Instant and short-term effects of acupuncture for depression and anxiety in unstable angina pectoris patients with percutaneous coronary interventions.
This is a nice, well-conceived study since it focuses on a specific population under specific circumstances (pre-op cath lab). What they found was that the patients receiving electroacupuncture had lower LF/HF which means their stress profile of sympathetic/parasympathetic activity was lowered. The measure of their vagal activity was higher. One specific measure of inflammation, Il-6,…
Read MoreAdvances in Acupuncture Regulation on the Autonomic Nervous System from 2013 to 2022
The effect of acupuncture on the autonomic nervous system has been my main interest and focus for years. As readers of my book know, a balanced autonomic nervous system leads to less inflammation. Inflammation underlies many chronic diseases including Depression, Cardiac Disease and even Cancer. There are many ways to improve your autonomic balance (exercise,…
Read MoreAuricular Acupressure for Sleep in Menopausal Women and HRV
I submitted a paper years ago with Dr. Golianu concerning acupuncture and HRV for insomnia. Apparently, they actually compared responders to nonresponders. As seen in other studies, nonresponders clinically usually do not show autonomic changes. Kung YY, Yang CC, Chiu JH, Kuo TB. The relationship of subjective sleep quality and cardiac autonomic nervous system in…
Read More35 percent of U.S. women under 50 are iron deficient. It matters!!
Full article here I’ve talked about this on the blog here. Wow that was over 10 years ago! Roughly 35 percent of women of reproductive age in the United States don’t have sufficient amounts of iron in their bodies. And yet the nutritional deficiency, which can affect multiple functions, from immunity to cognition, often goes…
Read MoreCausal influence of brainstem response to transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation on cardiovagal outflow TAVNS
I link to this article because I know the author Vitaly Napadow, we’ve been colleagues for over 20 years now. Hard to believe! What they show is that, indeed, TAVNS causes engagement of brainstem circuitry that’s involved in brain autonomic outflow linking to the heart and vagus. ” For instance, transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) approaches…
Read MoreRole of non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation, TAVNS in cancer pathology and immunotherapy: Can this be a hidden treasure, especially for the elderly?
Some patients may be aware that I use TAVNS, or ear stimulation in the clinic in conjunction with acupuncture. It’s a non-invasive means of stimulating the vagus nerve through a branch of the vagus in the ear. The proof of the efficacy of TAVNS is getting more robust. These authors from Hong Kong make…
Read MoreThe evolving obesity challenge: targeting the vagus nerve and the inflammatory reflex in the response
This research article emphasizes bioelectronic medicine as a solution to obesity. Acupuncture also activates the vagus nerve! So does TAVNS, something I use in the clinic in conjunction with acupuncture. (Note well that this article came out in 2021 before the Ozempic phenonenon. But if past is any indication of future, there will be problems…
Read MoreLong covid, the gut and vagus nerve
This NPR transcript, which you can read below, says that scientists think that there may be some corona virus that remains in the gut causing the “Brain Fog” symptoms of Long Covid. The cause of the brain fog, is a reduction in serotonin. The virus, or pieces of the virus, may be leading to inflammation…
Read MoreNew Explanation for Long Covid
The new theory behind some of the symptoms of Long Covid is that the virus stays in the gut. This article from the New York Times explains that the residual virus tends up depleting seratonin levels. The following quote is important. Peripheral serotonin deficiency impairs cognition via reduced vagal signaling I went to a conference…
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