However, an ever-increasing number of modern practitioners are looking into the concepts behind the symbolism of TCM. It is true that if you go to your regular family doctor and suggest that you have an excess of the metal element that is disrupting your Qi flow, and that is why the rate of your asthma attacks is going up, they may look at you funny, laugh, or suggest psychotherapy. This directly speaks to a highly holistic form of healthcare that looks at the whole body instead of individual systems or issues. When everything is in balance, your body works perfectly according to TCM and its associated philosophies. Why did the sinus infection occur in the first place? What made you susceptible to the type of bacteria that caused the problem? Why was your immune system unable to fight it off? While these things can work, the concept of Traditional Chinese Medicine does not include so-called Band-Aids that deal with problems individually. A person with a sinus infection may get antibiotics to kill the bacteria causing it and be instructed to take anti-inflammatory over-the-counter medication so they do not have a headache anymore.
In Western medicine, the general method of dealing with health complaints is to identify the symptoms, attempt to diagnose why they manifest, and then treat both the underlying problem and the symptoms themselves. If you have not enough wood energy, for example, you may feel indecisive and experience stagnation in your body systems that leads to bloating, digestive issues, and chronic problems like sinus inflammation. Instead, the overall concept of these five elements act together as part of the life force that must come into balance using the Yin and Yang system.Īs with those larger concepts, ill health has to do with the five elements coming out of balance. For example, if you have a urinary tract infection, it does not mean you are eating too much salty foods and it must be wintertime. TCM does not deal with the elements as individual things.
What does this all mean for the practice of taking care of your body and mind? Rather than understanding every single association, it makes more sense to grasp the concept of how these elements influence Qi and therefore the concept of maintaining balance in order to improve or optimize your health. The elements also include concepts like time of day, directions on a compass, and other things like characteristics of an environment.
Five elements of the yin and yang theory skin#
Health complaints associated with this element include allergies, asthma, and chronic skin conditions. Metal – Autumn, Lungs and Large Ontestines, grief, white, and spicy food. Health complaints associated with this element include digestive issues, eye problems, migraines, addiction, and menstrual issues. Wood – The early days of spring, the Liver and Gallbladder, anger, green, and sour tastes. Health complaints associated with this element include heart conditions, insomnia, and anxiety. įire – Summer, the Heart and Small Intestines, joy and laughter, red, and bitter foods. Health complaints associated with this element include problems with the Bladder and Kidneys. Water – Winter, the Kidneys and urinary tract, fear, black and blue, and salty tastes.
Health complaints associated with this element include digestive issues like heartburn, fatigue, and allergies. Just as the concepts of Yin and Yang are associated with things like temperature, quantity of light, gender, and cardinal directions, earth, water, fire, wood, and metal are associated with various other concepts.Įarth – Transitions from one season to the next such as late-summer, the Stomach and Spleen, overthinking and worry, yellow, and sweet tastes.