Maintaining a Healthy Lifestyle
In Chinese Medicine, we care about health issues and life styles. We can always relate to our daily lives under the definitions of Chinese Medicine.
- How is your liquid intake? Do you feel thirsty?
- How is your diet / appetite? Do you feel hungry all the time or have no appetite?
- How is your stress level / your breathing?
- How is your sleep? How many hours of sleep do you get each night? Do you feel
refreshed when you wake up?
- How is your sex drive / your energy level?
- How is your mood? Happy? Do you anger easily?
- How is your urination? Can you control your urgency?
- How are your bowel movements?
- How is your energy level? Are you sensitive to the surrounding temperatures?
Clients must maintain proper fluid levels by monitoring their water intake. There are many ailments caused by dehydration, so the Chinese medical provider must check the amount of water or fluid a
client drinks throughout the day. Dehydration is a major cause of toxicity in the body. The human body can be compared to an automobile engine. You must give your car an oil change every 3,000 miles.
If you deprive your car's engine of fresh oil, your car's engine can overheat.
The body, like an engine, must be lubricated with proper fluids. If you deprive your body of proper fluids, dehydration can bring about a number of symptoms, including ache, headache, fatigue, tiredness, constipation, dry cough, skin symptoms such as acne or rash, high
blood pressure, and possibly requiring dialysis later in life.
For proper hydration you should sip / drink the liquid an average
of 3 to 4 ounces (100-120ml) per hour. The key is the frequency, not the amount of liquid.
It is recommended that you sip or swish the liquid to induce more of your saliva.
In Chinese medicine, we recognize the value of saliva. It's as
precious to our bodies as gold or jade is to jewelry. If you go to bathroom every hour or more frequently, that means you have
had too much liquid too fast or too much in one time. This also helps to allow the body to better recycle fresh energy.
How is your diet and / or eating habits? Eating is an auto deposit
into your body's energy account. If you have a healthy,
balanced diet (full of nourishments), your energy account will be balanced and
you will have enough energy to last you throughout the day. Without proper nourishment (skipping meals, eating
too much, etc.), you will have an overdraft of your energy account.
In Chinese medicine, we recommend that you eat on time and that
you eat 5 small meals everyday. Each meal should be composed
of a balanced diet with a good mix of carbohydrates, fiber and
protein. Never skip a meal and make sure you eat a good
breakfast, mild lunch, small dinner with 2 snacks in
between. Dinner should be finished before 7 - 8PM and no
solid food after 8PM. A good balanced breakfast can add
funding into your energy account. A good lunch allows you to
maintain high energy. A small dinner allows you to avoid
storing too much fat or cholesterol. If you eat and run, eat
too late, eat one meal per day or only eat high protein foods,
this is similar to depositing bad checks into your bank account.
These bad checks will cause you to pay a bigger price later,
resulting in the following health issues: stomach problems, indigestion,
low energy levels and poor sleep quality.
The proper way to breathe is to use your diaphragm and only inhale
and exhale air through the nostrils. Always curve your
tongue upward -- gently touching the upper gum line. This is
the basic method of kong-fu (cong-fu) (qi-cong) breathing.
Kong-fu breathing brings in double the volume of oxygen and
induces saliva into the mouth. In Chinese medicine, we
believe that lung chi (lung energy) can be fully recharged by
using kong-fu (qi-cong) breathing. This helps the body
recycle energy and release toxins faster. If you are healthy
and balanced, with proper breathing you don't need to rely on
coffee, soda or other stimulants to keep up with your busy
routine. If you agitate easily, fall asleep at work or can't
concentrate, practice kong-fu breathing for 2 to 5 minutes to
quickly recharge your energy. When you are at work, try to
take a 15 minute break every 3 to 4 hours to allow your physical
body to recharge. In Chinese medicine, we use mediation and
proper breathing to neutralize stress in the mind. In
Western culture, we use sex to ease stress. It may work in
the short term, however, it will completely deplete your health
and energy levels.
What time do you go to bed? If you go to bed after 11PM
every night, you will have an overdraft of your energy
account. If you do not feel refreshed in the morning, you
have not adequately recharged your energy to have balanced
levels. Our natural biological clock provides the body
with deep phase IV sleep between the hours of 12AM and 1AM.
If you miss this timing, the next phase IV sleep will be around
5AM to 6AM (the same time as sunrise). Good quality sleep
can make sure our health account provides us with good fresh
energy for the day. When we are constantly short on
recharging our energy batteries due to poor quality sleep, an
overdraft fee will be charged to our health account.
Eventually, this bad lifestyle will create a black hole in your
health account. A typical example -- when my clients
indicate that their depression is getting worse, the main reason
is because most of them have been suffering from sleep problems
for 2 weeks or longer.
Please, develop good sleeping habits. First, go to bed
before 11PM (if possible). Second, use kong-fu (qi cong)
breathing techniques to slow down your busy mind before falling
asleep. Third, try to get at least 6 to 8 hours of sleep
everyday.
Recommended sleep (based on age):
- Early to Mid 20s - 5 to 6 hours
- Early to Mid 30's and 40's - 6 to 7 hours
- Age 50 and up - 7 to 8 hours
Lack of proper sleep can lead to lack of concentration,
forgetfulness, absentmindedness, chronic fatigue or other
issues. Good quality sleep can ensure that your energy
account is fully recharged and not depleted of funds.
