At Evergreen Medical Acupuncture, one of our most popular services is Cosmetic Acupuncture with our facial rejuvenation specialist, Dr. Jill Zundelevich. Dr. Zundelevich has recently invested in taking her facial rejuvenation game to the next level with a fantastic service called microneedling. Primarily, this procedure increases natural collagen a...

(Originally published in 2021) Dr. Jen Kralowetz is no stranger to medicine. Although Dr. Kralowetz is new to the team at Evergreen Medical Acupuncture, she's been treating patients for a decade. Now she is serving patients in Evergreen on Saturdays (our most requested day!). Jen's journey into helping people overcome all sorts of health challenges...

(Originally published in 2021) Most people have heard of acupuncture, but many people don't fully understand how it works or what kind of diseases and symptoms it can treat. I thought I'd highlight some interesting cases my clinic has seen over the years. The easiest thing to treat with acupuncture is pain: all types, any location, acute or chronic...

Let's talk about women's health. Women have unique needs that can also lead to unique issues throughout every stage of their lives, from menarche to menopause. Whether it's teens first starting menarche (cycles), women transitioning off birth control to try to get pregnant, going through pregnancy and labor itself, or menopause, taking a holistic a...

Myofascial Trigger Points (MTrps) are clinically diagnosed as palpable taut bands in the muscle that are tender when pressed (muscle knots). Often, these points refer lightning pain in distant areas and pain with stretching. A local twitch response with needling confirms active MTrps. MTrps have been found in 147 different muscles. Headaches, rotat...

The most common condition people seek an acupuncturist for is pain. Acupuncture excels at treating all kinds of pain, in all phases of the pain process. Not only is acupuncture great for decreasing the feeling of pain, and the symptoms (redness, swelling, etc.), but it's also great for speeding up the actual process of tissue healing.Pain can be bo...

There are many easy ways to help yourself become more resilient, and to treat yourself if you do become ill from acute allergies, colds or flus. First, I want to go over some of the things that could be really hurting your immune system's potential. Unhealthy fats can cause a big problem. Not only do they cause an increase in certain inflammatory c...

Have you ever heard of getting a B12 injection? Seems fancy, right? B12 is one of the most common injection ingredients at our clinic. But B12 isn't just used for those who are deficient in the vitamin; it's a powerhouse for pain syndromes. B12, or cobalamin, is an essential water-soluble vitamin. It is only found in animal products, which makes it...

Here are some easy, everyday tips that are no-brainers when it comes to a healthy lifestyle. Your Toilet When you flush, your toilet releases what's called "toilet plume" into the air, which is a spray filled with microscopic bacteria, such as E. coli, and viruses. The germs emitted in the spray can linger in the air for hours and settle onto nearb...

 I can't tell you how often we get the question, "What is the difference between dry needling (DN) and medical acupuncture (MA)?" Simply put, DN is needling into muscles, while MA is needling along nerve and connective tissue pathways. DN is best for painful muscle knots, while MA employs a variety of needling techniques and needling locations...

Spring is in full swing and signs of life are everywhere. Sprouts and blooms have broken through the winter landscape. Birds, bees and butterflies are getting back to business. The days are getting longer, and Mother's Day is here. It's a fitting time to reflect on all that gives us life and sustains us. Spending time outdoors reminds us of the nat...

You're not just imagining it: pollen counts from trees and grass have been extremely high in Colorado this year, thanks to high winds and mostly dry weather. More than 67 million Americans suffer from allergies, 81 percent of whom say they are allergic to pollen. If you're one of them, you've likely been feeling uncomfortable symptoms such as sinus...

First off, the cardinal rule of medicine (besides do no harm) is to never say you can cure something. Lesson No. 1: If you run into someone claiming they can cure you, they probably haven't been in the business of medicine long enough to know that is such a misleading statement. What does "to cure" even mean? It means to completely get rid of, to c...

It finally snowed! Coloradans are welcoming the much-needed moisture and fresh feeling as we head into 2022. Winter adventures are on the horizon, so we should all remember to be careful on the road if we want to make the most of the season when we get to our destination. Motor vehicle accidents (MVAs) are a leading cause of injury, and the effects...

