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MOXIBUSTION
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Moxibustion is a technique that involves burning of mugwort, a n aromatic herb, to facilitate healing. Moxibustion has been used throughout Asia and other parts of the world for thousands of years.


The purpose of moxibustion, as with most forms of traditional Chinese medicine, is to Move stagnation and stimulate the flow of qi.  Moxibustion serves to warm the body and energies the patient. In some it builds blood, in others it accelerates healing and serves to maintain general health.

 

How does moxibustion work? Does it hurt?

 

There are two types of moxibustion: direct and indirect.

  • Direct moxibustion, a small, cone-shaped amount of moxa is placed on the skin on an acupuncture point and ignited, but is extinguished or removed before it burns the skin. The patient will experience a deep penetrating heating sensation, but should not experience any pain, blistering or scarring

  • Indirect moxibustion is the more popular form of care in the USA.  A moxa stick, roughly the shape and size of a cigar, is lit, using a candle or lighter and held close to the skin in the area being treated for several minutes until the area heats up and the sensation is too hot to bear.

What is moxibustion used for?
Moxibustion is used on people who have a cold or stagnant condition. The burning of moxa is believed to expel cold and warm the meridians, which leads to smoother flow of blood and qi.

 

Moxibustion has successfully been used to turn breech babies into a normal head-down position prior to childbirth. A landmark study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1998 found that up to 75% of breech presentations had fetuses that rotated to the normal position after receiving moxibustion at the last acupuncture point on the Bladder meridian.  I had my own beautiful experience at our office, where our patient Sara found out that her baby was breeched and she was recommended to undergo a caesarian surgery. After receiving a Moxibustion treatment and shown some exercises to help with the rotation of the baby, had a normal delivery.  Other studies have shown that Moxibustion increases the movement of the fetus in pregnant women, and may reduce the symptoms of menstrual cramps due to its warming effect on the abdominal area.

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