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Acupuncture

Kidneys in Balance: Activity & Rest in the Colder Months

Winter is kidney season! Kidneys are, in many ways, the alpha and omega of Chinese medicine organ theory, as they manage development and decline and therefore both life and death. They are also considered the root source of our energy. Essence, or jing qi, is the energy we receive at conception (also called prenatal qi). The kidneys are like a battery that is not rechargeable. Throughout our lives we slowly deplete this reserve. How fast it gets depleted depends on our lifestyle, environment etc.

Rechargeable energy (postnatal qi) comes from the food we eat and the air we breathe. It is vital to supply the body with sufficient postnatal qi so as to not deplete our reserve essence that is needed for proper kidney function. According to TCM, kidneys guide growth and development, and support the health of our brains, bones, bladder, ears and reproductive system. They also govern our low back and knees.


Signs and symptoms of kidney deficiency or depletion include:

  • Developmental disorders, congenital issues in children (essence deficiency)
  • Premature aging: graying
  • Deafness
  • Weak brittle bones, hair/teeth loss
  • Infertility
  • Low Back Pain, weak knees
  • Extreme fatigue (can happen when both the rechargeable energy is depleted and the battery is low)

Winter is the time to be very mindful of our kidneys as it is when our energy can be most easily depleted. Winter is the ultimate yin time, and calls for rest, reflection, conservation, and storage. Days are shorter while nights are longer. This is nature telling us to get more sleep. Your body responds to less sunlight by producing more melatonin in the winter, the hormone that helps us rest. If we do not adjust to the season, we can easily get burnt out. Consider your adrenal health when thinking about avoiding burnout, as those little glands that sit on top of your kidneys are, in part, responsible for what TCM considers kidney qi. The cold of winter presents an additional challenge too, as the adrenal glands, together with your kidneys have to work extra hard in helping to regulate body temperature.

The bottom line when it comes to kidney health in winter is to recognize the need for rest (and don’t just disguise it with stimulants like coffee!). Extreme exercise and activity is contraindicated. That being said, with the cold of winter slowing things down to a near halt, gentle exercise like yoga, stretching, tai chi, and qi gong are perfect movement therapies to prevent winter stagnation.

Don’t be afraid to get some fresh air and sunlight when possible too! The morning is the ideal time to get out and go for a walk when winter weather permits. Dress appropriately but soak up as much Vitamin D as you can . It is essential for immunity, mood, bone health etc. And if you are looking to slim down, take note that exercising in cold weather actually helps to transform white fat (belly and thigh fat) into calorie burning brown fat.


If you can’t get outside in the morning start your day with this simple qi gong exercise:
(you can gently awaken your qi with a stretch session first)

Knocking on the Door of Life:

~with feet hip length apart and knees slightly bent
~slowly swing torso left to right, letting the head follow
~let arms/ hands percuss the front lower abdomen and lower back as you let the natural momentum take over
~can finish with a stimulating rub on the low back to send some love into those kidneys.


Let us give your kidneys some love this winter too! With treatments to support kidney function and preserve essence, we can help you relax into the specific balance you need to thrive in the colder months. Call us at (218) 724-3400 to make an appointment!

Valentine’s Day: Empower Your Heart With Your Kidneys!

This Valentine’s day, whether you celebrate romantic love with a partner, enjoy the love of family and friends, or simply go on with life, marking another day on the calendar, it can be a chance to at least take a moment and honor one of the most important relationships in our lives. In Chinese Medicine philosophy, the relationship at the core of our existence that helps to give our lives meaning, joy, and power is the sacred harmony between our heart and our kidneys.

Valentine’s day lands right smack in the dead of winter, while we are deep in kidney time. Winter’s focus is on the kidneys which represent the water element, so it is a great opportunity to remember it’s balancing organ, the heart, which corresponds with fire. The relationship between water and fire in the body influences much more than just aspects of our physical health. It actually determines how we engage our purpose in life, how we connect what we love with what we do.

In terms of physical health, this balance between the heart and the kidney function in the body is required to regulate heart rhythm, sleep cycles, water metabolism, temperature, and mental and physical stability. The heart, located in the upper (yang) part of the body, must descend it’s yang qi (fire) to warm the kidney yin and prevent cold stagnation. The kidneys, located in the lower (yin) part of the body, must ascend their yin qi (water) to prevent the heart fire from becoming overactive. If there is a miscommunication that leads to disharmony in this relationship we can see issues of hyperactive heart fire such as palpitations, anxiety, insomnia, even mania. If an overactive heart fire dries up the kidney yin, we can have issues like dizziness, tinnitus, weak back and knees. Not enough fire to warm the kidneys can lead to cold limbs, fatigue and edema. The heart and kidneys share a special relationship in Western medicine as well, as they rely on each other for proper circulation, water and waste metabolism, and blood pressure. Disorders of one organ can lead to issues in the other, which is why doctors often say ‘what’s good for your heart is good for your kidneys’ and vice-versa.

