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- Testimonials
We tried to get pregnant for two years and we were unsuccessful. I came for acupuncture and was able to get pregnant. Now we have a beautiful little boy.
-J.L June 2015
Before coming to Lotus Acupuncture & Holistic Health Clinic, I had daily nose bleeds (Oslo -Weber), hoarseness of the voice, and a clogged nose. I felt that I had to accept how my health was, it is what it is and that I had to just deal with it.
I noticed that after the 1st week, I had minor improvements, like less hoarseness and clogging. After 4 weeks of treatment, I had fewer nosebleeds- it had reduced from 3 to
... Read more »Before I came to Lotus Acupuncture & Holistic Health Clinic, I was struggling with digestive disorders and also kidney problems (I had an urgent need to urinate).
I felt unsure and bit confused with my health, but after 8 weeks of seeing Jayne Dabu I noticed that I had no more digestive problems or the urgent need to urinate. I feel great about my results and improvements.
I highly recommend Jayne Dabu because she is very kind, knowledgeable about health
... Read more »Before seeking treatment at Lotus Acupuncture, I felt sluggish, anxiety, had intestinal problems.
I have done both acupuncture and Nutritional Response Testing (NRT). My immune system is stronger, diet on track; which has stabilized my intestinal tract, digestion and alleviated bloating + GERD symptoms. Sleeping has improved and outlook on overall health has improved.
Everyone at Lotus Acupuncture is great- my experience has been more than I could have imagined. My health is much improved both physically and mentally.
-C.Z
... Read more »Before seeking treatment at Lotus Acupuncture, I felt out of sorts and irritated at the amount of acne I still had at 22 years old.
After several weeks of treatment, I feel great! My face gets better and more improved each week. I feel using Acupuncture and Manual Lymphatic Drainage, improved the results of using Nutritional Response Testing. Also writing out the food journals helped me pin point foods that were irritating my body.
–A. R. April 2014
Nutrition
The Best (and Worst) Thanksgiving Foods
Thanksgiving is a great meal. Friends and family come together to give thanks and celebrate the harvest season–
…and to overeat.
All of us know the feeling of eating too much, too heavy, too rich. When we should be enjoying our time with loved ones, we are uncomfortable. We exasperate our health conditions and catch a cold. We put on weight and feel lethargic.
I’m not going to tell you to make dramatic changes to your Thanksgiving meal. Usually that doesn’t work—and besides, it’s no fun.
Instead I suggest you just make small choices. Pick one food instead of the other. Make little positive choices and they’ll add up to a healthier, more enjoyable meal. continue reading
More than Needles: 3 Traditional Chinese Medicine Therapies You Can Do at Home
If you asked the average person how Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) keeps you healthy, they would probably answer that it uses acupuncture needles.
That is a good start.
TCM is a complex understanding of how Qi, or life force, affects your health. Qi flows through meridians passing through points which can be used to regulate and control that flow. When the flow of Qi increases, decreases or its quality changes, your health is affected. The most common way to manage the flow of Qi is with acupuncture needles.
But TCM is much more than needles.
In the second part of our two-part series “More than Needles,” you will learn three ways to keep yourself healthy using Traditional Chinese Medicine principles at home. By using these techniques in your daily life, you will be in charge of your health. continue reading
The Surprising Truth about Migraine Triggers
How much do you really know about controlling your migraines?
New research suggests you may not know as much as you think.
According to Timothy T. Houle, Ph.D and co-author Dana P. Turner, M.S.P.H., both of the Wake Forest Baptist anesthesiology department, migraine sufferers make inaccurate conclusions about what triggers their migraines. Houle and Turner conducted a 3-month study of 9 women who suffered from migraines. They tracked the women’s hormone levels, their stress levels and the weather. The women kept daily diaries. At the end of the study, the scientists could not accurately predict which triggers would cause a migraine.
Their conclusion—most people can’t isolate the many complex variables in everyday life to accurately determine their migraine triggers.
So what can you do? Can you start eating anything you want? Do you give up managing your migraines?
The One Simple Summer Eating Tip to Make You Feel Fantastic
Healthy eating tips for the summer are a little tricky.
