by Setareh Moafi, PhD, L.Ac.
Growing up I could hardly get to the front door to go outside without hearing my mother, my grandmother or one of my aunts yell at me to put on a jacket.
You might relate — the tradition of wearing a jacket, coat or scarf to protect you from catching a cold when you go outside crosses over many cultures.
The idea isn’t just to avoid getting cold, but more importantly we’re told that keeping your body warm will help prevent catching a cold.
Western medicine mostly writes this theory off as an old wive’s tale. Naturally, colds come from viruses, not from a strong breeze, right?
The answer isn’t so simplistic.
According to the Yellow Emperor’s Inner Classic, one of the most prominent texts of Chinese Medicine, “Wind is the chief [cause] of the one hundred diseases. When it comes to changes and transformations, other diseases result…[whatever] sets in does so because of Wind Qi.” (Unschuld, 2011, 631).
Wind is therefore considered to be one of the greatest challenges to healing according to Chinese Medicine. Wind can be associated with acute diseases like colds, flus, allergic reactions, and even chronic health disorders.
But how in the world can a breeze, or Wind Qi, cause illness?
Well, it’s because of how pathology can enter and move through your body’s meridian system and the protective barrier that constitutes your immune system.
Your Immune System: The Sinew Meridians & Your Wei Qi
Your Sinew Meridians are a system of channels that cover the entire surface of your body and are responsible for bringing information from your external environment to your senses.
Most importantly, the Sinew Meridians are conduits of Wei Qi, or Defensive Qi, which protects you from your external environment much like your immune system.
When confronted by Cold, Wind or Dampness - all of which are considered pathological factors in Chinese Medicine - these meridians instigate a defense that manifests as sneezing, sweating or a fever.
The pathological factor of Wind most easily and commonly enters your body through the back of your neck.
If the Bladder Sinew Meridian, which runs along your back and is your first line of defense, is not able to create a barrier and block the pathological factor (via a tight neck, sneeze and slight sweat), it enters the Tai Yang zone (Bladder & Small Intestine sinews).
If the pathological factor continues to challenge your body and penetrates the Sinew Meridians, it can become a cold that impacts your sinuses and respiratory system.
How You Can Support Your Wei Qi
To protect your immunity, it’s essential to prevent the leakage of your Yang Qi, which keeps your body warm. Wearing a hat, gloves, socks and shoes are basic ways to keep yourself warm.
One of the simplest things you can do to protect the Sinew Meridians from invasion by external pathology is to wear a scarf, especially when it’s cold or windy.
By covering the back of your neck, a scarf helps prevent Wind from entering an important area that’s transited by the first protectors of your Wei Qi in the Sinew Meridian system — your Bladder Sinew Meridian.
Wearing a scarf armors this first line of defense to ensure that the factor of Wind doesn’t go into your body to become a cold or another type of virus.
Even if it’s warm and windy, you can still protect yourself by wearing a light scarf.
The health of your Kidneys is also vital to maintain strong Wei Qi, or defensive Qi, so it’s also essential to keep three additional areas of your body warm—your lower back near your kidneys, your lower abdomen where your kidney energy is stored and your feet through which your Kidney meridian runs.
In essence, keeping your neck contained by wearing a scarf, and making sure your lower back, abdomen, hands and feet are warm helps protect your Wei Qi and immune system so as to prevent compromising your wellbeing during cold seasons.
Therefore, if you go out on a windy, cold day unprotected, the potential to catch a cold is not a myth.
Now that you know, I’d love to hear in the comments how you’re going to take action with these insights—does this empower you to keep your immune system strong?
Setareh Moafi, Ph.D., L.Ac. is Co-Owner and Director of A Center for Natural Healing in Santa Clara, California, a health and wellness clinic that specializes in Classical Chinese Medicine and Traditional Japanese Acupuncture. Dr. Moafi offers a one-of-a-kind form of empowerment coaching, clinical services, and transformational workshops and online courses that blend the ancient practices of Classical Chinese Medicine and Yoga. More information at www.setarehmoafi.com.
