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Archive for the ‘ Your Good Health ’ Category

Vitamin D Deficiency Epidemic

Sunday, April 15th, 2012

Vitamine D Deficienty | Acupuncture

 

Did you know there is a Vitamin D Deficiency Epidemic in North America? Is it estimated that over 70% of all North Americans are deficient in Vitamin D.

Though I couldn’t find any Canadian studies, it is likely that the the numbers are higher in Canada, simply because we are further from the Equator and the healing magic of the sun.

Insufficient amounts of vitamin D have been linked to:

  • Suppressed Immune System
  • Increased risk of disease (heart disease and certain types of Cancer)
  • Heightened inflammation (fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis)
  • Increased levels of pain

 

What Can You Do?

Sunbathing: Get 30 minutes of sun a day.  Your skin needs to be exposed to direct sunlight (no windows in between).  Walk, run, sit on a picnic bench in your shorts and sleeveless T-shirt.  During the summer months this will give you all the Vitamin D you need. During the winter you will want to take Vitamin D supplements.

Vitamin D supplements: Vitamin D is critical to the absorption of Calcium, so you will often see them packaged together.  During our Vancouver winters you may also want to take extra daily doses.

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Posted in Your Good Health | No Comments »

Keep Your Body Balanced In Spring

Monday, March 26th, 2012

The seasons are intricately related to the health  and proper functioning of your body. Each season is associated with a specific element and each element is associated with a set of organs in your body. Along with the element and organs, each season is also associated with a colour, nature and emotion and a range of other characteristics.

Spring is the season of renewal. All things in nature are busy reproducing and growing. The earth comes to life.

Spring is associated with the element wood. This element is associated with people who have clear vision and goals and are able to plan and bring these things to pass. An imbalance in this element can cause a person to become either indecisive and unable to express anger when the wood Qi is weak, or over controlling and arrogant and aggressive, when the wood Qi is too high.

The element wood is associated with the Yin and Yang organs of the liver and gall bladder as well as the sense organ for sight, the eyes and the tendons. It is said that wind strengthens the liver. If the liver is strengthened too much the person may experience an excess of frustration and irritation. Other symptoms of liver imbalance can include migraines, eye problems and sinus as well as rashes around the genital area.

It is important to help your body keep the elements and organs in balance. Here are a few things that you can do to keep your liver and the wood element in balance within your body. The key concept behind all of these tips is the movement of Qi since the liver is responsible for the movement of Qi.

Exercise and stretch

Since the liver and the wood element are connected quite strongly to the tendons of the body it is important that you stretch and do some gentle exercise on a daily basis. The liver stores blood during the winter time, a time of rest, and then releases that blood during spring, the time of renewal and rejuvenation.

Read

The eyes are also connected to the liver and wood element of spring. Reading is a way to exercise the eyes. Do not overdo it though as you do not want to move too much Qi through your eyes and create an imbalance in another direction.

Add green and sour to your diet

Since green is the colour of spring it is important that you eat as many green foods as possible. some of the common foods to include in your diet are celery and sprouts like beans and mung. The taste that is associated with spring is sour so take this time to indulge in adding some sour tastes to your food. You can add lemon to your water and use vinegar in your salad dressing, make sure it is a green salad!

If you are feeling angry and unable to release your frustration you may want to get some acupuncture treatments to release any blockages that you may have in your system. The acupuncture can help you get rid of your internal and external dragons and release the spirit points that you need released.

Give me a call to book your spring acupuncture treatment.

Wendy
604-839-9789

Tags: acupuncture and spring, spring, spring allergies, spring health issues, TCM and spring
Posted in Health Challenges, TCM - Traditional Chinese Medicine, Your Good Health | No Comments »

Spring From A Five Element Viewpoint

Monday, March 19th, 2012

Everyone knows that spring is a time for renewal and rebirth. The evidence is all around us. Spring has a special effect on all of us. Let us take a look at spring from the viewpoint of the five element traditional Chinese medicine standpoint.

Elements

Spring is the time of year that is associated with wind and the wood element. The wood element is very closely connected to the liver and gall bladder. The liver is very sensitive to wind. Thus, during spring the liver is at its most sensitive and volatile.

Wind can occur both inside and outside the body. Internal wind would manifest in dizziness, cramps, tinnitus, tremors, intermittent pain, migraines, manic depression and nervousness.

You can limit the effects of the wind by changing your diet appropriately. You will need to find out if you are more yin or yang though as this has an effect on what will help you most. You should definitely avoid crab, eggs and buckwheat though.

Organs

Since spring is associated with the wood element the organs of spring are the liver and gall bladder. The liver is the organ that promotes the flow of Qi or energy throughout the body. If the liver has been compromised as a result of too much wind, either internally or externally, you may feel irritable and restless. You will have trouble expressing your anger and be generally edgy.

