Aquatic Life

Encaustic Paintings by
Anne Rogers
Shown at

Inner Gate Acupuncture
1421 SE Ankeny St.
Portland

Join us for the Opening Party:

Friday, May 10th
7:30-9:30 pm

For the past eight years Inner Gate Acupuncture has been delivering high quality natural medicine to Portland.

What started as two guys doing what they loved has blossomed into a lovely, family friendly clinic of five acupuncturists and three office staff.  We are excited to help all Portlanders with their healing needs.

Recently, we discovered that we had been rated “Best Acupuncture in Portland” by Yelp.  We are honored and excited to receive the acknowledgment.  We’d like to say thank you to all of our patients and friends who have helped us grow through the years.

May is Refer a Friend Month!

Refer a friend during the month of May and receive a $20 discount off of your next treatment at Inner Gate Acupuncture.

You all know how much acupuncture has helped you through the years and now it’s time to share those benefits with your friends, families and loved ones!  We’d like to give you a little encouragement.

We all have friends and co-workers who suffer from back pain, neck pain, and headaches.  Encourage them to come to our clinic where you have been helped in the past.

During May when new patients come in who were referred by you you’ll receive $20 off your next appointment.  The $20 is good for herb purchases as well.

• Increase your complex carbohydrate intake. Eat whole oats, whole wheat, whole rye, millet, bulgar, barley, legumes (pinto beans, lentil beans, black beans, navy beans) fresh veggies, brown rice, and sweet potatoes.
• Eat cold water fish. These fish they contain omega 3 fatty acids, which increases HDL, decreases triglycerides, and decrease platelet aggregation
• Take fish oil capsules (EPA/DHA), 1-4 grams/day
• Increase flavonoids in your diet. These potent antioxidants are found in dark colored fruit.
• Snack on a handful of nuts. Pecans, macadamia, walnuts, peanuts can all decrease LDL by 30%
• Try niacin (B3), 1-3 grams/day.  The best form is Niacin Hexicinate, which can decrease LDL levels by 30%.  Use caution with niacin.  It can cause a flushing reaction in sensitive people.
• Add ginger and turmeric to your diet. Both herbs have been shown to lower cholesterol levels.
• Taking vitamin C, 3 grams/day can significantly reduce cholesterol in 3 weeks as well as improve platelet aggregation and decrease triglycerides.
• Take vitamin E, 800-1800 IU/day.
• Copper may also be beneficial 2 mg/day.  Decreased copper levels lead to a marked increase in serum cholesterol.
• Exercise: Get forty minutes of exercise at least three times per week.

A recent patient came into our clinic complaining that she woke up with right-sided paralysis of her face, unable to blink her right eye and move the right side of her face.  It was distressing and created issues with her daily life, including poor sleep and eye dryness.  It was embarrassing and caused social anxiety for the patient.  After seeing her medical doctor and receiving a couple of prescriptions the patient had little change in her condition.  She then sought out acupuncture treatment.  With acupuncture treatment twice a week, the patient began to regain use of facial muscles.  Smiling became noticeably balanced from one side of the face to the other.  Blinking was also possible and sleep was no longer an issue.  With continued care, the patient regained muscle tone and confidence.

Here are 5 ways Chinese medicine can help Bell’s Palsy

1. Acupuncture can regain muscle tone. Bell’s palsy is a nerve disorder that affects the seventh facial nerve, which controls muscles of the eyes, cheek, and mouth.  People afflicted by this disorder will experience muscle weakness or paralysis on one side of the face.  The symptoms include an inability to blink, drooping at the corner of the mouth and eyelid, or difficulty eating or drinking.  A recent study (Click here for the study) showed that strong acupuncture treatment significantly improved muscle function for sufferers of Bell’s palsy.

2. Moxibustion alleviates the tension and pain associated with Bell’s Palsy. Even though Bell’s Palsy involves paralysis, there is also pain and discomfort, generally from other facial muscles compensating for the weak ones.  Moxa will help to increase blood flow into the muscles and relieve tension from muscle imbalances.  Moxa can also help calm the nerve, which can be inflamed from Bell’s Palsy.

3. Regular treatment can shorten the duration of Bell’s Palsy.  Bell’s Palsy will last anywhere from several months to years, depending on the severity of the paralysis.  It is important to seek immediate medical care.  With consistent treatment, even severe cases of paralysis can improve, and patients can regain the function of their facial muscles.  Expect to receive care 2 to 3 times a week initially and then decreasing treatment frequency as muscle tone is returned.

4. Herbal formulas will also speed up recovery. Chinese herbs are a great way to keep progress moving between acupuncture treatments.  Because Bell’s palsy involves the inflammation of the facial nerve, it is important to take herbs to soothe pain and invigorate muscle tone.  There are a number of classical formulas used specifically for paralysis.  It is important to stay consistent with herb formula usage and not to stray from the dose given by the practitioner.  Sometimes herbal formulas are used even after acupuncture treatments have decreased, just to maintain progress.

5. Holistic care will also improve the side effects of Bell’s Palsy, such as stress, poor sleep, or anxiety.  Because this medicine is holistic, treating Bell’s Palsy is not about treating a condition, but rather the individual.  Bell’s Palsy can be not only physically irritating, but also emotionally taxing.  Patients who use acupuncture notice both immediate and gradual change.  The immediate change is a sense of relaxation, and gradually they will see improvement in the Bell’s Palsy.  A recent study (Click here for the study) showed that acupuncture decreases stress hormones in the body.

A recent issue of the Harvard women’s health review.  Discussed the growing role that acupuncture is playing in managing pain.  The review looked at high quality research from around the world.

The researchers concluded,“there are a lot of data showing that acupuncture is effective at reducing pain in many chronic conditions, such as back pain, neck pain, headache, and even fibromyalgia,”  -Dr. Lucy Chen, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Chen went on to say, “Regardless of how or why it occurs, acupuncture does appear to reduce pain when compared with no treatment or conventional treatments (such as medicine, physical therapy, and exercise).  It can also improve function and well-being in people with chronic pain. Plus, acupuncture offers some advantages over drugs and other pain treatments—particularly in that it carries a very low risk of side effects.”

Patellofemoral pain syndrome is a type of repetitive strain injury.
It is a complicated syndrome and it can be hard to find competent care.
Proper treatment is important so that the syndrome doesn’t becomes chronic.

Although pain symptoms may occur anywhere around the knee, it will usually be focused on the front of the knee.

Use this list to identify if you are someone you know is suffering from patellofemoral pain syndrome.

• Pushing the kneecap into the knee causes pain.
• Pain is generally worse going uphill or climbing stairs.
• The pain may have begun when you were running uphill.
• The pain can grow slowly over months or years before becoming bad.
• Deep knee bends cause pain.
• Pain is often aggravated by sitting with knees bent.
• If you have other issues like flat feet, tight thighs, or knock knees then patellofemoral pain is more likely to become on issue for you.

How can your acupuncturist help you recover faster?

• Acupuncture creates movement and space in inflamed tissue.
• By promoting circulation, acupuncture speeds recovery time.
• Inner Gate acupuncturists can teach you corrective exercises to improve your gait.
• By releasing tight muscles and toning weak muscles proper balance can be achieved.

IT band syndrome is a type of repetitive strain injury.  In many cases, the syndrome is easy to recover from.  Unfortunately, it has a nasty tendency of becoming chronic and extremely frustrating for some runners. When the pain is new, it’s impossible to know which way it’s going to go.

The pain is centered on the outside of the knee.  If the  symptoms are severe there can be pain all around the knee but the outside of the knee is usually the worst spot.

Use this list to identify if you are someone you know is suffering from IT band syndrome.

• The pain tends to be worse when descending stairs or hills.
• The pain first started while going downhill.
• The pain began relatively quickly.
• Doing deep knee bends does not especially hurt.
• Pain is not initially worsened by sitting, although it might get worse after sitting for over an hour.
• There are no other obvious structural problems in the legs.
• IT band syndrome symptoms tend to be quite consistent and predictable, the exact location of the worst pain spot will not change.

How can your acupuncturist help you recover faster?

• Acupuncture can create space in the tissue restricted by inflammation.
• Increased circulation allows the tissue to repair damage faster.
• Your acupuncturist can prescribe corrective home exercises.
• Treatment of the muscles that attach to form the IT band helps relieve pressure on the tendons and their attachments.

Recently, a patient came in with acute diverticulitis.  Her pain was so severe that even light touch on her abdomen was too much.  After four acupuncture treatments in one week, her pain was completely gone.

What is Diverticulitis?
Diverticulitis is a condition where the inner lining of the intestine weakens and bulges out into sac-like pouches that can become infected and inflamed.

What Causes Diverticulitis?
No one knows why these pouches form.
low-fiber diets make diverticulitis more likely.
The inflammation occurs when fecal matter becomes lodged in the bulging sacs.
Seeds and nuts getting stuck in the intestinal bulges are NOT the cause, as previously thought.
Diverticulitis occurs most often amongst people over the age of 50.

What are the Symptoms of Diverticulitis?
People who experience diverticulitis will feel pain in the abdomen, often in the lower left corner.
There may also be gas or bloating, as well as nausea and vomiting.
Constipation, diarrhea are common.
Occasionally fever and chills.

How does Inner Gate Acupuncture Treat Diverticulitis?
Acupuncture eases the pain while moxibustion helps increase blood circulation.
Both acupuncture and moxibustion decrease inflammation.
Chinese herbal formulas can increase muscle tone of the smooth muscles lining the intestines.
This reduces the pouching and decreases the likelihood of diverticulitis recurring
Chinese formula can also decrease the inflammation and calm the acute phases of diverticulitis.
Increase fiber, high fiber diets help move the bowels efficiently.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic auto-immune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the body.  The disease generally affects joints but can affect other organs as well.

Currently, there is no cure for rheumatoid arthritis but there are many options for controlling the progression of the disease and resolving the associated pain.  For those looking to avoid use of pharmaceutical medications here are some ideas.

Diet Ideas:
Decrease as much as possible animal based foods.
High carbohydrate low protein diets can control inflammation.
Decrease sugar consumption as low as you can go.
Eliminate corn, soy and wheat.  These foods often lead to bowel inflammation which has a negative impact on your immune system.
Avoid coffee and tobacco.

Supplemental Support:
Turmeric, feverfew and ginger have all been shown to reduce rheumatoid arthritis symptoms for some people.
Increase your intake of omega 3 fatty acids particularly from cold water fish.
White willow bark is a natural source of salicylic acid, aspirin.

Other Ideas:
Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine help control the pain and reduce the inflammation associated with rheumatoid arthritis.
Some research suggests that bee venom therapy can have great effects for sufferers of rheumatoid arthritis.
Regular aerobic exercise can be very helpful particularly low impact exercises like swimming.
Relaxation and meditation have been shown to be powerful tools for people suffering from rheumatoid arthritis.