After being developed in the East, based on Taoist cosmology, Chinese medicine has been practiced in the West based on scientific foundations and biomedical paradigms. Some traditional elements of this philosophy were abandoned, such as the theory of Yin and Yang, knowledge that is essential for understanding the health-disease process resulting from the circulation of the body’s energy flow. This article studies the movement of the dual elements of Yin and Yang in Chinese medical teaching, seeking to understand how this line of thought developed and how it has contributed towards establishing a system of diagnosis and therapy. The methodology employed was to analyze literature on the subject, based on theoretical references to Taoist thought and traditional Chinese medicine.
traditional Chinese medicine; Yin-Yang; acupuncture; Chi; complementary therapies