to identify causative factors, and to identify the most appropriate measures to restore physiologic, structural, and functional health. Individualized care and  a holistic approach are basis tenents of oriental medicine. Practitioners tend to view nature, spirit, mind, and body on a continuum, and contiually seek positive and effective results in the course of this "best practices" medicine.

Oriental Medicine treatment modalities and procedures include acupuncture, herbal medicine, dietary and lifestyle recommendations, physical manipulation (e.g. TuiNa, Shiatsu), breathing and exercise techniques (e.g. Taiji Quan, QiGong, meditation). Some practitioners encourage forms of spiritual practice in order to provide truly comprehensive and complete health care.

Oriental Medicine includes a diverse variety of healing arts and sciences that developed in Southeast Asia from the historic principles and practices of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the foundations of which were recorded in the Yellow Emperors Classic of Internal Medicine in about 300 BC. Oriental Medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine are based upon the general principle that illness results from disharmony, such as disharmony between the internal organs or disharmony with the fundamental laws of the universe (the Tao) and the environment, and that health can be restored by harmonizing the internal physiology, promoting circulation in the organs and tissues of the body, and achieving balance with nature and the environment. Such a dynamic state of equilibrium where health is constantly being adjusted and maintained is called homeostasis. Homeostasis is a common goal of all healing arts.

	The Yellow Emperor asked the heavely teacher: "I have heard that people of ancient times lived as long as one hundred and twenty years with no signs of weakening in movements, but people nowadays become weakened in their movements at the age of less than sixty years old. Is this due to a change in natural environments or due to man's faults."

Chi-Po replied: "The ancient people who knew the proper way to live had followed the pattern of Yin and Yang which is the regular pattern of heaven and earth, remained in harmony with numerical symbols which are the greata principles of human life, eaten and drunken with moderation, lived their daily lives in a regular pattern with neither excess nor abuse. For this reason, their spirits and bodies had remained in perfect harmony with each other, and consequently, they could live out their naturl life span and die at the age of over one hundered and twenty years." (from the Huang Di Nei Ching Su Wen, Book 1, Chapter 1, circa 200 BC)

Oriental Medicine examination and assessment methods include the use of questioning (history taking), observation, and physical examination. Oriental Medicine assessment is often uniquely identified by its observation of  the tongue's coloration, shape, and coating, the palpation of the pulse for its quality and strength,  the palpation of the abdomen and other areas of the body, and also by extensive questioning about subtle signs and symptoms. Truly traditional practices would include inspection of urine and stool, but modern practitioners rely upon the observation of their patients and the use of laboratory tests when necessary.

Based upon a comprehensive examination and assessment, a diagnosis is made by attributing the specific signs and symptoms to historically established patterns of ill health. These patterns of imbalance can include organ disharmony, imbalances in fundamental substances, invasion by pathogens, imbalanced emotions, inappropriate lifestyle, diet, exertion, stagnation, trauma, pestilence, and/or other factors. Some "classical" Oriental medical diagnoses may seem strange, like Blood or Qi Stagnation, or Kidney Yin Deficiency, but an  Oriental medicine diagnoses may also include modern technical terms, such as "carpal tunnel syndrome" or  "bulging intervertebral lumbar disc with mild radiculopathy into the leg shaoyang channel."

An Oriental Medicine treatment plan seeks to restore, maintain, and promote health and harmony through the administration of a variety of non-surgical interventions, including lifestyle and dietary recommendations; ingestion of natural plant, animal, and mineral products; physical, mental, and breathing exercises; external application of heat, cold, light, electricity, magnetism, and natural substances; acupuncture and electroacupuncture; physical manipulation; and even subcutaneous injection of sterile solutions into acupoints.

Oriental Medicine seeks to identify subtle yet recognizable patterns of disharmony, and to treat them with methods that have been proven through centuries of practice, and according to certain unifying principles. While it is not a substitute for powerful drugs and advanced surgical techniques developed by modern science, Oriental Medicine can often serve to treat, or at least to relieve some symptoms, including those of unidentified and newly "discovered" diseases without having to wait for laboratory science to identify the exact causative agent of the disease. Oriental Medicine is very practical, pragmatic, and yet can appear to be somewhat exotic or esoteric to those unfamiliar with its principles and practices.

How Old is Oriental Medicine?

Oriental Medicine is thought to be between 3500 and 5000 years old. (see History of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine)

What Can Oriental Medicine Treat?

The nature of Oriental Medicine allows it to treat a wide variety of conditions, including pain, headaches, digestive problems, menstrual cramps,  sports and work-related injuries, among many others. (see Conditions Treated by Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine)

Who Practices Oriental Medicine?

Oriental Medicine is practiced primarily by qualified and trained Licensed Acupuncturists, Doctors of Oriental Medicine, and Acupuncture Physicians. (see Practitioners of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine)

How are Practitioners Qualified?

Most practitioners of Oriental Medicine are independently licensed by the state in which they practice, based upon completion of approved training programs and passage of examinations. (see Standards for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine)