Pathogenic Factors: A TCM View of Disease Based in Climatic Changes By Yubin Lu, TCMD, Ph.D. People who are accustomed to getting a Western medicine diagnosis are very surprised to be told by a TCM practitioner that their flu is caused by “an invasion of wind heat.” The patient may ask the practitioner why TCM does not recognize viruses as the cause of their flu, what wind heat is, how wind heat causes flu, and how TCM recognizes a wind heat condition. A fundamental starting point for TCM is that human beings are an integral part of the world. We are the product of a long process of evolution in nature. Over time, our ancestors have experienced all the variability of climate and environment that they could experience and still survive. We have inherited bodies that are perfectly adapted to the natural world, but we also must expect that we will be at risk if we are exposed to unusual or extreme environments. So, a basic idea in Chinese medicine is that the natural world is all one piece, and that humans, animals, and plants are all inseparably part of the same system. The climatic factors that can produce disease or imbalance in humans are not “good” or “bad” in themselves; it is the interaction between climatic factors and humans that determines whether a particular climatic factor is pathogenic for a particular individual. The following points are especially important in understanding this: A.Human beings intrinsically have the required adaptability to nature. To preserve good health, it is very important for one to follow the changes in nature. The best way to adapt to the changes in nature is to conform to nature rather than try to oppose it, or live independently from it. The earliest monograph of TCM theory stated that “one has to follow the sinking and rising of yin yang in the four seasons to be healthy.” Seasonal changes are the most noticeable changes in nature. As the seasons change, different climatic factors will be prevalent. These climatic factors are categorized by TCM theory as wind, summer heat, dampness, dryness, cold and fire. B.The quality of adaptability is actually a kind of relationship between the human body and nature. When our bodies adapt themselves to the natural changes, we will be fine and have normal performance of life activities. This can be described as harmony between the human body and nature. C.When the changes in nature are beyond the adaptability of the human body, the human body will not be able to function properly. This dysfunction, or disharmony, will then manifest as disease. So, changes in nature can impact the human body as pathogenic climatic factors and cause a variety of diseases. D.It is the relationship between the natural changes and the human body that determines if a weather change will affect the body and become a pathogenic factor or not. When there is a sudden change of weather, for example, and it suddenly becomes very cold, whether it will be a pathogenic cold or not depends on the effect of the cold on each individual. For people with a low resistance or adaptability, it may cause disease, and then it is categorized as a pathogenic factor for that person. For those with a strong adaptability or resistance, a sudden cold snap falls within their range of adaptability and will not cause disease. The same weather change, for some people, could be a pathogenic factor, while for others, it is normal. Here, the relationship between the human body and the weather change is the key. E.Pathogenic factors are also defined based on different constitutions. The same kind of weather change is likely to affect different people differently, depending on their basic constitution. In a person with a yang-deficiency constitution, a particular climatic factor may manifest as a pattern of exterior wind-cold; while a person with a basically yang constitution may manifest the same climatic factor as a pattern of exterior wind-heat. TCM makes a pattern diagnosis such as “exterior wind-heat” based on a patient’s symptoms and signs. The particular symptoms and signs exhibited by an individual are a product of the interaction of that individual’s basic constitution with the disease-causing factor. Therefore, two individuals with different constitutions can have two different TCM pattern diagnoses in response to the same pathogenic factor. F.To prevent weather or natural changes from becoming pathogenic factors, it is important to do three things. At a societal level, we should try our best to prevent and mitigate disastrous changes in the natural world. Current severe weather patterns caused by the greenhouse effect from industrialization have warned human beings of this. At a personal level, a very important aspect is to avoid exposing oneself to sudden violent weather changes or extreme environments so that these changes will not have the chance to develop into pathogenic factors. This is what is meant by the classic TCM advice: “Escape from potential pathogenic wind in accordance with the seasonal changes.” You can easily imagine that someone who walks around in summer clothes on a cold winter day will not remain healthy for very long. Another thing we can do at a personal level is to improve our adaptability to the changes in nature by strengthening our constitution or our resistance. To do so, we need to maintain a regular daily life, a good and healthy diet, proper exercise, and a free and relaxed mind.
Posted on: Mon, 15 Sep 2014 17:28:35 +0000
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