Ageing gracefully with TCM Hong Hai The Renhai Clinic - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
Ageing gracefully with TCM Hong Hai The Renhai Clinic www.renhaitang.com.sg 24 March 2013 A talk sponsored by the Council for the 3 rd Age What is the secret of vitality and longevity as we reach our middle years and beyond?
Hong Hai
The Renhai Clinic 仁海堂
www.renhaitang.com.sg 24 March 2013 A talk sponsored by the Council for the 3rd Age
What is the secret of vitality and
longevity as we reach our middle years and beyond?
Are TCM methods compatible with those
and vitality?
彭祖 Peng Zu, longest-lived man in history
Legend has it that Peng
Zu (Shang era, circa 1500 BC) to age of 800 years (130 by modern count). He was famed for his attention to diet as a means to longevity.
The
“Hall of Longevity” in Sichuan dedicated to him.
At 71, Dorothy Dale Kloss had a new career with the Palm Spring Follies
Just half a dozen years
earlier, she had overcome a bout with colon cancer. When the doctor started to warn her, “Now, Dorothy, in five years…,” she answered, “I don’t want to hear about that…When the time comes, that’s it.”
“Good times and bum
times, I’ve seen them all and, my dear, I’m still here.”
Guinness World Record 2005
Shigeaki Hinohara, 100
One of the world's longest-serving physicians and educators. Since 1941 at St. Luke's International Hospital in Tokyo
“We all remember how
as children, when we were having fun, we
can keep that attitude as adults, too.”
“All people who live
long regardless of nationality, race or gender share one thing in common: None are
News
Shigeaki Hinohara marked his 100th birthday on October 4 by contemplating the potential for celebrating his 110th. "Now I have a major goal on what to do towards 110 years old and would like to stay healthy to see a spiritual world and a nuclear-free world realised while teaching children [about the significance of life and peace]," said Hinohara, honorary president and chairman of the board of trustees of St. Luke International Hospital in T
looking up.” "The fact that Japan experienced the earthquake disaster made me feel even more that I would like to live ten years more. I want to live on to see Japan recover," wrote Hinohara in his latest book, "Shigeaki Hinohara, 100 Years Old."
A zest for life “Mind over matter” Spirit strong – manage their
Disciplined life routine
1.
Critical illnesses that eventually cause death
1.
Limited life of body organs and the ability of cells to multiply and regenerate in the body
Qinshi huangdi 秦始皇帝 tried to find the “elixir
became the most powerful man on earth
He thought he could also conquer death, and
sent his physicians everywhere to find the magic potion that would give him eternal life.They came up with a pill that contained mercury. He died prematurely at the age of around 50.
The elixir of life has never been found
The Chinese classic Huangdi Neijing 黄帝内
经 recorded 2000 years ago that man’s natural
life span is about 100 years, unless he does not take care of himself and dies earlier unnecessarily of illness
Most men fall short of that because
they do not live healthy lives
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from the Yellow Emperor’s Classic 黄帝内经
上古之人，其知道者； 法于阴阳，和与术数。 饮食有节，起居有常； 不妄作劳，故能形与神俱 The ancients knew the tao and understood the
way of yin and yang, and how to cultivate health: moderation in food and drink, regularity in living habits, avoidance of over-exertion, the body and spirit in harmony
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虚邪贼风，避之有时； 恬淡虚无，真气从之 精神内守，病安从来。
Know when to avoid climatic stresses,
live a placid life with plain needs,
maintain the defensive forces in the body
keep yourself in good spirits:
How then could one fall ill?
Eat 80% full Moderate quantities of various kinds of
food
Herbs and other natural materials in the Chinese medicine can help to:
balance the body for health and longevity improve flow of qi, blood and body fluids
T
excesses in the body.
Yang tonics, yin tonics for the kidney, liver, heart, lung
and digestive system These must be customized to your current body state constitution
In TCM, one man’s meat (tonic herb) is truly another man’s poison:
Ginseng: Korean ginseng, Chinese ginseng人参 and
American ginseng 西洋参are all different and can cause harm if used incorrectly
Cordyceps 冬虫夏草 is a “kidney yang” and lung
tonic, but there are better (and much cheaper) alternatives for most people
Wolfberry seeds 枸杞子are mild yin tonics for the
kidney and liver, hence also good for the eyes
Huang qi (astragalus) 黄芪 is an excellent qi and
blood tonic suitable for most people
The pi 脾 and shen 肾 are the organs most
directly related to cultivating longevity
Pi vulnerable to si 思 (contemplation, or anxiety)
and irregular/oily diet.
