Herb Teas to Soothe Menstrual Cramps

Sip herbal tea to soothe menstrual cramps

Chamomile, fennel, ginger, and red raspberry leaf are delicious herbal teas that specifically support menstruation and ease cramps. Drink three cups a day of these warming teas to help you feel better.

Painful menstrual period cramps can be a nuisance for some and debilitating for others. Painful menstruation, in fact, is the leading cause of lost time from work or school for females in their teens and early 20s, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC). There are, of course, pharmaceutical options for relief. Women who want a more natural remedy, however, have several herbal options:

Peppermint

Peppermint's calming and numbing effect makes it useful for treating menstrual cramps as well as headaches, diarrhea and GI issues. These same qualities may make it useful for treating the irritable bowel syndrome symptoms that sometimes accompany menstrual cramps. Peppermint can be taken as tea, with 1 tsp. loose leaves or a tea bag steeped in 1 cup hot water for about 10 minutes. You can drink four to five cups of this tea daily. Peppermint also comes in capsules that can be taken up to three times a day.

Ginger

Ginger alleviates menstrual cramps because it has six pain-relieving compounds as well as six anti-cramping compounds. Ginger frequently is used to treat inflammation. Fresh ginger root can be used to make tea or premade tea bags are available. Steep 2 tbsp. ginger root in hot water for at least 10 minutes to make a tea, which can be consumed up to three times daily.

More Natural Solutions to Soothe Menstrual Cramps

Load up on foods rich in magnesium.

Magnesium relaxes muscles and decreases cramping which helps reduce menstrual pain. There’s nothing quite as comforting as a bowl of warm chicken soup! Bone broths are an excellent source of magnesium (as well as calcium and other minerals).

Other great sources of magnesium include halibut, legumes and seeds such as navy beans and sunflower seeds, almonds, dark leafy greens, apples, figs, grapefruit, corn and whole grains.

These remedies are really helpful to ease discomfort. For even more relief, I suggest experiencing the healing powers of Chinese Medicine. Studies support the use of the TCM approach for treating menstrual pain. With regular acupuncture and herbal treatments, Chinese Medicine can effectively get you out of the monthly cycle of pain for good. Call today for an appointment!

Natural Solutions to Soothe Menstrual Cramps

If you suffer from menstrual cramps, here are some remedies to bring relief during your period:

1. Apply heat

This is the most effective remedy for most women. Use a hot water bottle or heating pad on your belly for 20-30 minutes as needed to alleviate cramps.

A hot bath is another great way to use heat to ease menstrual pain. Add in some bath salts, essential oils, and light some candles for extra pampering.

2. Stay away from cold iced foods two days before and during your period.

My patients are often surprised by how much better they feel with this simple shift in their diet. Traditional Chinese Medicine generally believes cold foods cause the body to contract and tighten, thereby worsening cramps. Just like using ice on an injury causes blood vessels to contract to stop bleeding, so do iced foods cause menstrual blood flow to stop, causing the body to require stronger contractions to push out the blood.

I recommend avoiding iced foods like ice cream, iced water, and frozen fruit smoothies before and during your period. I even recommend letting your dairy products - like milk or yogurt - get to room temperature before consuming. Also, try warm cooked foods and drinks like hearty soups, whole grains, steamed vegetables, and hot teas.

In the next post, I'll provide some more great tips!

Acupuncture and Reproductive Health

Current statistics state that one in five couples over the age of 30 have difficulty conceiving after one year of trying. Many of these couples are turning to acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for a safe, effective and natural solution to have a healthy baby.

TCM has a long history when it comes to enhancing fertility for both men and women. In fact, evidence that acupuncture and herbal medicine have been used to aid fertility can be found in early medical literature dating back to 3AD.

Fertility treatments were first recorded by Zhang Zhong Jing, a famous physician from the Han Dynasty, in his discussion of diseases in women in the Jin Gui Yao Lue or Essentials of the Golden Cabinet.

How Acupuncture Can Enhance Fertility

According to the principles of TCM, a person's health is determined by the quality of Qi, the vital life energy, and blood circulating through the body. When Qi and blood are circulating properly, the body is properly nourished and functioning optimally which, in turn, enhances fertility.

Researchers have confirmed TCM is beneficial in the following areas:

1. Regulate menstrual cycle.

2. Improve sperm count and motility.

3. Reduce stress and anxiety associated with infertility.

4. Normalize hormone and endocrine systems.

5. Improve blood flow in the uterus.

6. Decrease chance of miscarriage.

7. Increase the chance of pregnancy for women undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Fertility treatments vary from person to person, but are usually scheduled for at least three consecutive cycles (twelve weeks). Treatments can include acupuncture, customized herbal therapy, stress reduction and dietary counseling. Treatments work alone but are an excellent addition to any Western intervention.

