A: Very. When practiced correctly by trained, qualified professional practitioners, acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicines are extremely safe. In fact, when practiced correctly they have no side effects and produce no iatrogenic or doctor-caused disease. If a patient reports side effects from an Oriental medical treatment, the practitioner modifies the treatment until there is healing without side effects. This is because Oriental medicine seeks to restore balance to the entire person, not just the piece or part. Side effects mean there is imbalance which needs to be corrected.

A: Oriental medicine works by re-establishing balance and harmony within the body. This means balance between yin and yang, balance between the five phases, balance between the viscera and bowels, and balance between the qi, blood, and body fluids. This balance is re-established by supporting the body's healthy or righteous energy and attacking any unhealthy or evil energy.

A: Practitioners of Oriental medicine diagnose what is out of balance in a person's body by employing four basic examinations. The first is questioning about a patient's signs and symptoms, medical history and course of disease. The second is visually inspecting the patient's face and body. The third is listening to the patient's voice and the sound of their breathing as well as any odors emanating from their body or excretions. The fourth is palpating various areas of the body, especially the pulse at both wrists. Using these examinations, a trained practitioner can determine the pattern of disharmony which requires re-balancing.

A: If something is too hot, the practitioner seeks to cool it down. If too cold, they try to warm it up. If something is too wet, they try to dry it, while if something is too dry they moisten it. If something is too much, they try to make it less. If something is too little, they try to build it up. If something is stuck, they try to move it, and if something is flowing inappropriately, they try to make it flow in the right direction and amount.

A: The main professionally applied methods of re-establishing balance are acupuncture, herbal medicines and therapeutic massage. Acupuncture seeks to regulate the flow of qi and blood within the body by inserting fine, sterile needles at certain acupoints. Oriental herbal medicines may be prescribed internally or applied externally. In addition, Oriental medicine practitioners typically counsel their patients on diet and lifestyle, all according to the theories of Oriental medicine.

A: Oriental medicine is an excellent and effective choice at the beginning of any disease or for diseases which modern Wetsren medicine either does not understand or for which it has no effective treatment. Oriental medicine is a complete medical system which attempts to treat the full range of diseases, acute and chronic, traumatic, infectious, and internally generated. That being said, if a disease is extremely virulent or far advanced, and especially if there are serious changes in organic tissue, Oriental medicine by itself  may not be powerful enough to slow them.

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