How often do your urinate? The body needs to recycle
energy. Sweat, urination and bowel movements are ways that
the body releases toxins and recycles new, fresh energy to the
body. In Chinese medicine, we focus on balancing our healthy
energy. If you urinate every hour, you are drinking too
much, too fast. If your urine is clear, light with no smell,
that is better than it being dark with a bad smell. Some
women put off going to the bathroom. Doing this on a regular
basis can result in a Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), high blood
pressure, kidney disease and low health and energy levels.
Get into the habit of understanding your body and observe your
daily bodily functions. If it burns or itches when you
urinate, be alert! If it lasts for more than 24 hours, see
your physician immediately. If your urine is dark in color,
you are not getting enough liquids. If your urine has an
unusual smell, it may be related to food you have consumed in the
past few hours. If you observe bubbles floating to the
surface, be alert. If this happens often, please check with
your physician. You may want to check your diet as well, you
may have consumed too much protein.
How are your bowel movements? Like urination, this process
also allows our bodies to release toxins. We like to see
this function happen daily -- 2 times a day with quality and
shape. In Western medicine, it is considered OK to have a
bowel movement every other day. In Chinese medicine, not
having a bowel movement every day means that your health account
needs a small tune-up.
The frequency and quality of your bowel movements can provide a
lot of clues concerning your health. In Chinese medicine, we
prefer to have regular movements 1 to 3 times a day. The
quality of your stool should be formed and soft. You should
not have any cramping or bloating. If your stool is too
soft, watery or too dry -- this is not a healthy sign. If
you observe blood or mucus after a bowel movement, you may have
irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or hemorrhoids. Contact your
physician to be screened.
Your daily diet and frequency of liquid intake can improve and
support your healthy bowel. If you notice that your bowel
movement patterns have changed (diarrhea or constipation) and you
are over 50 years old, please follow up with your physician as
soon as possible. If you have occasional diarrhea, be sure
to prevent dehydration by sipping and swishing no more than 4
ounces (100ml+/-) of water or sports drinks with
electrolytes. You may also want to stay away from a solid
diet for at least 12 to 24 hours. If you do not have
cramping or a fever, the symptoms should subside. Occasional
constipation can be relieved by adding liquid and fiber to your
diet.
How is your exercise regimen? In Chinese medicine, we focus
on how to reset your spinal cord energy. We consider the
spinal cord as a jade column. Your daily exercise routine
should focus on how to maintain the alignment of the spinal
cord. This is an essential factor to a health
lifestyle. With our busy daily schedules, it is recommended
that your daily exercises produce less sweat and incorporate more
stretching along the spine. Be sure to change your position
and posture every few hours and always incorporate kong-fu (qi
cong) breathing techniques.
Tips for Exercising:
- Part One: Upper body, neck and shoulder exercises
- Part Two: Spinal cord exercise, stand or sit
- Part Three: Lower back stretches
- Part Four: Lower body and limb exercises
How is your daily mood? Your attitude determines your
success. Positive thinking allows you to remain
healthy. In Chinese medicine, we focus on balance. The
basic philosophy is to be content with what you have and
appreciate and accept what you can get. Set reasonable
goals. Do everything from the heart and enjoy what you
do. Set a balance between health and money. If you
live your life constantly thinking negative thoughts, you will deplete
your healthy energy. In the long term, the price you pay
will be health issues down the road. Learn to express your
feelings properly. If you always keep your emotions bottled
up, it will hurt you in the long run. The old Chinese
medicine says: Over sadness will hurt heart energy, over
angry will hurt your liver energy, over worry will hurt your
spleen energy, over grief will hurt your lung energy, and over
fear will hurt your kidney energy.
The last factor that is very important to adults is your sex life. Sexual activities can enhance your love, passion and pleasure in life, but one act of intercourse can cost you as must as a $300 withdrawal from your $1000 energy account. A teenager can redeposit this energy within 24 hours with full rest. However, senior citizens can take up to 2 weeks to redeposit this energy. So, an overuse of “fun” can turn into a major depletion on your health energy.
Use the following Chinese wisdom for the frequency of "fun":
- Teenager – up to 5 times a week
- Mid 20-30 – up to 3 times a week
- Mid 30-40 – up to twice a week
- Mid 40-50 – up to once or twice a week
- Mid 50-60 – up to once or twice monthly
- Mid 60-70 – up to once every 2 to 3 months
- Mid 70-80 – up to once every 6 months or once a year
To have longevity and a healthy life, you must practice control wisely.
We have over 40 years of practical experience in acupuncture,
eastern medicine and pharmacy. Our clinic, Mr. Lee and his father Dr. Lee developed the
Home
Healing Kit for people who are willing to learn how to take charge
of their daily health. The healing system will help with the
prevention and healing of the most complaints without having to
take drugs daily. It is designed to relieve complaints that
many people have everyday. Mr. Lee will teach clients how
to use the heating sticks on specific points unique to their
problems. It is an easy, economical and effective way to
heal yourself at home. You can order the kit by contacting
our office today.
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