Kidney health maintenance during puberty, from boyhood to manhood.

**Health care details for different age groups: Men can invest in their health in a targeted way.**

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**Health Care During Puberty: From Boy to Man**

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> **A boy's vital energy is strong at the beginning of life, and he will be strong throughout his life.**

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Compared to girls, boys develop later, with men's life cycle typically lasting eight years. Eight years old marks the first stage of a boy's maturation, a period when his kidney energy gradually matures. The *Huangdi Neijing Suwen* (Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic) states, "At eight years old, a boy's kidney energy is abundant, his hair grows long, and his teeth change." This means that by the age of eight, with the accumulation of kidney energy, a boy's hair begins to grow thicker, and his teeth begin to be replaced.

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After age 8, boys' hair grows very quickly, changing almost weekly. If left uncut, it becomes frizzy and unsightly, which is actually a sign of abundant vital energy. Besides hair changes, boys also begin to lose their baby teeth and grow new ones. At this time, children with weak kidney energy may not have all their baby teeth replaced, or some teeth may remain. Parents should then focus on replenishing their child's kidney energy.

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To ensure a boy grows into a healthy man, parents should nourish his kidney energy from a young age. "Bitter foods strengthen the kidneys," so parents can roast nuts until golden brown, which is beneficial for both children and the elderly. Walnuts are also excellent for nourishing kidney energy. They can be roasted first, then the thin outer skin removed before eating, or boiled in salt water. This is quite effective for nourishing young boys with insufficient or weak kidney energy. Some people may think that starting kidney nourishment at eight years old is too early. However, from a health perspective, the earlier kidney nourishment begins, the better it helps children build a strong physical foundation. Strong kidney energy at the beginning of life contributes to a smoother life for boys. Otherwise, if kidney energy is insufficient in childhood, it may be too late to replenish it later in life.

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Additionally, boys at this age often crave snacks, so parents should be careful not to let them eat too many sweets, as sweets can be very harmful to kidney function. Children with poor kidney function should eat less sugar or avoid it altogether.

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**An eight-year-old still wetting the bed is likely due to insufficient arm strength.**

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It's normal for one- or two-year-old boys to wet the bed due to their underdeveloped bodies and insufficient kidney energy. About 60% of boys over two and a half years old stop wetting the bed at night. If a boy is eight years old and still wets the bed more than once a month, it's considered a medical condition. Some boys may occasionally wet the bed due to fatigue or drinking too much water before bed, but these situations are not within the scope of our discussion.

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Many parents, after their child develops bedwetting, hope to stop the problem by restricting their child's nighttime water intake, waking them up at night to urinate, and training them to hold their urine, but these methods are often ineffective. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), unless there are organic problems with the child's urinary system, bedwetting is often related to dysfunction of the lungs, spleen, and kidneys, especially kidney deficiency. Therefore, children with nephritis often also experience bedwetting. Careful observation reveals that boys with bedwetting are often congenitally underdeveloped and thin. This may be due to both congenital deficiencies and insufficient postnatal care, leading to lung and spleen qi deficiency, and weakened bladder control, resulting in bedwetting.

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For childhood bedwetting, the treatment principle should be to nourish the kidneys and replenish vital energy. We can use moxibustion on the Guanyuan and Shenshu acupoints. First, apply moxibustion to Guanyuan for 15 minutes, then to Shenshu for 15 minutes, until the local skin feels hot and flushed.

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In addition to this moxibustion method, the following two methods are also suitable for childhood bedwetting.

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**Method 1:**

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The main acupoints are Qihai (CV6), Guanyuan (CV4), and Sanyinjiao (SP6), with Shenshu (BL23) and Zusanli (ST36) as secondary acupoints. Moxibustion is applied to the main acupoints first, followed by the secondary acupoints. Both gentle moxibustion and sparrow-pecking moxibustion are used alternately, aiming for a warm sensation without burning pain in the treated area. Treatment is administered once daily for seven days as one course of treatment.

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Gentle moxibustion involves keeping the lit end of the moxa stick a certain distance from the skin at the treatment site, so that the child only feels warmth without burning pain during the treatment. Sparrow-pecking moxibustion refers to holding the lit end of the moxa stick against the acupoint and then repeatedly lifting and lowering it during the treatment.

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**Method Two:**

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During treatment, the child lies flat. The practitioner uses one-finger Zen massage to massage acupoints such as Baihui, Guanyuan, Shenshu, Zhongji, Pangguanshu, Zusanli, and Sanyinjiao for 1 minute each, until each acupoint feels sore and distended. Then, moxibustion is applied to five acupoints: Guanyuan, Baihui, Shenshu, Zhongji, and Zusanli, for 2-3 minutes each, until the child feels a warm sensation.

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Most people can master the methods of moxibustion, but many may not be familiar with the "one-finger Zen" massage technique. One-finger Zen pushing refers to applying pressure to a specific acupoint using the tip, pad, or side of the thumb, while keeping the shoulders relaxed and elbows drooping, and the wrist flexed. The movement of the wrist drives the flexion and extension of the thumb, creating alternating and continuous pressure that acts on the meridians and acupoints.

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**"Ejaculation of semen" is a sign of male maturity.**

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For men, nocturnal emission is nothing new; perhaps even the first instance of it during puberty opened up a whole new world for them. According to the "Eight Regimens of Male Health" theory in the *Huangdi Neijing* (Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic), men begin producing sperm around the age of 16 (by the traditional Chinese age reckoning), and once this spermatogenesis begins, it can continue into old age. Modern medicine also believes that as boys begin puberty, the hypothalamus secretes a series of polypeptide-releasing hormones that act on the pituitary gland. Upon receiving these instructions from the hypothalamus, the pituitary gland immediately secretes various hormones, among which gonadotropins promote testicular maturation, sperm production, and the secretion of male hormones.

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Sperm produced in the testes are initially stored temporarily in the epididymis and vas deferens. However, because spermatogenesis in the testes is continuous, these storage sites quickly become full, leading to a sperm surplus. This manifests as periodic nocturnal emissions.

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Some parents, upon discovering their sons experiencing nocturnal emissions, assume the child is having inappropriate thoughts and therefore criticize or scold them. However, nocturnal emissions are actually a normal physiological phenomenon for boys entering puberty; it doesn't necessarily mean a boy is having inappropriate thoughts. Once puberty begins, it will happen even if he doesn't want to; before puberty, nocturnal emissions won't occur regardless of his thoughts. In other words, nocturnal emissions are a spontaneous, involuntary reflex activity, not under conscious control.

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A person's life involves various physical changes, including growth, development, maturity, and aging. The first ejaculation is a signal of sexual maturity during puberty. While adolescent boys are sexually mature, their psychological maturity is not. They often feel fear and anxiety about their first ejaculation. Therefore, while respecting the fact of their sons' physical development, parents should also educate them about scientific sex education so they understand this important bodily change. At the same time, it's crucial to cultivate healthy sexual psychology and morality, preventing them from indulging in pornography and stimulation, and avoiding going astray.