Last weekend, I was on a hike up in the Marin headlands with some friends and we got on the subject of allergies. They asked me what causes allergies according to Chinese Medicine. I thought I would share with you my answer.
Here is a little summary of what causes allergies to exist and why sometimes they are worse than others.
The Liver in Chinese Medicine is the filter for the entire body. It is in charge of making sure that all the toxins that enter the body get sorted out, with the help of the Gallbladder, and put in the correct “trash bin”. Some pieces are recycled. Some are stored away, and some are filtered out. However, the Liver does have a maximum capacity. Like the filter in your car, it does need to be cleaned every now and again.
In Chinese Medicine, Spring is the season of the Liver. This is when the Liver is working the most. If the Liver is clogged and can’t do its’ job of filtering out what is not necessary, then symptoms of allergies start to come in. Basically, the body is not able to eliminate the toxins, so the toxins are floating around internally. What other system helps clean up toxins or foreign substances out of the body? Can you guess? The immune system! Now the body has all these excess toxins and it is trying to eliminate them, and you end up suffering from major allergies. So how can you fix it?
CLEANSING and ACUPUNCTURE! Acupuncture helps support the body to get rid of what it no longer needs. This is the main reason why Cleansing is crucial at this time. Cleansing gives the body a chance to clear out old toxins such as EMF’s which are everywhere powering our electronics. Stress can also create toxins in our system. I speaking with Beth last week, she reminded me of California’s air quality last year:
“The fires in November caused some of the worst air we’ve ever experienced here in the Bay Area. No matter how careful we were, breathing in some of that smoke was unavoidable. I think it’s important to remember that though much of the smoke was from wildfires, there were also many man-made structures burned, which contained many toxins not designed (or safe) for ingestion. So not only was the smoke hard on our lungs, but it was also taxing on our livers, which are responsible for clearing those toxins. I saw many people with coughs and colds that lingered longer than usual this year, as well as more people dealing with headaches and fatigue, that I believe can be traced to the poor air quality we experienced in the Fall.”
We do offer a 10 Day and 21 Day Cleanse that cleans out the Liver, Kidneys, and Intestines. You do eat during the Cleanse and it helps to take a step back and see what in our diet is affecting us positively and negatively. We are happy to answer any of your questions about the Cleanse and would love to have you join us. Please contact us for details.
