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This is the final article in a four-part series on xiao chai hu tang . Part three appeared in the September 2007 issue. Part one , with a complete list of references, is available online in the July 2007 issue.

As a teacher of acupuncture and Chinese medicine on the post-graduate level, it is my impression that once-per-week acupuncture treatments are the norm among many North American practitioners. However, nowhere within the Chinese acupuncture literature (pre-modern or contemporary) have I read any suggestion that acupuncture should be given once per…

Acupuncture needles have been proven to introduce low-level electrical discharges into the body, especially when manipulated. These discharges semi-conduct through the facial planes of the body, which are the primary physical substrate of the meridian system. They also no doubt affect all other tissue systems. Applying bioelectricity through specific points…

Herbal treatment is at the core of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), accounting for more than 75 percent of TCM practice. It also is the major emphasis in TCM facial rejuvenation treatment which dates back as early as 2,500 years ago in The Divine Husbandman’s Classics of Materia Medica . Chinese…

Japan is one of those countries with a very dynamic tradition of acupuncture and has taken a markedly different approach from that of the Chinese. While Chinese acupuncture has taken the lead in the practice of Oriental medicine in the West, interest is increasing in some of the other traditions,…

One of the great challenges of aging is that ailments frequently descend on individuals for no apparent reason. People who generally have been healthy and fit suddenly find themselves confronted by pains and other limitations. Sometimes, serious illnesses arise without discernable precipitating factors. Many people are left with the awful…

This month of October is filled with many special events. October brings a change of season as we wrap up the memories of summer and welcome the annual Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Day, celebrated on the 24 th . Congratulations to the American Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (AAAOM),…

The 2007 AOBTA Convention, held at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel over Labor Day weekend, centered on metal, the third of the organization’s Five-Element convention themes. Participants agreed that the qi generated by the meetings, workshops and social events at this convention was powerful, positive and inclusive, and will help…

During the month of July, 300,229 unique visits were made to the Acupuncture Today Web site ( acupuncturetoday.com ). This resulted in almost 1 million page views. With more than 6,000 pages, the Web site provides a number of important features to educate the public.

One of the best ways to demonstrate the effectiveness of acupuncture is by looking not only at clinical results, but also at potential cost reduction compared to standard medical treatment. A study from Spain, published in the June 2007 issue of the journal Acupuncture in Medicine , showed there is…

New changes to the administrative guidelines for the state of California that govern appropriate treatment for workers’ compensation cases now include acupuncture as part of an acceptable medical regimen. As of June 15, 2007, workers injured on the job can receive acupuncture treatment as part of their compensation. This means…

An innovative acupuncture program run by University of California, Berkeley undergraduates to serve the local homeless youth population is one of 13 recipients of $207,500 in grants from the university’s Chancellor’s Community Partnership Fund.

Occipital headaches are a common patient complaint. Sometimes, an occipital headache can signify an underlying condition that can be treated with massage and bodywork techniques, followed by acupuncture.

When you contract a virus and have influenza, the internal temperature of your whole body can go up from the normal temperature of 98.6 F to around 101 F or more. The higher your temperature goes up, the worse you feel, and the more scared you are that it is…

Editor’s Note : This is the third article in a four-part series on xiao chai hu tang . Part two appeared in the August 2007 issue. Part one , with a complete list of references, appeared in the July 2007 issue.

Attending to emotional and psychological issues, as well as to the body, is an important skill for acupuncturists. These factors influence not only how we experience illness, but also our capacity for getting well. We hear our patients say things we know have deeper emotional implications, but we often do…

This article is about five clinical principles that utilize laws of energy medicine. Some of these techniques will no doubt already be familiar to you, but few acupuncturists I have met utilize all of these.

In classical Five-Element acupuncture, the goal of the traditional diagnosis is to identify the primary elemental imbalance (causative factor) of the patient’s disease and the level of the imbalance: physical, mental or spiritual. The initial consultation (also called the “traditional diagnosis”) is an opportunity for the practitioner to bring all…

Do you want to be rich? Do you aspire to make millions as an acupuncturist? Great idea! I am all for it. Let’s make money, invest money and donate money. Let’s retire early and be of service to the profession with all that spare time. Prosperity is one of the…

Chinese herbal medicine is very effective for infants and small children, yet many acupuncture/TCM practitioners remain wary of treating children. This is in contrast to naturopaths, who enter the healing arts confident and optimistic about treating all members of the family. In China, pediatrics is a TCM specialty, attracting many…