Please call for more information of to schedule a consultation!

Source: Qi Mail

The Silence of Infertility

There is a great article in Self Magazine this month about infertility. It describes why so many (one in eight couples) who experience infertility don't talk about it with friends and family. Read the article here.

Acupuncture for Childbirth & Postpartum

While there are acupuncture points that can provide natural pain relief during labor, acupuncture is more commonly used to induce labor. There are several points that stimulate contractions and influence cervical ripening. There is also an acupuncture point that has been found to turn a breech baby.

Acupuncture Postpartum

Many women feel depleted after the birth experience. Acupuncture and Oriental medicine can help the transition of those first few months after birth to ensure a quick recovery. Postpartum care focuses on the physical, emotional and psychological recovery of the mother from the effects of pregnancy and labor, as well as encouraging breast feeding.

Here are some of the postpartum issues that can be treated with acupuncture:

* Fatigue

* Postpartum Depression

* Mastitis

* Insufficient or Excessive Lactation

* Post Operative Healing

* Night Sweats

If you would like to know more how acupuncture and TCM ease discomfort and facilitate pregnancy, please call for more information.

source: Qi Mail

Acupuncture in Pregnancy & Childbirth

Pregnancy is an amazing time in a woman's life. Many women report feeling healthier than they have ever felt before; however, the physical growth of the baby and changes in hormone levels can bring about pain, discomfort and a variety of health problems.

Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can provide a safe, effective alternative for many of the health complications that may arise before, during and after pregnancy. A growing number of women are choosing acupuncture to use throughout their pregnancy and as an optional treatment for an overdue or difficult labor.

Planning for a Healthy Baby

Healthy parents produce healthy babies. With acupuncture and Oriental medicine, parents can improve their health to create the most optimal environment for their unborn child. In addition to their ability to strengthen, support, and balance overall health and well-being, acupuncture and Oriental medicine are an effective treatment for regulating menstruation and hormone levels, reducing stress and addressing any pre-existing medical conditions or concerns that a woman may have

Acupuncture during Pregnancy

Acupuncture and Oriental medicine can play a vital role in the comfort of a pregnant woman. There is strong evidence to support that acupuncture is highly effective at treating some of the most common problems experienced during pregnancy including morning sickness, heartburn, insomnia, water retention and sciatica.

Here is a list of some of the problems that an acupuncturist often treats during pregnancy:

* Nausea and Vomiting

* Heartburn

* Constipation

* Hemorrhoids

* Edema and Swelling

* Urinary Tract Infection

* Pelvic Pain

* Neck and Back Pain

* Sciatica

* Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

* Leg Cramps

* Fatigue and Exhaustion

* Insomnia

* Anxiety and Depression

Source Qi Mail

Sleep and Hormones

Did you know our hormonal balance is affected by light? And hormonal balance is key for a healthy reproductive system and fertility. An important aspect of hormonal health has to do with being connected to night and day. Our bodies respond to a natural contrast in light and dark and we produce hormones accordingly.

A common, yet little known, issue for my patients who live in New York City, is exposure to light at night. Exposure to light while you sleep can set off a chain reaction within the pineal gland that can affect your circadian rhythms (your wake/sleep patterns). The pineal gland produces melatonin, a hormone that affects the reproductive system. At night, you want to make sure that your bedroom is as dark as possible when you sleep. This might mean covering your windows with thick light-blocking curtains.

Also, to balance the darkness at night, make sure you have an adequate amount of time outdoors during the day. As the weather is getting warmer, this is easier! You also need to get the proper amount of sleep for your body. Generally, 7 to 10 hours is a good range.

History of IVF in the NY Times

The New York Times has a great article today about the development of In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF). Read it here. Many of my patients who are trying to conceive (TTC) may find it interesting to learn about this history of this relatively recent advance in reproductive medicine (around since the 1980s), which boasts around a 30% success rate.

Many of my patients get regular Chinese Medicine treatments to promote fertility and regulate hormones. This is helpful in making these assisted reproductive therapies (ART) potentially even more effective.

Great Resource for Moms and Moms-to-Be

A great online resource for moms and moms-to-be is Mothering.com. This website if full of great information, ideas and resources, including an "Ask the Expert" section, and a "Mothering Media" section including movies, slideshows, interviews, how-to's and more.

There is a great article in the March/April issue about Mayan womb massage, a technique to aid in conception, ease menstrual cramps and for your general reproductive health. Check out the article here.

Breastfeeding Support

Check out this great article in the NY Times about getting support for breastfeeding with a lactation consultant.

Integral to successful breastfeeding is good positioning, and someone like a lactation consultant will be able to offer you excellent advice and support with this. Some women also may experience problems with poor milk supply. Acupuncture has been shown in studies to be effective in increasing milk supply and offers women a drug free option. Acupuncture may also be effective in treating mastitis.