Since the weather is warm, you need light, cooling foods. Juicy peaches, sweet watermelons, tomatoes hot off the vine… The right foods are easy to find. One trip through your garden or a walk through a farmer’s market and you’ll have the perfect summer meal.
But since you’re outside exercising and working in the garden, you build up an appetite. You work hard and play hard. You crave calories to keep the fire burning. Are cucumbers the first food you reach for after rototilling the garden? Probably not.
Unfortunately, many times craving calories trumps craving fresh food. You satisfy your appetite with a meal of tortilla chips and soda. Or brats and beer. Or hamburgers and ice cream.
And afterward you feel full, bloated and hot.
Fortunately there is a solution. It is possible to eat well, have energy and avoid feeling bloated.
The trick is in the timing.
With an easy tweak to your natural summer diet, you’ll feel fantastic. continue reading
How to Treat Hypertension and Cholesterol with Alternative Medicine
The phrase “his blood is boiling” conjures up images of a round, red faced man, eyes bulging, and jets of steam shooting from his ears and nostrils. although, cartoonish, this image is all to real in actual human beings. It’s called hypertension and kills thousands of Americans every year.
What is Hypertension and what are the symptoms?
Hypertension is the term used to describe high blood pressure. About 1 in 3 U.S. adults– an estimated 68 million people– suffer from hypertension. Hypertension was listed as the primary cause of death for about 384,000 Americans in 2008. Many Americans with hypertension also suffer with high cholesterol. To much cholesterol can increase the chances of developing heart disease, including fatal heart attacks and strokes.
Hypertension falls into three categories: Essential hypertension, secondary hypertension, and diastolic hypertension:
*Essential hypertension accounts for 85- 90% of all diagnosed hypertension.
*Secondary hypertension occurs when damage to the kidneys or endocrine dysfunction cause blood pressure to rise.
*Diastolic hypertension- there is no difference in men and women. It increases with age until 55 or 60 years and systolic pressure increases with age until at least 80.
Important to note: Essential hypertension factors include a diet high in animal fat and sodium chloride. Recent studies in remote areas of China, New Guinea, Panama, Brazil, and Africa where low fat, low sodium diets are the norm, show virtually no evidence of hypertension, even in advanced age.
Symptoms of hypertension:
*unexplained headaches
*nose bleeds
*spells of dizziness or sweating
*visual disturbances
*shortness of breath
*flushed cheeks
*ringing in the ears
Important to note: Most of the time, high blood pressure is completely asymptomatic and is only detectable by having blood pressure taken with a blood pressure cuff.
How does Acupuncture treat hypertension?
Acupuncture is very effective for bringing down a high systolic pressure within 15-20 minutes of insertion of needles.
A simple but often very effective acupuncture formula for immediately lowering blood pressure is:
Zu San Li- (ST 36)
Qu chi- (LI 11)
Nei Guan (Per 6)
Ear acupuncture with intra-dermal needles left in place between regularly scheduled body acupuncture sessions may improve the therapeutic effect of acupuncture. It is also possible to use “ion pellets” or radish seeds taped over the selected ear points which the patient stimulates several times per day with finger pressure.
How does diet, exercise, weight-loss, and deep relaxation help to resolve hypertension?
According to Chinese dietary therapy, the following common foods and herbs can help reduce blood pressure:
*Hawthorn fruit
*Chrysanthemum flower
*celery
*onion
*garlic
*carrot
*shepherds purse
*apple
*pear
*tangerine
*foods rich in potassium
*parsley
Important to note: Hawthorn fruit is useful for the treatment of essential hypertension accompanied by hyperlipidemia and coronary heart disease.
Foods to avoid:
*salt
*sugar
*processed and packaged foods
*smoked meats and cheeses (high sodium)
*bad fats- saturated, hydrogenated,etc.
*large amounts of caffeine
Weight-loss reduces blood pressure in everyone, with or without hypertension and should be a goal for all hypertensives who are obese moderately overweight.
Exercise reduces both stress and blood pressure, and should be practices whether or not disease is present.
