The Long History Of Traditional Chinese Medicine

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The Long History Of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Friday, January 4th, 2008 Subscribe To Our Feed

Although it might seem a totally new initiative to us Westerners but there is a long and respected history of traditional Chinese medicine being used in the Eastern culture for centuries. Westerners have tend to look to the newest and most high-tech forms of medicine for their treatments and have totally ignored any alternative that they consider to be ‘old-fashioned’.

Truth In Legend

For many of us we are just beginning to see the benefits to be gained by embracing traditional Chinese medicine. Do you recall the old saying “An apple a day keeps the doctor away” well there is a lot of truth in this old saying.

Legend has it that the origins of the history of traditional Chinese medicine began over 5,000 years ago. The first written records on the subject are only 2,000 years old which is still a very long time. This first written record is known as Hung-De Nie-Jing (The Yellow Emperor’s Canon of Internal Medicine). This written history often refers to much older records about the origins of medical treatments, but those older works have yet to be found. if they still exist.

A Few Traditional Chinese Medicine ‘Firsts’

The history of traditional Chinese medicine is absolutely littered with medical firsts. It is the first medicine culture to recommend reading the heart’s pulse as a key diagnostic tool. It is the first to map acupressure and acupuncture points in order to keep the body working in a harmonious way. Traditional Chinese medicine is one of the first medical systems to emphasize the importance for humans to engage in hearty exercise. It was the first to provide a detailed synopsis of the human anatomy and also the first recorded use of narcotic drugs for medicinal purposes.

The Cultural Revolution

The long, meticulously detailed history of traditional Chinese medicine reached a crucial point during China’s Cultural Revolution during the 1960’s and 70’s. In that time, the government wanted China to move ahead and forge a new identity and obliterate any “old-fashioned” ways – including dismantling traditional Chinese medicine practices. In fact at this time many pro traditional Chinese medicine practitioners were actually jailed for supporting the practices and in some extreme cases practitioners were even killed.

Fortunately for us many traditional Chinese medicine practitioners fled China and were given sanctuary in other countries including the United States and Europe. These dedicated proponents have kept the great history of traditional Chinese medicine alive.

The current Chinese administration has since expressed its regret that the cultural revolution lead to a needless reduction in expertise in traditional Chinese medicine practices. Today The World Health Organization (WHO) actively endorses traditional Chinese medicine as a valid healing system and has done so since 1980.

So if you have a medical problem that you have not been able to manage or cure through conventional medical treatments why not see if there is a traditional Chinese medicine that can help overcome you current condition.

The Web That Has No Weaver
: Understanding Chinese Medicine