In our Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) view, there are two basic types of blood clots: too hot or too cold. Too cold is by far the most common type, but too hot does occasionally manifest. Western medicine just tries to dissolve the clots after they form. Here we use true TCM concepts to correct the cause of the clots and prevent them from returning.

    Cold type clots are just like ice forming on a river or lake before it freezes over completely. The chunks of ice that form are the same as the cold type of clots. In addition, the cold blood has difficulty returning to the body from the feet, because cold liquids and gasses do not expand and rise like hot liquids and gasses. Think about a hot air balloon. Because of the cold, the heavier parts of the blood tend to pool in the feet and legs causing most cases of varicose veins and providing seed materials for clots. The slow cold nature of the blood in this condition manifests as cold hands and feet with little or no thirst. This cold type clot is very common and is often caused by the excessive consumption of cold foods like ice cream.

    Clots resulting from a heat condition are rarely seen in a western society. These heat type clots can be compared to boiling tap water down until all the dissolved minerals and chemicals precipitate out, leaving a nasty thick crud in the bottom of the container. This blood is thick and viscose and does not flow very well either. As this blood slowly works it way out to the extremities, it usually loses all of its heat, also resulting in cold hands and feet, but with thirst. Heat type blood clots are a type of dehydration and often caused by excessive physical exertion, MSG, or chemical drugs.

    Once either heat or cold type clots form, you have a few options:

Do nothing and hope the clots do not block an important blood pathway or feed the flies (see Flies in the Living Room).

Try to find some kind of medication to dissolve the clots. Keep taking it your whole life and hope that it does not dissolve any important things in your body.

Correct the internal thermal regulation. The only way we know of to accomplish this is with true TCM.

HaiSha Ni::lrb 06/01/2004