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), insufficient milk comes from a disharmony in Qi, the flow of energy throughout the body. I generally treat women with low milk supply for spleen qi deficiency or liver qi stagnation. With spleen deficiency, the breasts are soft and milk production is inadequate, so we would work on tonifying. With liver stagnation (or obstruction), we would work to move the energy, which can help resolve mastitis. Either way, TCM is a great, drug-free and non-invasive way to support your body to produce more milk.

Healthy Menstrual Cycle Tip #5: Physical Activity

Here is the last in our series of tips for a healthy menstrual cycle: Menses is a time to slow down and be more gentle. In general, you want more time for rest and this may mean adjusting your schedule. Take warm baths and get more sleep.

Moderate exercise is often helpful to ease premenstrual symptoms. Avoid strenuous physical activity before and during your period. This can deplete the body and create hormone imbalances. So before and during your menses do more stretching, yoga, tai chi, and other relaxing, gentle movements.

Healthy Menstrual Cycle Tips: During Your Period

In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), we recommend some specific lifestyle changes around the time of your menses:

• TCM warns against cold, which contracts muscles and slows down circulation. During menses, we want the body to be warm to promote circulation. Try to avoid overexposure to cold and damp environments. Keep properly bundled up with warm clothing in cold weather.
• For those who experience menstrual cramps, a hot water bottle can be used nightly for a week before menses begins to help warm the uterus and prevent blood stagnation.

Food Tips During Menses

• Avoid eating cold foods including anything with ice - ice cold drinks, ice cream, ice cold popsicles, and frozen fruit smoothies.
• Raw vegetables are considered cold, so eat steamed/cooked vegetables instead of salads.
• Dairy products, including yogurt, cottage cheese and kefir, should not be eaten straight from the fridge. Let them sit for about ½ hour to reach room temperature before consuming. This is a general recommendation in Chinese Medicine, but it is especially important to avoid cold foods before and during your period. This is a great time for soups and warm teas.
• Eat regular meals at regular times, and include snacks if needed. Keeping stable blood sugars will help regulate hormones.
• Eat enough protein through meat, eggs, nuts, cheese, dairy foods, and beans. Minimize processed sugar and refined flour products to help reduce spikes in your energy level.

Healthy Menstrual Cycle Tip #3: Treating PMS

Many women experience some form of pre-menstrual symptoms (PMS) before their period. Symptoms can include breast tenderness, bloating, mild cramping, headaches/migraines, fatigue, food cravings, low libido, insomnia, emotional fluctuations including anger, anxiety, irritability, depression, sadness, and weepiness.

From a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) perspective, the “symptoms” of PMS are seen as patterns that involve the internal organs and/or energy pathways of the body. The Liver, Heart and Spleen are the three major organ systems that are primarily involved with PMS. With acupuncture, herbs, diet, and lifestyle changes, we focus on “smoothing” the liver to have a smoother menstrual cycle.

TCM has been widely and successfully used to treat PMS. Most women respond very well to acupuncture and herbs in combination with dietary changes, exercise, and focusing on your emotional well being. I can support you in discovering what will work best for you to prepare your body for your period. Make an appointment today!

Another great tip is to schedule a massage the week before your period. This is especially helpful for those who get menstrual headaches and muscle tightness before menses.

Healthy Menstrual Cycle Tip #2: Your Basal Body Temperature

Another step towards Menstrual Health, is tracking your Basal Body Temperature (BBT). This entails taking your temperature first thing each morning (as soon as you wake up) and keeping track of your temperature on a chart.

Charting your BBT can provide useful information as to when you are most fertile, which is especially important if you are trying to conceive or trying not to conceive. You will also be more in tune with when your menstrual period should begin, whether you are ovulating, if you have successfully conceived or if there is a possibility of a hormonal imbalance. Taking your waking body temperature is the first step to charting. Read more about it here.

As a practitioner, I find it very helpful to see my patients’ BBT charts. Your temperature can indicate potential imbalances in your cycle, which Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) may be able to treat very effectively. For example, temperatures that are too high in the pre-ovulatory (follicular) phase, indicate excess heat, just as temperatures that are too low during the post-ovulatory (luteal) phase indicate deficiency.

A great resource for further reading is Toni Weschler’s book, Taking Charge of Your Fertility, which goes in depth into charting for natural pregnancy achievement or pregnancy avoidance as well as basic gynecological health.

A Healthy Menstrual Cycle

Many of my female patients have menstrual imbalances and report painful periods, pre-menstrual syndrome, lack of periods, irregular cycles, uterine cysts and fibroids. With most menstrual issues, there are preventative measures that can help you have a smoother period. This will be the first of a series of blog posts with recommendations for a healthy cycle.

