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cold causing infertility and leucorrhea.
(vi) Assists the K idney F unction of Qi Reception
Reception of Qi requires Kidney Yang, which depends on Ming Men Fire for its action. The proper functioning
of Kidney Yang requires the communication between the Gathering Qi of the chest and the lower abdominal
Original Qi, which needs Heat from the Ming Men Fire to function. If Qi reception is sufficiently impaired
because of a deficiency of Ming Men Fire, there will be breathlessness, chest stuffiness, asthma or cold hands.
(vii) Assists the Heart in Housing the Mind
Ming Men Fire must ascend from the Kidneys and communicate with Heart, to provide the necessary Heat for its
functions, in particular, of Housing the Mind. Thus, the Ming men fire has a strong influence on people’s mental
state. Deficiency of Ming Men Fire can result in unhappiness, depression or lack of vitality.
Western Functions of the K idneys
The kidneys are bean-shaped organs, each about the size of a fist. They are symmetrically located near the middle of the
back, just below the rib cage, one on each side of the spine. The kidneys process about 200 quarts of blood to filter out
about 2 quarts of waste products and extra water every day. The wastes and extra water become urine, which flows to
the bladder through tubes called ureters.
Waste products in the blood come from the
normal breakdown of active tissues, such as
muscles, and from food. If the kidneys didn’t
remove these wastes, they would build up in
the blood and damage the body.
The actual removal of wastes occurs in tiny
units inside the kidneys called nephrons. Each
kidney has about a million nephrons. The
nephron consists of glomerulus, which has tiny
afferent, intertwined capillaries and an efferent
tiny urine-collecting tube, called a tubule. The
glomerulus acts as a filtering unit, retaining
normal proteins and cells in the bloodstream,
but allowing extra fluid and wastes to pass
through.
The tubules receive a combination of waste
materials and chemicals the body can still use.
The kidneys measure out chemicals like
sodium, phosphorus, and potassium and by a
series of chemical reactions release these back
into the blood to return to the body. In this way,
the kidneys regulate the body's level of these substances.
The kidneys also release three important hormones:
(i) erythropoietin (EPO), which stimulates the bone marrow to make red blood cells,
(ii) renin, which regulates blood pressure;
(iii) calcitriol, the active form of vitamin D, which helps maintain calcium for bones and for normal chemical
balance in the body.
60 Yang-Sheng (Nurturing Life) Volume 2, Issue No. 1