Hi Suqing,
Here is the content of the aticle by Bill Neall that Nancy was directing you to on Ginger Compresses.
There is a new article on CyberMacro that you may be interested in,
MACROBIOTIC DIETARY GUIDELINES for the tropics by
Richard Seth.
Richard lives in Singapore also. His web site is
www.richardseah.com
Gary
Ginger compress: Over the years, poor and out of balance nutritional intake leads to, among other things, a mucous buildup and stagnation in the walls of the intestines, inhibiting proper digestion and toxic elimination. Because of this, the body becomes overloaded with waste and, in a futile attempt to eliminate it, resorts to what we call disease, which in reality, is the body attempting to heal itself. In other words, the toxins aren’t able to be processed through the normal channels. In some cases, when we react to a symptom such as a cough or nasal discharge by trying to suppress it with drugs, we cause the body to find some other outlet by pushing it deeper inside where it appears to have gone away. Sometimes this is not evident for years, and then suddenly we experience a stroke, a cancer, or some other totally unexpected problem. Once we understand that the body knows how to heal itself better than any outside source and begin to give it healing support through organic (when available), locally grown, in-season, cooked whole grains and vegetables, we need to help it get rid of the stagnations in our organs, especially those of elimination, in order to facilitate the healing process. This is done through the intestinal ginger compress, and additionally in the case of women, the daikon hip bath.
The ginger compress is a series of 64 compresses over a period of 16 weeks, 4 times per week with a six week interval before the next one. It will take at least three series and possibly more depending upon your condition. The following is a general procedure:
1. The tools needed are: A decent grater (The one that works best for me is the rectangular one that stands and is approximately six or seven inches tall. Use the finest grate on the wide side.) Cheesecloth or a small bag with a drawstring to put the grated ginger in. A large steel pot and lid that can hold at least a gallon or so of water, the thicker the better so it retains heat. Three large face towels or a couple of baby diapers folded in a rectangle the size of the area bounded by your breast bone, pubic bone, and hip bones. A pair of rubber household gloves so you can put your hands in very hot water.
2. Procedure:
a. Bring to boil 1 gallon or so of water.
b. Grate 1/4 cup of fresh ginger root, if possible, organic. Use a downward
motion.
c. Put grated ginger in drawstring bag or piece of cheesecloth and tie
so ginger won’t mix with water. It should be loose enough so that the
water can circulate within the bag.
d. Turn off heat when water boils and drop ginger bag in and let sit for a few
minutes.
e. Squeeze bag gently to disperse ginger.
f. Take one towel and submerge it in the hot water and wring it out. Have the
other two towels folded nearby ready to put over the hot one.
g. Lie down in a comfortable place close to the pot and put the heated towelππover the exposed area mentioned above. If it’s too hot, keep lifting it up and
laying it down until you can stand it. The hotter, the better. Put the other two
towels on top of the first one to hold in the heat. When you feel it cooling down,
repeat the procedure. Do this for 30 minutes. If the water doesn’t remain hot
enough, you can turn on the lowest heat, remembering to keep it from boiling.
h. The compress is done on an empty stomach, at least 3 hours after
eating. The best time is in the early morning before breakfast but some people
find it easier to do one compress Tuesday evening, one Wednesday morning,
reheating the same water, but not boiling it and then making a new batch for
Thursday night and Friday morning. You can only use it again within a 12
hour period. Personally, I think it’s better to make it up every time since it is
so important and the fresher it is, the stronger it is. I usually do it Saturday
and Sunday morning and Tuesday and Thursday evening before dinner. It
should not be done every day, at least in the beginning. It can overwhelm the
organs of elimination. It also helps if you’re in peaceful surroundings where
you can relax.
i. This isn’t the only use for the ginger compress, but it's all you need to
know for now.
j. Do not do the ginger compress if you’re pregnant (If you’re not
sure, have a test), breast feeding, have appendicitis, cancer or swelling
in the abdominal area. Do not use the compress on the female breasts. (there may be some exceptions) Do not use a ginger compress directly on a known
tumor. (In some cases it may be all right after two to twelve months of the healing process.) Don’t use directly on the brain.
4. Daikon hip bath: This procedure is for women only. It takes the place of two ginger compresses per week (do two compresses/two hipbaths per week) and must be done just before bedtime. (You can do a hip bath, for example, on a Monday night, a ginger compress on a Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, and another bath on a Thursday night. Whatever fits two treatments each within a week’s time.) When there is mucous stagnation present in the intestines, there is also stagnation present in the walls of the uterus. This bath aids in the dispersion of these stagnations, helping conditions such as PMS, vaginal problems, uterine fibroids, cellulite, and kidney and bladder infections. It also clears the skin. To do this you will need dried daikon leaves. You can either buy the leaves (Mountain Ark Trading Company, The Kushi Institute Store, both on the web) if someone is selling them prepared or get them green from your local market (they’re pretty hard to find at regular stores and not consistently available) and dry them yourself.
1. Supplies: For 16 weeks of treatment 2 times per week you’ll need 64 bunches of dried daikon leaves. In a pinch you can use dried turnip leaves, comfrey leaves, dandelion, or sea vegetables, but daikon works best. To dry your leaves, take 4 or 5 undried bunches and hang them on a line in a dark place for several days. You’ll also need a large strainer, a pot that holds a gallon of water, towels or diapers, cotton night clothes and a bathrobe.
2. Procedure: (Always do this just before going to bed at night.)
a. Place 4 bunches of dried leaves, or 2 ounces prepared ones, in 1/2 gallon of water.
b. Bring to a boil and gently simmer for 1/2 hour.
c. Draw a hot bath high enough to cover at least your hips when you
sit in it; you can also lay in it up to your neck if you want. Temperature
should be as hot as you can comfortably stand it. Add 1 handful of salt.
d. Pour daikon water through sieve into bath. Discard daikon.
e. Sit or lay in bath and cover your head and shoulders with a towel.
Remain in bath for 10 to 20 minutes.
f. Dry off and put on night clothes and bathrobe and go to bed. The
reason for this is that you will be sweating large amounts of liquid and
this will keep you from cooling off too fast and stopping the process.
g. Do not do the hip bath if you’re pregnant or breast feeding.
5. Salt bath: This bath is not necessary but is soothing in some cases. You add two handfuls of any type of salt (except Epsom Salts) to a tub of hot-as-you-can-stand-it water and soak in it for between 10 to 15 minutes. Use your judgment and don’t stay in too long. At first it may be wise to experiment with shorter time periods.
(note: Use caution with hot baths if you know or think your condition could be aggravated by the heat. They shouldn’t be used in cases of fevers, pelvic inflammatory conditions, or heart problems nor any longer than 10 weeks. Hot baths should not be overused. Check with your health care provider if you have any questions.)