Acupuncture The Five Elements

Another fundamental concept in the theory of traditional Chinese medicine is that our body and the universe at large is made up of five main elements in nature. Those elements are wood, fire, earth, metal and water. The elements are connected to each other and each one generates another element or controls another element. Each organ is related to a particular element. Traditional Chinese medicine uses this categorization of organs and elements to describe, diagnose and treat medical conditions.

For example, the kidney is related to water and the heart is related to fire and these two organs have the same relationship as water and fire. Therefore, following this theory, if the kidney is weak there maybe a problem with the heart. So, treatment could be applied by acupuncture or herbs to cool down the heart or increase the chi (energy) in the kidney system.

The five elements of wood, fire, earth, water and metal are related to the following combinations of the vital organs or zang fu:

Wood is related to the liver and gall bladder.

Fire is related to the heart and small intestine.

Earth is related to the spleen and stomach.

Water is related to the kidney and urinary bladder.

Metal is related to the lung and large intestine.