Chronotherapy in traditional Chinese medicine

Abstract

The circadian rhythm of illness has been emphasized for thousands of years in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), using this knowledge to schedule therapies such as acupuncture during appropriate hours of the day. This paper reviews the time periods (two hour segments) that apply to each organ system according to TCM (lungs, large intestine, stomach, heart, kidneys and liver), and elaborates on how recent medical research has found similar relevant biorhythms in these very same organ systems.