 Is it just me or does it seem like there is a collective energy out there right now that just feels tense, angry, hurried or negative? When our sympathetic nervous system ramps up into fight or flight, we can perpetuate these feelings and pass along the negativity from one person to another Acupuncture is a standout treatment in helping to ba...

Did you know that the most common condition people seek an acupuncturist for is pain? Pain is both what you feel (subjective) and a physical change in the body (objective). If you twist your ankle, you feel pain and see marked redness and swelling. Pain is your body's way of saying something is wrong, so pay attention. Would you ignore your gas lig...

Cupping is a form of healing therapy that gained exposure during the 2016 Olympics, when a lot of U.S. athletes showed up to the games with circular red and purple marks all over their bodies, particularly on the large muscles of the arms, shoulders and back. Read on to learn how cupping is used in a clinical setting, about evidence of its benefits...

Sugar causes detrimental health effects that often fly under the radar. Often, people have subclinical blood sugar issues even when their labs look "normal." Most people don't think of many other diseases besides diabetes that arise from overeating sugar, but I desperately challenge you to expand your knowledge of the destructive effects sugar has....

 Lower back pain is the number one complaint that people come to see us for at Evergreen Medical Acupuncture. It's one of the most common ailments in America, and one that responds very well to acupuncture therapy. Scientific research supports its efficacy based on multiple studies and comprehensive systematic reviews—so much so that the ...

The Institute of Functional Medicine states that "Functional Medicine is a systems-based and biology-based approach that focuses on identifying and addressing the root cause of disease." Let's break this down: A systems-based approach is the understanding that no one-system of the body operates independently. For example, your nervous system is ver...

The term Trigger Point Injection is synonymous with "wet needling". This treatment was the original therapeutic founded by Dr. Janet Travell, MD whose treatments and research eventually paved the way for the treatment of "dry needling". Dry needling involves an acupuncture needle (solid, non-hypodermic) inserted into a taught muscle band or knot (c...

Sugar causes detrimental health effects that often fly under the radar. Often people have subclinical blood sugar issues even when their labs look "normal". Most people don't think of many other diseases besides diabetes that arise from overeating sugar, but I desperately challenge you to expand your knowledge of the destructive effects sugar has. ...

In January 2020, the Federal government made a groundbreaking exception for Acupuncturists to bill Medicare. After years of volunteers' fighting, we were finally, partially, accepted. Congress saw all the proof, which was summed up in a 200-page document of the research behind Medical Acupuncture and its efficacy for low back pain. Unfortunately, C...

As the owner of Evergreen Medical Acupuncture, and Evergreen native, I have been committed to serving my community in whatever ways possible. I think it's safe to say that the prices of goods, services, and the general cost of living has been exponentially rising and non-essential medical services such as acupuncture, and even chiropractic or massa...

A good complexion and healthy looking skin is often taken for granted. It's not until you start to see those deep wrinkles, acne, or eczema that we then jump into (re)action mode. But if you're someone who wants some tips on preventative skin care, before the going gets bad, read on! Our inside health very much can help or hinder what our outside s...

I think everyone can understand that scars can be anything from a cosmetic eyesore to a major body-altering issue. Scars are made up of a thicker collagen that mends together injured tissue. Hypertrophic scarring is a typical wavy formation of scarring that outlines just where the injury, incision, or damage occurred. However, Keloid scarring, whic...

We've all been there: you're enjoying some of summer's fresh tomatoes, indulging at a friend's barbecue, or enjoying some tacos and a margarita on a patio deck. Then, an hour or two later, symptoms strike. Abdominal fullness, burning sensations, sour stomach. Acid reflux can definitely ruin the fun. Acid reflux is a common chronic disease that affe...

If you've never had a headache, I'd be surprised to hear it. Headaches and migraines are among the most debilitating, painful conditions–and they're among the most common. There are many causes, types, and treatments. If you're someone who suffers from frequent headaches, it can be very frustrating to try to figure out how to deal with them. Prescr...

This past month, everyone randomly seemed to be coming to our clinic for (non-COVID) viral infections. The complaints were the same: crushing fatigue, brain fog, body pain, and headaches. This infection that has been plaguing our town seemed to mimic other types of illnesses including allergies, colds/flu, and chronic disease. Nonetheless, illness ...

