Course Overview

There are valid TCM industry concerns about the carcinogens emitted by ‘sidestream’ Moxa smoke. What are the effects of these carcinogens being inhaled by practitioners, staff members and patients – both short-term and long-term – in the closed-up confines of a clinic space? Despite 2,500 years of therapeutic usage, Moxibustion cannot escape the modern scrutiny of all combustible smoke inhalation risks, due to the awareness created by Tobacco smoking fatalities. Since the 1950s the ongoing Tobacco health crisis has prompted the refinement of research methods to confirm the causality between smoking – as in ‘active’ or ‘passive’ smoking - and Lung Cancer. This course explores the types of research directed towards the analysis of Moxa smoke in the clinic setting, especially those reputable research methods borrowed from the Tobacco industry. It highlights the relative lack of Epidemiology studies as the major weak area in Moxa smoke research. Mitigation methods are recommended for TCM practitioners using Moxibustion regularly in the workplace. But the main focus is on the modern thermal substitutes in the form of Infrared lamps and hand-held devices, for Moxa-averse practitioners wishing to follow the ‘precautionary principle’.

Course Objectives

• Be informed of the industry concerns surrounding the inhalation of Moxa smoke in the clinic workspace.
• Be able to identify the research methods used to confirm causality between Tobacco ‘smoking’ and Lung Cancer.
• Understand how the TCM industry can borrow from well-established causality studies to analyse the impacts of Moxa smoke inhalation in the workplace.
• Obtain a template for future ‘risk management' in terms of either mitigation strategies or modern thermal substitutes.

Course Outline

0 hrs - 15 minDespite 2,500 years of usage, Moxibustion cannot escape the modern scrutiny of all combustible smoke inhalation risks, due to the awareness created by the Tobacco health crisis. Out of this health crisis came a solid foundation of causality studies.

15 min - 30 minUsing a well-thumbed list of research methods borrowed from the tobacco industry, it is possible to apply these findings to Moxibustion impacts. A glaring omission, however, in Moxa smoke research, is the scarcity of long-term Epidemiology studies.

30 min - 45 minHaving seen that specific cancers have been linked to toxic compounds in Tobacco smoke, some of which are also found in Moxa smoke, it is imperative to ulitise the Precautionary Principle until the scientific evidence is fully presented.

45 min - 1 hrsFortunately for Moxa-averse TCM practitioners, there are modern heating substitutes such as Infrared lamps. But these new devices require ongoing research to assess whether they heat the Acupoints as effectively as traditional Moxibustion has done.

Course Overview

Many TCM clinic practitioners may be unaware of the number of common usage products containing Methyl-Iso-Thiazolinone (MIT). The use of MIT as a chemical water preservative since 2001 is out-of-control. It has been allowed to reach the absurdly high concentration of 100 parts per million (ppm) even after it’s mother product CMIT:MIT, with its much lower proportion of 15 ppm MIT, showed disturbingly high rates of Skin and Lung Allergies in exposed consumers. MIT is out-of-control because it is in so many product categories. In 2001, MIT started as an industrial preservative in Paint. Unfortunately Allergy reports were ignored and MIT was then introduced to Cosmetics and Personal products in 2005. This was a disaster considering that Cosmetics and products such as Sunscreen, are LEAVE-ON products, absorbed directly into the Skin! MIT is out-of-control because industry regulation is lacking. Paint manufacturers are allowed to ‘self-regulate’ the amount of MIT added to their Paints, with the result that exposure to Paint fumes accounts for 50% of all MIT-based Contact Dermatitis cases. MIT is out-of-control because the medical screening test, the Patch Test, is applied to CMIT:MIT only, and not to MIT alone, leading to misdiagnosis. The main treatment for Allergic reactions - trigger avoidance – is impossible if patients have not been medically diagnosed properly. There needs to be a lot more public education about MIT so that people can select safer product substitutes. PLEASE NOTE: While this course does cover safety-related topics, it is not accredited by NCCAOM under the "Safety Category", but rather the "AOM-BIO" category.

