Aging is an unavoidable law of life. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has had a clear understanding of aging since very ancient times. For example, it recognizes the limit of the human life span as 100‐120 years, as unequivocally stated in the ancient The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine, which is known as the “Bible of TCM".
"Huangdi Neijing（黄帝内经）," or "The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine," is the earliest text on the theories and practices of traditional Chinese medicine. It's compiled by several ancient Chinese doctors and medical scholars more than 2,300 years ago. The text is structured as a dialogue between the Yellow Emperor and one of his ministers or physicians, most commonly Qibo(岐伯). It has been deemed one of China's top four medical classics and is a cornerstone of Chinese medicine, as well as a major book of Daoist theory and lifestyle.
The Huangdi Neijing recognizes that, for everyone, the processes of the body follow certain natural rules and that health and disease are influenced by natural ageing processes, as well as the environment. They key to a long healthy life is to follow the Dao, the natural way of the universe.
In Huangdi Neijing, human aging is described in great detail with phenotypic features, such as graying hair and balding, dimming eyes, missing teeth, loss of ability to express oneself clearly, withered and wrinkled skin, loss of reproduction capability, crooked steps, and reduced mobility. TCM acknowledges that the main pathological changes associated with aging include degeneration and decline in functions of the viscera and organs, and that age‐related problems usually occur slowly, linger together and for a long time, aggravate gradually, and resist recovery, ultimately leading to death after multiple organ failure.
Today, Huangdi Neijing still plays an important role in Chinese people's daily health routines.
Comments