Sugar causes detrimental health effects that often fly under the radar. Often, people have subclinical blood sugar issues even when their labs look "normal." Most people don't think of many other diseases besides diabetes that arise from overeating sugar, but I desperately challenge you to expand your knowledge of the destructive effects sugar has....

There are approximately 7.8 billion humans on this planet. Each of us is unique with our own lifestyle, health history and genetic makeup. With that in mind, your nutrition plan should be customized to your specific requirements. This is the primary idea behind functional medicine: we consider every aspect of one's health h...

Yet another supplement scam uncovered on Amazon. This time NPR found over 100 products claiming they can treat viruses like Covid. To make it even worse, the products making these claims remained on Amazon weeks after NPR identified the misleading labels. One of these companies, in particular, has already lost a federal case against them for simila...

Is anybody out there not stressed right now? Want to know the physiological effects of stress and some tips to regulate it? Generally, with stress, we're talking about cortisol (stress hormone), glucose and adrenal response. Stress will manifest as either high hormones of the above, or low. Occasionally, you can have swings of high, then low cortis...

Thanks to modern research we know for a fact that Choline is one of the most dynamic nutrients in the entire food spectrum. Choline is used to treat liver disease, including chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis. It is also used for depression, memory loss, Alzheimer's disease, dementia, Huntington's chorea, Tourette's disease, cerebellar ataxia, certain...

Ready to learn five of the most important and unthought-of tips from Dr. Christina Fick? That guy dancing above sure is. Here we go...  Unthought-of Health Tip #1 The average American family goes through 300 gallons of water daily. Yikes! Most of the water used literally goes down the toilet. And when we flush, most of us are making a big mist...

The most common cause of diagnosed infertility today is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). It is actually a metabolic disorder that impacts ovulation and therefore fertility. Many times PCOS is an assumed diagnosis when a woman has an irregular cycle length, particularly long cycles, but there are a few criteria that should be met in order to actu...

When looking for a place to help you navigate your health challenges, you might find it hard to find the right one and professional to help you. Where do you start? Your Primary Care Provider (PCP) should be the first place. You get an annual physical, maybe you get a clean bill of health, or maybe you have a few items to work on. Nonetheless, you ...

When someone asks me, “Will acupuncture fix me?” I never lie and say that it will get you better right away. It takes some time. It really does. Sometimes, as few as a couple of treatments for one chief complaint will provide relief. However, the truth for most of us is that health is a consistent result of our habits. So, once you are feeling better, what’s next? What if you’re trying acupuncture for something like allergies, high blood pressure, stress, or chronic low back pain? You get to this crux, this fork in the road. Do you stop treatment once you’re feeling better or come in when your symptoms return? I see a ton of success with my patients who follow a maintenance program. They come in on a scheduled, routine basis to minimize symptoms from returning to full strength, or at all

Pre-coronavirus, I would give patients the option to do whatever they felt was best, both for their schedules and budgets. Post-coronavirus, I have learned some important lessons, both personally and professionally, about maintenance schedules. Practicing acupuncture is similar to dentistry, massage therapy, grooming, or playing music, where you spend enormous amounts of time with your head down, executing repetitive fine motor skills. So, for me, self-maintenance is vital to keeping myself healthy. I have a dual perspective after the stay-at-home order about the patient side and healthcare provider side of why maintenance and routine self-care are so important—more so than I ever realized.

Have you ever heard of a prescription supplement? Prescription supplements are high-quality vitamins, minerals, and herbs that have passed FDA standards of CGMP (Current Good Manufacturing Practices). They certify that supplements have passed a rigorous series of testing to ensure safety, ingredients, and potency. Not everything that is sold over the counter at Natural Grocers or Whole Foods meets these requirements. In fact, very few do. Amazon and Walmart were recently caught in several schemes where supplements they sold had fillers like rice powder or contained heavy metals. GNC, Walgreens, Target, and many more all have been accused or caught selling fake supplements. GNC has even agreed to pay millions in fines because of this! Some of their supplements had nothing close to the dosing they claimed on the label! Just type into your internet browser, "supplement scams" and see for yourself! Supplements prescribed by healthcare practitioners are the direct reaction to the rise in supplement scams.

