In recent years, the incidence of diabetes in mainland China has shown an upward trend, which seriously threatens the health of the people.
Traditional Chinese medicine classifies diabetes as "thirst-quenching", a disease that has appeared in the development of traditional Chinese medicine.
TCM uses a variety of methods in the treatment of thirst (diabetes), including auricular pressure, massage, umbilical therapy, etc., in addition to TCM conditioning. These TCM therapies can not only effectively improve the symptoms of diabetes, but also prevent and treat complications, providing new treatment ideas and methods for diabetic patients.
How does TCM interpret diabetes?
The main symptoms of diabetes include polydipsia, polyphagia, polyuria, weakness, weight loss, and a sweet taste in the urine. Modern medicine can easily and quickly determine whether you have diabetes by measuring blood sugar levels.
The main causes of diabetes include: improper diet, emotional disorders, overwork, and insufficient congenital endowment. In addition, some people also experience elevated blood sugar after contracting COVID, which is also a cause for concern.
What are the good ways to treat diabetes with TCM?
Today, I will introduce a method that can lower blood sugar without taking medicine - moxibustion, which is not only simple and convenient, but also can reduce the toxic side effects caused by long-term use of hypoglycemic drugs, which is worth knowing.
1. Stomach belly. The preferred acupuncture point for diabetes is "Stomach Xiayu", which is the experience and special effect acupoint for diabetes. From the "Dragon Rank Su Needle Sutra", also known as "Stomach Xia Yu" or "Stomach Tube Xia Yu", also known as "Pancreatic Yu". It is recorded in "Qianjin Yifang": "Quench thirst, dry throat and stomach tube, and each of the three acupoints of Yu is 100 strong."
The specific location is: on the back, below the spinous process of the eighth thoracic vertebra, 1.5 inches to the left and right. Usually use moxibustion for 5~15 minutes.
This location happens to be on the line of the dorsal acupoint of the bladder meridian. The dorsal Yu acupoint is the reaction point on the body surface of the internal organs of the body in a physiological or pathological state. By precisely stimulating these acupuncture points, it is possible to effectively promote the function of the relevant organs and even help them recover in a state of illness.
This is closely related to the distribution of nerves between the dorsal Yu acupoint and the corresponding viscera. For example, the inferior gastric Yu acupoint is mainly innervated by the T8 nerve, while the sensory nerve of the pancreas is mainly T8, and the motor nerve is T6 to T10, indicating that the hypogastric Yu acupoint is closely related to the pancreas in terms of nerve distribution.
As a result, patients with pancreatic disease often experience significant tenderness in the lower stomach and abdomen. Animal experiments have also proved that acupuncture of the lower stomach and belly Yu acupoint can not only reduce the blood sugar level of experimental rabbits, but also significantly improve the morphology and function of pancreatic islet cells.
The hypoglycemic effect of the Yu acupoint under the stomach is achieved by stimulating the body itself to increase insulin levels.
2. Spleen Yu acupoint. It is located 1.5 inches below the spinous process of the eleventh thoracic vertebra, and there is an acupuncture point on the left and right. Gentle moxibustion for 5~15 minutes is usually recommended.
It is mentioned in the "Analogous Classics Tuyi" that the spleen Yu acupoint is mainly used to expel the heat of the five internal organs, which has the same effect as the five internal organs Yu acupoint. The "Acupuncture and Moxibustion Dacheng" pointed out that the spleen and Yu acupoints are mainly used to treat symptoms such as abdominal distention, chest and back pain after eating, and eating more and losing weight.
Here, the function of the Spleen Yu acupoint is to expel the fire of the lungs and stomach, and the tonic effect of the Lung Yu acupoint helps to nourish the yin in harmony.
3. Guan Yuan Acupoint. Located in the lower abdomen, 3 inches below the umbilicus, it is also recommended to have gentle moxibustion for 5~15 minutes during moxibustion.
Guan Yuan acupoint is the acupuncture point where the Ren pulse and the three yin meridians of the foot converge, and it is the concentration of the body's Yuan Yin and Yuan Yang energy. Moxibustion Guan Yuan acupoint is designed to nourish the body's Yuan Yin.
4. Taixi Cave. Located in the depression between the tip of the inner ankle and the Achilles tendon, it can be gently conditioned by moxibustion for 3~7 minutes.
Taixi acupoint is an important acupuncture point in the kidney meridian and is known as the original acupoint. In the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, the original acupoint is the key point for the treatment of diseases of the five internal organs. The stimulation of the Taixi acupoint helps to nourish the kidney yin, increase body fluids, and relieve dryness.
Diabetes mellitus is closely related to the lungs, stomach and kidneys, but the kidneys play a particularly critical role. The stimulation of Taixi and Guanyuan acupoints is intended to nourish kidney yin, replenish kidney qi, strengthen muscles and bones, and cultivate acquired vitality.
Long-term diabetes can lead to peripheral neuropathy, which usually manifests as coldness, numbness, heaviness and pain in the lower extremities. This is believed to be due to the deficiency of liver and kidneys caused by long-term diseases, deficiency of qi and blood, stagnation of qi and blood stasis, obstruction of the veins and veins, and loss of nutrients in the muscles and veins.
Usually, this condition is characterized by qi and yin deficiency and blood stasis. In the long run, yin and yang are damaged, resulting in a lack of yang qi, which cannot warm the blood vessels, resulting in cold qi condensation and qi stagnation, and poor veins, thus causing pain.
When neuropathy occurs, in addition to moxibustion at the above acupuncture points, the stimulation of the Sanyinjiao and Kidney Yu acupoints will also be increased. The Three Yin Meridians are the intersection of qi and blood in the three yin meridians, which can strengthen the spleen and invigorate qi, invigorate blood circulation and eliminate blood stasis, and nourish the liver and kidneys. The Kidney Yu acupoint further nourishes the kidney yin and enhances the vitality of the day after tomorrow.
Moxibustion can not only regulate blood sugar and prevent diabetic neuropathy, but also adjust blood lipid indexes (such as cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein) in the process of lowering blood sugar, and also have a significant improvement effect on lipid metabolism disorders caused by diabetes.
What else should I pay attention to in my daily life?
Control sugar intake, maintain a happy and positive mood, and get a moderate amount of physical activity.
Also, the diet should not be overly restricted. Some people, after finding that their blood sugar is elevated, will strictly restrict their diet, almost no staple foods, and only eat vegetables in order to avoid long-term use of hypoglycemic drugs.
Although this can keep blood sugar within the normal range, it can lead to nutritional deficiencies, making people look pale and weak. Long-term malnutrition and lack of vitality are very harmful to the body.
Moxibustion can effectively lower blood sugar, which is not only low-cost, simple and convenient to operate, but also reduces the possible side effects of long-term use of hypoglycemic drugs, which is highly recommended.
In addition to moxibustion, there are many other methods such as massage, auriculotherapy, Chinese herbal formulas, abdominal acupuncture, warm acupuncture, and umbilical therapy. According to the different physiques of individuals, one or more therapies suitable for themselves can be selected, and the body can be adjusted from multiple angles and levels to achieve the purpose of lowering blood sugar.