Ginseng Oolong

Ginseng Oolong, a photo by chadao on Flickr.

Many patients are surprised by the answer to their question: What does acupuncture treat? You might be surprised too. Here’s just a short, incomplete list of things that herbal medicine and acupuncture address:

abdominal pain
acne
allergies
alopecia
Alzheimer’s
amenorrhea
angina
ankle pain
anxiety
arthritis
asthma

back pain
BPH
bronchitis
bursitis

cancer
candidiasis
canker sores
carpal tunnel syndrome
cataracts

cholesterol-high

chronic fatigue syndrome
common cold
conjunctivitis
constipation
cough
Crohn’s disease

depression
diabetes
diarrhea
dysmenorrhea

ear infection
early menstrual cycle
eczema
edema
endometriosis
eye pain

fever
fibroids
fibromyalgia
flu
focus
fungal infections

gastric pain
glaucoma
GERD
goiter
gout

hair loss
headache
hearing loss
heart disease
hemorrhoids
herpes
hiccup
hip pain
hypertension
hyper/hypothyroidism
hypochondriac pain
hypomenorrhea

immune deficiencies
impotence
incontinence
indigestion
infantile cough
infantile diarrhea
infertility
insomnia
irritability
IBS
itching
insufficient lactation
irregular/late/early/ lack of menstruation

jaundice

knee pain

leg pain
leukorrhea
low libido

mastitis
memory issues
menopausal imbalances
morning sickness
multiple sclerosis
muscle tension

neck pain (any musculoskeletal pain)
nosebleed

obesity

pain
palpitations
Parkinson’s disease
PCOS
PID
PMS

rhinitis/sinusitis

sciatica
shoulder pain
smoking addiction
sore throat
stress
stroke

tendonitis
tinnitus
TMJ
toothache

UC
upper respiratory tract infection
UTI
urticaria

varicose veins
vertigo

warts
women’s and men’s health issues

 

Have a question about a condition you don’t see listed? Call the office-

Qi Gong

Qi Gong Toskana Juni 2009, a photo by Roland S. Steffen on Flickr.

Want a great, take-with-you-anywhere meditative workout? Qi-gong is the thing for you!
The qi of qi gong often is translated as the non-static relationship between matter and energy. It’s the same qi your acupuncturist is always talking about. The gong of qi gong can translate as power used for results. Qi gong is a mindful practice that is not only a great workout but you also regulate the qi within you through your mind/body connection. Great qi means great health- a subject near and dear to any acupuncturist’s heart.

There are 4 categories of qi gong: dynamic, static, meditative and a fourth group that uses outside “tools” to achieve balanced qi. Dynamic qi-gong is the most easily recognized form here in the U.S. These forms use choreographed movements to cultivate and regulate qi. Tai chi is the martial arts form of dynamic qi gong (think Mr. Miyagi in “The Karate Kid” intoning: “Wax on! Wax off!”). Dynamic qi gong is  prescribed here at the office for many issues including increasing immunity or decreasing fatigue. In contrast, static qi gong makes and balances qi by holding specific postures. Meditative qi gong includes the tools that you would expect such as visualization and breath work. Using herbs and bodywork, as well as other tools for qi gong propagation, is the fourth type.

Qi gong is an important tool in traditional Chinese medicine; we use it to avoid and to treat disease. It’s used in martial arts to train participants. Taoists and Buddhists use it for meditation and Confucian scholars have long used it to better their characters.

Explore what qi gong can offer you-

Check out the links below for more information.

Wikipedia- qi gong

Tai Chi short form- don’t be put off by the spoken Chinese in this video- it’s only a short introduction. This is an excellent example of Tai Chi short form and is certainly not as easy as this demonstrator makes it look.

8 Form Tai Chi- good to use anywhere (outside is great) and especially if you only have a few minutes.

Medical Culture Musings

Today I was musing about the differences  between the current mainstream medical culture here in the States and how different things have been in the past.  Did you know that historically in China acupuncturists were paid a retainer while a patient stayed healthy but as soon as a patient became sick, the acupuncturist received no payment until the patient became healthy again?  Can you imagine what today’s healthcare industry would be like if the same rule was applied? What would it be like if the emphasis was on maintaining good health rather than waiting until a problem showed up to do damage control? There are some statistics which show that more money is spent on heroic medical measures in the last three days of a person’s life than all the money spent on health during the person’s life. Health isn’t only about spending money, but when needed, wouldn’t it be great to lower the balloon payment at the end of life and use some of that money during life?

Hello world!

Hello To Everyone!

At the request of numerous patients, colleagues and friends I’ve been convinced to start a blog. The more I thought about it, the more it appealed to me. I hope to be able to use it as a great tool for the practice but also to help advance the place of Traditional Chinese Medicine in American medical culture.  Thanks for reading!

Today, the most interesting tid bit I thought I would share is a website I’ve included in the blogroll section: www.NutritionData.com. It is chock full of great tools to help you make better nutritional decisions. Couple the abilities of this website with the Chinese concept that food can be medicine and medicine can be food and you are one step closer to having or maintaining better health.