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Moxibustion is an oriental herbal healing practice that uses heated mugwort to stimulate blood flow and promote relaxation. It can be used to treat muscle weakness, menstrual cramps, and even turn a breech baby. However, it should only be performed by a licensed acupuncturist to avoid burns. Its effectiveness has not been proven by clinical trials.
Moxibustion is a form of oriental herbal healing. Use the herb mugwort, called moxa by the Chinese, in heated form, on an acupuncture needle or directly on or around the skin. It is thought to stimulate blood flow and make a person more centered. It is often used to treat muscle weakness due to aging, and many believe that moxibustion therapy prolongs life.
Burning moxa, usually mugwort made into sticks that look like incense, is held over the skin or around acupuncture needles. Care must be taken as the hot ashes from the sticks may fall on the skin and cause burns. Some practices actually burn the skin, but this is not standard in the use of Chinese medicine by Western practitioners.
Some claim that moxibustion can end panic attacks, shrink fatty tumors, and cure spastic colon. Others suggest that moxibustion may also help reduce menstrual cramps, treat back pain, and cure colds. These claims have not been proven.
However, moxibustion appears to increase blood flow to the pelvis and uterus. It could therefore be used as a treatment for menstrual cramps. Many moxibustion practitioners also claim that it will help transform a breech baby. This is one of its most common applications in Western medicine.
Increased blood flow to the uterus, provided by moxibustion, may cause the baby to move into the correct position. In fact, a 1998 article in the American Medical Association Journal found that approximately 75 percent of women who had moxibustion therapy to turn a breech baby caused the baby to turn appropriately. However, it’s hard to say how many of these children may have transformed on their own.
Some alternative practitioners also use moxibustion to treat inflamed areas or to treat people with colds and viruses. Studies on the effectiveness of moxibustion in these cases are based primarily on anecdotal evidence and not on double-blind clinical trials. Some studies have also focused on the use of moxibustion to treat menstrual cramps, and some women claim relief from this therapy.
If you are considering moxibustion, you should consider working with a licensed acupuncturist. People who combine both alternative and Western medicine may be better choices than little-known practitioners. Improperly used moxibustion can accidentally burn your skin, which can be dangerous. In most cases, however, people are not burned by moxibustion, but feel slightly warmed by the process. However, diabetics should not undergo moxibustion, as they are more vulnerable to skin infections.
While moxibustion can be traced back to the East, indigenous tribes in the Americas, for very different reasons, also valued the mugwort plant. Mugwort was considered deity-like and spiritually healing. The Anglo-Saxons believed that mugwort stimulated dreams. However, many thought mugwort had unsavory associations with witchcraft. It is fascinating that in many parts of the world a single plant can provoke so many different beliefs.
