Yang Sheng Fa is the art of healthy living, the aim being to avoid ill health.
The three key aspects are diet, breathing techniques and exercise. All aspects of a patient’s life needs to be assessed to identify areas where changes could be made to improve their health.
In Chinese medicine all foods are viewed as having different energetic properties and can be used to alleviate illnesses. Assessing diet a practitioner can help a patient re-balance the energy of the body. Dependent on the patients’ diagnosis certain foods may be recommended to specifically nourish an organ or to help clear pathogenic factors. A patient may be advised to omit other foods from their diet as some foods may also exacerbate certain conditions. Western diets often include highly processed foods with reduced nutritional content and harmful additives. Often by assessing and recommending changes to diet patient’s find that not only does their presenting complaint improve but that other aspects of their health such as energy levels are also affected.
Balancing the energetic qualities of the food we eat can help balance the inner energies and so improve health. This can be particularly effective for long term/ chronic conditions and also seasonal conditions.
Breathing techniques can be taught individually or combined with Qigong. Most adults only use the upper third of their lungs to breathe. By learning how to breath properly we can improve our energy levels and general health. From a western perspective expanding the lung capacity will improve a patients’ oxygen intake. Adequate oxygen levels circulating in the blood have been linked with lower risks of cancers. From a Chinese medicine perspective improving the breathing technique enables the lungs to facilitate the free flow of qi around the energetic meridian system.
Qigong exercises may be prescribed for specific conditions or to improve general wellbeing. Breathing techniques and Qigong can help relieve stress and tension, help with relaxation and improve the quality of sleep.
Living according to the seasons is an aspect of Yang Sheng Fa which the majority of westerners are totally oblivious too. This is the skill of learning the rhythmical cycles of the day, the moon phases and the year and how these can affect you energies. Natures’ cycles and seasons affect the energy of the planet and every thing upon it. If a person wishes to live a long healthy life they can preserve their energy by working with nature.