Thankfully the FDA is going to war on these supplement scammers. They are regularly cracking down on 1,000 supplement companies a month. They have recognized what a danger this is to consumers. Here is the FDA's statement, "Bogus dietary supplements: Many supplements offer health benefits, but claims to treat or cure diseases are unproven and not allowed by law. Increasingly, so-called “dietary supplements” are found to contain hidden illegal drugs and other chemicals that could cause serious harm. This is especially true for weight loss, sexual enhancement, and bodybuilding “supplements.”

First, let’s recap what Medical Acupuncture is, before going into how it can help treat allergies. Both traditional and Medical Acupuncture consist of the insertion of needles into specific points on the body to treat disease. The difference is how the needles are inserted (depth, gauge, type of needle) and, most of all, the reasoning for location.Traditional acupuncture is often superficial needling with tiny needles and very little emphasis on depth or varying types of needles. Point location is based on a complicated energy diagnosis (where the practitioner thinks your energy needs to be balanced). Medical Acupuncture emphasizes various types of needling. Larger needles can affect certain types of nerves, while smaller needles can stimulate certain areas of the brain. The methods used in Medical Acupuncture are backed by scientific evidence. The location of needling is based on a scientific choice, not based on energy or mysticism at all.

When it comes to allergies, the evidence says that needling into areas where we know there is a higher number of eosinophils and neutrophils (types of white blood cells) activates the immune system. We use a certain type of needle that doesn’t damage those white blood cells, but alerts them and wakes them up. This wake-up call to the white blood cells stimulates anti-inflammatory cells to help with allergy symptoms. My saying is, “If I can’t back something with scientific evidence, there’s little reason to do it.” So, now that you understand that Medical Acupuncture has a profound foundation to treat allergies (and, of course, many other conditions) you can become an expert on how it treats allergies.

I think I say the word “Breakfast” more than any other word in my clinic. The most common pamphlet I give patients is my, "How to Eat Breakfast" pamphlet. I had a day of 20 patients. All 20 came in with various symptoms. My recommendation to all 20 was - Eat Breakfast! I couldn’t believe it! I said to my intern, "Well, we have another one that needs breakfast!" Now, breakfast isn’t for everyone. I completely understand that most of us hardly have time to slam a microwaveable breakfast burrito in the morning. I get it, but if you're serious about your life and your health, you need breakfast! However, I do recommend that some patients don't eat breakfast and do a true fast instead. These are patients who are obese (not just stomach fat, but obese), they suffer from sleep apnea and high blood pressure. In these cases, a fast is better because fasting does not spike your blood sugar. So fasting allows obese individuals to regulate their insulin more easily.

 Phyto-Multiplex is a unique combination of Multivitamins + Phytonutrients + Trace Minerals. This highly concentrated mix of plant-rich in bioactive secondary Phytonutrients. What are phytonutrients? Phytonutrients are chemicals produced by plants. Foods with phytonutrients have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits. PhytoMultiplex’s science-based spectrum of phytonutrients—enhanced with quality vitamins and minerals—is designed to recharge, nourish, and defend your cells. It’s intelligently designed to support well-being and the health of multiple body systems:*

Clinical Study Outcomes*

This is one of the most common questions I get for any given condition. In general, acupuncture works on a large variety of conditions with few contraindications or side effects. Many insurance companies are now starting to pay out, as they are seeing the benefits of it, but researching acupuncture is very difficult.

Have you been wanting to do a detox, but you don’t know where to start? If you’re looking for a simple yet effective way to detox, my clinic is offering a true functional medicine cleanse. No matter whether you want to do a quick detox, or an intense custom cleanse, we have an easy way to detox with some very helpful information about healthy eating and how to feel better. The goal of this cleanse is to rid the body of the bad choices you’ve made, introduce good nutritional habits, regulate your blood sugar, decrease inflammation, and most importantly, help you identify what foods could potentially be causing problems. We help people learn about what fats are good to cook with and why, what fruits and veggies are good to eat, chemicals that can cause inflammation, and tricks to help eradicate common ailments.

