When I was taking a course of Chinese medicine herbs, in order for it to be effective, I had to abstain from taking fruits, fried stuff, tea (red tea, teh tarik type) and cold drinks.
One day, while chatting with my Indian friend about healing methods, she told me she was aware that when one wants to take Chinese medication, one has to abstain from various types of food. She then shared the story of her uncle:
Years ago, her uncle’s son suffered skin disease when he was just one and a half years old. From the description she gave, it sounded like psoriasis- where there are huge swellings and outbreaks on the skin. The parents took their young child to all the specialists and tried various alternative healing methods…..but none worked.
Desperate, they turned to traditional Chinese medicine. The TCM physician specially made a soap using special herbal formula for the young boy to use to bathe. As well as bitter Chinese medicine were being prescribed. While taking the Chinese medicine, the child had to abstain from certain types of food.
Chinese medicine is usually slow acting and the treatment lasted for about 6 months. The symptoms subsided after 6 months and one can say that the child is cured. Today, years later, my friend said that the boy now have normal skin.
Another grown-up friend I know is not so lucky. This Chinese guy grew up from a poor family and he may have had those symptoms but the family was poor and his parents had many siblings to look after. He started seeking treatment only in his late twenties and so far, all types of treatment, including traditional Chinese medicine and Western skin specialist could not cure him. He had also fallen into some scams and I was especially concerned because a medicine that he had taken from a so called skin specialist was initially effective but soon his symptoms came back and he was prescribed a stronger dosage. It sounded like steroids were being used.
After a few years of seeking treatment and spending a little fortune in the cost, he had now grown to accept his condition as it is and try to minimize triggers that would aggravate his condition, stress and hot places being one of them. He also have to wear long sleeve shirts or Tshirts when he goes out.
Therefore, if you notice that your child is having skin conditions, it is better to start treating early. For psoriasis, there is no cure in Western medicine. Traditional Chinese healing recognizes the imbalances and prescribe herbs, sometimes supplemented with traditional treatment like guasa, acupuncture or tuina.
