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Chinese Medicine, which encompasses acupuncture, is a broad and complex system of medicine.  At face value this is neither a good or a bad thing, but the complexity of the diagnostic systems and treatment methods can limit broad usage due to limited numbers of well trained practitioners. Acupressur…

Publishing in the journal “Zhen Ci Yan Jiu” (“Acupuncture Research”), a team of researchers recently explored the clinical mechanisms behind a simple combination of acupuncture points aiding a complex disease process. Their paper is titled “Protective effect and mechanism of electroacupuncture of “…

Globally, mental disorders, notably anxiety and depression, are a massive problem with hundreds of millions of people suffering, many with little or no access to treatment.  The situation appears to be worsened by all of the experiences and changes related to the current pandemic (source).  Even in…

The coronavirus is currently appearing in the US and has spread well throughout large parts of the world. As time has passed since the first cases in China, we are starting to see the viability and effectiveness of a variety of western and eastern treatment options. As with many diseases and imbala…

Moxibustion, or "moxa", is a widely utlizied adjunctive technique in Chinese Medicine. It involves the burning of an herb, ai ye ("mugwort") on or near the skin at certain points or above certain areas based on symptoms. A general introduction can be found in my "What Is Moxibustion?" article. Moxa…

Our body needs to keep a strong balance between helpful antioxidants, such as those found in plant based whole foods diets, and free radicals which have far more potential for damage. The body experiences "oxidative stress" when the balance of antioxidant activity is too low in relation to the acti…

While IBS is often related to a relatively long pattern of poor dietary and lifestyle choices, there are cases where it seems to "come on" quite sudden. What is known as post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome or "PI-IBS" is the diagnosis given to people where symptoms come on following an infecti…

Trigeminal neuralgia is a condition in which the trigeminal nerve, a nerve that goes from the brain to the face, is affected. In most cases, the nerve is pinched or compressed and causes a shooting facial pain, or even unexplainable sensations in the face in some patients. It often affects only one…

Statistically there is one person every 3 seconds, somewhere in the world, that develops dementia. There are currently around 50 million people world-wide which are in various stages of memory impairment and this number is currently expected to double every 20 years. There are, of course, a host of…

Infertility, by clinical definition, is the inability to produce offspring after trying to conceive for a year. The many issues that may contribute to fertility problems vary from person to person as well as by age and other health factors. Taking into consideration that partners are having sex and…

Lower back pain is very commonly treated with acupuncture and generally does extremely well.  Of the multitudes who seek out acupuncture for back pain, many have sciatic nerve pain which can be quite debilitating.  Often either through injury or direct wear and tear there is physical damage to the…

Seasonal allergies affect many people every day and may impact their lives profoundly, from itchy eyes to sneezing, stuffy nose, to swelling of the face and throat in extreme cases. Many people that I know, relatives and friends, are under medical treatment for seasonal allergies and have been tak…

Stress, which includes or can be subdivided into depression and anxiety, affects millions of people daily.  For many college students in particular it is nearly a way of being.  I have experienced this as a college student when I was in grad school, and saw it with my students back when I was teach…

For many people spinal cord injury (SCI) can be a completely life changing injury. An estimated 17,000 people each year sustain new spinal cord injuries (1) and there isn’t much that Western medicine has to offer for treatment options. There is some evidence that acute treatment with methylprednis…

7-10 million people around the world are living with Parkinson's Disease with men being 1.5 times more likely to develop the condition than women.  This is more than all of the people with Multiple Sclerosis, Muscular Dystrophy and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis combined.  The symptoms are brought …