One of the most common questions we get is, “Can acupuncture treat and cure cancer?” At first, I thought my malpractice insurance was sending spies to test me. The answer is, of course, NO! Acupuncture can not cure cancer! Then, I realized these were real people asking real questions, probably based on something they read online. Anyone who knows me or who follows me knows I’m brutally honest. If you read something like: cupping is practically acupuncture and it can cure your cancer, please walk away; no... run away. Because you know not only are these people disingenuous, but they are incompetent. When we are talking about cancer, the big “C” word, the most important factor you should consider when choosing your team of providers is competency.

Autoimmune conditions are characterized as diseases where a person’s immune system attacks cells that aren’t harmful. The immune system attacks its own bodily tissue which does not need to be messed with in the first place. The immune system basically gets confused about what is foreign bacteria and what’s not. Some of the most common autoimmune conditions include the following: type I diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis/psoriatic arthritis, multiple sclerosis, systemic lupus erythematosus, inflammatory bowel disease, Addison’s disease, Graves’ disease, Sjogren’s, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, andceliac disease.

Before you get your pitchfork out, not all cytokines, even the ones listed above, are bad. They are our body’s way to signal that something is wrong; there is an infection that we need to do something about. These signaling cytokines are like our gas lights, engine lights and emergency lights on our cars. We don’t just pull out the light bulb when its flashing! We pay attention when the gas light comes on head to the mechanic, right?

Many men and women spend years trying to avoid pregnancy only to be frustrated later in life to find out how difficult it really can be to start that dream family. When troubles with fertility arise it can be shocking, devastating, confusing, and frustrating. Luckily, medical acupuncture and functional medicine offer numerous ways to address difficulties with becoming pregnant and maintaining a healthy pregnancy. Infertility and miscarriage can be an isolating experience. According to the CDC, about 10% of women in the US between the ages of 15 and 44 have difficulty getting pregnant or staying pregnant. If you are in this 10%, remember you are not alone!

There are numerous reasons for inhibited fertility and in many cases, Westen medicine can’t offer an actual diagnosis. But that’s ok because Chinese medicine has many ways of diagnosing and addressing the causes of fertility problems. Over the next few weeks, we will talk about some common issues that many women experience and how acupuncture helps in those instances.

One of acupuncture’s greatest therapeutic gifts that I tend to overlook is stress relief. I am so focused on treating a long list of my patients’ ailments that I have kind of disregarded the one thing that all of us suffer from stress and anxiety! According to the American Psychological Association, 75 percent of adults reported moderate to high levels of stress. Stress is a top health concern for U.S. teens. This is an epidemic that has been normalized by our way of life.

Stress can ignite our fight or flight response, or it can subtly nag us daily until we blow up. This “sympathetic” activity is meant to help us respond to catastrophe, danger, or any other disaster. Have you ever reacted to something minor in an extreme way? This stress response is often due to an imbalanced brain. The brain, much like us as a whole, with practice, becomes better. If you continue to practice being “good” at stress, your brain makes more pathways for the stress response to continue with little effort. I see this far too often. When people practice what I call "stinkin thinkin" it becomes a daily habit, a way of life, and the repetition of negative thoughts becomes a chronic determine to their health. But the good news is, this can change.

Traditionally Western Medicine has identified a handful of major minerals that the human body requires: calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and magnesium. All of the remaining elements in the human body are called "trace elements" or "trace minerals". Thanks to new technology and new research methods, science is beginning to uncover the importance of these "trace minerals". One trace mineral I often recommend is called boron. Nothing is boring about boron!

Boron affects the body the same way other vital minerals do we just don't know as much about it. Boron plays an important role in helping your body absorb magnesium. Magnesium is a vital mineral. Fortunately, these two minerals work hand-in-hand to keep you feeling your best. Boron also impacts how your body uses calcium and phosphorous. Of all the functions boron has in your body, it is most well known for providing aid to joints and bones. Boron induces the mineralization activity of what’s called osteoblasts. Osteoblasts are a type of cell that creates crucial new material to rebuild bones. Boron activates these cells by regulating gene expression. This is only the beginning – there are many other surprising health benefits of boron.

I primarily write these articles to educate the community about acupuncture. Acupuncture is an amazing therapy that is underutilized and largely unknown to most people. I strongly believe that through education, I can help lead people to a healthy lifestyle and maybe even acupuncture. But, in this article, I am going to do something different. I am going to share with you why you get the best bang for your buck at my clinic.