Lung and Gastrointestinal Health and Oriental Medicine

Lourdes González, A.P., M.A, L.Ac ., M.M.Q. Certified Specialist – National Board of Acupuncture

Here I’m sharing one photo which clearly illustrates the connection between lung health and gastrointestinal health.

When I saw the photo, I found it spectacular because it’s rare to find an image like this that shows this relationship. In the Western world, this connection is not very well understood. However, for us specialists in Chinese/Oriental medicine, this is old knowledge it’s one of the first things we’re taught in our training and education. The lung and the intestine are meridian siblings and work together to maintain the health of the body.

On the left side of the photo, we see a healthy body with an intestine that has a great diversity of friendly bacteria, and as a result, the lungs stay clean and healthy with few bacteria.

The right side of the photo shows a diseased state where the person used too many antibiotics, which suggests they were experiencing infections likely caused by an unhealthy lifestyle. This led to the use of antibiotics, which in turn contributed to an imbalance known as dysbiosis. The antibiotics we use to treat infections can kill bad bacteria and pathogens, BUT they also kill the good bacteria—what we know as gut flora or the gut microbiome. When this happens, the balance in the intestine changes, bad bacteria spread, and all kinds of problems begin to develop in the lungs, since there are no good bacteria in the gut to keep the bad ones in check. They spread rapidly and form colonies in different parts of the body, especially in the lungs.

This situation makes us vulnerable and weak when facing viruses and bacteria, and it becomes much easier for us to get sick.

Now more than ever, it’s important to take care of ourselves and eat healthily so that our gut and lungs stay strong and can help us fight off this crazy virus going around.

If you're not eating healthy yet, start today. You're still on time. And if you are already eating healthy, keep it up. I hope this information can help you during this time.

In Health,

Until Next Time.

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