Chinese medicine

Moxibustion boosts immune function

Less well known than acupuncture moxibustion is at least as old. Moxibustion refers to the burning of the herb Artemesia directly on acupuncture points or on the ends of acupuncture needles. According to Skya Abbate writing in the Journal of Chinese Medicine: Like yin and yang, the Chinese characters for acupuncture and moxibustion are inextricably…

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Acupuncture halts cluster headaches

A small Italian is the first to suggest that acupuncture can interrupt cluster headaches. Cluster headaches are excruciating attacks of pain in one side of the head, often felt behind the eye.  Sufferers often call them ‘suicidal headaches’ because they’re so severe. Study design and protocol. Four patients with cluster headaches were treated with acupuncture…

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10 reasons to drink green tea

When I started eating a paleo/primal diet, the hardest thing for me was giving up black tea with (skimmed) milk.  This great British staple is such a way of life for many of us that to even consider giving it up seems intolerable.  We have a cup of tea to get us going in the…

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Paleo & Chinese medicine.

Paleo and Chinese Medicine Does Chinese medicine support the paleo diet? I think most people imagine not.  The contemporary Chinese diet emphasizes the importance of  ‘fan’, or staple foods such as wheat and rice.  These are thought to have a neutral energetic (being neither cooling or warming) which balances the other elements of the meal…

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9 reasons to wear a haramaki.

Muffin Tops The most unfortunate women’s fashion trend in recent years has been the pairing of hipster jeans and short shirts exposing a bare midriff; the so called muffin top.  I say unfortunate because it exposes a vitally important energetic centre, the dan tian, to the environment.  I guess whether it’s aesthetically pleasing is down…

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Acupuncture books: then and now.

I’ve been reflecting this week on how much the acupuncture profession has changed here in the UK.  When I started my studies at The College of Traditional Acupuncture, back in 1984, acupuncture was still to most people a mysterious and exotic therapy. My interest in acupuncture was piqued by the Acumedic Centre in Camden Town,…

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