Thursday, March 5, 2015

 Tree of Life Acupuncture 

Your Winter Health & Acupuncture
 

Winter in Acupuncture belongs to the Kidneys
and Small Intestine
   32 Union Square East, Suite #804, New York, NY 1003
  (212) 533-1192
Click, Cupping - tension, stress and Spa like relaxation

Winter season is Kidney energy in Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine. Kidneys are considered the main source of Yin and Yang energy. Kidneys rule reproductive organs, brain and bones to name a few. The color for the kidneys is black, taste is salty. (If you crave too much salt or avoid it all together than you may have a kidney imbalance.
Kidneys have a close relationship with the Heart. The element of Kidneys is water and is responsible for water metabolism.  So water retention in the lower portion of the
body could involve kidneys. Heart is fire, so you want a balance of water and fire in the body. Some people are either too hot or too cold, just like water can boil or turn into ice, so is the human body can go from one extreme to another under strong energetic imbalance. Acupuncture and Chinese Herbs can help regulate the body temperature (Yin and Yang energies).

Acupuncture is a great preventative medicine. Best time to get a treatment is when you do not have problems and come for maintenance (average person after 30 years of age about 2 x times a month).  


Kidneys control low back and if someone has chronic back pain, kidneys or its Yang pair Bladder channel is often chosen to treat it (back of the leg area). Just like water can freeze (we are about 70% water) so can the human body and muscles can get cold and contract and cause more pain especially in the Winter. Acupuncture can address seasonal changes. If your symptoms get worse in the Winter, chances are it could be Kidney organs energy needing a tune up.
This is bone marrow ginseng  chicken soup and blood tonic herbs for the kidneys.

FOODS to EAT in the WINTER

Any food black in color or kidney shaped is good in the winter. Black Beans, kidney beans (most beans) root vegetables.
Seeds: flex seeds, black sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, etc. Blackberries, blueberries.
Seafood: fish, shrimp, seaweed
Animal Products: pork, duck, lamb, eggs, cheese (all in moderation)
Nuts: walnuts, hestnuts etc.

Hot soups, especially made of root vegetables are great to keep you well nourished and warm. Soups are nutritious and prepare and warm up your digestive system for food consumption.

Picture on the right: steamed beats with Brussels sprouts- easy to prepare, great for blood, liver, vision detox and more.
 

Animal Products: Pork, duck, lamb, eggs, cheese – Small amounts of animal protein can be used therapeutically here. Too much meat, particularly without the balance of vegetables, will stagnate the Liver and create heat. 
Bone-Marrow Broths & Soups: This will nourish Marrow governed by Kidneys. Especially beneficial for people wanting to prevent or heal osteoporosis.
Grains: Barley, Millet. These are both mildly cooling and nourishing.
Vegetables: Asparagus, Deep green leafy vegetables – Since it has diuretic properties, asparagus is especially helpful with opening the flow for those with dark, scanty urine. Deep green leafy vegetables build the Blood, and since Blood is a Yin fluid, they are highly recommended. Also moist vegetables such as cucumbers and celery are helpful.
Fruits and Melons: These are emphasized since they are moistening and mildly cooling. Too much fruit can be too cooling resulting in diarrhea, but 2-4 pieces of fruit a day should be fine.
Tonics: Spirulina, kelp, chlorella, wheatgrass – These mineral rich foods build the Blood which enhances Yin. They are also high in nucleic acids (RDA/DNA) which have been shown to reduce signs of aging.
Mineral rich herbs: Nettles, Oatstraw. Nettles is a gentle, cooling tonic that supports the Blood and Kidneys, while oatstraw strengthens the nerves.
Moistening herbs: Flax seed and black Sesame seeds could be used here too.
Chinese Herbs: Rehmannia root - often found in the patent formula used for Kidney Yin Deficiency. 

Acupuncture does not only reduce pain, but also readjusts your whole body's energy via organs an seasons. It calms and balances the mind, reduces stress, improves digestion and acts as anti-aging medicine allowing deeper sleep, better reproductive functions and greater DNA repair. As the new health law moves into effect, some insurance coverage changes. If you are covered by insurance, we can check your benefits and if not, you can buy our cost saving packages or use HSA or FSA.

