There are two commonly used treatments in traditional Chinese medicine: moxibustion and acupuncture. Many people are difficult to distinguish the difference between the two in treatment. The following is a simple introduction of the definition, characteristics and scope of application of moxibustion and acupuncture.

Moxibustion is a kind of treatment method in traditional Chinese medicine. It is to light compressed mugwort leaves and burn warm smoke at specific acupoints of patients to achieve the purpose of regulating human qi and blood and relieving discomfort. Mugwort leaves have the functions of warming the meridian and dispersing cold, dispersing blood stasis and relieving pain, opening the orifice and dispelling cold and dampness, which can adjust the Yang qi of the human body and give the body enough nutrition. The process of moxibustion is to burn mugwort leaves, so that hot air can penetrate into the skin and stimulate the acupoints, so as to achieve conditioning function, so as to achieve the effect of disease treatment. The advantages of moxibustion therapy are that there is no injection, no operation, no stitches. Its efficacy depends on the severity of the disease, the convalescence process is longer, and some diseases need more treatment time.

Acupuncture is another treatment method of traditional Chinese medicine. It is used to condition the body by inserting needles at specific points. The process of acupuncture is to insert the needle and make it tingling. With further insertion of the needle, acid, swelling and numbness may occur. Through stimulating the meridians, using the body's own immunity and self-regulation mechanism, the smooth flow of qi and blood can be promoted to achieve the purpose of regulating the body. The advantage of acupuncture therapy is that it can solve the main disease symptoms of the human body. At the same time, although acupuncture treatment requires the delicate operation of the doctor, it does not include chemotherapy and surgery, so it is a good complement to Chinese medicine and herbal therapy.

The difference:

1. Different treatment principles: Moxibustion affects the human body by penetrating warm gas from mugwort leaves, while acupuncture adjusts the balance of the body by stimulating acupuncture points.

2. Different methods of operation: Moxibustion generates warm gas by igniting compressed moxa leaves and cautery acupoints, while acupuncture stimulates the body by inserting a hand-held needle into specific acupoints.

3. Different scope of adaptation: Moxibustion is suitable for diseases such as wind cold, joint pain and diarrhea, while acupuncture is suitable for diseases such as headache, insomnia, neuropathy and internal digestive disease

4. Different length of treatment: Usually moxibustion needs to achieve the effect after multiple treatments at specific points, while acupuncture requires doctors to formulate specific treatment plans according to the different symptoms and reactions of patients. General acupuncture treatment can be effective within 1-10 courses of treatment.

The two can be used in combination and complement each other in terms of effectiveness and duration of treatment. However, both acupuncture and moxibustion have certain contraindications and are not suitable for some people, such as pregnant women, young children and other patients should not perform acupuncture or moxibustion treatment. Therefore, before receiving treatment, patients need to have a detailed physical examination and communicate with their doctors to ensure safe and effective treatment results.