Diabetes

Types of Diabetes:

Diabetes, (technically called diabetes mellitus), is a disease which causes high blood sugar.  This is a metabolic disease, where the sugar in your blood is not transferred to your cells properly by the hormone insulin.  This is either because your body is not making enough insulin, or the body isn’t able to use the insulin effectively.

The types of diabetes include type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, prediabetes and gestational diabetes.  Type 1 diabetes is where the immune system destroys the cells in the pancreas, limiting the production of insulin.  Contrastingly, type 2 diabetes is when the body becomes resistant to insulin.  Prediabetes is like type 2 diabetes, but the blood sugar levels aren’t high enough to be called type 2 diabetes. Gestational diabetes occurs during pregnancy, due to insulin-blocking hormones produced by the placenta.  These types of diabetes all have different causes, symptoms and treatments.

Diabetes Symptoms:

The symptoms of diabetes are all caused by high blood sugar levels.  Increased hunger and thirst, frequent urination, blurry vision, extreme fatigue and sores that refuse to heal are some of the general symptoms of diabetes.  While men with diabetes may also experience poor muscle strength and erectile dysfunction, women may experience itchy and dry skin, and urinary tract infections.

Type 1 diabetes patients may experience unintentional weight loss and mood changes as well as the general symptoms, while patients who have type 2 diabetes may experience recurring infections.  Women who have high blood sugar due to pregnancy (gestational diabetes) rarely experience symptoms.

What Causes Diabetes?

It is currently unknown what the exact cause of type 1 diabetes is.  The beta cells in the pancreas which are responsible for producing insulin, are destroyed by the immune system.  Genetics, or perhaps viruses may be possible factors which cause the immune system to do this.

Type 2 diabetes is caused by being overweight or obese.  Genetics also play a role, so if someone in your family has diabetes you may be more likely to suffer from it, and to become overweight as well.  Being overweight or obese makes your cells more resistant to the effects of insulin, which means it’s harder for the insulin to remove sugar from the blood and transfer it to the cells.  Luckily, you can always manage your weight by healthy eating and regular exercise.

Gestational diabetes is caused by hormones produced by the placenta, which make your cells less sensitive to insulin. Being overweight during conception and pregnancy may also increase the risk of gestational diabetes.  

How Can Chinese Medicine Help?

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the human body is seen as a whole, where all the organs are related to each other.  Hence, a weakness or imbalance in one organ will likely lead to other organs being affected and will result in various symptoms.  To help with diabetes, first a Chinese doctor will assess your symptoms and take your pulse, to find out what the main cause of the problem is.  Then, with acupuncture and Chinese herbs, the main imbalance can be treated so that the organs come back to their proper function.  This may help to treat diabetes.

Female infertility due to weak digestion

However, diet and lifestyle are very important factors in treating diabetes.  At Centre of Balance Hamilton, we recommend a plant-based diet to help treat and reverse diabetes.

For more information about how Chinese Medicine can help, please see our website at https://balancetcm.co.nz/traditional-chinese-medicine-hamilton/.

For videos about diabetes and Chinese Medicine, see our website page at https://balancetcm.co.nz/category/diabetes/.

Our Offer to You

Fill in our online questionnaire for free – and save the $135 it would cost you to do this detailed medical history in person with a practitioner.  You can request a phone call from a practitioner after they have read your online form, or just book your initial exam for $40.  Call us on 07 846 7956 to book, or fill in the questionnaire now.

References:

Centre of Balance Hamilton: Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine (n.d.). Archive for category: Diabetes. https://balancetcm.co.nz/category/diabetes/

Phua, S. (n.d.). What Is Traditional Chinese Medicine? Centre of Balance Hamilton: Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine. https://balancetcm.co.nz/traditional-chinese-medicine-hamilton/

Watson, S. (2020, February 26). Everything You Need to Know About Diabetes. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/diabetes 

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Monica

I am originally from Hebei province in China. I hold a NZ bachelor’s degree of health and science with a major in acupuncture. I am honoured to be an acupuncturist at Centre of Balance. Helping patients to alleviate their pain brings me the greatest joy. Chinese medicine emphasises the unity of human beings and nature. During the treatment, I hope to not only relieve your pain but also help you to understand the principles behind acupuncture’s effectiveness, as well as the significant impact of diet, emotions, lifestyle habits, and living environments on disease recovery. Self-healing is an ability that our bodies are naturally endowed with.

