Whole Family Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine

April Acupressure Childbirth Class

admin — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 01:28:18 +0000

The April class will be held April 9, 2009

6:30-8:00pm at Birthwise Health & Birth Center, 1703 South Oneida, Suite C, Appleton

$20/person or $30/mom + partner (price includes extensive handouts)

Advanced registration required. Class size limited to 5 couples. Please call Leah at 920.574.0447 to register.

Whether your goal is a natural birth or you simply want more tools to help you cope during labor, this class has something for you. In this hands-on class we will cover a variety of acupressure points that you can use for pain relief and to promote labor. Learn how to prepare your body for labor with acupressure massage, which points to use during different stages of labor, and how to use acupressure for specific challenges that can arise during childbirth.

February Acupressure Childbirth Class

admin — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 01:26:02 +0000

The February Class will be held on February 5, 2009

6:30-8:00pm at Birthwise Health & Birth Center, 1703 South Oneida, Suite C, Appleton

$20/person or $30/mom + partner (price includes extensive handouts)

Advanced registration required. Class size limited to 5 couples. Please call Leah at 920.574.0447 to register.

Acupuncture for side effects from head and neck cancer

admin — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 01:04:56 +0000

Earlier this year, researchers at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center found that acupuncture significantly reduced the symptoms of pain, shoulder dysfunction and dry mouth in patients having surgery for head and neck cancer. In this study, 70 patients received weekly acupuncture for 4 weeks, compared to a control group that received anti-inflammatory pain relievers and physical therapy. Almost 40% of patients in the acupuncture group experienced improvements in pain and mobility. These are impressive results, considering how few acupuncture treatments the patients received.

Click here to read the full article.

Research on acupuncture for low back pain

admin — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 00:44:57 +0000

In the fall of 2007, German researchers published the largest study on acupuncture versus conventional medicine for the treatment of low back pain. The study compared outcomes for 1,162 patients with chronic low back pain who were treated either with acupuncture or a combination of drugs, physical therapy and exercise.

Patients in the acupuncture groups received 10 sessions over a 6 week period. Patients who received acupuncture were almost twice as likely to report an improvement in pain or functional ability six months after treatment as patients who did not have acupuncture. (In order to count, patients had to have at least a 33% improvement in pain or a 12% improvement in functional ability). Click here to read the full article.

It’s important to note that patients who received acupuncture (either real or sham in this study) did not also receive cupping and tui na massage. The protocol at Whole Family Health for almost all musculoskeletal pain is 20 minutes of acupuncture, followed by 10 minutes of cupping, and another 10 minutes of tui na masssage. In my experience, patients respond much more quickly when cupping and tui na are added to an acupuncture treatment. As a rule, a combination of therapies works best for low back pain, such as acupuncture, chiropractic adjustments, physical therapy and exercise.

See our Summer 2008 Newsletter for a more in-depth explanation of acupuncture for low back pain, including some acupressure points and qi gong exercises.

Acupuncture beats aspirin for chronic headaches

admin — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 20:25:32 +0000

This article appeared on Reuters.

A review of studies involving nearly 4,000 patients with migraine, tension headache and other forms of chronic headache showed that that 62 percent of the acupuncture patients reported headache relief compared to 45 percent of people taking medications, the team at Duke University found.

“Acupuncture is becoming a favorable option for a variety of purposes, ranging from enhancing fertility to decreasing post-operative pain, because people experience significantly fewer side effects and it can be less expensive than other options,” Dr. Tong Joo Gan, who led the study, said in a statement.

To read the complete article, click here. For an explanation of headaches from a TCM perspective, click here. Next time you have a headache, try acupressure. Click here for point locations and pictures.

Research on acupuncture for cancer–An excellent resource from the National Cancer Institute

admin — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 20:13:23 +0000

This document, put together by the National Cancer Institute, is an excellent starting point for anyone wanting to learn more about the level of research into acupuncture as a complementary therapy for cancer patients. Written for doctors, it offers specific information about relevant clinical trials. Click here for a less technical version written for patients. The patient version contains a good question and answer section about acupuncture.

