Please enjoy the hundreds of articles that Dr. Borten has written over the past 20+ years. There’s something for everyone, including explorations of spirituality, learning from the natural world, exercise and stretching, nutrition, psychology, posture, breathing, pain management, Eastern medicine and philosophy, and much more.
Last week I touched on a topic I’d like to revisit in greater depth: celebration. So many holidays converge around the darkest day of the year – from Halloween to Thanksgiving to Hanukkah to Christmas to Saint Nicholas Day to New Year’s to the Winter…
This is the time of year when many sweet non-Jewish friends ask if my parents are going to visit for Hanukkah, and I explain that, unlike Christmas, in the scheme of Jewish holidays Hanukkah is kind of a minor one. Moreover, it’s not a gift…
I grew up Jewish, so Christmas and all its accessories were a bit foreign to me as a kid. In my Christian friends’ homes I would see a big fancy tree, presents, candy canes, and sometimes elves, bells, angels, stars, wreaths, holly, candles, reindeer, birds,…
As we approach the American Thanksgiving holiday, for the first time ever we have to use the term “American Thanksgiving.” We always have so much to be thankful for, but this year it’s a little different because we’ve made big strides in expanding how we…
As much as I love the intricacy of human physiology and biomedicine, when I’m considering the whole health of a patient – their big picture – I like to step back and look for broad, simple patterns of imbalance. One such pattern that’s present to…
Embracing Your Inner Mermaid If you have a young daughter and you support female empowerment, chances are the topic of The Little Mermaid has come up in your conversations with other parents. In case you never saw the Disney version, it’s a 1989 film about…
Have you felt the weather shift recently? One of the things I love about Chinese five element philosophy is the concept of five seasons. The time of the transition to the fifth season – late summer – varies a bit from place to place, but…
I have written so much about what and how to eat, so I thought I’d say a few words about what we might do before and after a meal to enhance the experience. First, the before-meals recommendations: 1) Set an intention. This applies to food,…
As it warms up outside and everyone becomes more active, we in medical field see an increase in injuries, and sprains are a big one. For years, those of us in Chinese Medicine have winced at the recommendation of ice for sprains, since it goes…
In this series on weight, I’ve discussed numerous factors involved in weight gain. Now, I’m going to simplify it all in this list of strategies for healthy body weight. Although there are 34 items in this list, I’m not implying that you need to keep…
Last week I explained some of the many reasons why humans today have more trouble staying slim than ever before. These include differences in our lifestyles, food changes, chemical disruption, and several other factors. At the end, I offered an idea that has been on…
It’s optimal weight month at The Dragontree, and I’ve been thinking a lot about the overweight epidemic – particularly as I gained a bunch of extra belly insulation after my new daughter was born and have had to work harder than usual to lose it….
I’m a big proponent of creative expression. Even if your life’s work centers around buying and selling, interpreting, communicating, or destroying, I think it’s worthwhile to make time for creating. Create music, or art, or gardens, or recipes, or whatever feels good. There’s something about…
I’ll never forget my eighth grade science teacher, Bill Andrake. He was a post-hippie with so much passion for science and the environment that it was sometimes scary. More than once, he dumped a garbage can on the floor and sifted through the trash while…
Humans have long regarded the heart as the center of emotion, a portal of love, and even the abode of the soul. Our literature is full of references to the ideas that the heart is susceptible to intense emotion, and that being “open-hearted” is good…
Life experience has taught me that people don’t like to be compared to vegetables. But the thing is, there are some similarities between us and our friends in the plant kingdom that we can learn from. When I was a botany student, one of the…
In light of the risks of suppressing skin problems, which I discussed in last week’s article, I present to you some healthy alternatives to steroid creams and topical antibiotics. 1. Baking Soda: Baking soda is one of the cheapest and easiest things to try for…
Years ago, I read a book on the theory of homeopathic medicine that changed the way I thought about health and inspired me to go into medicine. One of the most interesting concepts regarded a hierarchy of systems and layers within human beings. According to…
For eleven years, our slogan has been “A Peaceful World Begins With a Peaceful You.” The massage, acupuncture, and skin care we offer do a pretty good job of making our clients peaceful, but we recognize that there’s more to peace than what external…
In my last article, I wrote about how our myriad options for health repair have led us to believe that doing our own self-maintenance isn’t so important – we can always get fixed. Then I compared a car that’s been repeatedly broken and repaired to…
When someone comes in to see me, I usually put a few acupuncture needles in them, I might do some massage, and perhaps I’ll prepare them an herbal prescription. I can give a person a pretty good push in the direction of health. But, I’m…