The Hairdresser and a Tale of Prevention
In a previous missive, I mentioned something about “cankles.” For those who are as in the dark about cankles as I once was, it refers to the loss in definition between the calf and ankle such that they merge. Unfortunately, since there won’t be any commercials on TV for cankles or any non-profit ribbon fundraiser campaigns, its seriousness as a harbinger of health issues usually goes overlooked.
Cankles is a big deal because it indicates that some pumping system is underperforming. In advanced cases it involves the heart, but at the early stage involves the systems of digestion and elimination, particularly the bladder, kidneys, “spleen”, and lymphatic system. Stress or the lack thereof determines the presence of cankles. Let’s look at the stressors.
Classical Chinese medicine has a concept called “Five Taxations.” They are: looking, sitting, standing, walking, and laying. Most taxations are sufficient to adversely affect fluid metabolism, but it is standing which brings us to the case of the hairdresser, mid 30s, slightly thick, cankles from standing on her feet all day. Standing taxes the kidneys. “Water” is accumulating in the lower extremities instead of being excreted. It has not reached the official level of “edema,” but the signs and trajectory are obvious. Measures can be taken to reverse the condition and prevent major health complications in the future.
Prescription: Fire Water
Fire Water is a first-line defense against general water metabolism issues that arise from taxation. It is simple and safe, a brew of ginger, cinnamon, and fennel. Mexican cinnamon is preferred in this case, because it is more gentle. This concoction is drunk instead of water, and it is drunk only when thirsty.
Patients drinking water “to stay hydrated” when symptoms of excess “hydration” are the problem is one of the most common conditions I see. Somehow in the minds of most all roads lead to “drink more water,” when this is decidedly not the case. Cankles or fat feet and ankles is irrefutable evidence that water is not being metabolized efficiently. Drinking more just doesn’t make sense.
The solution of first drinking less water and second swapping it for Fire Water takes stress off the kidneys by reducing filtration quantity, while providing safe, simple, and tested spices known to assist in kidney function. It’s a simple intervention that has profound benefits for protecting and enhancing the kidneys.
Oh yeah, the hairdresser? She was surprised by how effective it was, maybe a little more energy too.