Dr Masaaki Nakano (DOM, L.Ac.)

Born and raised in Tokyo, Japan, Masaaki Nakano originally graduated from Chiba University of Commerce with a Bachelor of Business Administration, prior to moving to the US. He graduated from the International Institute of Chinese Medicine in Santa Fe, New Mexico and obtained a Masters in Chinese Medicine in 1990, as well as attending Heilongjiang College of Chinese Medicine in Harbin and Xi Yuan Hospital in Beijing, China. He has also been following the teachings of select Japanese Masters for over 25 years, assisting him to develop his own Style of treatment, Integrated Synergy Therapeutics (IST).

In 1991 Dr. Nakano opened his practice in Las Cruces, New Mexico, that has now been in operation for 29+ years, where he utilizes Integrated Synergy Therapeutics to achieve outstanding results with his patients/clients.

The birth of Integrated Synergy Therapeutics (IST):

Soon after graduating, Dr. Nakano’s encounters with two Japanese Masters shaped how we would practice, forever:

Master Acupuncturist Kiiko Matsumoto led Dr. Nakano on a journey of following her teachings for 25+ years that continue to guide him to this very day.

The late Ryosuke Uryu’s teachings on the Life Energy Test (LET) sent Dr. Nakano down his own path of developing and refining the VEM Test, which he uses to assist his Chinese Herbal Medicine and dietary prescription in clinical practice.

Over 25 years of practice, Integrated Synergy Therapeutics (IST) was born out of the necessity of Dr. Nakano to be able to maintain his high patient load of up to 100 patients/clients per week, by shortening treatment time, whilst maintaining connection with each patient/client, getting effective, quick and lasting results, and minimizing personal fatigue in practice.

On a serendipitous day, many years ago, Dr. Nakano discovered that the acupoint Du 17, when properly needled, was able to release and eliminate pain and tension in the whole spine. After testing its effectiveness on thousands of patients/clients, this opened up a whole new area of discovery, and Dr Nakano began to explore, test, and systematize the effectiveness of 25 specific acupoints on zones of influence that he has mapped out on the body, leading to a minimalistic and clinically effective approach known as Practical Acu-Zone Therapy -a major branch of IST. Combining Practical Acu-Zone Therapy with the other branch of IST, the VEM Test, allows Dr Nakano to quickly and accurately prescribe Chinese Herbal Medicines, supplements and dietary advice to support his acupuncture treatments to achieve rapid clinical results.

In the evolution of IST, another revered Master Acupuncturist also played an important role for Dr. Nakano, specifically in realizing the necessity of teaching IST to practitioners and students. The late Master Kiyoshi Nagano (introduced to Dr. Nakano by Kiiko Mastumoto) prior to his passing, despite his ailing health, allowed Dr. Nakano the privilege of shadowing him in his clinic in Ooita, Japan for a day. Apart from observing impossible clinical results, learning unique insights on Stomach Qi, GB26’s unique location, Kidney Deficiency and Immunity Issues, one conversation lay etched forever in Dr Nakano’s mind: Dr. Nakano had asked Master Nagano why he was so generous sharing his knowledge with a stranger, who had very little knowledge of Nagano Style Acupuncture. Master Nagano answered: “ I can only treat people in Ooita. Once you study this art well, you can treat more patients in your town. Upon mastering this skill, please teach this art to others in order to take as much pain out of as many people as possible.”

These words, in the spirit of Master Nagano have guided Dr. Nakano over the years not only in practice, yet in the forming of IST into a system that may be generously taught to and shared with practitioners and students across the globe in seminars, and by using IST teaching materials (books + DVDs) so that Dr. Nakano may extend his healing impact to as many people as possible, like Master Nagano had suggested.

“Out of all Qiology seminars to date, Dr. Nakano’s seminars have produced some of the most inspiring feedback emails from past attendees after returning to clinic, with sheer fascination at how well his methods work for treating pain with instant and lasting clinical results…”

Peter Scarselletti | Director of Qiology

“You can learn everything about a formula, herb, supplement, food or super-food for that matter, but if the body does not respond well to that substance, it will not be assisted by its application. VEM Testing teaches you how to determine the correct application of therapeutic substances for each patient at that exact moment in their journey to health.”