I studied acupuncture in New Zealand and completed one and a half years of supervised clinical internship before graduating. In the early stage of my training, I mainly worked with patients experiencing neck, shoulder, and lower back pain. Under the guidance of senior clinical tutors, I gradually developed hands-on experience and confidence in treating musculoskeletal pain conditions.
As my clinical exposure expanded, I began treating a wider range of internal conditions. Alongside traditional acupuncture, I was introduced to Umbilical Acupuncture and Tungs-acupuncture Points. What interested me most about these approaches is that they often do not require needling directly at the painful area, yet can still achieve very effective results.
I was especially inspired by observing my supervisor use Umbilical Acupuncture to treat common conditions such as insomnia, menstrual irregularities, and even rheumatoid arthritis, with very positive outcomes. Another supervisor was highly skilled in Tungs-acupuncture Points and achieved excellent results in treating pain, infertility, menstrual disorders, and a variety of women’s health conditions. After completing my studies and entering clinical practice, once I observed Dr. Szenan Phua using Tungs-acupuncture points to help cancer patients relieve pain, which further strengthened my trust in this treatment method.
I later completed training in Dr. Tan Balance Acupuncture, which had a strong influence on the way I approach treatment. One of the most noticeable features of this method is how quickly patients often feel improvement, especially with pain conditions. Dr. Szenan Phua’s New Balance Acupuncture combines meridian regulation with structural adjustment and internal organ balancing, including techniques such as pulse balancing and spinal adjustment.
From my clinical experience, pain is rarely just a local issue. It often involves underlying organ weakness or structural imbalance. When these aspects are addressed together, treatment can be more thorough and longer-lasting. I also apply this approach to internal conditions, particularly in fertility and women’s health. This includes supporting natural conception, IVF preparation and embryo transfer, pregnancy support, early-pregnancy nausea, and late-pregnancy labour induction. I combine these treatments with concepts learned from a few additional fertility training, which has given me a broader and more flexible clinical perspective. This has reinforced my belief that acupuncture should be adapted to each individual rather than applied through fixed formulas.
Two other areas of study that have been very helpful in my clinical work are Tongue Diagnosis and Dr. Zhu’s Scalp Acupuncture. Although tongue diagnosis is taught in my standard Chinese medicine training, further study allowed me to deepen and refine my diagnostic skills.
My first formal training was in Li’s Tongue Diagnosis, which looks not only at organ patterns, but also at how different areas of the tongue reflect the body’s structure. This system also explores personality traits and changes during pregnancy, making it both clinically useful and engaging. I later attended online lectures on Yin’s Tongue Diagnosis and studied the related materials independently. this learning has helped me make clearer and more accurate pattern differentiation, allowing my acupuncture treatments to be more targeted. It covers a wide range of conditions, including skin disorders, oncology-related presentations, mental health patterns, and joint or limb problems. In practice, tongue observation often provides valuable insight even before a patient begins describing their symptoms.
In addition to the methods above, I regularly use local bloodletting techniques, which can be very effective for improving circulation, reducing swelling, and relieving pain. I also incorporate auricular (ear) acupressure and stimulation, which I commonly use for allergies, insomnia, headaches, stress management, and various internal conditions.
In my clinical work, I value taking the time to listen carefully to each patient and to understand their overall health, lifestyle, and concerns. Based on each individual’s condition, I also provide personalised dietary guidance and lifestyle or wellness advice to support overall health and long-term wellbeing. I commonly support patients with musculoskeletal pain, such as neck, shoulder, knee, and back pain, as well as stress-related conditions, sleep issues, migraines, digestive concerns, and women’s health and fertility-related conditions.