Viagra- not such a bright idea !
Many patients coming to The Acupuncture Clinic ask if acupuncture can help for low libido and if so, how that would work. Patients comment that low libido is just part of the normal aging process and there is nothing that can be done about that. However, acupuncture has been scientifically shown to improve sperm cell count so it is only natural that it can help improve libido. Acupuncture has been the topic of many research studies confirming its efficacy in promotingfertility for females.
But there is little interest from any of the universities researching acupuncture for libido.
Ancient Chinese medical physicians observed and studied the aging process and documented the various aging signs and their causes over two thousand years ago. The physicians back then described conditions like menopause but didn’t say it was due to declining hormone levels but they had a different explanation. They spoke about the 7 year cycles in women and 8 year cycles in men and their relationship to a specific acupuncture meridian known as the chong meridian. This Chinese term is difficult to translate but it relates to the whole blood system including the blood vessels, the blood in the vessels, the nutrients or “hormones” in the blood and the organs associated with the blood. These organs being the spleen that makes the blood, the liver that stores the blood and the heart that propels the blood. If you think about the 7 year cycles it makes sense. At 14 years of age, the girl should have started a menstrual cycle. If we calculate 7 years x 7 years we have 49 years of age and the woman should be at menopause.
Men have 8 year cycles. It is normal for libido to lessen with the aging process but it should be a gradual change. Some men experience a sudden disappearance of libido. This could happen for example, because an ongoing stressful life situation which has depleted reserves of vitality and strength. In particular the kidney energy could become depleted. Acupuncture and moxibustion can be most useful in circumstances like this.
The pharmaceutical drug Viagra has been shown with research that after 1-2 years of use, the effectiveness wears off. This makes sense from a traditional Chinese medicine point of view because normal healthy libido is due to an interaction of a number of organs including the kidneys, heart and liver. The drug only targets blood circulation in the genital area. The drug Viagra does nothing to improve the health and balance of the body.
Side effects of Viagra can include vision loss, ringing in the ears and irregular heartbeat. This is because from a traditional Chinese medical point of view, taking Viagra is actually weakening the kidney energy. Chinese medicine aims to improve kidney energy using acupuncture and moxibustion. Moxa boxes can be used at home to strengthen the kidney energy. Chinese herbs are often prescribed for general health and well-being which then improves energy and libido. Chinese herbs can also be used to treat the prostate and improve the urine flow.
