Wind....What's your opinion?

Today it sure was windy walking to my office to see patients in SF. I had several conversations with people about how wind affects people. The truth is is that most people don't think about Wind or it's affect on their health. They may notice that they don't enjoy it when it's blustery out, but other than that they seem to give it little thought.

Which is why I thought it'd be a good idea to write an article on how wind affects your health according to Chinese Medicine. In Chinese Medicine Wind is it's own category of "evil". It sounds grim, but people in the east have tuned into the affects of wind on the body both internally and externally.

I'll start our discussion today with how Wind can make us sick. According to Chinese Medicine, the reason we sometimes get sick or "catch something" is often because our vulnerability to Wind. There is even a place in the body that the Chinese call the Wind Gate, which is located on the back of the neck and head. This area is extremely susceptible to wind especially if the immune system is weakened or you are run down. So, what I usually tell patients is that if you are out when it is cold or windy make sure you have a scarf and a hat. In other words, San Franciscans are right to make "hoodies" their garment of choice because it does a good job of keeping out wind and cold to the back of the head/neck.

I won't go into too much detail about internal Wind, but I'd like to give a few basic pieces of information on it. I will tell you that when it's gusty outside it can also stir up your internal wind. This is why people may notice that they get agitated out when it's windy. It's important to make sure you are well covered as there are many diseases that the Chinese believe that can crop up if you already have a disposition to internal wind. Internal wind is thought to cause stroke, bells palsy, parkinsons, and any other symptoms where there is shaking/trembling. Bells palsy, which is where a person loses motor skills on one side of a person's face is directly linked to too much Wind in Chinese medicine. Often someone can get it from sleeping with a window open or too much cold wind exposure and weakened system.

The purpose of this article is not to scare you, but it's to give you a different way of looking at this thing called Wind. I like to educate folks so that they won't have to come in and see me with these issues. Often I see patients who come in with these conditions and hadn't realized Wind could have had such a powerful affect their condition. At that point, they wish that they had been educated earlier.