Weight loss is all in the ?chi? said a visiting Chinese medicine doctor. Dr. In Gill Lee, who has practised both Chinese medicine and acupuncture for the last 30 years, will be on the Island this weekend participating in a seminar at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess.

His lecture will mainly focus on the blockages of the chi or energy flow throughout the body, which cause weight gain.

He said he will be introducing teas and the importance of Tai Chi and Qigong in weight loss.

The event is being hosted by Healing Arts and will also feature a martial arts display and diagnostic sessions with Dr. Lee.

Korean born Dr. Lee studied at the National University, in Seoul, and continued his studies in the United States, where he acquired degrees in the practice of acupuncture and Chinese herbs.

He treats patients from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts and all over the USA at Nanjing Acupuncture and Herbs Ltd.

Dr. Lee said: ?This time I?d like to focus on weight control and how the Chinese medicine takes care of the access weight and things like that, so I would like to introduce, ?what is the principle of Chinese medicine? and how it works for weight control. ?Excess weight is one of the biggest health problems in America. The Chinese medicine practitioners see the excess weight as a stagnation of the chi and the blood.

?If the chi in the human body is either too weak or is blocked than your body gets sluggish and what you eat doesn?t digest and cannot be eliminated properly, thus excess weight will accumulate.?

Dr. Lee said to resolve the problem, the principle of Chinese medicine is to reinforce your chi and to relieve your blockages so the chi flows smoothly. ?People can do acupuncture, drink Chinese herbs and do Qigong, which is designed to open up the channels in the body to relieve the stagnation and strengthen your chi,? he said. ?It is a unique idea when you think of weight loss as blockages in the system.

?A lot of people just think of eating less or eating special kinds of food, that is why people when they start eating less, they may lose a few pounds, maybe ten pounds, but then they always go back to the original point again.

?We are looking at the root cause of the weight gain through Chinese medicine. We look also at the organic imbalance of the human body, for example, if your liver and your stomach are imbalanced than it is related to your stress and cravings, which is related to liver problems.

?Also kidney imbalance, because they control the waters, and it causes water retention because of the weak chi of the kidneys.

?We find what is not balanced and what is the root cause of the problem if in each overweight individual. We correct it and so that your chi and the blood can work smoothly and if they are stressed we relieve the stress by balancing the organs.?

In Chinese theory chi is controlled by the liver functions, he said. ?Your liver is responsible for regulating your chi flows throughout the body,? said Dr. Lee. ?It cleans out your blood and that makes sure that your chi and blood flow in the right direction.

?The liver is a very emotional organ and if you are angry or depressed ? you will not have normal liver functions and it will upset the other organs.

?It will upset your stomach and cause acid reflux, distension of your belly and things like that so we have acupuncture and the Chinese herbs for your liver to return to smooth functions.?

Dr. Lee will also speak about the functions and the nature of the food we consume.

?Food has a therapeutic effect on weight control,? he said, ?And we will also look at what is also bad for the weight.?

Healing Arts Exercises for Health owner Troy Tweed said he is a student of the Chinese medicine doctor, but all teas are prescribed and designed by Dr. Lee.

He said: ?I got into Chinese medicine through the martial arts and it has led me in to Qigong, from there it went to acupuncture and to herbs. It is just an extension of the martial arts.?

Martial arts expert and Bostonian Ken Nguyen will also be on hand with his student Mr. Tweed for the demonstrations.

Mr. Nguyen, who is a PHD candidate for immunology at Tufts University School of Medicine, said he had been training in martial arts for 18 years.

?I am going to share my martial arts experience with the Bermudian people,? he said, ?I hope to clarify some confusion that we have here in Bermuda and there are some misinterpretations on the terminology?s and the practises.

?I will demonstrate several martial arts techniques as well as basic forms and the patterns.?

Mr. Nguyen, who has studied several forms of martial arts, said the exercises can be practised by all ages.

?Seniors can benefit from the health exercises and once you heal you need to maintain it,? he said. ?And for the middle aged and the young, if they would like to practice then they will also be welcomed. How far you progress is your own potential.?

Mr. Nguyen said the ultimate goal is to help Mr. Tweed to set up a team so that they can compete on an international level.

?Kids can grow up and be more focused on what their goal is in life through more discipline,? he said. ?They will be more respectful to their parents and to the people of the world.?

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