In Good Health Blog » Miscellaneous

Facial Acupuncture

Lana — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 20:45:27 +0000

Health equals beauty. For thousands of years, Asian medicine has been used for longevity and the maintenance of the skin. Acupuncture and herbal therapies can boost both health and beauty. They increase circulation in the body and facial tissues. Herbal skin formulas go into organic herbal masks, poultices, and moisturizers. Cooling jade rollers massage the skin to remove fine lines and age spots associated with heat.

Asian facial rejuvenation can:

Reduce puffiness and dark circles
Smooth fine lines and wrinkles
Flesh out sunken areas
Tone sagging skin and address loss of elasticity
Activate facial muscles
Improve skin texture and color
Reduce blemishes and pimples
Soften and address scar tissue, adhesions (release old trauma)
Relax twitching and bell’s palsy

Lana Farson began studying facial acupuncture in 2000 and is now certified in advanced constitutional facial acupuncture. She graduated with a Master’s of Science degree in Asian medicine in 1999 and is a Professor at the Acupuncture and Integrative Medicine College. She serves as co-director of the Well-Balanced Center an integrative healing clinic in Lafayette, CA with practitioners from various health care systems.

The ‘New’ Water Bottle – Hip & Hot

Lana — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 23:04:29 +0000

I love hot water bottles for warming the muscles and encouraging good circulation, especially the german ones made of odorless thermoplastic. They are so helpful for healing imbalances that are worse with cold weather, particularly during the winter months. Who knew that you can now buy a hot water bottle with a protective and cozy cover!? I rarely make commercial recommendations, but will share a website where you can get these great hot water bottles along with a removable and washable cover (not shown in photo). Here’s the link.

Fibromyalgia Relief

Lana — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 18:54:58 +0000

I’ve been treating fibromyalgia since 2003, and have found that very good results come from a combination of acupuncture and a bodywork technique called ‘Gua Sha’. The ‘Gua Sha’ method stimulates the body’s circulation via rubbing of the skin and muscles with a special tool. I find that ‘Gua Sha’ dramatically boosts the pain relieving ability of acupuncture. Read more about ‘Gua Sha’ about halfway down on the treatments page here: link to ‘Gua Sha’ Rubbing

At In Good Health in Lafayette, CA, I choose ‘Gua Sha’ tools made out of various materials (metal, wood, horn, shell) depending on the case as well as the individual’s skin and muscle tone.

A Study from the New England Journal of Medicine confirms that the Asian exercise Tai Chi is also helpful for fibromyalgia. Here’s the link to that study: A Randomized Trial of Tai Chi for Fibromyalgia

The Tea Leaf – everyday medicine

Lana — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 04:33:09 +0000

Many types of tea are made from the leaves of the camellia shrub with the botanical name of Camellia sinensis. The different types are due to the different ways of processing, fermentation and oxidation of the leaves. Camellia teas include black tea, green tea, oolong tea, pu’er, and white tea.

Overall Health Benefits of Tea

Recent research shows that all forms of tea:

inhibit tumor growth
strengthen the immune system
help to fight heart disease
contain antioxidants
reduce cavities
help with digestion
relieve thirst
help slow down arthrosclerosis

All forms of tea contain a rich supply of polyphenols, although green tea has higher amounts and is overall considered the most medicinal. All forms contain folacin (one of the B vitamins), vitamin C, fluoride, and magnesium. It is important to note that adding milk to tea eliminates the antioxidant powers of tea.

Tea affects the central nervous system mostly through theophylline (although it also contains caffeine and theobromine). Different forms of tea have a varying degree of these stimulants. Also, tea contains tannin (from 5-20%), which is a known growth depressant and should not be given to children. Excessive tea consumption can also deplete iron. Drinking tea is not recommended for people with a tendency towards forming calcium oxalate kidney stones.

Different Types of Tea

Black Tea

Black tea is the most popular tea throughout the world and has been consumed for ages. Black tea is wilted (by air), sometimes crushed or pounded, and then allowed to fully oxidize. Unlike the lighter teas, black tea can maintain its flavor for years and is easier to keep and store.

