Jun 01

Traditional Chinese medicine – now more than ever

Acupuncture, Traditional Chinese Medicine No Comments »

Traditional Chinese medicine, including acupuncture, continues to gain adherents, and should be a part of your overall wellness plan.

The roots of Traditional Chinese Medicine go back more than 5,000 years. Although this ancient form of medicine was developed long ago it has never been more relevant to health care than today.

In China, acupuncturists and physicians work side by side. Many Chinese hospitals have acupuncture inpatient wings and separate departments with such outpatient specialties as pulmonary conditions, obstetrics and gynecology and orthopedics. Inpatients also can receive visits from acupuncturists and may even take Chinese herbs intravenously.

In the U.S., many Americans are aware that acupuncture treats pain conditions like back pain, tendonitis and headaches, but patients often are surprised to hear that Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) treats hundreds of conditions ranging from hypertension to infertility to anxiety. In fact, most medical and psychological conditions other than medical emergencies are treatable with TCM.

The advantages potentially provided by an acupuncturist include pain relief, faster healing, possible reduction of prescription medications, higher energy and stress reduction. Many acupuncturists also offer dietary and lifestyle advice tailored to your body type and general health.

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May 23

Eastern medicine treatments

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A good rundown of the different types of Eastern treatments for everything from fertility to relieving aches and pains.

What the research shows: “Acupuncture is probably the most studied of the various complementary therapies,” says Cassileth. “It has been shown to be useful for a wide range of physical and emotional symptoms. [In cancer care,] neither acupuncture nor any other complementary modality treats the tumor. These therapies provide symptom control.”

She adds, “Acupuncture can control hot flashes, shortness of breath, chronic fatigue, and pain.” Cassileth and her colleagues recently published a randomized controlled trial showing that acupuncture can relieve xerostomia, the devastating dry mouth problem that may result from head and neck cancer treatment. In these patients, damage to the salivary glands can make eating and talking difficult or impossible. “Acupuncture can restore salivation,” she says.

Acupuncture research is controversial because some studies find that “sham” acupuncture—where needles are placed in the “wrong” places or otherwise modified—is equally or even more effective than traditional acupuncture. Consequently, differentiating between acupuncture effects and those created simply by expectation (placebo effects) is hard.

Nonetheless, a recent review of the evidence by the Cochrane Collaboration, which conducts some of the most stringent data reviews, did find a measurable benefit from acupuncture for fertility in in-vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles if it is done on the day that embryos are transferred into the womb.

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May 19

The Doaist philosopy behind traditional Chinese medicine

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Traditional Chinese medicine relies on a number of different techniques and principles to promote healing. And none are more important than a belief in wellness.

According to Yuen, the healing environment is crucial. “Healing has to occur in a supportive environment and the encounter between the clinician and the patient is very important. The doctor must be able to feel their patients’ pain,” he says.

“Fear and urgency shouldn’t be used in the healing encounter because that becomes a tactic which disempowers the patient. As clinicians, we need to give people a sense of hope.

“If a person believes he has an incurable disease, no matter what you do, it will be difficult to heal them. Healing has to come from within. We try to instigate a healing process but if the person doesn’t believe in it, they won’t be cured.”

In his own clinical practice, Yuen uses Chinese herbs and acupuncture but he is also a practitioner and teacher of the Chinese mindful movement practices of t’ai chi and Qi Gong (Ch’i Kung). He believes that Western medicine is coming towards a tipping point, which will impact on its approach in the future.

“Even within Western medicine, people are realising it has to radically change. The technology used for diagnostics – MRI scans, X-rays, etc – are based on quantum physics and when this theory is applied to treatment, it will change the mindset of medicine to give a more individualised approach,” he says.

On a spiritual level, Yuen says that rather than cultivate illness, we should cultivate wellness. “The consciousness of illness is not the same as the consciousness of healing. Rather than question, blame, find fault and guilt, we need to change the perception of our lives to change the meaning of our lives,” he says.

“We have choices we can make about our diet, exercise, emotional and mental wellbeing,” he says. “We need to give ourselves the opportunity to be with ourselves on a daily basis in an intimate dialogue with the body. This can be through conscious eating, conscious walking or meditation.”

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May 18

Herbs for healing

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An interesting article, including some recipes, for how to heal yourself with herbs.

The “perception of plants as purely ornamental objects is a strange, cultural anomaly that has existed in only one civilization in history — our own. In every other culture, the plants that surround us are a living supermarket, pharmacy” and more, the star of a BBC show in the United Kingdom says in the book’s preface.

In modern society, the use of plants from the garden to help cure ills dropped off decades ago but is seeing resurgence, says Louise Hyde, owner of Well-Sweep Herb farm, which has been in Port Murray, Mansfield Township, for 43 years.

“Medicinal herbs are big,” Hyde says. That’s why, for the past 15 years, she’s been bringing in Warren County herbalist and ethnobotanist David Winston to present programs on the topic. He’ll be back on the farm leading a medicinal herb walk May 21.

While we may have heard of mint tea to soothe the stomach or chamomile to calm the nerves, there are natural remedies to address everything from athlete’s foot, to bad breath, to irritable bowel syndrome.

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May 16

Relaxation using Qigong

Alternative therapies, Stress No Comments »

Cancer patients are turning to the practice of Qigong , an internal, meditative Chinese art, to help them relax and cope with their cancer treatments.

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May 14

Acupressure may help with allergies

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For those of you who suffer from allergies, acupressure may provide relief.

The first step is finding out what triggers your allergies.

To figure it out, the patient lies down on a table with one arm in the air.

A vial containing a specific allergen is then placed in the patient’s opposite hand.

If the patient is allergic, her arm will go down when the doctor pushes on it, no matter hard she tries to resist; if she’s not allergic, she’ll be able to resist the push.

The next step is the actual treatment.

The patient holds the allergen in her hand while the doctor uses a machine to stimulate certain pressure points on the body, sort of like a massage.

The patient then continues holding the allergen for 20 minutes.

After the treatment, the patient is told to avoid the allergen for 25 hours.

“It just sounds crazy. It’s so bizarre,” Langum says.

Lanman says, “There’s always doubts, especially when it’s unknown, especially when it’s strange.”

Lanman says just about any allergy can be treated, including tree pollen, grass and even food allergies.

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Nov 24

Hollywood stars embracing alternative therapies

Acupuncture, Alternative therapies, Disease, Health and fitness No Comments »

Hollywood celebrities are seeking alternative therapies for treating diseases like breast cancer, Lyme disease and more. Many have found that alternative therapies, when combined with traditional therapies, can yield better results.

When Suzanne Somers was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001, she decided to forgo chemotherapy, had a lumpectomy and followed it up with radiation therapy and alternative treatments.

Actress Parker Posey, diagnosed with Lyme disease earlier this year, used not just antibiotics but homeopathic remedies and supplements to help her recover.

Stars aren’t the only ones who are trying alternative therapies to get better.

“More than 30 percent of cancer patients will try some kind of alternative therapy,” says Dr. Roberta Lee, vice chair of the Department of Integrative Medicine at Beth Israel Medical Center and medical director of the Continuum Center for Health and Healing. “As at treatment on its own, alternative therapy is complicated and risky. But when it is supportive, it is a good strategy.”

Some 3,000 patients a month are seen at her program, Lee explains. They may make use of everything from acupuncture and ginger tea for nausea to acupuncture for dry mouth caused by chemotherapy.

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