A more profound analysis of this relationship has to do with the spiritual energy held in these organs according to TCM. Our heart is the home of our Shen, our heart-mind, the aspect of spirit associated with our consciousness, our desires, insight and passion. Kidneys house the Zhi, the aspect of our spirit associated with our willpower. This is what gives us our ‘umph’ to face challenges and keep going, our self-discipline, our drive. Together these motivations, our desire coupled with our drive, empower us to carry out our soul’s life plan.

This Valentine’s day, wake up and stretch, rub your lower back to charge up your kidneys and activate your willpower. Breathe deep, adjust your posture and stick out your chest to let your heart lead the way. Feel the connection between these 2 organ systems in the body, letting your will empower your passions. This internal harmony can fill your life with love on Valentine’s day and everyday.

Roses and chocolates are great on Valentine’s Day, but why not also get some acupuncture to help support your heart-kidney connection? You’ll leave feeling balanced at your core and in love with life!

Research Update: Acupuncture and Your Metabolism

A study published by The National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health looked at the effects of acupuncture on the regulation of lipid and glucose metabolism in patients suffering from metabolic syndrome. The study followed 76 metabolic syndrome patients over a period of time and divided them into two groups. The first group received only conventional medical treatments/pharmaceuticals, while the second group received conventional medical treatments plus regular acupuncture treatments. The body mass index (BMI), blood lipid, blood glucose and comprehensive therapeutic effects were compared before and after treatment in both groups. The results revealed the group that received acupuncture plus conventional medical treatments had superior improvement over the group that only received conventional medical treatments. The subjects showed improvement in BMI, triglyceride, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, fasting blood glucose, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, fasting insulin and insulin resistance index. This study provides strong evidence that acupuncture can greatly improve the health of patients suffering from metabolic disorders, when coupled with conventional medical treatments.


Metabolism is defined as the chemical processes that occur within a living organism in order to maintain life. That’s not something that most people consciously think about. It just happens and we automatically assume it will happen, regardless of what we do on a daily basis. But this isn’t always the case. Some people are born with genetic defects that can mess with their metabolism. Others develop metabolic disorders over time from not taking proper care of themselves. Metabolic disorders can also be trauma induced.

As with most health issues, conventional medicine typically treats metabolic issues with pharmaceuticals. For some this works very well. But there are always side effects with pharmaceuticals and the body can also develop a resistance to them over time. So when it comes to metabolic disorders, a natural approach is usually a better long term choice. This is where acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine can be very beneficial.

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), all disease occurs in the body due to either a lack, excess or blockage of energy. TCM treats these energy imbalances using a host of modalities, but acupuncture is the most commonly known and used. Most metabolic diseases are a result of an imbalance of hormones such as insulin, glucose and thyroid hormones. These three components are key to keeping the body functioning properly and can easily be thrown off. Too much stress, poor dietary habits and lack of exercise are all reasons why the body’s metabolism may not be functioning correctly.

Acupuncture has been shown to balance hormones when accompanied by lifestyle modifications. Acupuncture helps control food cravings, boosts metabolism, improves digestion and helps the liver function optimally. The liver produces chemicals that help break down fat, while filtering out toxins that can slow our body’s ability to digest and regulate. Excess stress can lead to a slower metabolism, an increase in body fat and poor sleep. Regular acupuncture treatments can help reduce stress


If you’re feeling tired or sluggish, put on some weight, or are dealing with stress and depression, acupuncture can definitely help.

Research Update – Acupuncture and Men’s Health

In a study published by the National Institute of Health, researchers looked at the effectiveness of using acupuncture to relieve the symptoms of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome. After separating 100 participants into two groups, the researchers conducted the study using either seven actual acupuncture points or seven sham acupuncture points. Of the group that received actual acupuncture, 92 percent reported decreased symptoms associated with their ailments. This study demonstrates acupuncture as a viable option for men suffering from chronic prostatitis or chronic pelvic pain syndrome.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a complete medical system that has been around for nearly 3,000 years. It combines nutrition, herbs, acupuncture and other modalities to help keep the body functioning properly, while also treating any ailments that might occur. TCM has been used to treat both men and women, regardless of age and it is frequently becoming the medical choice for those who prefer to treat things naturally.