Black tea has higher caffeine content and less anti-oxidants. Western medicine claims that black tea is just as good as green tea in the battle against cancer, certain viruses, tooth decay, and arterial health. Most people add milk and sweetener to soften the taste, which reduces the medicinal value. In Chinese Medicine, black tea is considered warming and stronger, so it can be diluted if necessary. It is still considered to have medicinal properties although it is not the preferred form of tea in China. Black teas are not as popular as greens or oolongs and are considered inferior in quality.

Green tea

Green teas are picked from spring to late summer and then either steamed or pan-fried and dried to maintain both their color and nutrients. There are many kinds of green teas with different flavor profiles depending when they are picked and how they are treated. Overall, green teas have become well known for their use in the prevention of many diseases as well as the nutrients they carry. According to Asian medicine, green teas are cooling and can clear heat, aid with digestion, sharpen the mind, and help slim the body by carrying out excess fats and oil from food. The amount of caffeine varies among green teas, but it is higher than in white teas.

Oolong Tea

Oolong tea is picked, allowed to dry until it is semi-fermented, and then charcoal dried. To get the slight fermentation, leaves are bruised and allowed to oxidize for different periods of time (about 2 hours for the most mild Chinese oolongs and longer to get richer oolongs). To stop the leaves from oxidizing more, they are wok fried quickly; some oolongs are fried more than once. Because of this processing, there are many different kinds and flavors of oolongs, ranging from almost green to almost black. Oolong teas have acquired a reputation for being a miraculous tool in weight loss and beauty, but in reality work in a similar way to green tea in helping carry excess fat and oil from the body. In terms of anti-oxidants, oolongs have a decreased amount in comparison to green tea. Oolong teas are more warming than green tea, especially if they are more fermented and fried for longer periods or more than once. Similarly to green tea, oolongs are often times taken with meals to ease digestion. Personally, I drink a lighter oolong tea in the winter when I feel that it is too cold to drink a true green tea.

Pu’er Tea

Pu’er tea is traditionally made from the big leaves of specific type of wild tea trees that grow in the province of Yunnan. It is often referred to as post-fermented because it is allowed to age for a period of time after the tea has already been fully oxidized (anywhere from 1-50 years; there are Pu’er cakes today that are dated to the Qing dynasty!). Pu’er keeps amazingly well and is often times packaged as a cake to store and ferment. Western medicine claims that pu’er can lower cholesterol. In China, pu’er is used to treat hangovers because it is said to inhibit dampness and aid the spleen as well as reduce heat in the stomach and descend qi.

White Tea

White tea is made from the premature leaves plucked in the spring. It is considered to be one of the most natural forms of tea, since it is handpicked early in the spring and is not fully fermented or aged. It is very delicate and contains the lowest amount of stimulants, which allows it to be enjoyed both during the day as well as at night. It has a reputation for containing the most antioxidants of any tea. It is cooling and light.

Asian Medicine

Specific types of tea have different energies and uses. From an Asian point of view, the qualities of camellia type teas are:

brightens the eyes
clears the voice
invigorates the constitution
removes flatulence
opens the channels
illuminates the spirit
improves digestion
relieves thirst
helps cut fats and oils in meals
removes water retention from the body

According to Asian tradition, tea should be lightly seeped and infused several times (in comparison to the European way of brewing one batch for a long time). This process helps remove the tannins, and brings out the delicate flavors of the tea that do not come out in the first infusion. However, strongly brewed tea can be used for acute diarrhea, and either acute or chronic inflammations of the digestive system. Used in this way, one strong tablespoon several times a day is more appropriate. Topically, strong brews and poultices of tea leaves can help with poison oak outbreaks and to dry up a herpes breakout.

Most of this information comes from Healing with Whole Foods by Paul Pitchford. Some comes from The New Whole Food Encyclopedia by Rebecca Woods. Thanks to Natalia Schyfter-Camacho for your help with this article.

Asian Grocery Store: Unlock the mysteries

Lana — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 16:22:15 +0000

There are many exotic fruits, vegetables, spices and herbs that have tremendous healing benefits. By getting to know them, you can increase the ways that you take care of your health. I’ll use this list when working on blogposts, and write a little about each one in its own post, so that you can get more details about their benefits. When you’re at the main blog page, you can use the ’search’ box to look for any of the following to see if I’ve written about them yet.

