Chicago Acupuncturist Stephen Bonzak, M.S., L.Ac., is founder and director of Health Traditions. Educated at the Pacific College of Oriental Medicine — one of the premier acupuncture and Chinese medicine programs in the country — he received a Masters of Science in Traditional Oriental Medicine.

Stephen is licensed as an acupuncturist in Illinois and is further qualified by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) in the practice of both acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine. In addition to his practice, he teaches courses in Chinese herbal therapy and serves as a clinical supervisor at the Chicago campus of the Pacific College.

His official credentials include

• Master's of Science in Oriental Medicine
  from the Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, Chicago, IL
• Masters of Arts in Religious Studies
  from the Chicago Theological Seminar, Chicago, IL
• Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics and Literature
  from Cornell University, Ithaca, NY

Stephen has a wide range of interests in the health sciences. His current fields of interest include applying Chinese herbal medicine and acupuncture to the treatment of cancer, women's health and fertility, stress disorders and pain. He believes the foundation of his knowledge stems from his own healthy living.

Philosophy

Being conscious of the spiritual and emotional — as well as the physical components of vitality — Stephen has practiced meditation, 
qi gong and internal martial arts for more than 15 years. He applies these skills as part of his therapeutic approach.

His philosophy on health care is that natural therapies provide the least invasive route of treatment for more ailments; these modalities should be tried first before attempting more invasive procedures. As an acupuncturist he is mindful of the wisdom of nature and its ability to heal.

A Prospective Descriptive Study of Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome in Children Using Traditional Chinese Medical Pattern Differentiation
Co-investigator and primary author of a paper examining the TCM patterns that describe pediatric Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome. Submitted for publication January 2006.

Inter-observer Reliability in Tongue Diagnosis
Co-investigator in a pilot study examining the reliability between training TCM clinicians in tongue diagnosis. Presented preliminary findings to Pacific Symposium 2004.

Lectures

American Association of Oriental Medicine
Presented the results of Inter-observer Reliability in Traditional Chinese Medicine Tongue Diagnosis to a national conference of Oriental Medicine practitioners. 2005

Society for Acupuncture Research
Participated in panel discussion on acupuncture research. Discussed the reliability of tongue observations seen in TCM practitioners. 2005

Asian Pacific Medical Student Association National Conference
Presented two lectures — "Theoretical Foundations of Traditional Chinese Medicine" and "Mechanisms and Efficacy of Acupuncture" — to a national conference of medical students. 2005

Northwestern University Medical School
Presented basic Traditional Chinese Medicine theory to medical students from Northwestern University as part of an ongoing lecture series on Alternative Medicine. 2005

Midwestern University's Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine
Presented basic research topics and theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine to residents and students as part of ongoing training. 2005

Pacific Symposium
Presented preliminary results of pilot study on Inter-observer Reliability in Traditional Chinese Medical Tongue Diagnosis at a national conference in San Diego. 2004

Call (773) 470-6994 to make your appointment today.