Beijing | TCM - Traditional Chinese Medicine

Chinese Herbal Medicine - Yin-Yang

The art of "Traditional Chinese Medicine," or TCMand the traditional healing arts date back thousands of years. TCM is part science and part philosophy, and the basic theory of TCM is based on the principle of "yin-yang," or "the Five Elements," the human body's "meridian system," and "zang fu which deals with the body's internal organs.

The Chinese believe that the human body's functions and processes are all interrelated, and interaction with the external environment can lead to "disharmony" and ultimately to disease. By examining any indications of disharmony can lead a TCM practitioner to prevent, or treat any illness or disease.

The early origins of TCM can be traced to the necessity of eating to survive. During the natural course of food gathering and preparation, primitive societies found that through trial and error, certain foods contained curative properties that could alleviate certain ailments.

This trial and error method was an early form of the modern "clinical trial" to test the efficacy of prescriptions and treatments. In ancient China there was little record keeping of the results, and most of these remedies and techniques were passed from generation to generation by word of mouth.

In the practice of TCM, patterns of "disharmony" in the body will lead to ill health by causing disruptions in the body's "energy flow" that travels along a series of "acu-tracts" or "meridians," to specific "acupoints."

The Meridian System

Acording to ancient TCM nomenclature there are some 649 acu-points that are located along 20 meridians or collateral channels. These so-called meridians are also referred to as the "twelve standard meridians" corresponding to each of the major zang-fu organs in the human body.

The zang-fu organs are the gall bladder, heart, kidneys, large intestine, liver, lungs, pericardium, small intestine, spleen, stomach, triple warmer, and urinary bladder.

TCM Diagnostic Methodology

Traditional Chinese Medicine uses the "four examination methods" which consist of auscultation, visual inspection of the patient's complexion, taking the patient's pulse, and asking the patient about any perceived conditions.

After the examination is given, the TCM practitioner will administer a prescription for a pharmaceutical treatment, along with a variety of physical treatments ranging from acupuncture, to massage therapy and qigong, or breathing exercises.

Moxibustion & Acupuncture

The technique of jiu, or "Moxibustion involves the combined use of heat and herbs to treat various conditions. The origin of Moxibustion may have its roots in the ancient practice of using heated stones wrapped in bark or animal hide, and applying the heat to parts of the body to reduce pain. The ancient Chinese used mugwort herb (moxa), burning it onto the patient's skin, or using it in combination with acupuncture needles.

The practice of acupuncture dates back as far as the Han dynasty from 202 BC to 220 AD. Acupuncture uses "filiform needles" inserted into various acupuncture "points" of the body and manipulated, to unblock chi, thereby balance the opposing forces of yin and yang (positive and negative energy).

By stimulating one part of the body's many "meridian channels" at specific "xué," or "acupoints" pain or disease in another part of the body can be relieved or cured. After a long period of development, the theory of collateral channels took shape, and the technique of acupuncture treatment was perfected.

Cupping

The technique of "cupping" is an ancient Chinese practice that uses a heated cup that is applied to the skin. As the heated air in the cup cools and contracts, suction is created, drawing out any pain from the deep muscle tissue.

TongRenTang Chinese Herbal Medicine Pharmacy

The TongRenTang TCM Pharmacy located south of Tian'anmen square was established in 1669, and is Beijing's oldest remaining traditional Chinese apothecary. TongRenTang began under the Le family, who eventually lost control of the business in the 1700s.


TongRenTang Apothecary Pharmacy (left), Chart of Xué Acupoints (right)

During the 1800s Le Pingquan, an heir to the Le family, began a competing TCM pharmacy called GuanRenTang, and was eventually able to re-aquire TongRenTang. TongRenTang received royal patronage in 1861, and is still in existence today.

Beijing Tongrentang Drug Store
No.42 ChongwenmenWai Street, Chongwen District Beijing 100062

Beijing Tongrentang Drug Store

Modern TCM & Herbal Medicine

The term "TCM" was created by PRC government after the Cultural Revolution in 1950, to market Chinese medicine to other countries. Since its inception as a marketable commodity, the PRC government has adopted a loose system of regulation, with the goal of promote the further development of TCM pharmacology in Western countries.

University level higher education in TCM has gradually developed over the last several decades, but much of this secondary education is conducted informally in correspondence or night school courses, with less oversight than traditional education methods. The Chinese term for the study of TCM is "zhongyi xue," which translates to "Chinese medicine studies."

To add a level of governmental oversight into the TCM industry, the "State Traditional Chinese Medicine Administration" was created in 1986. The "World Acupuncture and Moxibustion Union" was established in 1987, and the STCMA was renamed the "State Traditional Chinese Medicine and Pharmaceuticals Administration" in 1988.

During China's push to integrate into the global market system, it has attempted to modernize TCM by blending it with Western medicine. Today, Chinese and Western medicine exist side by side, in a form of hybrid medical treatment that focuses on the strengths and weaknesses of both therapy approaches.

Books on Traditional Chinese Medicine

Modern Alternative or Holistic Medicine

The Western style of "holistic medicine" or "alternative medicine" is a derivative of the philosophy behind the Chinese approach to TCM. Rather than the "cut, burn, and poison" methods used in modern medical practice, the holistic medical approach emphasizes a need for examining the whole person, including external environmental factors, emotional well-being, lifestyle, nutrition, and direct physical factors.

Although a holistic medical approach may rely on contemporary modalities of diagnosis and treatment which can include prescription drugs and surgery, the ancient Chinese TCM method of achieving "balance and well being" are heavily emphasized.