DR. ALI HOUMED, ND
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If you’re considering a visit to a naturopath for the first time, you’re in for a distinctive and
holistic healthcare experience. Dr. Ali will focus on acupuncture for acute or chronic pain, all the
while considering many additional factors that are known to contribute to the body’s ability to
heal and express pain.
Here’s a detailed look at what you can expect during your initial consultation:
1. Comprehensive Health History
Your first appointment will start with an in-depth review of your health history. NDs take a
holistic approach, so they’ll want to understand:
- Current health concerns and symptoms: Discuss everything that’s bothering you, no
matter how minor. - Personal and family medical history: This helps identify any genetic or chronic
conditions. - Diet and nutrition habits: They’ll review what you eat and how it might be impacting
your health. - Exercise and physical activity: Your level of activity can influence various health
conditions. - Sleep patterns and stress levels: Both are crucial to your overall well-being.
- Obstacles to healing: These can include poor habits, history of burnout, past traumas
and trigger events, anxiety & depression.
This thorough discussion helps the naturopath understand the full picture of your health and
pinpoint potential underlying causes of health dysfunction and pain.
2. Discussing your health goals
3. Physical Examination
Following your health history review, a physical examination may be conducted. This could
include checking your vitals such as blood pressure and heart rate, listening to your heart, lungs,
palpating the abdomen, examining hair, skin and nails for signs of deficiencies, checking reflexes
and circulation and more to gather more information about your health status.
4. Pain oriented assessment for acupuncture
5. Starter plan – Please note that typically an acupuncture treatment is not offered at the end of
the initial visit. A thorough initial visit helps your naturopath to learn about your pain, set goals
and start to form a treatment plan, acupuncture included.
Between this visit and the next one, you might be asked to get some bloodwork, do a diet dairy
and implement some directions in lifestyle, nutrition, supplements, herbs and other areas.
Please send in all current medications and supplements as well as recent blood/medical
results at least 48hrs prior to your scheduled appointment.
Dr. Ali began his education at the University of Toronto, where he was recognized for excelling during his studies (earning his Bachelor of Science degree with distinction and completing a competitive Psychology Researcher Specialist Program). He worked in a world-renown research laboratory on aging and memory, fuelling his love and fascination with the power of the human brain and psychology. After completing his studies at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine in Toronto (2010), he began the journey of blending research, natural medicine, pain management and health.
Dr. Ali’s personal appreciation for sports and movement makes him passionate about helping people overcome their physical pain to get back to doing what they love. He commonly works with pain management cases involving shoulder injuries, knee pain, back pain, plantar fasciitis, peripheral neuropathy, migraines, and concussions.
As a Naturopathic Doctor, Dr. Ali is also trained to treat his pain management patients as a whole person, often addressing key contributing factors like inflammation, stress, dysregulated nervous systems, poor sleep, and weight management.
Fascinated by how something so small as an acupuncture needle can tap into the body’s and brain’s ability to speed-up repair and relieve pain, Dr. Ali accomplished additional training in pain management and sport medicine acupuncture. This has allowed him to efficiently combine well-researched acupuncture protocols with unique needling techniques from accomplished and respected pioneers in sports and medical acupuncture, like Whitfield Reeves.
Dr. Ali’s current clinical focus is on
- Pain management
- Inflammation / Immune support
- Mental health & professional burnout & stress
- Metabolic health (sugar levels, triglycerides, cholesterol, blood pressure, weight management, fatty liver, ED)
- Hormones – PMS, Menopause
- Digestive health – IBS, GERD, Gastritis
He is excited to join Spencer’s team, bringing along years of clinical experience and a wide base of knowledge acquired through different clinical facilities including the Robert Schad Naturopathic Clinic (RSNC), Sherbourne HIV Health Clinic, Princess Margaret Hospital, francophone assisted senior living centres, Chiropractic and Physiotherapy clinics.
Dr. Ali speaks fluently in English, French, Russian and welcomes patients of all backgrounds and ages.
Continued Ed and Certifications:
Mastering the Treatment of Injury & Pain – Sport Medicine Acupuncture by Whitfield Reeves OMD, L.Ac.
Injection Therapy & Mesotherapy-Certification Through Dr. Rahman, ND and Dr. Castor, MD (Colombia)
Five Point Nerve Regeneration (Peripheral Neuropathy Protocols) – Matthew Bauer L.Ac.
Japanese Style Neurostimulation Therapy & Dr. Nagata’s Peripheral Nerve
Stimulation Technique (PNST) – Dr. Raman Kapur, MD
Learning the Use of Soft Lasers in Clinical Acupuncture – Dr. Raman Kapur, MD
IMS Dry Needling for Healthcare Professionals – Brent Stevenson, MScPT, BHKin, IMS
Chinese Acupuncture – The Jun three needle technique – Christopher CN
How to Quit Smoking with Chinese Acupressure & Acupuncture – Michael Hetherington
EFT/TFT Tapping Practitioner Certification
