Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine for the Treatment of Raynaud’s Disease

Raynaud’s disease is a condition that causes extremities like fingers, toes, the tip of your nose and your ears, to feel numb and cold in response to cold temperatures or stress. Wintertime usually exacerbates the symptoms, which can typically be managed easily in Philadelphia with an extra pair of gloves, thicker socks and avoided extended exposure to cold. With extreme temperatures and polar vortexes ripping through Philly and the East Coast, Raynaud’s management poses a bit more difficulty. Caused by the narrowing of the smaller arteries that supply blood to the skin and these areas, Raynaud’s disease means limited blood circulation to these affected areas.

Women are more likely than men to have Raynaud’s disease and, perhaps not surprisingly, it’s more common in people who live in colder climates.

“Treatment” for Raynaud’s disease often consists of activities like layering clothing, wearing gloves and donning extra thick socks. Some patients take medications deigned to open up or widen their blood vessels and promote circulation.

Increasingly, I am seeing patients who are interested in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) approaches to easing Raynaud’s disease. These treatment regimens are often focused on herbal formulas that warm, increase peripheral circulation and work on improving the integrity of qi and blood in the superficial channels. Depending on the Patient’s presentation we  evaluate and use herbs such as astragulus (huang qi), aconite (fu zi), ginger (gan jiang), ligusticum (chuan xiong) and cinnamon (gui zhi) to ease the chill, move blood and reduce pain in their extremities.

Patients are also finding relief with acupuncture as it can increase blood flow and decrease pain. In fact, a study published in the Journal of Internal Medicine showed that acupuncture treatment decreased the symptoms or “attacks” of Raynaud’s disease by 63%.

Finally, avoiding too much caffeine, getting a good amount of exercise and eating a balanced diet rich in Omega-3 fatty acids can also help your body successfully combat Raynaud’s disease.

More information and helpful resources for Raynaud’s disease can be found here:

http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/condition/raynauds-phenomenon

http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART00402/Raynauds-Disease.html

http://www.raynauds.org/2011/05/08/my-journey-with-acupuncture/

http://www.livestrong.com/article/533017-acupuncture-for-raynauds/