Course Objectives

• Identify the large array of common usage products containing the highly Allergenic MIT preservative.
• Learn the aetiology of this Lung and Skin Allergen.
• Be informed of the concentration threshold changes to MIT, with reference to industry regulation since its release.
• Examine the management of this Delayed-type Hypersensitivity to obtain a protocol for product substitution and Allergen avoidance.

Course Outline

0 hrs - 15 minThere is a need for TCM practitioners to identify MIT Preservative in terms of the high Allergic potential arising from common usage products.

15 min - 30 minPractitioners need to understand the potential for both Lung injury and Skin Injury from this Preservative Allergen.

30 min - 45 minThe chronology of changes to MIT products highlights the inadequacy of industry regulation during the years of marketing.

45 min - 1 hrsAnecdotal evidence helps to illustrate the aetiology of this T-Cell mediated Hypersensitivity, and to analyse the screening test and potential treatments.

Course Overview

As a workplace concern, EMF Wireless radiation is not ‘on the radar’ for many TCM practitioners but it should be! Current safety standards continue to be based on outdated threshold limits for THERMAL-ONLY biological effects. As a result, EMF Wireless devices have proliferated the planet with totally inappropriate emission levels. These levels fail to integrate the growing weight-of-evidence warnings about the disastrous NON-THERMAL health effects! Lloyds of London – the biggest Insurance market in the world – will not accept liability for ‘Wi-Fi Injury’ associated with Wi-Fi devices. Lloyds has done its homework on both THERMAL and NON-THERMAL effects and thresholds. National standards are far from unified, especially since the release of the National Toxicology Program (NTP) Study in 2016. This crucial 10-year Study confirmed the causal link between tumours of the Brain and Heart and excessive exposure to 2G and 3G mobile phones. Now the world is facing the 5G threat which will add to the aggregate burden of EMF radiation from digital meters, routers, and wireless devices in the community. EMF wavelengths cannot be effectively blocked but they can be avoided or have their impact lessened to a degree. TCM practitioners need to educate themselves on this urgent health and safety issue, even if it means learning new technical jargon and contradicting the public perception of safe-use technology. In this way, they have the chance to lead the health industry. PLEASE NOTE: While this course does cover safety-related topics, it is not accredited by NCCAOM under the "Safety Category", but rather the "AOM-BIO" category.

Course Objectives

• Understand why the Insurance companies refuse to indemnify ‘Wi-Fi’ Injury in the clinic workplace and elsewhere.
• Identify the historical landmarks underpinning the formation of THERMAL-only EMF Safety Standards in different countries.
• Be informed of the scientific and medical concerns surrounding the NON-THERMAL biological effects of EMF radiation.
• Understand the current international disparities in EMF Safety Standards.
• Obtain a template for clinic ‘risk management’ in terms of avoidance or mitigation strategies for minimising EMF exposure.

Course Outline

0 hrs - 15 minThere is a need for TCM practitioners to educate themselves on ‘Wi-Fi Injury’ due to the complete absence of Insurance available.

15 min - 30 minThe history of last century’s Risk Assessment tools helps us to understand the erroneous THERMAL-only bias for EMF radiation thresholds.

30 min - 45 minThe Safety Standard variability, nation-to-nation, gives practitioners a further historical perspective on the current EMF Standards debate.

45 min - 1 hrsPractitioners can recognise the obvious shortcomings of the THERMAL-ONLY approach.

1 hrs - 1.25 hrsThe importance of the National Toxicology Program Study needs to be understood for the undeniable NON-THERMAL considerations.

1.25 hrs - 1.5 hrsA comparison of different nations shows a range of reactions to the growing Electro-Physiology research on the NON-THERMAL cellular effects.

1.5 hrs - 1.75 hrs5G concerns need to be understood in the context of the aggregate burden of EMF radiation.

1.75 hrs - 2 hrsPractitioners need to educate themselves on EMF avoidance and mitigation strategies for health and insurance reasons.