Marin Acupuncture Clinic

12/07/2022

Our favorite local medicine man is leading a plant medicine walk on 12/17/22 in Fairfax! Highly recommended!

09/02/2022

I am often asked about supplements that help with depression. Here is my list:

🔸St. John’s wort. For mild to moderate depression, St. John’s wort is better than paroxetine 20 mg. Other trials show it is as effective as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, including fluoxetine, paroxetine, and sertraline, as well as tricyclic antidepressants, but with fewer side effects. However, since St. John’s wort causes many drug interactions, it might not be an appropriate choice for some patients, including those who take other conventional drugs.
Dose: For mild to moderate depression, most trials have used St. John’s wort extract standardized to 0.3 percent hypericin content, 300 mg 3x/day for up to six weeks.

🔸Omega-3 fatty acids. Low omega-3 levels are associated with depression.
Dose: 1.5 to 2 gms/day

🔸Low-dose lithium. Lithium has been used at standard doses for bipolar disorder dating back to 1870, but now trace and low doses have been found to be effective in depression, suicidal ideation, dementia, ADHD, and Parkinson’s disease. Lithium is a mood stabilizer and can be found in vegetables, mustard, kelp, thyme, pistachio nuts, and tap water.
Dose: 0.4 to 2 m/day for the long term helps some patients with depression.

🔸Rhodiola. Rhodiola decreases overall depressive symptoms, emotional instability, insomnia, and somatization in patients with mild to moderate depression, treated for six weeks. Compared to sertraline (Zoloft) in mild to moderate depression, rhodiola has a better benefit-to-risk profile.
Dose: 340 mg once or twice daily.

🔸Saffron. Based on six randomized trials, saffron effectively treats mild to moderate depression and appears to be as effective as the antidepressant imipramine.
Dose: 30 mg 1x/day for six or more weeks.

Other vitamins that may help be associated with reduced depression symptoms:

🔸Vitamin D. Dose: 600 to 2,000 IU/day, or enough to keep your serum vitamin D levels at 60 to 80.

🔸Vitamin B6. Dose: 50 to 100 mg per day of vitamin B6 or pyridoxine-5-phosphate (P5P).

🔸Folate. Dose: 200 mcg to 15 mg daily for up to six months.

08/06/2022

07/02/2022

Key nutrients for optimal thyroid function:

🟠Protein. Getting enough protein is important because tyrosine is the backbone of T4 and T3. You need to have adequate amino acids to be able to produce them. It’s also possible to supplement with L-Tyrosine.

🟠Iron is key to normal thyroid function. Ask your doctor for a serum ferritin level. Ideally, you want a ferritin level that is above 40. I like to get my patients between 40 and 70. If they're having hair loss we know that in terms of increasing new hair, so not just stabilizing hair loss but actually making new hair, you need to have a ferritin level of about 70 to 80. I recommend iron from food sources, such as leafy greens and grass-fed beef.

🟠Selenium is important to the enzymes that protect your thyroid from damage by free radicals. Take it only if you’re deficient and have autoantibodies to the thyroid. Many multivitamins contain the recommended amount of 200 mcg/day.

🟠Vitamin A. Your thyroid depends on sufficient quantities of vitamin A. RDA is 5,000 IU. Evidence is good that vitamin A supplementation has a beneficial impact on thyroid function. Try to get vitamin A from food; excellent sources include chicken livers, raw carrots (½ cup has 9,000 IU from beta-carotene), and dandelion greens.

🟠Zinc is important for the conversion of T4 to T3, and supplementation has been shown to raise free T3 (fT3), decrease reverse T3 (rT3), and lower TSH. It must be taken in the correct proportion with copper, since taking too much zinc may interfere with copper absorption. Generally, more than 50 mg/day is too much. I take 20 mg of zinc each day with my 2 mg of copper.

As I discussed in a previous post, stress can affect your thyroid so it’s important to make sure you are getting enough nutrients that protect your adrenals and support the HPATGG axis.

🟠Nutrients include adequate B vitamins (B5, B6), vitamins C and E, magnesium, and Celtic sea salt and trace minerals.

06/19/2022

When it comes to making a baby, we know it takes two to tango. So why do the pressures of fertility often fall on only one half of the equation? In this video, data journalist Mona Chalabi examines some of the big misconceptions around fertility, shares significant blind spots in the data, and revea...

05/23/2022

More reasons to switch to green tea!

Does coffee make you feel too jacked up? It leaves me feeling raw, jittery, and throttled. And it disrupts my sleep, too.

I am a slow-metabolizer of caffeine, along with 50% of the population.

