The Healing Power of Moxibustion
Moxibustion is a method of heating specific acupuncture points prior to needling. A soft dried plant, directly or indirectly, is heated on the body over an acupuncture point. This technique can be used alone or in combination with acupuncture. In the practice of Worsley Classical Five Element Acupuncture, it is used frequently in treatment. Most patients love its soothing odor and relaxing qualities. Moxibustion is not necessary to achieve the results from an acupuncture treatment.
What is moxa made of?
The herb material used is mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris) a healing plant/herb, which grows in many climates, including Western North Carolina. Mugwort has a long history of use in folk medicine. It is believed that the Romans planted mugwort by roadsides to make it available to travelers to put in their shoes to relieve aching feet and protect them from exhaustion. Maybe this is because of its ability to enhance the movement of qi and blood.
Mugwort gets its botanical name from the Greek moon goddess Artemis, a patron of women, and is a wonderful herb for gynecological, as well as many other conditions. In Chinese Herbal Medicine it is used to treat heavy menstrual bleeding and uterine bleeding and to increase blood circulation to the pelvic area to treat menstrual pain. Moxibustion has successfully been used to turn breech babies into a normal head-down position prior to childbirth.
Any type of heat applied to the body can increase the flow of qi and blood. Heat lamps, heating pads, or warming liniments can give a similar effect to moxibustion. But the heat combined with the powerful healing properties of mugwort gives moxibustion a proven advantage.
Mugwort is used because of its acrid, spicy odor which makes it able to travel through all of the meridians, regulate qi and blood, and expel cold. One of mugwort’s active components, borneol, is commonly used in topical therapies for its analgesic effects. Other explanations for the use of mugwort, as opposed to some other herb material, is that it grows easily in many places, is inexpensive, and burns slowly.
What is moxibustion used for?
Moxibustion can be used to prevent diseases and maintain health and strengthen the body and immune system. It warms the meridians and expels cold. It can be used to promote circulation over areas of chronic pain or muscle tension. It is especially used for pain that is worse with exposure to cold or damp weather, as with some types of arthritis pain. When applied to acupuncture points that strengthen and lift the qi, moxibustion can boost the immune system and help with fatigue, digestive issues, and much more.
You do not have to have this treatment if you do not want it in order for acupuncture using just needles to produce good results.
Here is a video of a moxibustion treatment.
No worries about getting burned. You only feel the warmth from it before it is removed.