February National Links
BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine is an open access journal publishing original peer-reviewed research articles in complementary and alternative healthcare interventions, with a specific emphasis on those that elucidate biological mechanisms of action. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine (ISSN 1472-6882) is indexed/tracked/covered by PubMed, MEDLINE, CAS, Scopus, EMBASE and Google Scholar.
www.biomedcentral.com
DHEA is a natural circulating hormone, and the body’s production of it decreases with age. Men take DHEA as an over-the-counter supplement because it has been suggested that DHEA can reverse aging or have anabolic effects since it can be metabolized in the body to androgens. Increased consumption of dietary isoflavones is associated with a decreased risk of prostate cancer. Red clover (Trifolium pretense) is one source of isoflavones. Both supplements may have hormonal effects in the prostate and little is known about the safety of these supplements.
Towards this end, the NCCAM laboratory is studying signaling between human prostate cancer cells and their supporting stromal cells as they grow together in laboratory culture. “DHEA effects in the prostate tissues may depend on how these two cells types ‘talk to each other’ and further, it may be potentially harmful in tissues containing inflammation or with early cancer lesions because the cells can induce DHEA to become more androgenic,” said Julia Arnold, PhD, a staff scientist at the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health.
www.newswise.com
The Pain Management Clinic at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles is collaborating with Yo San University of Traditional Chinese Medicine to create a pediatric acupuncture program to help children manage chronic pain, according to Jeffrey I. Gold, Ph.D., director of the Pediatric Pain Management Clinic, and assistant professor of clinical anesthesiology and pediatrics at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California.
The Pediatric Acupuncture Program, which began treating patients this month (January 2009), uses an integrative approach that brings the benefits of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) to children suffering from chronic pain.
According to Dr. Gold, “Current research indicates that acupuncture and TCM are beneficial in addressing many problems associated with both acute and chronic pain.”
A paper recently published by Dr. Gold and his colleagues in the journal Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine concludes, “Given the promising trends in the current acupuncture research, the relative willingness of families to engage in acupuncture and the low risk of deleterious side effects, acupuncture may serve to harmonize Traditional Western Medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine as a means of promoting preventive care and symptom management for children.”
pr-usa.net
Modern scientific research has revealed that many of the ancient Chinese herbs and formulas used in fighting the invasions of wind cold and wind heat have broad spectrum antibacterial and antiviral activities.
seattlepi.nwsource.com
More news about acupuncture in the military: The Air Force surgeon general is starting a pilot program in March to teach "battlefield acupuncture" to 32 Air Force doctors who will deploy to Iraq or Afghanistan by 2010.
Col. Richard Niemtzow, an Air Force physician for 28 years, started practicing acupuncture in 1994. He designed the battlefield acupuncture treatments to help airmen deal with physical and mental pain inside the war zone. The treatments even include needles barely a centimeter long so they won't fall out when airmen wear their Kevlar helmets.
www.hattiesburgamerican.com
This technical report compiles and analyzes the current scientific knowledge on herbal medicine and highlights the practical ways for ensuring the safety of herbal preparations and evaluating their claimed efficacy. Emphasis has been given to the methods for standardization of herbal medicine and the ways and means for moving forward to achieve the difficult goal of preparing herbal medicines of consistent quality and effects.
www.iupac.org
Traditional Chinese medicine has been around for thousands of years, and it's no surprise individuals are starting to embrace its healing properties as an acne alternative medicine. Traditional Chinese medicine often utilizes herbs and food sources to alleviate acne symptoms.
www.skindetails.com
Forget the Botox, avoid the scalpel. More and more women are turning to cosmetic acupuncture to reverse the aging process.
www.wcnc.com
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Traditional acupuncture and non-penetrating sham acupuncture both appear to help relieve pelvic pain in pregnant women, Swedish researchers report. However, contrary to expectation, neither acupuncture approach is more effective than the other.
in.reuters.com
Dear Mayo Clinic: What do you think of acupuncture as a treatment for various ailments? How does it work?
Acupuncture, which has been used and studied throughout the world for more than 4,000 years, can be utilized to rebalance the flow of energy (qi) in the body and effectively treat many conditions. At Mayo Clinic, acupuncture has been used successfully for pain management, postoperative nausea, anxiety relief, drug addiction, insomnia and headaches, to name a few.
www.sun-sentinel.com