Be well,
Mark Moshchinsky, LAc (NCCAOM)
Licensed Acupuncturist in NYC

www.NewYorkAcupunctureCenter.com

Copyright 2014 Tree of Life Acupuncture, P.C. New York, NY All rights reserved.

This newsletter is for information purposes only and is not intended to diagnose or cure.www.newyorkacupuncturecenter.com/disclaimer_privacy.html

Sunday, March 1, 2015

Acupuncture Vacation and Chinese Medicine

Tree of Life Acupuncture 

32 Union Square East, Suite #804, New York, New York 10003  www.NewYorkAcupunctureCenter.com

(212) 533-1192

Each sense that humans have corresponds to internal organ in Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine. Sight, the Eyes to the Liver/Gall Bladder,  Smell - The Nose to the Lungs/Large Intestine, Hearing - Kidneys/Small Intestine and so on.
As "poor me" was eating breakfast in Mexico on Playa del Carmen in a local restaurant, I was thinking to myself why people take vacations and what we get out of it. Final summary will be revealed to the most patient ones at the bottom, so bear with me here as I am giving you a free vacation :).
First that came to mind intuitively was that most people remember great moments or people in still pictures, singular frames but not so much motion or multiple pictures. When we or at least I think of a loved one or a special place, I imagine a still frame of a place or a person. So I was sitting and trying to imprint the vacation environment into my mind for later recall. 

TASTE SMELL MEMORY
Taste has to do with Stomach/ Spleen
(Eggs and tacos in the picture ingeniously combined together.Below dessert bananas glazed in caramel and cinnamon, which I later dumped in the hot water and made it into
an herbal/medicinal tea).
While I was working on my taste memory, I later went to the beach to work on my visual memory followed by a quick swim/ exercise workout to burn the large breakfast and dinner calories last night. 
VISUAL-SIGHT/ HEARING MEMORY
I decided to leave my hotel room and go by the pool to further extend my vacation memory moments. It was a good idea. What made it even better was that I realized instead of using my headphones listening to Ravi Shankar to tune everything and everyone out, it would be better to listen to the birds by the pool as everyone surprisingly was quiet. And so as I came to this conclusion, my senses of sight and hearing kicked in.

VACATION STRESS FREE environment helps the liver function better as anger is the emotion that damages the liver most, just watch that alcohol, cause it's the second enemy of the liver !

FEELING MEMORY
I have been to Playa del Carmen before and one of the things I remembered was mosquitoes :(  So upon first 2 nasty bites, I am writing to you from my hotel room. 

What really pushed me to take this (Click this link) VACATION MORE THAN ANYTHING ESLE was the death of few people. I always say: YOU CAN OUTLIVE YOUR MONEY, BUT YOU CANNOT OUTLIVE YOUR HEALTH.

CONCLUSION: Vacations are needed and serve great purposes in our mental and physical health.
1. Change of scenery distracts us from "doing business as usual mode". Gives our mind a mental positive boost.

2. It gives us a different picture and visual pleasure with healing abilities. Soothes the Liver.

3. Hearing different sounds works on the Kidneys.

4. Eating different foods with a calm mind with no worries helps digestion Spleen/ Stomach.

5. It puts us in an optimistic and renewed mood and it lifts our spirits and recharges our batteries, helps our sleep. We feel safer from disturbing bills and people we have to deal with. It could give us sleeping like a baby mindset and so it helps the Heart which stores the spirits and the Lungs because in acupuncture they have to do with sadness.  
RESTART
Most of all, vacations give us that reboot button to restart, same way as you restart your computer or cell phone. It gives you a fresh start and helps you wipe out bad memories.

On that note, I am running out to work on my taste again. Hopefully I will have enough time to work out and do meditation that I missed.

In Sickness or in Health,
Mark Moshchinsky, LAc (NCCAOM)
Licensed Acupuncturist in NYC