Fennel Seed

Fennel ‘xiao hui xiang’

Anise ‘da hui xiang’

Ginger ‘sheng jiang’

Tumeric ‘jiang huang’

Lemongrass

Galanga root

Cardamon ‘sha ren’

Albizzia Flower ‘Happy Flower’ ‘He Huan Hua’

Barley tea ‘gu ya’

Rose flowers ‘mei gui hua’

Goji berries ‘gou qi zi’

Mimosa Flower

Dried yam ‘shan yao’

Red dates ‘da zao’

Reishi mushroom ‘ling zhi’

Licorice ‘gan cao’

Seaweeds ‘hai zao’

Lily bulb ‘bai he’

Pearl powder ‘zhen zhu mu’

Pu Er Tea

Shao Xing cooking wine

Dried cuttlefish – related to’sang piao xiao’

Vegetables & legumes:

Okra

Water caltrops

Shao Xing Wine

Burdock root ‘niu bang gen’

Bitter melon or bitter gourd

Cassava or yuka or tapioca

Taro Root

Daikon radish

Luffah vegetable

Lotus root and seeds ‘lian zi’

Edamame soybeans

Wintermelon or winter gourd

Flax seeds ‘ya ma ren’

Walnuts ‘hu tao ren’

Goji berries ‘gou qi zi’

Dried Hawthorn Berries

Mulberries ‘sang shen’

Sesame ‘hei zhi ma’

Hawthorn ‘shan zha’

Mung beans ‘lu dou’

Asian yam ‘shan yao’

Wood ear mushrooms ‘Bai Mu Er’ & ‘Hei Mu Er’

Aduki beans ‘chi xiao dou’

Job’s tears ‘yi yi ren’

Bamboo shoots

Spring onion ‘cong bai’

Flavored olives

Fruits:

Loquat fruits

Durian

Rambutan Fruit

Rambutan

Jackfruit

Lychee fruits

Buddha’s hand ‘fou shou’

Pomegranate ‘shi liu’

Loquat Chutney

Lana — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 07:29:39 +0000

Recipe

1.5 pounds loquats (remove seeds and skin)
1 pound sliced onion
1/2 pound chopped apple
1 pound sugar (rock sugar works well)
2 teaspoons mustard seeds
2 teaspoons salt
1 tsp ground cardamon
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 tablespoon molasses or maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon dried ginger
1 pint vinegar
2 cups water
1/4 cup raisins (dark and golden)

Wash, stone and cut up loquats into small pieces.

Prepare apples and onions.

Put all ingredients in a pot and boil gently until soft and a good color.

Pour into hot jars and seal.

You can substitute other fruits for the loquats. Try substituting this with half plums and half pears.

When I made this recipe with family recently, I added a handful of dried mulberries, dried goji berries, dried red dates and slivered almonds. I also added other spices to increase the flavor (freshly grated orange peel, chili powder, saffron, and pepper). The result was delicious, with lots of health benefits. We also learned (after the fact) that it is best to peel and de-seed the loquats while wearing thin gloves due to the yellow stain of the fruit. There’s always a next time!

Loquat Fruits – healthy exotics

Lana — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 20:18:41 +0000

Loquat fruits look and taste a bit like apricots. They are slightly exotic with many health benefits and they are up and coming in the fruit world.

Health Benefits

Loquat fruits taste sweet and sour. Sweet foods strengthen or increase the body’s resources. Sour foods astringe, hold in or protect the body’s fluids. Together, sweet and sour make ‘yin’ or moisture in the body. In the case of loquat fruits, it is the resource of ‘yin’ or healthy body moisture that is increased. Sour foods also sometimes affect the flow of energy or ‘qi’ in the body because sour tastes can stimulate digestive and other enzymes.

Loquat fruits have a neutral or balanced energetic temperature effect on the body (not warm or cold). Their balanced nature makes them easy to use for people who have both hot and cold conditions.

Loquat fruit has the following functions:

lubricates dryness (due to sweet and sour flavor)
-for dry throat, thirst, constipation, general yin deficiency or lack of moisture in the body
stops cough (due to sweet and sour flavor)
-especially dry cough or cough with scanty & sticky sputum
harmonizes the stomach (due to sour flavor)
-nausea, unsettled belly, sluggish metabolism
descends rebellious qi (due to sour flavor)
-this is for lung and digestive energy going upward – cough, hiccups, chronic bronchitis, nausea
calms the liver (due to sour flavor)
-irritability, restlessness

In terms of western nutrition, the loquat is low in saturated fat and sodium, and is high in vitamin A, dietary fiber, potassium, and manganese.

