| Healthy living | |
| SEPTEMBER |
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Insomnia Insomnia or lack of sleep comes in different forms, e.g. difficulty falling asleep, waking up early or at specific times or disturbed sleep by dreams and nightmares. As a consequence of not sleeping well, people feel tired and erratic, they have a decreased aptitude for problem solving and decision making. They also suffer from muscles stiffness and headaches. In some case, insomnia that is ignored for a long time can cause serious health problems. According to TCM, insomnia tells of a dysfunction or an imbalance in the body. It is divided in “True insomnia” and “Transitory insomnia”. The latter is often caused temporarily by eating too late, noises, coffee or even TV. True insomnia is usually related to one of the following patterns
The identification of the patient’s specific insomnia pattern needs some extensive examination. In the following, we will describe two herbs and two substances that are often used for the treatment of insomnia. Sour Jujube Seed (Suan Zao Ren 酸 枣 仁)  The sour jujube fruit grows on middle-sized thorn-bushes (up to 1.5 meters). The bushes are mostly found in dry areas (of China) as they are very weather and temperature resistant. In spring, the tree carries yellow blossoms, in late-summer the red, cherry-like fruits can be harvested. The seed of the date is little, round and of red, purple or black color.
The Sour Jujube seed or sour date seed is the most often used herb for the treatment of insomnia. Due to its strong sedative effect, it is called to be a sleep inducer. The seed helps with any insomnia problem caused by anxiety, stress, and restless as it nourish and balance the liver and the heart. Sour Jujube seed only calms down the spirit (located in the heart), nourish the blood and clears heat in the body. Some people also use the seed to increase their ability to memorize. Sour Jujube fruit is frequently used in jams and cakes because of its delicious sweet-sour taste. Fleeceflower Vine (Ye Jiao Teng 夜交藤)  The fleeceflower vine is frequently used as herbal medicine not only for the treatment of insomnia but also for the treatment of aging and memorizing.
In Chinese books it is said that the fleeceflower has the ability to restore gray hair. Proven is that the herb has an enhancing effect on the fertility properties of men and women.
In the treatment of insomnia, fleeceflower vine is comparable to the Sour Jujube seed: It nourishes the heart and the liver and calms the spirit. In addition, it has a lowering effect on increasing Yang in the body. The vine or creeper grows very fast and can be used to replant huge areas (growth up to 8 meters a year). It prefers sunny places and has almost no requirements towards the soil. Dragon Bone (literally) – Fossilized animal bones (Long Gu 龙骨)  In Chinese mythology, the dragon plays a very important role. The Chinese believe that they are descends from the dragons and the use the dragon symbol in many ways (i.e. the Chinese birth sign - dragon).The name Long Gu literally translated means dragon bone, however the bones used in Chinese medicine are bones of large animals such as rhinoceros, deer, antelope, or pig. For medical use, the bones are cooked and grounded into powder. Long Gu positively influences the heart, liver, kidney and large intestine. It calms down the spirit in the heart, the liver and anchors floating Yang. Therefore, it is regularly used as a treatment for insomnia and emotional distress. It also prevents fluid loss of the body. The bones contain a high content of calcium, potassium, sodium and trace elements. Magnetite – Magnetic stone (Ci Shi 糍石)  Magnetic stone has a long history in China. In the early years of Chinese navigation, it had been used to terminate the direction of ships (in addition to astronomy and reading of the currents).In Chinese Medicine, magnetite is used in small portions of fine grounded powder. It has the property to lower Yang and strengthen Yin. It also calms the spirit and balance the Qi circulation in the body. Next to the treatment of insomnia, magnetite is often used due to its antispasmodic properties. As a cure for chronic asthma, it is prescribed regularly. As the powder is difficult to digest, digestion-promoting herbs are recommended to take in combination with magnetite. If you have questions about these herbs and the treatment with herbal remedies in general, please feel free to contact us. We are very happy to assist! |