There are certain health issues that tend to occur more frequently in men than women and many of these conditions can be easily controlled or treated using Traditional Chinese Medicine. Afflictions such as high blood pressure, depression, urinary issues, stress and prostate problems are just a few of the issues that affect men. And these ailments, along with many others, respond very favorably to acupuncture and TCM.

Most people think of acupuncture for pain relief. But the truth is it can treat so much more. Acupuncture can help with anxiety, depression, heart health, insomnia, digestive issues and of course any kind of pain. Acupuncture is most commonly thought of as a way of relieving pain and it is usually sought out after everything else has failed to provide adequate pain relief. Without purposely trying to cause a debate between the sexes, it is statistically shown that men are less likely to seek out help when they experience pain, as they don’t want to appear weak. This is where something like acupuncture can be a great asset for men.

Regular acupuncture treatments as preventive medicine can help keep them in top shape, thus avoiding aches, pains, strains and pulls.

Acupuncture also calms the mind, the nervous system and the endocrine system. All of these things work in conjunction to keep the body functioning properly. However, in the world we live in, stress, anxiety and depression have become rampant. Specific acupuncture points can literally decrease the heart rate, slow breathing and relax the mind in a matter of seconds to minutes. This helps alleviate the added stress that men, in particular, feel on a daily basis.

TCM is also frequently used to regulate the circulatory system. Men, once again, tend to have higher levels of stress that can affect the heart and circulatory systems. Specific acupuncture points and herbs can easily lower blood pressure, calm heart arrhythmias and increase circulation to the peripheral areas of the body.

Men’s health can be a complicated web that has to be unraveled one strand at a time. But it is easy to see why choosing acupuncture to help keep the body in alignment is a great option for men of all ages.

GERD Awareness

Did you know that acupuncture can help with a number of digestive issues? Yes, it’s true!

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) occurs when stomach acid frequently flows back into your esophagus – the tube connecting your mouth and stomach.

If you suffer with this, or you’ve ever suffered with it, you might have felt hopeless and frustrated at times that there are no known causes and the only known treatments are either medications or dietary adjustments.

Wouldn’t it be nice to know what causes it in the first place, so that you can start treating and healing the root cause?

Enter Chinese Medicine (CM). CM has known for thousands of years that the blueprint of many physical manifestations is an imbalance of our Qi (energy). Reflux esophagitis in CM focuses on transforming, harmonizing, and restoring the normal movement of the stomach Qi to prevent it “rebelling” upwards. The treatment with acupuncture and/or herbs focuses on restoring normal functioning of the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), enhancing gastric motility, and improving gastric emptying.

Stomach Qi usually rebels because of:

  1. Eating in a hurry
  2. Eating when stressed or angry
  3. Burning the midnight oil
  4. Eating while walking or standing, repeatedly and over time
  5. Anxiety
  6. Drinking too much water with a meal or shortly after which diluted digestive enzymes makes digestion very difficult.

If we take a little look at the most common lifestyle factors which cause or exacerbate GERD, or the upward rebelling of Stomach Qi, we can see that simply doing the opposite of what causes it will be helpful. Also introducing calming practices like meditation, walking in nature, and of course coming for acupuncture treatment. Because whilst changing our habits will help to prevent GERD from returning, healing the problem and lessening the damage done by the issue is the forte of CM.

Quick At-Home Tip: Something very simple you can do at home to help yourself is after every meal, stroke down the midline from the bottom of your rib cage to the top of your belly button for about two minutes gently. This will help the Qi to move downwards instead of rebelling upwards.

Here’s some more good news: In a 2018 study Acupuncture was trialled over a period of 6 weeks with daily treatment for GERD, with a few days break in between each week of treatment and the TCM control group fared significantly better than the Western medicine control group. There were also far fewer side effects (virtually none) in comparison to the control group who were taking Proton Pump Inhibitors and other medications for GERD.

The conclusion of the study – compared with PPIs or Prokinetics therapy alone, TCM single therapy can better improve the clinical total effective rate and symptom relief and decrease the recurrence rate and adverse events in the treatment of NERD. Our results suggest that TCM will be a promising alternative therapy for NERD patients in the future.

So, if you, or someone you know is suffering from GERD, there may be hope on the horizon! Give us a call at (218) 724-3400 to see if we can lend a helping hand.

Source:
Xiao J, Yang Y, Zhu Y, et al. Efficacy and Safety of Traditional Chinese Medicine on Nonerosive Reflux Disease: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2018;2018:1505394. Published 2018 May 24. doi:10.1155/2018/1505394

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