Lungs, kidneys, and hair

Hello,

This is my first time posting, although I have learned a lot by reading the posts of other students and the replies to those posts. emoticon('')

In course A, I read that "the lung dominates skin and hair" and that "the growth or loss of hair, its being lustrous or withering, are all related to the waxing and waning of the kidney Qi." My question is how does the role of the lungs differ from the role of the kidneys in maintaining the health of hair. Am I correct that there is a close relationship between lungs and kidney. I also notice that both are very involved in fluid balance, and that the kidneys receive Qi from the lungs. Thank you.

Bruce

Hi, Bruce,
You are welcome to post more of your onw articles, or at least some questions.

Yes, you are quite right! Kidney and lung are very closely related.
But the as the hair is concerned, they are related with different hairs!
The lung dominates SKIN and HAIR while the kidny is related with the SCALP HAIR!!!

Is it sounding more reasonable now?

Bye!
Tutor

Dear Tutor,
May I ask you two questions: is the condition of the brows hair, and of man’s beard hair, and of the hair at the pubis region also related to the waxing and waning of the kidney Qi?

And the second question: in the text of Course A there are nothing said about testicles. Are they extraordinary fu organ? Thank you.

Dear lit_hua_nia,
As to the brows, beards and mustache, and pubic hair, there are not really the descriptions in TCM theories, but in any case they are the body hairs, [b:c9447d1c08]not the scalp hair[/b:c9447d1c08]!!!

But personally I think they should have more or less relations with KIDNEY!

In fact you cannot really seperate the body's parts completely, they are in the same body anyhow.

In regard of the testicles, what do you think of them?
my hint, are they inside the body?

Tutor

Dear Tutor,
Thank you very much for your kind explanation about hairs.

More than one version came to my mind about the question to what kind of organs (zang, fu or extraordinary fu organ) the testicles are related to.

The text of [b:5373035a08]Course A[/b:5373035a08] says that reproduction is dominated by Kidneys. Urinary bladder and anterior orifice (which includes urethra and genitalia) are also dominated by Kidneys. Testicles are the part of male’s reproductive/genital organs. Consequently, testicles are related to Kidneys. Till this point I follow the text and have no doubt.




Doubts begin with the first my version: testicles, perhaps, are the part of the zang organ Kidney. So, perhaps, testicles are the zang organ, which is included in the zang organ Kidney - analogically, like the pancreas is included in the zang organ Spleen.

In favor of this version testifies the description (I took it from the book [i:5373035a08]Chinese acupuncture and Moxibustion[/i:5373035a08]) what the zang organs are: [i:5373035a08]“The main physiological functions of the zang organs are to manufacture and store essential substances, including vital essence, qi, blood and body fluid”. [/i:5373035a08]Testicles store sperm (I do not know do they manufacture it themselves or receive it from Kidney), so they fit for this description.

But the next sentence (a quotation from eleventh chapter of [i:5373035a08]Plain Questions[/i:5373035a08]) from the same book says: [i:5373035a08]“The so-called five zang organs store pure essential qi without draining it off...”[/i:5373035a08] As it is known, the testicles drain off their essence in the time of sexual intercourse. So, perhaps, they do not fit exactly for the description of zang organs.




By the second my version, there are some similarities between testicles and Gallbladder in that sense, that Gallbladder does not receive water or food, and testicles do not receive water or food; Gallbladder stores bile, and testicles store sperm; the bile is a kind of essence, and the sperm is a kind of essence. Therefore, if the Gallbladder is an extraordinary fu organ, then, perhaps, the testicles are an extraordinary fu organ of males.




Third version: The text of [b:5373035a08]Course A[/b:5373035a08] says how many there are of extraordinary organs: [i:5373035a08]“The extraordinary organs refer to the brain, the marrow, the bone, the blood vessel, the gallbladder and the uterus---six organs or tissues in all.” [/i:5373035a08]

The number of extraordinary organs is six: females, as their sixth extraordinary organ have their uterus and males have their testicles, perhaps, as their sixth extraordinary fu organ.




Fourth version: the body surface is yang, and the internal organs are yin. Testicles are located outside the main body of a man. So, probably, they belong to yang organs. Fu organs are yang. So, perhaps, testicles are fu organ.




Fifth version: testicles are located below of all other organs of the body, so they, perhaps, belong to yin organs. Yin organs are zang.




Sixth version: male is yang, and female is yin. The difference between sexes is determined mainly, as it seems to me, in the difference of their reproductive organs. What makes man a male, are his reproductive organs. Therefore male’s genital organs, which include testicles, are yang. So, perhaps, testicles are fu organ.



But they cannot be Fu organ, because they do not "transport water and food without storing them". So the only possible soliutions of the question, perhaps, would be that the testicles are extraordinary fu organ.



Or, may be, thre is the seventh version: testicles, perhaps, are not included in the system of dividing body’s organs to zang, fu or extraordinary fu organs. They are simply part of male’s genitalia.

Dear lit_hua_nia,
It seems you have thought over alot on this question!

That's great!

To tell you the truth, the testicles are really something special in traditional Chinese medicine.

First of all, it is not considered as a Zang organ; secondly it is not a Fu organ either; and thirdly, it is not an extraordinary Fu.

What is it? it is nothing!!!
Do you remember my hint in my last post? The testicles are not inside the body, they are located outside the body, so what?
They are thus not taken into the Zang-Fu system.

But to the hell whatsoever are they?
In later generations, they were known in traditional Chinese medicine as the [b:2ced24e46d]"external kidney"[/b:2ced24e46d]


So we can say they are closely related to the real "kidney"!
And of course the sperm, a part of the kidney essence, is related with this external kidney.

But they are not the equivalent to the uterus, uterus is located inside the body and is indeed an organ.

That's what I could tell you so far.



Tutor

Dear Tutor, thank your very much for your kind answer!

Kidneys are the root of vitality. If males in addition to their normal kidneys have also “external kidneys”, does it mean that males have bigger potential of vitality, and so they should live longer than females?

If so, then may be from there came that statement that seven is a number of females and eight the number of males?

It's hard to say!
The external kidneys would also cause some loss as well!

Is that right?

As to our knowledge, males won't live longer than females, and I don't know the 7-year and 8-year cycle has alot to do with the lengevity or not.

Thank very much for your kind reply. It is really very interesting.

I have one more question about “additional” kidneys. About two weeks ago in TV news there was a topic about young English lady. During medical examination in clinic doctors found that she has 4 kidneys. Those additional two kidneys are almost of a normal size and are located beneath her main kidneys. The lady and the doctors were very surprised of that discovery. And now the lady wants to do an operation and to remove those additional kidneys and to donate them for patients waiting for kidney transplantation.

If kidneys are the basis of human body, then, perhaps, that lady will make a mistake if she will operate her additional two kidneys? Would her body be more strong and healthier with her 4 kidneys? Thank you.

I don't think you've grasped TCM!

In TCM, the concept of kidney differs greatly from that of western medicine!
Apparently the kidney in TCM should include adrenal.

I don't know if the lady has also extra or additional adrenals.