Menstrual problems
Each month as the moon waxes and wanes, women's blood ebbs and flows.
For some this is a smooth, cleansing process, but for others, several
days each month are lost to a struggle with pain, emotional ups and
downs, digestive problems, or excessive bleeding. Some don't bleed at
all. Chinese medicine helps regulates the menstrual cycle thus allowing
the menstrual cycle to flow easily.
Fertility
There are many reasons women may have trouble with pregnancy; age, stress,
environment, genetics. Chinese medicine looks at the pattern of disharmony,
working to heal the roots and nourish a child.
Wonderful books:
Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler
The Infertility Cure by Randine Lewis
Great websites:
Fertility
Friend
The
Essential Guide to Acupuncture in Pregnancy & Childbirth
Chinese Medicine Helps with Menopausal Symptoms
(originally published in The Chronicle newspaper, February
6, 2008, Healthy Lifestyles, page 3:
Menopausal symptoms range from migraines, poor sleep, irritability,
“brain fog”, sweating to vaginal dryness. Women have been using acupuncture
and herbs for thousands of years to alleviate menopausal symptoms and
help them move easily through the transition. Acupuncture involves very
fine needles that are inserted at specific points in the body to move
energy and promote healing. Chinese herbs, such as lycii fruit, rehmannia,
and asparagus root, are used to nourish the yin and blood. Yin is the
nourishing and moistening aspect of our bodies. As women age, yin becomes
depleted leading to night sweats, hot flashes and vaginal dryness.
Research has been done around the world showing how Chinese medicine
may reduce the unpleasant symptoms of menopause. A study in Sweden showed
that acupuncture significantly reduced the frequency of hot flashes
compared with placebo.
1 Stanford University showed that the intensity of
hot flashes was reduced by acupuncture.
2 There was a slight improvement in bone density after
a group of post-menopausal women in China took herbs for three months.
3 Other studies have shown that Chinese medicine has
a positive effect on mood.
4 Stress, over-work and poor diet may worsen the symptoms
of menopause such as insomnia, headaches and anxiety. Chinese medicine
has been shown, both clinically and in research to help women with problems
associated with menopause.
• • •
1. Zaborowska E, Brynhildsen J, Damberg S, Fredriksson M, Lindh-Astrand
L, et al. (2007 Feb). Effects of acupuncture, applied relaxation, estrogens
and placebo on hot flushes in postmenopausal women: an analysis of two
prospective, parallel, randomized studies. Climacteric. 10(1), 38-45.
2. Nir Y, Huang MI, Schnyer R, Chen B, Manber R (2007 April 20). Acupuncture
for postmenopausal hot flashes. Maturitas. 56(4), 383-95.
3. Zhang, Chun-yan (2004). The Treatment of 58 Cases of Post-menopausal
osteoporosis by the Methods of Supplementing the Kidneys and Strengthening
the Bones. Chinese Medical Research (Zhong Yi Yan Jiu). 6, 32.
4. Sandberg M, Wijma K, et al (2002, Sept). Effects of electro-acupuncture
on psychological distress in postmenopausal women. Complementary Therapies
in Medicine. 10(3), 161-9.
