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How traditional Chinese medicine treats sexual problems, from lack of desire to fertility issues to erectile dysfunction
- Chinese medicine targets three organs primarily responsible for sexual health concerns to get the qi flowing – and they aren’t the ones you might expect
- One of the greatest contributors to problems around sex is stress, which interferes with energy flow, practitioners say
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Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has long been used to treat disorders and diseases, including those relating to sexual or reproductive health.
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Extreme or chronic stress, frequent late nights, poor eating habits, eating foods that are too sweet or too salty, not drinking enough water, an overactive sexual lifestyle, and poor urination habits are among the causes of sexual disorders, says TCM doctor Gabriel Chan from Oak Health Chinese Medicine in Singapore.
TCM may help with a number of sexual health concerns.
In women, these include infertility issues as well as irregular and painful periods. In men, TCM is used to help with erectile dysfunction, decreased or low libido, infertility issues, premature ejaculation, and sexual anxiety.
In Chan’s experience, the three organs usually responsible for sexual health concerns are the digestive tract, liver and kidneys.
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“Deficiencies in the digestive tract lead to lower nutrient absorption rates, which in turn cause a malnourishment of the other organs,” he says.
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