No cure for the common cold?
	There is a saying that there is no cure for the common cold. Is this true?
	By Chinese medicine theory, the common cold and flu are caused by an invasion of external pathogenic factors. Normally the  external pathogenic factor would invade the body superficially in the first stage( in the first or second day of the cold). The typical symptoms are:body fell cold or hot, sneezing, sore throat, achy on the body, cough etc.

Dietary therapy for Common cold

If you have just caught a bad cold and it is not severe, you can try diet therapy to treat the problem, which has been a popular medical DIY for thousands of years in China.

When you have some typical symptoms of the common cold  such as itchy throat , stuffy or running nose with clear watery mucus, sneezing ,a version to cold , body ache, etc, try one of the  following ways to treat yourself.

1 Spring onion 20 grams cut into small pieces; fresh ginger route 10 grams, cut into small pieces.   Put them into a pot, add about one pint water and heat until boiling, then simmer for about 10 minutes. Drink the soup when it is still quite warm. Then go to bed, covered with a quilt and make you  sweat, the cold will then be  dispelled from your body. Do not go outside until the sweater is dry up.

2 Fresh ginger 15 grams, cut into small pieces, crystal sugar 20 grams. Put ginger and sugar into a big cup then add boiling

water and stew for 10 minutes. Drink the soup while it is hot, then go to bed, covered with a quilt and make you sweat. The cold will be dispelled from your body.

How to eat healthily

Although every body knows how to eat, not many people know how to eat healthily. Check whether your eating habits are healthily or not:

1 Eat regularly because the stomach likes regularity. It is all right if you miss meals occasionally.

2 Eat earlier in the evening as eating too late will cause food retention and even indigestion.

3 Eat under relaxing, calm condition and have time to continue the relaxation after eating.

4 Chew well as the digestion process begins in your mouth . Rushing through eating will harm your stomach.

5 Eat the right amount. Do not eat too much or too little.

6 Eat lean food. As far as possible fresh food , free from pesticides, preservatives, chemicals and hormones.

7 Eat warm food generally and do not eat too much cold food.

8 Eat more grains, beans, vegetables and fruits , small amounts of animal protein  and dairy products and even less of fats, oil and sweets.

9 Avoid excess stimulates such as  coffee and tea, excess alcohol and  recreational drugs.

10 Do not make your choice of food too narrow, eat a variety of food as different foods nourish your body in different ways.

“We can give you specific dietary recommendations according to our diagnosis of your needs, using the skills of Chinese medicine.”

Diet advice for Skin condition patients

For many skin condition such as Psoriasis, Eczema and Acne, one of the root cause is that heat accumulation in the body. So patients should be careful about their diet. The following are some general tips:

1 Do not drink alcohol.

2 Do not eat lamb.

3 Be careful with seafood.

4 Do not eat chilli, curry and strong spicy food.

5 Do not eat raw ginger, onion, and garlic.

6 Do not eat too much deep fried and very rich food.

All these will generate more heat in your body and are not good for your skin.

7 Do eat more vegetable and fruits.

8 Drink plenty of water.

9 Try to do more relaxation exercises such as Chi Kung, Tai Chi, Meditation etc, because stress could bring the heat in the body and make your skin condition worse.

All these will help to clear heat from your body.

Acupuncture Increases Melatonin Levels, Promotes Quality Sleep

Up to 40 percent of the adult American population suffers from insomnia. Research suggests that while insomnia and anxiety are not related, they share several characteristics. Anxious people usually have difficulty sleeping an entire night, spend less time in "deep" sleep, and often have fragmented sleep patterns. Conversely, people who suffer from sleep deprivation often produce symptoms similar to those seen in people with high anxiety levels.

Traditionally, people who suffer from insomnia caused by anxiety are prescribed drugs to help them sleep - particularly, a class of drugs known as benzodiazepines. Unfortunately, these drugs carry with them a wide range of physical and psychological side-effects, ranging from impaired motor skills, depression, and addiction to medication. Acupuncture has been shown to be an effective remedy for insomnia, without producing any of the side-effects of drugs; however, none of the studies examining the use of acupuncture for insomnia have measured the effects such treatment can have on hormone production or chemical changes in the brain during sleep.

To see what effects acupuncture has on brain chemistry, researchers at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Canada recruited 18 adults suffering from anxiety and insomnia, and treated them with acupuncture twice a week for five weeks. One week before and after treatment, they were given a battery of tests to determine changes in melatonin, sleep quality, total time spent asleep, and other variables.

Results showed that anxiety levels were significant lower, while sleep efficiency and night time melatonin levels increased, in the week following the last acupuncture session compared to before the start of the study. Anxiety levels decreased an average of 20 points per patient; average sleep time increased by 1.4 hours; and "sleep efficiency" increased an average of 12.5 points. Urinalysis showed a significant increase in melatonin production between midnight and 8 a.m.

The researchers concluded: "In this preliminary study, acupuncture was shown to be of value as a therapeutic intervention for insomnia in anxious subjects and may therefore represent an alternative to pharmaceutical therapy for some categories of patients." They recommended that a more rigorous study, including a control group, be conducted to verify their results.

Reference

Spence DW, Kayumov L, Chen A, et al. Acupuncture increases nocturnal melatonin secretion and reduces insomnia and anxiety: a preliminary report. J Neuropsychiaty Clin Neurosci

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