Herbal Medicine for Pets?

Often, my clients tell me about the antics of their beloved cats and dogs. Sometimes they tell me about how their pets are receiving acupuncture for their pains. Acupuncture for animal pain relief seems to work really well!

Also, they will tell me about the general health complaints of their furry children. They will ask if Chinese Herbal medicine is something that could help them. I have had to say, yes, there are people that will prescribe Chinese Herbal medicine for cats and dogs (and even horses). And now I can say that I am one of them!

Recently, I took a course on using Chinese Herbal medicine for common veterinary complaints. It was really informative. I am looking forward to further improving the lives of my patients by improving the health of their pets! I'll write about specific conditions in later blog posts. I'm really excited to get some feedback from my patients on how their pets respond to Chinese Herbal medicine! I know firsthand that people respond very well, and now I look forward to hearing about how the animals do after treatment!

Acupuncture Relieves Hot Flashes, Alternative for Hormone Replacement

Menopausal and peri-menopausal women suffer from a variety of symptoms and to varying degrees. Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine is often mentioned as a way to manage the discomfort that can be associated with menopause. A randomized study done in China showed that women experienced relief with acupuncture care. Authors conclude that acupuncture is a good treatment option when women in menopause are not interested in hormone replacement therapy. Since hormone replacement therapy has it's risks, perhaps more women should consider gentle acupuncture as a treatment.

Full article is found here: http://ecam.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/nep001

If you are seeking help for menopausal/peri-menopausal symptoms, visit www.AcuSpaWellness.com and experience our gentle acupuncture and convenient Chinese herbal medicine. We see many cases of menopausal symptom management, and have many happy patients to prove it!

Warming foods to help cold weather pains

In the cold of wintertime, some people find that their bodies react with pain. Very often, this is due to what Western doctors diagnose as arthritis. Or, there may have been an injury at the site in the patient's past. In Chinese Medicine theory, however, we believe that patients are susceptible to cold when they are lacking in warm energy. Just like when the weather is cold outside, you turn up the heat in your car, your body works a little harder to keep warm. In a body where there is not enough warm energy to draw from, this can lead to cold sensitivity and/or body pains.

What can you do about this? While bodies that react with pain will probably benefit best from Chinese herbal medicine (because the condition is more serious), those that are a little more cold sensitive can try to warm themselves from the inside out by eating foods that are warm in nature. Chinese theories hold that each food has it's own hot/cold property. For example, mint tea is considered a cooling food, while turmeric is considered warming. Incorporating foods that are of a warming nature more often into the diet, including lamb, onion and ginger can help a person to be more cold tolerant.

However, it's important to keep balance in mind! It's possible to over-warm your stomach while still being cold sensitive in other parts of the body. And of course, you should consult your physician before embarking on a new diet.

Chinese Herbal medicine operates along the same principles. However, we are able to warm the body more strongly because herbs are chosen for their potency. Being monitored by a primary care provider also ensures that your body stays in overall balance throughout the process. More info on Herbal medicine is available at www.AcuSpaWellness.com

The Yin Yang of Stir Fry

The idea of eating a "Balanced Diet" is quite different when you approach the idea from the viewpoint of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Ask an acupuncturist what that means, and you will get a very different answer than from a typical Medical Doctor.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, we believe each food has an inherent cool, warm, or neutral property. For example, romaine lettuce is a cool food, whereas curry powder is a warming food. This inherit "nature" is not a comment on actual food temperature, but is something that the food possesses naturally. Sometimes it is referred to as a Yin or Yang nature, with cool foods being Yin and warm foods being Yang

The nature of food can be manipulated by methods such as cooking. For example, although broccoli is a cool food by nature, it is less cool when it is lightly steamed vs. raw. It is further warmed by the process of stir frying with ginger.

This is the reason why Chinese food usually finds vegetables prepared with a bit of garlic or ginger. Not only does this add flavor to the dish, but it balances it energetically. Most green vegetables are cool in nature, so a typical person would benefit from adding a bit of (warm) ginger to the dish.

A body that is out of balance will develop symptoms. An overly cool Stomach can lead to stomachaches and too-soft stools. An overly warm Stomach can show signs of acne and excessive appetite.

These and other concepts are explored if I find that my patients' bodies are complaining, whether through symptoms or pulse. A great thing about Chinese pulse diagnosis is that it can often catch problems before they become symptomatic. To me, that is what true wellness is... a body that is functioning at maximum efficiency.

Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal medicine can be used alone or together to promote balanced body function. Please visit my website at www.AcuSpaWellness.com for more information. Or for an appointment please call (650) 588-0888. Herbal consultations are a great way to maintain good health.

Tried & True Medications

My pharmacology professor made a comment once that I will never forget: "I only take drugs that are old - I never take the new drugs because we do not know what their long term effects are." Isn't this statement absolutely fascinating? It made me reflect upon my thesis paper on how culture effects medicine. Americans are raised in a culture that values "new" and "young". This way of thinking carries over into medical treatments, where new drugs are often touted as the next wonder of the world. In many cases, newer is better. But perhaps not when it comes to everything.

When working with prescription medications that have been on the market for a few decades, their effects are more thoroughly documented. Long term effects are more likely to have been spotted and built into consideration before they are prescribed. Most medication trials are not decades long, as companies work to get their products into the market as soon as possible. This means we usually don't know the long term implications of prescription medications when they are new.

Compare to this to the hundreds, if not thousands, of years of research we have on traditional Chinese medicine. Herbal medicine may seem old fashioned in comparison to some drugs on the market, but our ancestors have spent many, many years documenting their effects and side effects. Some of the effects that have been observed can be quiet surprising. The scientists of the past have been very thorough in their observations of how the human body will respond to different herbal medicines.

It therefore strikes me as quite odd when medical doctors express concern over herbal medicine. I would argue that, under the correct supervision, Chinese herbal medicine is much safer than prescription medication. This prejudice is probably due to a conservative approach to something that they have not studied and do not understand. Acupuncturists in the state of California have been taught and tested regarding Chinese herbal medicine. Finding a practicitioner that is licensed is a good first step to making sure that you are properly monitored while taking Chinese herbal medicines. More info on the applications of Chinese herbal medicine and acupuncture can be found at www.AcuSpaWellness.com