(no subject)
School is back in full swing and I'm diggin' it. We are focusing on the Kidney this semester, which is interesting because we because in TCM and herbal formulas we look at it from a Chinese perspective, but in biomed we take a Western approach. For instance, there is a condition called glomerulomephritis which is basically inflammation of the filtering mechanism in the Kidneys. Symptoms would be blood and/or protein in the urine and ammonia in the blood. It is caused by streptococcus bacteria, or strep throat. The question is, how does a bacteria in your throat wind up in your kidneys? From a Western standpoint, its because the throat is a mucus membrane so the bacteria can get into the blood which goes to the kidneys for filtration. From a TCM perspective, Strep throat is considered a Wind Heat invasion (Wind because Wind pathogens tend to come on quickly and affect areas of the body close to the surface, Wind also has the tendency to move, Heat because soreness, redness, and inflammation are all signs of Heat, one would also expect a rapid, floating pulse and a red tongue with no coating or possibly a yellow coating if there is Dampness present also.) Ahem, This invasion could travel to the Kidneys because the Lung and Kidney are connected in that the Lung's job is to gather Qi from the air and send it to the Kidney for storage and circulation. Also from a five element standpoint Lung is of the Metal element and Kidney is of the Water, Water is the child of Metal so Metal is responsible for nourishing the Water. The more you know.