Healing and the Martial Arts: a Book Review

Yet consider this: only in the past 20 years have Western doctors really begun to advocate what Chinese doctors have always known - that the best, most effective form of medicine is preventative and doesn't involve pills or injections or treatments of any kind.

Now there is an easily accessible source for the Chinese medical tradition. Not a complete source, to be sure - that would be beyond the scope of any one book, but an excellent primer, intended for martial artists and athletes, but useful for just about anyone. In "A Tooth From The Tiger's Mouth," Tom Bisio gives an overview of all major Chinese approaches to medicine, particularly in the realm of sports injuries.

Tom covers diagnosis techniques; preventative daily exercises designed to heal, improve, and strengthen; dietary advice; body treatments like acupuncture, acupressure, and massage; specialized techniques such as cupping, moxibustion, and coining; and traditional herbal remedies - liniments, poultices, salves, plasters, and broths.

Perhaps more importantly for the last category, Tom provides herbal recipes that can be understood not just by English-only readers, but by proprietors of Chinese herb shops. No more wondering what some exotic herb looks like in a musty, pungent Chinatown store - simply present the owner with the recipe and let him fill it for you.

The book is written in such a way that a reader can use it as a reference manual, to be opened only to look up a specific treatment to a specific ailment; or, as a primer for Chinese medical theory so that he or she understands why certain approaches are used.

A slim volume, there is clearly an emphasis on the kinds of ailments an active athlete would incur during physical activity - bruises, sprains, tears, cuts, joint problems, and broken bones, along with chronic pain. Ailments such as indigestion and insomnia and serious illnesses are given little, if any coverage in this book.

But Bisio's book lives up to its billing and more, and can be of use to anyone.

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