Mayo Clinic podcast on complementary & alternative medicine for cancer Symptoms

admin — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 20:05:00 +0000

This excellent podcast on the use of complementary and alternative medicine is available on the Mayo Clinic website. In it, Dr. Brent Bauer, director of the Complementary and Integrative Medicine Program at Mayo Clinic, discusses a variety of CAM modalities including herbal medicine, acupuncture, exercise, music therapy and yoga. For a transcript of the podcast, click here.

Exercise for PMS, depression & anxiety–A Chinese medicine perspective

admin — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 19:00:13 +0000

Many women have read that exercise can improve premenstrual symptoms, depression and anxiety. Dr. Jerilynn C. Prior, professor of endocrinology at the University of British Columbia, has conducted several studies on the role of exercise in improving PMS symptoms. She hypothesizes that exercise may help with symptoms because of the mood-enhancing effect of physical activity, but she also believes that “exercise alters something in the hypothalamus, probably the core body temperature, that signals the pituitary gland and ovaries to bring a woman’s system more into balance.” (Click here to read more from this ivillage.com article on PMS and exercise.)

Exercise is also of major benefit for people suffering from exercise and anxiety. Research into this link suggest there may be a variety of reasons that exercise enhances mood. ”[Exercise] raises the levels of certain mood-enhancing neurotransmitters in the brain. Exercise may also boost feel-good endorphins, release muscle tension, help you sleep better, and reduce levels of the stress hormone cortisol. It also increases body temperature, which may have calming effects.” (To read more on this article from Mayo Clinic, click here.)

From a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) perspective, a main component of PMS and depression is something called “qi stagnation”. When qi (energy) moves smoothly through the acupuncture channels, your body feels good and your mood is good. Symptoms of qi stagnation include pain, depressed mood, and digestive complaints. A really great way to move qi (besides acupuncture) is exercise.

For women with PMS, their complaint is “I feel awful when I have PMS. How am I suppose to exercise?” During a woman’s cycle, she is most stagnant in the week before her period. This means, start exercising at the beginning of your premenstrual week to move qi, before bloating and cramps set in. Once your period starts, give yourself a few days break to rest.

Gou Qi Zi Tea: The fountain of youth

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 02:18:33 +0000

Gou qi zi, or goji berries, are both a food and a medicinal herb. This small red berry, usually found dried in health food stores or the natural food aisle, is an ingredient in health and longevity teas in China. It is sweet and has the function of tonifying the liver and kidney and nourishing yin, blood and essence. It is also beneficial for the eyes.

There is a story about gou qi zi told in China that illustrates its use as a beauty elixir. A man walking down a country road encountered two women, one young and one old, arguing with each other. He approached them and admonished the younger woman for talking so disrespectfully to her elder. The young woman laughed heartily and said, “But that old woman is my daughter!” Her secret? The mother drank gou qi zi tea daily and the daughter did not.

Gou Qi Zi Tea

Steep a large handful of gou qi zi (goji berries) in a quart of hot water. Cool slightly and drink as tea throughout the day. Once the berries are rehydrated, feel free to snack on them as well.

Goji berries can be found at many health food stores and even in the natural food aisles of some grocery stores. They are great to cook with in stir fries and soups.

A simple home remedy for painful periods

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 00:54:40 +0000

This is a very simple home remedy that is useful for both painful periods and cramping postpartum. It was taught to me by Mei Wang, one of my professors and a very talented herbalist.

Tea for Cramps (1 serving)

Bring 1 cup of water to boil. Add 1 tablespoon of dark brown sugar and mix. Let cool slightly and drink as tea.

Drink this tea throughout the first day of your period. Warm liquids are helpful for cramps in the same way a heating pad often feels good. Brown sugar moves blood stasis, which is present to some degree for all women experiencing painful periods. Foods have different properties in the same way as medicinal herbs, though they are generally milder in action. It is best to use natural brown sugar such as turbinado sugar or muscovado sugar (which can usually be found in the natural foods aisle or the baking aisle) because these sugars have a higher molasses content and are less processed. However, the brown sugar you’ve got on your cupboard at home can also help.