If you do not undergo some balancing you may find that this unbalance of your liver will lead to depression. If the yin facet of the liver is too weak you will have problems with dizziness, dry and brittle nails, dry eyes and tinnitus. If this is the case then you need to add some soybean and liver to your diet. The more common situation is that the yang facet of the liver is too active in spring. Although the yang facet is good in that it provides energy to accomplish tasks too much leads to excess anger. You can calm your liver by eating sweet foods.

Taste

The taste for spring is sour. The sour taste, such as the taste of lemon and vinegar, strengthens the liver and helps it to overcome the effects of wind. It is important not to take in too many sour items in your diet as this can make your liver too strong and have a negative effect on the other organs in the body. If your liver is too string then you need to partake of pungent foods to clear the wind and lower the strength of the liver.

Colour

The colour of spring is green. This means that it is important to make sure that you add a range of green leafy vegetables to your diet. Adding things like celery, kelp and spring onions will calm your liver and are good for you.

The five elements view of spring is quite an intricate relationship between all the aspects of spring. You cannot treat just one, you have to take care of them all to avoid an imbalance. If you are struggling to correct an imbalance then you should consider some acupuncture treatments to release your internal and external dragons and to promote the flow of the correct spirit points.

Give me a call to book your spring acupuncture treatment.

Wendy
604-839-9789

Tags: acupuncture and spring, five elements and spring, spring acupuncture, spring allergies, spring and TCM, TCM and spring
Posted in TCM - Traditional Chinese Medicine, Your Good Health | No Comments »

The Five Element Theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine And Acupuncture

Tuesday, March 6th, 2012

Traditional Chinese medicine works on the five element theory. This theory is based on an observation of the natural cycles and relationships of life, both in ourselves and in the environment that surrounds us.

The five elements are fire, earth, metal, wood and water. Each of the elements has a corresponding internal organ. Each element is also associated with a different season.

They each also have both direct and indirect interactions. Something that affects one element and therefore a specific organ will have an effect on other organs and elements within the body. The point of traditional Chinese medicine is to achieve a balance within the body.

Spring is the season associated with wood. This element is the one that is associated with the liver and gall bladder. Since the wind has a tendency to blow in spring and wind strengthens the liver the spleen will also be affected. This can cause a disharmony which can present with problems like stomach pain, acid regurgitation, stomach distension and diarrhea. If the imbalance also affects the lungs then you will find that you suffer from all the classic signs of allergies.

If you are suffering from these kinds of problems in the spring then you can turn to the traditional Chinese medicinal disciplines of acupuncture and herbal medicine to help you get your body back into balance.

Herbal medicine and diet

In spring it is considered important to eat green leafy vegetables. These vegetables cleanse and freshen the body. It is recommended that you eat things like dandelion as a cleanser and drink juices from citrus fruits, pear and apple as well as celery and carrot. You can also add some sprouts to your diet, this would include things like beans, mung and radish sprouts.

Acupuncture

The first thing that has to be done when undergoing an acupuncture treatment is to identify and release any blockages in your system. The main blocks will be internal and external blockages, aggressive energy and entry exit blocks. It is the entry and exit blocks that relate directly to the organs affected by the elements.

Once the blocks have been cleared the next step is to plan what spirit points to open to help the patient to recover and rediscover their joy in life. The last step would be to treat the problem or imbalance directly through the use of command points. The command points are all directly related to the five elements. Thus in spring the most commonly treated command points would be the wood points.

As you can see, traditional Chinese medicine and spring, and the other seasons, are intricately related. The treatment that you receive will depend on the season and how that season is affecting your body and the balance within your body.

Many of my patients come in for seasonal treatments to enhance and optimize good health and to keep their immune systems strong.

Wendy
604-839-9789

Tags: Acupuncture, spring, spring allergies, spring TCM, TCM
Posted in TCM - Traditional Chinese Medicine, Your Good Health | No Comments »

Auricular Acupuncture

Monday, February 20th, 2012

Many of my patients don’t realize that I have undertaken specialized studies in  Auricular Acupuncture and on the Five Elements Theory in order to keep ahead and to discover new and effective treatment methods.

ear-acupunctureI have been certified at the first level of Auricular Medicine, a discipline that is being practiced by only about 150 people in Canada. You may remember that  Blue Jays pitcher, Jeremy Accardo,  underwent this type of acupuncture to treat a level 2 Groin Sprain, and was able to regain his full range of motion after only one treatment! He was injured on June 21 and with the help of Auricular Medicine, he was back pitching 5 days later.

The good news is that if you are afraid of needles I can use my laser prob and get just as effective results!

I have also undertaken advanced studies in the Five Elements Theory. It was great to see physicians, neurologists, psychiatrists, and other health practitioners in the course (I was the only acupuncturist)! More and more main-stream health practitioners are looking more and more to alternative healing tools offered by TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine).

Despite my obvious bias, kudos to them for striving to offer their patients more than just a prescription!

Tags: Acupuncture, auricular acupuncture, auricular medicine, five elements, groin sprain, jeremy accardo, level 2 groin sprain, range of motion, sports injury
Posted in Acupuncture, Bits and Pieces, TCM - Traditional Chinese Medicine | 2 Comments »

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