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A Note from Dr. Na

Dr. Na is currently at capacity and is not accepting new patients. She is also not available for individual training or consultation.

So that more patients can benefit from her system, Dr. Na is actively seeking a partnership with an organization that shares her vision.

This website is for educational purposes only. It shares the stories of patients who have been treated with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), and explains the system behind their care. They are not a promise of specific results for any other patient. They are shared to show what is possible—and to invite a conversation about how TCM and Western medicine can work together.

(If you represent an organization interested in that conversation, please [contact Dr. Na]

A Non-Pharmacological Rehabilitation System for Complex and Refractory Chronic Conditions

Dr. Na's system is a framework of One Protocol. Many Diseases. Consistent Results. It is designed to treat the root cause of chronic disease—not just the symptoms. It is rapid, reliable, drug-free, and has been refined over thirty years. Her patients have recovered from conditions that conventional medicine could not resolve.

Whether you are a patient who has run out of options or a physician who wants another tool, this system offers something you have not tried before.[Learn About the System →]

For Patients Who Have Tried Everything and Still Suffer

You are not alone. Dr. Na Zhai has spent over thirty years treating patients in the US who were told there was nothing more to be done. Patients who had run out of options. Patients who had lost hope. And she has helped them. [Read Their Stories →]

Our patient John Landers had been suffering from severe trigeminal neuralgia for two and a half years. He could not eat, speak, or brush his teeth. He was pain-free in two and a half weeks under our care. The newspaper headline read: "Acupuncture goes mainstream."

For Physicians Who Want a Sure Weapon in Their Toolbox

At Springfield Clinic, Dr. Na worked alongside Dr. Claude Fortin, a neurologist. Within one year, 90% of physicians trusted her with their patients. Most of her patients came from physician referral—because the physicians saw their patients getting better. That model can work in any clinic. [Read more]

Dr. Na Zhai and Dr. Claude Fortin, a neurologist at Springfield Clinic. Their collaboration was featured in the State Journal-Register, December 20, 1999.

"The doctor of the future will give no medicine but will interest his patients in the care of human frame, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease."— Thomas Edison

Who Is Dr. Na?

Dr. Na Zhai, PhD, OMD, LAc

🎓 Ph.D. in Traditional Chinese Medicine & Master's in Western Medicine (China)
🩺 NCCAOM Board Certified in Acupuncture & Chinese Herbology (USA)
🏅 U.S. Green Card Recipient: "Outstanding Professor and Researcher"
🔬 Published Researcher: 30+ peer-reviewed scientific papers

Dr. Na Zhai holds a PhD in Traditional Chinese Medicine and a Master's in Western Medicine from China. She completed postdoctoral research at Kitasato University in Japan and served as a Professor and Chief Physician at Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. She came to the United States in 1996.

Dr. Na Zhai with her Ph.D. advisor, Professor Xuemin Shi (Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering). This photo was featured in a 2008 commemorative album by Tianjin University of TCM, where the university officially recognized her academic and clinical titles as "Professor & Chief Physician."

For almost 30 years, she has treated over 7,000 American patients in Springfield, Illinois, and surrounding areas—many of whom had been told there was nothing more to be done.[Read more]

The Science Behind Acupuncture

When I was young and ambitious, I stood on what I believed was solid scientific ground—and I did not believe in acupuncture or herbs.

Was TCM just a belief system?

Was it merely a psychological effect?

I needed to find out.

The first step was actually to create the clear-cut ischemic areas in the heart and the brain. This microsurgery was incredibly difficult—even by today's standards—but without this step, none of the research would make sense.

What I found was shocked me!

Part I. How acupuncture saves patients with acute coronary heart disease

A cross-section of a rat heart reveals a state of myocardial ischemia (myocardial glycogen depletion) following the occlusion of the left anterior descending coronary artery. The effects of acupuncture are evaluated within this zone of complete ischemia. The "blank area" (the ischemic area) shown in this photo represents the very beginning of a sudden completely blocked circulation. At this stage, the tissues are not dead as the myocardium has abundant glycogen reserves that can be used through anaerobic glycolysis when the supplied artery blocked. As long as blood supply is quickly restored, the tissues can be saved. The critical factor here is the timing and efficacy of clinical intervention.

Can acupuncture bring blood back in this area timely and effectively?

If so, where does the compensatory blood come from while the supply artery was completely severed?

Want to see the results? [Read more]

These two photos show the ischemic area in the rat brain after the middle cerebral artery(MCA) was severed suddenly and completely. The left displays the blood circulation on the brain surface. The right shows the inner ischemic area in the cerebrum.

The effects of acupuncture were evaluated precisely within these defined ischemic brain regions. The "blank area" (the ischemic area) shown in the photos represents the very beginning of blocked circulation. Although at this time, the brain tissues were not dead yet but in a very dangerous situation due to there is no glycogen reserve in the brain. As long as blood supply is quickly restored, the tissues can be saved, otherwise, there is no way that stroke patients can be saved by acupuncture, or go back to work after acupuncture.

The same questions as the heart research above only more critical for stroke patents.

Want to see the results? [Read more]

When I was young and ambitious, I stood on what I believed was solid scientific ground—and I did not believe in acupuncture or herbs.

Was TCM just a belief system?

Was it merely a psychological effect?

I needed to find out.

The first step was actually to create the clear-cut ischemic areas in these two critical organs. This microsurgery was incredibly difficult—even by today's standards—but without this step, none of the research would make sense.

Once the blood flow was blocked, I could examine a critical question: Would compensatory blood flow enter these "blank" areas? And if so, from where? After all, I had completely blocked the main artery that supplied that region.

What I The result shocked me. [Read more]

Dr. Na's own research, conducted in China and Japan, demonstrated that acupuncture produces measurable changes at the cellular level:

It activates a compensatory blood supply to ischemic tissue—literally a second blood supply to the heart and the brain.
It protects cells from dying during acute ischemia.
It mobilizes the entire body to fight—stimulating healthy arteries and skeletal muscles to support circulation.

Her research was published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at international conferences. It remains one of the clearest demonstrations that acupuncture is not imagination—it is real.[Learn More About the Science →]

On the streets of Japan

After the International Medical Congress in Japan

At the doctoral degree celebration with my supervisor Professor Shi Xuemin

With Professor Xu Ping

The State Journal-Register featured Dr. Na Zhai and Dr. Claude Fortin's collaboration.Our patient John Landers The newspaper headline read: "Acupuncture goes mainstream." China Health reports on the research findings of Dr. Zhai Na.