In my experience, regular acupuncture treatments and herbal formulas help my clients get amazing results - transforming their period from something to complain about to pain-free periods with minimal pre-menstrual symptoms. With support, women no longer dread their cycles and can experience them with ease. Call today for an acupuncture treatment!

Prevention and Healthy Habit #1: Keep track of your cycle (when your period starts and ends) on your calendar. Day One of your menses is considered the first day that bleeding begins. This helps you know what to expect, helps me treat you more specifically during an acupuncture treatment, can help you feel more connected to your body and to your natural hormonal shifts. You can find out how many days between cycles, when ovulation is expected, and when to prepare for the coming cycle.

A Good Foot Soak to Strengthen Your Kidneys

Many of my patients experience having cold feet, especially at night. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) terms, this might be a symptom of Kidney deficiency, which can be the root of many conditions. Strengthening the Kidneys is especially important if you experience anxiety, difficulty sleeping, or difficulty conceiving.

Soaking your feet in warm water for 10-20 minutes per day is good for body and mind. It improves circulation throughout your body and especially to your pelvic organs and reproductive system. It is very grounding for our mind and spirit. A good foot soak can help to calm a racing heart or wandering thoughts. And it is, of course, very relaxing!

Women and Foot Pain

Many people, especially women, suffer from foot pain and believe it is normal. Living in a walking city, such as New York, we need to take special care! A recently published study featured in the New York Times, determined that many women make poor shoe choices early in life and suffer with foot pain in later years. The issue is not only confined to the feet, but has also been seen to cause alignment issues in knees, hip, back and even the neck. Unfortunately for the fashionista, high heels not only cause pain, they also cause corns, bunions, hammer toes, shortened calf muscles and ingrown toenails. Ouch!

Improve foot health

• Limit the amount of time you wear high heels. Carry a pair of good quality flats to wear for part of the day, and choose athletic shoes for weekends and downtime.
• Cushion! Take your high heels with thin soles to the shoemaker, and ask for a thin rubber sole cemented to the bottom of the shoe to cushion your foot.
• Pregnancy may cause your feet to grow up to a full size! When shoe shopping, look for thick, supportive soles. Buy shoes that give your toes room to move. Laced, rather than slip on shoes are recommended by podiatrists for the best fit.
• In addition to alignment issues caused by poor shoe choice, I also see a fair bit of orthopedic conditions in the neck, shoulder and hips due to carrying large, heavy handbags on one shoulder.
• Acupuncture can be very effective in treating chronic pain, but prevention is the best medicine. Lighten up the load, limit the high heels and switch to a supportive pair of shoes!

Acupuncture and Exercise bring Relief to PCOS sufferers

According to a new study, exercise and electro-acupuncture treatments can reduce sympathetic nerve activity in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), one of the most common endocrine disorders. PCOS affects about 10% of women of reproductive age and is associated with health issues such as elevated levels of androgens (like testosterone), ovarian cysts, irregular menstrual cycles and infertility.

This finding is especially important, since women with PCOS have elevated sympathetic nerve activity, which can contribute to hyperinsulinemia, insulin resistance, obesity and cardiovascular disease.

The study also found that the electro-acupuncture treatments led to more regular menstrual cycles, reduced testosterone levels and reduced waist circumference.

While it may be too soon to say for sure that low-frequency electro-acupuncture and exercise may be an alternative, non-pharmaceutical way to treat PCOS, the results of this study are promising.

Read the full article here, and for more information about how traditional Chinese medicine can benefit women's health, check out the Five Seasons Healing website.

Bean Burgers—great blood-strengthening fuel!

And now for Part Two of our post-partum haircare episode...

Foods rich in iron, folic acid, and vitamin B12 can help fortify the blood, promoting optimal health in new mothers and anyone else who needs to strengthen their blood.

Beans are a great source of iron, B-vitamins and protein (another key nutrient). These bean burgers, when paired with a salad of leafy greens and sprouts (for folic acid) and sliced tomato (for vitamin C, which aids absorption), are a tasty way to boost your intake and say hello to renewed energy and shiny, healthy hair!

Bean Burgers

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked beans
1 carrot, diced
1/4 onion, diced (optional)
1 tablespoon herbs*
1/2 cup bread crumbs, whole wheat flour, or cooked grain
Sea salt to taste
Toasted nuts or seeds


Directions:

Mash beans
Mix ingredients together and form patties or small balls.
Fry or bake at 350oF until browned (approximately 30 minutes)

*Some herbal combinations to try:
Coriander, cumin, ginger (lentil, black, aduki)
Sage, thyme, oregano (black, pinto, lentil, kidney)
Dill, basil (lentil, garbanzo, split pea)
Fennel or cumin (pinto, kidney)
Mint, garlic (garbanzo, lentil)

—recipe courtesy of Healing with Whole Foods by Paul Pitchford