Tai Chi, Shingles, and Medicine

According to the National Institute of Health: "Shingles (herpes zoster) is a painful, blistering skin rash due to the varicella-zoster virus, the virus that causes chickenpox." This is a pretty awful condition that I'm sure most people would like to avoid. The good news is that the folks at the NIH have done research that indicates that practicing Tai Chi somehow increases immunity to the shingles virus. 

Basically when you had chicken pox as a child your body fought off the infection and all was well. But the virus remained in your nerves in a dormant state. All well and good and your immune system has kept it dormant ever since. But as we age or as we take certain medications or experience stress the immune system can weaken and the virus can come back in the form of shingles. So it makes sense that we want to keep the immune system strong. The thing that stumps most Western researchers is how the heck Tai Chi makes a difference to the immune system?

If you look at it from an Eastern medical point of view the answer is apparent. Tai Chi and other forms of qigong increase the wei qi or the energy field that guards the body from infection and injury. If the energy field is strong then the body will have a strong immune system. Many people will say what the heck are you talking about? Energy fields? Well like it or not Chinese medicine is not based on chemical or mechanical structures but on the idea that everything is composed of energy and that by influencing the energy you influence matter. As more research is done and more sensitive equipment is created I have a feeling we are going to see a bridging of the two medical paradigms.

Chinese medicine is wonderful at prevention and treatment of chronic illness. Western medicine excels at trauma care and stopping infections that have already set in. Many people tend to approach these two paradigms with an either or attitude but it is better to understand the ailment and seek the medical attention that is right for your condition. If I have a broken bone I don't need an acupuncturist, I need a doctor who can set the bone. The acupuncturist or herbalist can come in after the bone is set and the condition stabilized and then proceed to help me promote my body's natural healing process. 

Chinese medicine helps you to get to the root cause of an illness, it does not just suppress the symptoms with drugs. Tai Chi can help give you glowing health by increasing the flow of qi through your body and mind. And when you put more energy into a system the system the longer it lasts.