Health is crucial for everyone, and even more so for children. A child’s health directly affects the happiness of a family.
When a child is unwell and prone to sickness, undergoing various checks, taking medications, getting injections, or undergoing surgery causes the child to suffer physically. Parents are unable to work and must care for their child day and night, becoming mentally and physically exhausted themselves. The entire family can be drained because of one child, making life extremely difficult, and even more heartbreaking is that, despite all this, there is often no hope for recovery.
So, what has caused today’s children to be so weak and easily fall ill?
Let’s make a comparison: In the past, when children fell ill, they relied more on their own immunity to resist sickness, resorting to medication only in severe cases. Nowadays, when a child gets sick, they are given injections and infusions without delay. Prolonged reliance on medication weakens their immune system, making it much harder for them to fight off viruses, leading to increased susceptibility to illness.
In fact, wise parents practice a principle: if moxibustion is possible, then don’t take medicine; if medicine is needed, then avoid injections; if injections are necessary, then avoid infusions. Infusion should be the last resort; conversely, children often recover their health quickly with moxibustion! Why is this so?
Traditional Chinese medicine believes that mugwort leaves, which are bitter and pungent, can open the twelve meridians. The “Compendium of Materia Medica” describes mugwort leaves as capable of treating hundreds of ailments. Modern research has proven that mugwort leaves can replenish Qi and blood, improve meridian circulation, and enhance the body’s immunity while also possessing antibacterial and antiviral properties. Thus, moxibustion acts like an ancient form of “antibiotic,” mobilizing the body’s own energy to fend off external evils, keeping diseases and infusion troubles at bay.
Benefits of Moxibustion
Specifically, the most notable benefits of moxibustion for children include:
1
High Safety
Firstly, mugwort is a pure Yang substance with no toxic side effects, protecting children from the harm caused by the side effects of antibiotics.
Secondly, moxibustion applies medicinal properties and heat to the body from the surface: it is non-invasive, saving children from the pain caused by injections or infusions; it is also sterile, preventing the accumulation of particulate matter from injections that could cause reactions and harm health.
2
Remarkable Effectiveness
Mugwort has been historically referred to as “immortal herb,” and there is a saying in Chinese medicine that “no disease is left untreated with moxibustion.” Therefore, for common ailments like colds, as long as the acupoint is targeted accurately, the technique is correct, and the moxibustion is sufficient, the disease can generally be effectively eliminated within a few days.
3
Strengthens the Spleen and Benefits the Stomach
The sun is the “Yang of Heaven,” and mugwort is the “Yang of Earth”; it is the sun that grows on the ground and inherently has the energy of fire. In traditional Chinese medicine, fire generates earth, and the spleen and stomach belong to earth, which is why moxibustion benefits the spleen and stomach.
The spleen and stomach are the foundation for later life; the food we consume can only be transformed into Qi and blood to be utilized by the body. When a child’s spleen function is weakened, applying moxibustion can give the child’s spleen a boost, allowing for proper digestion and absorption.
4
Balances Internal Organs, Strengthens Constitution, and Enhances Immunity
Moxibustion harmonizes Yin and Yang, balances the internal organs, and greatly invigorates the child’s vital energy. It mobilizes the child’s own energy to resist external threats.
The “Huangdi Neijing” states: “When the righteous Qi resides within, evil cannot invade; where evil gathers, its energy must be depleted.” When the body’s righteous Qi is strong, its ability to preemptively address diseases naturally strengthens.
In daily life, we can use moxibustion to help children adjust their bodies, achieving the goal of strengthening their health and enhancing their immunity. Here, I recommend two acupoints. In the “Shanghan Lun” by the medical sage, it is said that ordinary people should also be well-versed in medical theories, 【as a cure for the ailments of their loved ones, and as a relief for…