I just made a delicious loquat chutney with the help of my sister, my kids and several of their friends. Having a group of 6 of us to peel off the skin and remove the seeds was a blessing because that work of obtaining the fruit is a bit time consuming. I started with a base of rice vinegar, rock sugar and maple syrup. Then I added dried mulberry fruits, dried red dates, raisons, sliced apples and a melange of delicious spices (freshly grated orange peel, cardamon, ginger, curry, chili powder, saffron, salt and pepper). The result was a delicious chutney that stimulates the digestive system, moistens dryness, aid the lung and liver. Here’s the basic recipe.

Oregano Oil – Breathing Steam

Lana — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 22:38:46 +0000

To prevent infection (such as cold or flu) from manifesting in the lungs and throat it could be helpful to do a breathing steam using a drop of oregano essential oil. Carefully pour 2 cups boiled water into a tea mug or metal bowl (or a cooking pot). Bring the vessel to a nearby table and then add just one drop of oregano essential oil into the steaming water. Oregano Oil is potent and strong smelling, so it is advisable to just start with one drop and see how that is for you. Sit down near the vessel and approach the steam little by little and inhail the aroma. You can comfortably sit above the mixture while inhaling for several minutes. If the mixture feels too weak, you can add one or two more drops of oregano oil to the vessel.

Oregano oil has the following properties:

anti viral
anti bacterial
anti fungal
anti parasitic
anti oxidant
anti inflammatory
digestive aid
anti allergenic
promotes menstruation

Caution: Do not use directly on the skin. Oregano oil can cause irritation of skin and mucus membranes. Pregnant women should avoid using it.

Herbal Defense against MRSA infection

Lana — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 21:00:36 +0000

MRSA is a type of staph infection. MRSA (pronounced ‘mer-sa’ or simply ‘m-r-s-a’) is

Microscopic view of MRSA

an abbreviation for ‘methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus’. This type of staph bacteria causes infection in different areas of the body, just like other types of staph. One difference is that MRSA is resistant to some commonly used antibiotics, which is why this type of infection is sometimes referred to as a ’super-bug’.

Herbs & MRSA

Of the great many herbal botanicals that act like antibiotics, two herbs in particular currently show a promising ability to treat antibiotic resistant staph infections like MRSA. These two herbs are Tumeric (Curcuma) and St. John’s Wort (Hypericum). These medicinals can be used internally or externally as a skin soak. Tumeric, a common cooking ingredient especially in Indian food, stains the skin bright orange and is probably best used internally. St. John’s Wort is very well known for its ability to treat depression. See related post here.

It is best to work with an herbalist when considering whether or not these herbs are right for you. A trained herbal healer will be able to determine the correct dosage of these medicinals for the treatment of MRSA and the correct method of usage and administration. Be aware that each of these herbs has cautions and contraindications, which are listed below.

Herbal Cautions:

Tumeric Roots - increase blood circulation

Tumeric is an herb that promotes blood circulation and should not be used with blood thinning drugs such as Coumadin. This botanical should not be used before or after surgery. Tumeric should be used cautiously with pregnancy because in some cases it can act as a uterine stimulant.

St. John’s Wort has two main cautions. The first is that this herb increases photo-sensitivity to the sun and may be best to avoid using internally during the summer. Ironically when the oil of St. John’s Wort is applied to the skin, it acts as a strong sunscreen.

St. John's Wort Flowers & Leaves

The second caution for St. John’s Wort is that it can affect the way that the liver metabolizes certain western pharmaceuticals. This means that the processing time of these pharmaceuticals may be altered. For example, a women taking birth control pills and St. John’s Wort at the same time can become pregnant because the processing of the birth control pill might be slowed down.

Research

Click below to view some recent western medical research on Tumeric & St. John’s Wort:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16161063?log$=activity

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12234572?itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum&ordinalpos=2

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11518059?itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum&ordinalpos=4

We are brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous

Lana — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:07:21 +0000

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

from A Return to Love, by Marianne Williamson.

I have not seen or read this book, but I do like this quote. There seems to be an urban myth going around that this quote is from Nelson Mandela’s 1994 inaugural speech. I does sound like something he might have said.

Happiness, health and prosperity to you in the year of 2010.