Decline in pi leads to deterioration of qi and
shen
Shen is vulnerable to fear, overstrain and a
detriorating pi
Tonics for qi, shen and pi are the most
commonly used in TCM
American ginseng
西洋参
Chinese ginseng
人参
Dangshen
党参
Astralagus
黄芪（北芪）
Shanyao
山药（淮山）
Sheng mai san
生脉散
Buzhong yiqi tang
补中益气汤
Pi 脾
Si jun zi tang
四君子汤
Xiangshi yangwei wan
香砂养胃丸
Shen lin baizu san
参苓白术散 Shen 肾
Cordyceps
冬虫夏草
Wolfberry seeds
枸杞子
Liuweidihuang wan
六味地黄丸
Shen qi wan
肾气丸
Be in harmony with natural (yin-yang) cycles in the body. Go to bed and rise at regular times, but sleep longer in winter and less in the summer (follow the sun)
During the morning, yang is rising – the body can put in the most physical and mental activity In the afternoon, yang is declining; activities should gradually slow down Evening is a time to relax as yin rises: no strenuous physical mental activity Evening Noon Morning Yin Yang Night
Work stresses 饮食男女 “eat drink, man woman” Retention of essence
Coronary heart disease, stroke, cancer,
diabetes
Peace of mind, diet and exercise are the
keys to reducing chance of serious illnesses (common to both Chinese and Western medicines)
Differences in emphasis, and on what
constitutes good exercise and diet, and how to achieve peace of mind
Meat versus plant-based food (vegetables,
fruits, cereals)
TCM prescribes balance But balance depends on the person’s
constitution
In Western nutritional science, there are many schools
“Atkins diet” suggests diet low in carbohydrates and
high in protein, including meat proteins
Mediterranean diet Vegetarian diets (Dean Ornish, Colin Campbell, and
Caldewell Esselstyn) – are recommended as the best protection against heart disease, stroke, cancer. TCM diet is guided by the person’s constitution
1.
Balanced and Peaceful 平和体质
2.
Qi deficiency 气虚体质
3.
Yang deficiency 阳虚体质
4.
Blood deficiency 血虚体质
5.
Yin deficiency 阴虚体质
6.
Phlegm-Dampness 痰湿体质
7.
Damp-Heat 湿热体质
8.
Qi stagnation 气郁体质
9.
Blood stasis 血瘀体质
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Qi deficiency: weak (shortness of) breath, fatigue, less desire
to speak, sweating, tender and swollen tongue with tooth imprints
Qi stagnation: often emotionally-induced. Appears
introverted, slight depression, sensitive, usually thin in physique, irritable, fullness in chest, poor sleep, excessive sputum, lightly red tongue with thin fur
aversion to cold, preference for hot food, pale lips, sweating, loose stool and excessive urine, impotence.
excessive sex. Marked by body thinness, internal heat, feverish sensation in palm and soles, dry mouth, preference for cold drinks, red tongue with scanty fur
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Cardio-vascular exercises (vigorous
jogging/swimming) – can improve quality
being) but effect on longevity and prevention of serious diseases
Walking
Less emphasis on vigorous cardio-vascular
exercises
Taiji and qigong analogous to engine
tuning for your car
Balancing mind and body Hua Tuo – the door that is opened
regularly does not rust. “Use it or lose it”
Calligraphy, painting, qin (plucked
stringed instrument), and chess
Mahjong Qigong (c.f. yoga)
Regular medical examination to detect early
signs of cancer, cardio-vascular disease, diabetes
check up
Of particular importance are colonoscopy for
detection of colon cancer or pre-cancer, chest X-rays, blood tests for cancer markers, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, sugar level test for diabetes, breast and cervical examination for women, prostate gland examination for men
Detection of imbalances by
TCM diagnosis
These imbalances may not have manifested
themselves in clinical disease symptoms, but a person may not feel in the best of health (sleep and digestive problems,, tiredness, etc)
Sometimes known as “sub-health”; sub-clinical
illness might be a better term（亚健康)
In old Chinese tradition, pay your doctor less
money if he treats you for illness and more if he finds you healthy
Eating less (70-80% full) (Chinese medicine
recommended this thousands of years ago)
Difficult to practise this in Singapore People in farms and rural areas who eat plain
food have found it more feasible - and live longer
A new drug Resveratrol is in the market –
claims to achieve similar effect as calorific restriction to promote anti-ageing
Recent advances show that human cell
has a portion called the teleomere which is the cap of chromosomes
Cells have limited lives and must divide
and reproduce themselves to continue
gets shorter.
When they become too short, they stop
reproducing themselves, and begin to die
Scientists from Harvard medical school
discovered that an enzyme in the human body, teleomerase, slows down the shortening of teleomeres.
As we age, the amount of teleomerase
decreases, and ageing progresses to death
Stress can depress teleomerase levels in
human beings, hence accelerate ageing
A drug T
The common Chinese herb Astralagus contains the teleomerase molecule Further research may well reveal that other Chinese herbs and prescriptions – and some Chinese exercises -- can also increase teleomerase levels
Advances in medical research, esp. molecular biology,
discover immediate causes of disease
Challenge is how to translate that into promoting
vitality and longevity
causes Alzheimer’s*. But what caused those to appear in the first place?
*Nature Cell Biology Journal (March Reported in the Singapore Straits
Times, 13 March 2008, H6.
Both Chinese and
Western medicine agree on stress as a major cause of coronary heart disease, strokes and cancers
The most important factor for vitality and longevity
is the one you need to spend least money on: cultivating your mind and spirit, and being in harmony with your environment
Appropriate diet, supplemented by herbs, is also of
prime importance
Pancreatic cancer are related to living style and smoking.
Irregular meals causes the irregularity in pancreatic secretions; nicotine from smoking can enter the digestive track and reach the pancreas.
Some fermented foods related to esophagus and nose-throat
cancer
Stress is a strong causal factor for all cancers Foods rich in fats thought to increase risk of prostate and
breast cancer For more information, refer to Yu and Hong: Management of
Cancer with Chinese Medicine
Selected slides from the presentation may be viewed in the near future at the website of the Renhai Clinic 仁海堂: