In this issue you will find:

• Important PCOM Dates
• Dr. Tom Haines Receives AAAOM 2007 Leadership Award
• Acupuncture  and Tai Ji Beneficial For Healthy Weight Loss
• Endometriosis Diminished with Traditional Chinese Medicine
• Chinese Wisdom: Quote of the Day

Important PCOM Dates

• February 2nd: (Saturday)
  New York Open House10:00am-12:00pm 
  (Chinese New Year 12:00pm-3:00pm)

• February 9th: (Saturday)
  San Diego Chinese New Year Celebration/ Open House 10:00am-3:00pm

• February 16th: (Saturday)
  Chicago Chinese New Year (all programs)

Dr. Tom Haines Receives AAAOM 2007 Leadership Award

Thomas Haines, Ph.D., the Coordinator of Doctoral Studies and Assistant to the President at Pacific College of Oriental Medicine in San Diego, was awarded one of the 37 coveted Leadership Awards presented at the 25th anniversary conference of the AAAOM held in Portland, Oregon in October 2007. These awards were given to honor some of the pioneers and leaders that helped expand Oriental medicine in this country over the past 25 years. 

Dr. Haines spent more than 35 years in higher education before coming to the field of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (AOM). Since joining the AOM community over a decade ago, Tom has been highly influential in bringing higher education standards to the field of Oriental medicine and in the development of the postgraduate doctorate degree in Oriental Medicine. His role as an Academic Dean for ACTCM in San Francisco for four years then later serving as an administrator for the past eight years at Pacific College along with his 12-year membership as a public board member on the Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Alliance board helped him to promote and shepherd the development of the postgraduate clinical doctorate standards. His involvement with the Council of Colleges of Oriental Medicine (CCAOM) doctoral task force and later the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (ACAOM) doctoral task force allowed him to help guide this process to fruition.
READ MORE ...

Acupuncture and Tai Ji Beneficial For Healthy Weight Loss

According to the American Public Health Association, obesity rates among adults in the past decade have skyrocketed, increasing by 60 percent.  As Americans spend more than $33 billion annually on weight-loss products and services, most diet fads bring only short-term solutions. As January is Lose Weight and Feel Great Month, acupuncture and tai ji are a great alternative to for shedding those extra pounds.

When attempting to diet, many people experience withdrawal,  or cravings, due to a lack of endorphins. The need to eat is often so strong that dieters binge on food. This is one reason why diets often cause people to gain more weight rather than lose it. Acupuncture and tai ji counterbalance these cravings by releasing endorphins in the brain, which actually alleviate the withdrawal  symptoms that many dieters experience and eventually succumb to.

Weight gain can also be caused by stress, which increases cortizol levels in the body. This increase in cortizol can alter metabolism, thus causing stressed people to gain weight. As with cravings, the endorphins released by acupuncture and the gentle motions of tai ji also help reduce stress, which can reduce the need to overeat.
Both tai ji and acupuncture can also stimulate the hyopthalamus. This induces weight loss because the hypothalamus regulates the body’s thyroid and hormone levels, which in turn regulate metabolism.

Endometriosis Diminished with Traditional Chinese Medicine

Women of all ages and backgrounds can be affected by the condition of endometriosis. In fact, an estimated five to seven million American women currently suffer from this condition, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. Endometriosis is derived from the word “endometrium,” which is the lining of a woman’s uterus. In this condition, organs like the ovaries, fallopian tubes, ligaments surrounding the uterus, and possibly the lungs, head, and other locations, are lined with the endometrium as well as the uterus. However, unlike the uterus, these linings are not expelled from the body during menstruation, but rather linger and are slowly absorbed into the body. This can cause symptoms ranging from pain during intercourse, before menstruation, low back pain, nausea, fatigue, and even infertility.

The Western diagnosis and treatment for this condition are both invasive. A laparoscopy is performed to diagnose the condition; this is when a lighted optical tube is inserted through a small incision in the navel. Western treatments for endometriosis include surgery and drug therapy. The causes of endometriosis are still unclear, although many theories have been made with attention to stress, genetic predispositions, and exposure to heat or cold during menstruation.
READ MORE ...

Chinese Wisdom: Quote of the Day

If you don’t scale the mountain, you can’t view the plain.

~ The Book of Odes