Iowa City Acupuncture   •   Moxibustion

Moxa treatment is a traditional alternative to needles for stimulating the acupoints. The word "Moxa" is the Chinese form of the word “Mogusa”, which is the Japanese word for Mugwort. Mugwort is also known as Artemesia. It comes in many varieties, several of which are commonly found in American annual and perennial gardens. The well-known "Dusty Miller" is one of the artemesias. This group of plants generally have silver or grey leaves, with fuzz or hair on the surface. When these herbs are dried, the moxa is produced by rubbing the dried herb to remove everything but the fuzz or fiber of the plant. In Japanese acupuncture, the gold moxa which is seen at right, is the pure fiber of the plant. It is often aged for many years to allow the essential oils to evaporate. Thus when it is burned, it burns at a lower temperature. The effect of using moxa is that the infrared radiation from the burning of the material near the skin, enters the acupuncture points and has a particular effect on health.

Moxa may be used instead of needles on the acupoints. It may be used on the handles of the needles as people have seen done in the movies of Steven Segal. It is usually used during acupuncture treatment along with needling. It may also be used at home by the patient, and is very safe when used properly. Moxa is the primary technique for turning breech babies. Your practitioner can tell you more about this.

There is a traditional saying in China that "the heat of moxa sinks." This alludes to the idea that the heat produced by burning moxa has a special affinity for the body and will go downward into the body and move into the meridian systems. It is often used in cases where it is thought that cold has injured the body, or where the body is deficient in its heat, thus allowing diseases of a cold nature to occur. The aroma of burning moxa is often smelled in the offices of practitioners of asian medicine, and in Japan it is associated with nurturing or mother, similar to the way we associate chicken soup with nurturing, and being comforted when we are sick.

Moxibustion refers to the act of heating the points with the heat from burning moxa. This can be done in a number of ways. In one method, smalls balls of the fluffy herb are placed upon the handles of the needles to warm the needles and the skin around the points during treatment. In another method, moxa is rolled into balls and placed directly upon the skin and is burned either in a way that leaves no mark, or in a way that intentionally leaves a small burn. Research from Japan shows conclusively that burning moxa on the skin in this way can raise white blood cell counts in patients who have abnormally low white counts due to disease or chemotherapy.

In another method, moxa herb is rolled in paper, like a cigar. The moxa roll is burned near the needles so as to heat them, or so as to heat the skin. Moxa rolls or “sticks” are used in the treatment to rotate breech babies. Treatment with moxa rolls can be done by the patient at home for a variety of conditions.

There are moxa instruments which resemble small bed warmers, in which moxa is burned in a brass box and used to warm the skin. In another form, small moxa sticks are inserted into a rubber disk-like device where the smoke of burning moxa emerges onto the skin and gently warms the area.

In the photo at top right, several of the forms of moxa and moxa devices are pictured. In the photo below it, various sized cones of fine Japanese moxa are shown, These would be used upon the skin in direct moxa treatment. In the bottom right photo, moxa is being used on the skin to gently warm the acupuncture points and impart yang energy into the body. The burning cone is quickly removed as soon as the patient feels its heat. The practitioner picks up the burning moxa and extinguishes it. In Japanese, this is called Kyutoshin. It is pleasant for the patient, and energizing as well.