When I finally discovered this several years ago, I switched out my morning coffee and replaced it with matcha (ground up green tea leaves). What I like about matcha is that it not only energizes me without the rev of coffee, but it offers a whole host of other benefits.

Benefits of green tea and matcha:

🌿Matcha tea contains the amino acid L-theanine. This increases serotonin, dopamine, and GABA and is known to have a calming effect on the mind and body (likely why traditionally monks sipped matcha tea). The caffeine content may promote focused energy without the jitters.

🌿Matcha provides a rich dose of polyphenols. These are antioxidants that prevent oxidative stress from making you old and sick. One of the shining stars of matcha’s cast of characters is epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG)5.

🌿Green tea leaves, stems, and buds contain six types of antioxidants known as catechins (of which EGCG is one), and all six clear your body of free radicals and can weaken the cold virus. That means when you catch a cold, you’re less likely to get sick.

🌿Green tea has been shown to induce glutathione production and help liver enzymes involved in detoxification. Glutathione is the queen of detoxifiers in the body. It protects cells by cleaning up excess free radicals, the enemy agents with unpaired electrons that damage DNA, cell membranes, and proteins. By raising your body’s internal glutathione levels, you can protect your cells from damage.

For more on glutathione and liver detoxification, read this
https://www.saragottfriedmd.com/love-your-liver-7-ways-to-detox-and-remove-toxins/

01/16/2022

Critical interview for our fertility patients and their partners to watch, to ensure the best possible outcome!

0:00 - 0:41 - Introduction of Dr Paul Magarelli by Dr. Lorne Brown0:42 - 4:11 - Dr. Paul Magarelli medical background and his fertility training4:12 - 5:35 -...

02/18/2021

We often prescribe Alpha Lipoic Acid at our clinic as a Spleen tonic. Here are its Western medical properties:

When it comes to supplements, my advice always is to eat whole, organic food first whenever possible. Then support and enhance your diet with supplements, but only when you build the foundation of eating the right foods for you. Supplements cannot fix a nutrient-poor diet.⠀
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Alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) is a mitochondria-loving and energy-boosting supplement. ALA repairs damaged cells, and it’s one of the most critical antiaging, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant agents you can ingest. ALA is four-hundred times stronger than vitamins C and E.⠀
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It occurs naturally in mitochondria, but you need to take 300 to 1,800 mg per day for it to act like a free radical warrior in your body. ALA may protect your bones as you age and keeps your cells sensitive to insulin so that your blood sugar doesn’t climb (Kouzi, 2014; Lee, 2012). ⠀
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(R)-alpha-lipoic acid at 600 mg per day may counter the loss of glutathione as you get older. Glutathione is a major force in your detoxification cycle and arguably your most powerful antioxidant. The data for (R)-alpha-lipoic acid for reversing the age-related loss in glutathione in humans is not as strong as for N-acetyl cysteine (NAC). Both NAC and alpha-lipoic acid improve mitochondria function.⠀
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What is your experience with ALA?

02/12/2021

Happy Chinese New Year! May the Ox bring you strength, consistency, and patience!

The Metal Ox will bring order to the mess the Rat created last year, but the process will be slow and full of growing pains.

09/11/2020

Some helpful herbs, flower essences and essential oils during this time of fires....

Sharing good practical info from 🔥HERBS FOR FIRE SEASON & BEYOND😷⁠⠀
Like many of our friends and followers here on the West Coast, we have been dealing with the uncertainty and discomfort brought on by an unusually brutal fire season fueled by climate change. While we are grateful to be settled back into our farm headquarters at .sunset after having to evacuate late last month, the hazy air and scent of smoke keep us prepared to leave again at any moment. It’s been a stressful time in an already stressful year, so we wanted to check-in with all our neighbors (both geographic and digital) to let you know that we’re thinking about you. Our hearts go out to all those who have suffered losses in recent weeks, and we send all of you our best wishes for your safety and well-being.💛⁠⠀⁠⠀
For those contending with poor air quality and stress due to the on-going burns, we’re sharing some herbal support suggestions to fortify your affected systems, so you can stay strong and centered during these difficult times. Many of these herbs can be found in formulations like the Respiratory Recoup extract available in our online shop (🔥TAP THE LINK IN OUR PROFILE🔥), as well as the DIY Lung Support Oxymel recipe shared in our last post. And for even more herbal lung support guidance from Five Flavors Herbs co-founder Dr. Ingrid Bauer, check out our LATEST IGTV VIDEO!⁠⠀⁠⠀⁠⠀⁠⠀⁠⠀