acupuncture / herbal medicine / shiatsu

ABOUT WARMING MOXA
 

                      WARMING MOXIBUSTION (MOXA)

 

Moxa is a warming technique involving burning the dried mugwort herb, Artemesia vulgaris (called Ai Ye in Chinese pinyin). It can be used directly on the skin with the use of a protective salve (rice grain moxa), on the end of a needle (warming needle), or as pole moxa to warm larger areas of the body by moving the moxa pole over but not on the affected/intended area of skin. Burning moxa, the dried mugwort herb, generates infrared heat that penetrates deep into the body to warm, soothe, and heal.

 

Moxa is pure yang energy. If yin is potential energy - inert substances that have potential to move: muscles, bones organs, blood, and fluids, yang is the action-oriented kinetic force that allows physiological motion. It revives, moves, lifts, and holds. Moxa can treat a variety of conditions, including any pain conditions caused by cold or inflammation, and any conditions related to yang deficiency ~ a lack of warming energy required for physiological processes. Moxa can treat low back pain and chronic headache pain with symptoms of cold and dampness. Moxa plus western medicine has been shown to treat rheumatoid arthritis pain more effectively than western medicine alone. Moxa contains anti-inflammatory and antioxidant constituents, and both upregulates anti-inflammatory cytokines and downregulates proinflammatory cytokines. It can relieve low-grade gastrointestinal inflammation and increase a beneficial microbiome in the gut. It has also been shown to be as effective as western medicine for relief of menstrual pain.

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3 styles of receiving moxa​

warming needle

moxa pole/wand

rice-grain moxa (directly on-skin)

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