Acupuncture for Brain Health and Cognitive Support in Ontario
Simon Lau spent two years working in a Memory Clinic before he ever became an acupuncturist, and before he built his Richmond Hill, Ontario practice. What he observed there shaped everything that followed: a clinic that asks, specifically, what Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can offer when brain health is the concern.
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It’s a question most families arrive here already carrying.
How Traditional Chinese Medicine approaches brain health
TCM understands brain health through three interconnected systems: kidney essence, the heart-mind relationship, and blood and Qi circulation to the brain. Each shapes how a clinical picture gets read, and each connects to the cognitive concerns that most families bring in.
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Kidney essence is where it starts: the energy we carry through life and slowly spend. In TCM, this is why cognitive function changes with age, not because something has gone wrong in the brain in isolation, but because the reserves that sustain it have been gradually drawn down.
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The heart-mind relationship comes next. TCM places the mind in the heart, not the brain. That sounds unusual until you observe that anxiety, chronic grief, and sustained emotional distress reliably affect memory and cognitive clarity. The connection between emotional strain and cognitive function, which Western research is beginning to investigate more formally, has been part of TCM practice for centuries.
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Then there’s circulation: whether sufficient blood and Qi are reaching the brain. Here TCM and Western medicine are asking versions of the same question through entirely different frameworks.
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Researchers have started examining some of this territory. A 2020 overview of thirteen systematic reviews, covering more than 9,000 participants, found that acupuncture showed beneficial effects on cognitive ability and daily living. A separate review published in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience found evidence that acupuncture may support brain function by influencing neurotransmitter activity, including acetylcholine, serotonin, and dopamine.
What this practice focuses on
Faith Acupuncture works across four areas of cognitive wellness.
Memory loss and mild cognitive impairment.
Most families arrive at the point where the changes can no longer be explained away as normal ageing. TCM treats this as a whole-body question about what has depleted, what needs support, and what’s possible alongside the conventional treatment already in place.
Dementia and Alzheimer’s support.
The approach is supportive rather than curative. Families come looking for something that might sustain quality of life, support cognitive function where it can be supported, or add another strand of care to what already exists. That’s what TCM can offer, and Simon will be direct in the consultation about what it can’t.
Brain fog and mental fatigue.
Often the earliest presenting concern for families noticing cognitive decline. The kind of cognitive dullness and mental fatigue that gets dismissed as stress or normal ageing because there’s no clear conventional path forward. TCM has been working with this presentation for a long time.
Anxiety.
A common entry point for patients whose anxiety intersects with sleep disruption and cognitive difficulty. In TCM, anxiety and cognitive concerns share the same framework: the heart-mind relationship. They arrive together because they’re connected.
Families from across York Region looking for this specific combination of focus and clinical background are welcome to start with the free consultation.
The clinical background behind this focus
Simon Lau’s background spans two disciplines: Occupational Therapy and Traditional Chinese Medicine, with direct clinical experience in cognitive health before he became an acupuncturist.
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Before acupuncture, he spent five years as an Occupational Therapist in Hong Kong’s hospital system, two of them in a dedicated Memory Clinic working directly with the patients and families this practice now serves. He’s administered the cognitive assessments, had the early-diagnosis conversations, and worked with patients through the months that follow. That history sits underneath the TCM training that came later.
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His designations include Registered Acupuncturist (RAc) and Registered TCM Practitioner (RTCMP), regulated by CTCMPAO in Ontario. He completed a Master of Chinese Medicine at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and Medical Acupuncture training at McMaster University.
The OT background and the TCM training are usually found in separate practitioners. At Faith Acupuncture, they’re in the same person, applied to the same patients.
What brain health acupuncture looks like in practice
The free 1-hour consultation is the starting point. The hour is assessment, not treatment. Simon takes the full picture, explains what TCM would be attempting to do for this specific person, and tells the family honestly whether acupuncture seems appropriate. He’s equally direct when it doesn’t.
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For those who proceed, sessions are calm and well-tolerated. An initial course typically involves eight to twelve sessions, outlined in detail after the intake is complete.
Why a practice built around one focus works differently
A generalist acupuncture practice sees a brain health case occasionally. Faith Acupuncture sees them exclusively.
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The difference isn’t technique. It’s what accumulates when every assessment and course of treatment happens within the same narrow territory. Pattern recognition built from volume. The ability to notice what’s shifted between session three and session seven, because you’ve seen it enough times to know what that movement usually means.
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A family bringing a cognitive health concern here isn’t one case among many. They’re the case this practice was built for.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is brain health acupuncture different from general acupuncture practice? In a general practice, brain health cases arrive occasionally between a range of other presenting concerns. At this Richmond Hill acupuncture practice, they’re the only cases. There’s no context-switching between a shoulder injury and an Alzheimer’s assessment. The intake questions, the treatment approach, and the accumulated experience are all shaped by one territory, worked in depth.
Do I need a referral to book a consultation? No referral is required. You can book the free 1-hour consultation directly. If your loved one is already under the care of a neurologist, family physician, or memory clinic, Simon will ask about that care so the acupuncture approach fits alongside it.
What does Faith Acupuncture focus on? Brain health and cognitive support through TCM: memory loss, mild cognitive impairment, dementia and Alzheimer’s support, brain fog, and anxiety where it connects to cognitive concerns. Simon will confirm in the consultation whether your loved one’s situation falls within this scope. No referral is required. You can book the free 1-hour consultation directly. If your loved one is already under the care of a neurologist, family physician, or memory clinic, Simon will ask about that care so the acupuncture approach fits alongside it.
Is acupuncture safe for older adults? Acupuncture is non-invasive and generally considered safe for older adults when provided by a registered practitioner. Simon takes a careful history before beginning any treatment, including current medications, health conditions, and comfort level. Let your loved one’s primary medical team know about any complementary care they’re receiving.
What happens in the free consultation? A full hour with Simon. He reviews your loved one’s history and current care, explains how TCM approaches the situation, and outlines what treatment would look like and what’s realistic to expect. No specific outcomes can be guaranteed. No obligation to proceed.