Abstract

Historically, the influence of Chinese medical traditions, thought to be revealed from divine sources, extended East to Korea and Japan and as far South as Indochina, the Malay Peninsula and the Indonesian Archipelago. As the distinct medical traditions of these regions encountered the ancient medicine of mainland China, they absorbed and transformed them based on their own indigenous healing practices, and herbal and plant resources.

Providing a panoramic overview of the medical traditions of China, the Malay Peninsula, the Indonesian Archipelago, the Philippines, Indochina (Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia), Korea, and Japan, Dr. Marc Micozzi offers compelling new insights into the influence of the essentially Chinese expression of vital energy (qi) in these traditions, as well as the pull of other cultural traditions, such as those of India and Islam. Dr. Micozzi discusses evidence for the efficacy of these healing practices and their many influences in the West, and explores how a Western reader might consider seeking a practitioner, as well as effective treatments, from one of these traditions.

This groundbreaking book will be of interest to practitioners of Chinese and Asian medical traditions, and complementary and alternative health, as well as anyone with an interest in Chinese and Asian approaches to health and wellbeing.

Marc S. Micozzi, MD, PhD, is the Founder and Director of the Policy Institute for Integrative Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. He is a former Executive Director of the College of Physicians and Director of the National Museum of Health and Medicine. For many years, Dr Micozzi has pioneered vital health information to professionals and consumers, collaborating with former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop and other leaders in the growing wellness movement. In the early 1990s, he frequently shared the speaker's podium and the radio and television airwaves with leaders such as Drs. Andrew Weil, Deepak Chopra, Mehmet Oz, and Dean Ornish. Dr. Micozzi lives in Bethesda, Maryland, and Rockport, Massachusetts.
This clearly written overview will be appreciated by those seeking healing through Eastern traditional medicine, by guiding them to the best type for their situation. Dr. Marc S. Micozzi, founder and Director of the Policy Institute for Integrative Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, does an excellent job of describing different strains of Asian traditional medicine in a manner that is educated, informed, and fair... Micozzi's book offers a valuable basis for comparison of Eastern medical practices.
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