Meditation is also proven to reduce stress and lower blood pressure. According to Robert Schneider, MD, dean of the college of Maharishi Vedic Medicine at the Maharishi University of Management and director of the university’s government-sponsored Center for Natural Medicine and Prevention, “in the past 30 years, approximately 600 studies have been conducted worldwide on the effects of transcendental meditation on blood pressure. ‘TM is a simple mind-body technique that allows you to gain a unique state of restful awareness or alertness,’ says Schneider. Studies have repeatedly shown it to be effective in easing stress, one of the major risk factors for heart disease. Though there are many kinds of meditative techniques, it is only TM, says Schneider, that has been studied and been proved to be effective in improving a range of risk factors for heart disease. Researchers believe that the deep rest achieved through TM sparks biochemical changes that help the body and mind reach a more balanced state, in turn triggering the body’s own self-repair mechanism.” (2012)
What about High Cholesterol?
To much cholesterol can increase the chances of developing heart disease, including fatal heart attacks and stroke. By inhibiting circulation, to much cholesterol can also cause gall stones, impotence, high blood pressure, and loss of mental acuity.
Good and Bad Cholesterol:
Cholesterol is transported in the blood by a substance called lipoproteins.
One class of lipoproteins, called LOW-DENSITY lipoproteins, (LDL) for short, carries cholesterol from the liver, where it is produced, to the cells that need it. Another kind of lipoprotein, called HIGH-DENSITY lipoproteins (HDL) picks up excess cholesterol from the cells and takes it back to the liver, where it is broken down and excreted from the body.
If the body creates to much LDL’s, then the HDL’s can only remove so much, and the excess/extra cholesterol simply remains in the blood. The blood then becomes oxidized and attaches to the artery walls, it sets the stage for inflammation of the arteries. Chronic inflammation contributes to further buildup and deposition of cholesterol and plaque on the interior walls of the arteries.
Symptoms of high cholesterol:
*Dizziness
*Mental confusion or dullness
*Circulatory problems
*Difficulty breathing after minor exertion
Root causes:
*Poor diet, especially one high in cholesterol, saturated fats, and refined carbs.
*Hyperthyroidism
*Stress
*Inactivity
*Hereditary
*Diabetes insulin resistant
How do I treat high cholesterol?
Eating foods rich in fiber helps to decrease cholesterol levels. Increasing veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds, and whole grains, especially soluble fiber (fiber that does not dissolve in water and binds to cholesterol as it passes through the digestive tract).
Reducing one’s intake of fat and refined sugar and carbohydrates also helps to lower cholesterol.
Recommenced foods:
*soluble fiber
*oats
*brown rice
*beans/legumes
*fruit
*Essential fatty acids (have a heart protecting effect)
*cold water fish
*flax seed
*olive oil
*garlic
*onion
*spices-cayenne, basil, rosemary, oregano
*nuts- walnuts, almonds, pistachios
Important to note: The molecules in cholesterol are highly vulnerable to damage by free radicals, so it is important to eat deeply colored fruits and veggies.
Foods to avoid:
Fats that are saturated, hydrogenated, or partially hydrogenated tend to increase cholesterol levels.
AVOID:
*bad fats
*fried foods
*sweet baked goods
*most crackers
*margarine
*vegetable shortening
*sugar
*alcohol
*refined sugar- soda, candy, low-fat baked goods, and excess caffeine
Hypertension and high cholesterol are treatable with acupuncture, diet, exercise and meditation. The first and most important thing is to have your blood pressure checked and create a plan of treatment with a holistic practitioner. The staff at Lotus Acupuncture and Holistic Health Clinic, are prepared and eager to address and resolve your health care needs. We can help to “let the steam out of the kettle,” so to speak, and help you to achieve your health goals and relieve stress that can reek havoc on your heart and body.
Written by: Melissa Linger for Lotus Acupuncture
Sources:
U.S. National Library of Medicine (2012)
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001502
Mayo Clinic Website
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/high-blood-cholesterol/DS00178
Flaws, Bob; Philippe Sionneau. The Treatment of Modern Western Medical Diseases with Chinese Medicine. Blue Poppy Press (2001).