DO YOU KNOW SOME STRANGE CHINESE REMEDIES?
2014-05-04
I've had great experiences with acupuncture and Chinese medicinal herbs over the years and continue to use them when I need to so long as a TCM doctor prescribed them. But one thing that always intrigued me was that everyone in China seemed to have opinions or folk remedies (similar ones, so clearly well known) about hot and cold, times of the year such as "spring rain" which include doing or eating certain things, such as green bean soup or chrysanthemum tea - the list is long. If Chinese people have such long traditions, I wondered why they should ever have anything wrong with their health as they have answers for everything. I asked some friends, and they said, "well, we know it, but we don't always do it." One Chinese friend was suffering from sinus, with constant sneezing and wheezing. He asked a healthy friend who recommended a very old TCM doctor, who advised him to make 葛根（gegen) soup and stop eating fish and meat contaminated with hormones - which eliminates anything not homegrown, leaving him mainly vegetarian now. His sinus improved a lot, so he believes the remedy has worked. "Based on fact!!" He now believes his nose is allergic to the hormones. This is hardly logical to our way of thinking as so many other variables could be involved, but he is unshakable in his conviction, AND happier.
What other Chinese remedies have seemed strange or illogical to you, but seem to work anyway?
Ginger infusion for stomach virus. I'd been down that road before and, when stricken recently, reached for the ginger. However, my friends who are Chinese told me ginger water is for winter and turnips are for summer. Thus, I should be reaching for turnips. You would think this more would be insignificant but I literally felt their disapproval wafting from them as I paid the farmer for a few knuckles of fresh ginger.
Thankfully, ginger water works like a charm. I could never get on board with turnips, anyway.
I produced radio programs about Traditional Chinese acupuncture treatment system but not Experienced yet.
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