"A recent study by the University of Minnesota and the Mayo Clinic found that people with chronic pain felt significantly better with the treatment of external Qigong."
ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. - Some call a Chinese healing tool called Quigong “needle-less acupuncture,” but to one St. Louis Park third-grader using the practice to heal his friends, it’s magic.
Getting lost in a different world isn’t hard for 8-year-old Leif Reffsgaard and Paul Krenik, who both love Harry Potter.
“I just think magic is really cool,” Reffsgaard said.
Magic is usually saved for the imagination, but in his life, Reffsgaard is using an ancient Chinese teaching that he said often makes him feel like Harry.
“I feel like I'm a wizard using the healing spell,” Reffsgaard said.
Reffsgaard said he has used Qigong many tomes to help heal injured friends, including Krenik, who recently fell and hurt his leg in gym class.
“At first, I was like, ‘How on earth is he going to heal me?’ when it was hurting,” Krenik recalled. “When he used it, I was like, ‘Woah, what just happened?’”
Krenik described the feeling of the treatment as being everything he liked, a soft blanket hitting the pain. For Reffsgaard, there’s more in it for him than just the satisfaction of a job well done.
“When I help others, it makes me feel happy,” Reffsgaard said.
To understand Qigong, FOX 9 News spoke with Reffsgaard’s teacher, Master Chunyi Lin. Lin has studied the art for more than 30 years.
“QI means energy, gong means work,” Lin explained. “Working with the body’s energy -- that's what Qigong is all about.”
There are two types Qigong. First, the external type where a master helps to improve another person’s flow of energy.
“A person sends out energy through the heart to help others to clear the energy blockages -- clear the aches and pains,” Lin said.
Deanne Kroll said she came to Lin more than a decade ago with headaches that wouldn’t go away, and he demonstrated how he helped her feel.
“I’m going to send out energy from my heart to help you unplug those energy blockages,” Lin explained. “You might feel a tingly sensation here or there.”
Lin said he knows that just by looking at it, Qigong can appear to be hokey, but a recent study at the University of Minnesota and Mayo Clinic found that people suffering from chronic pain felt significantly better after weeks of external Qigong treatments.
According to Lin, the extra energy provided via Qigong can help provide protection to prevent illnesses in the body.
Now, what was once an ancient Chinese secret only known by Qigong masters, Lin has developed Spring Forest Qigong so that people can help heal themselves with internal Qigong.
“Everybody was born with this gift,” Lin said. “So, you can help yourself and others to heal.”
Lin said that is the unique aspect of his internal art, and said practicing Qigong for just 10 minutes each day can improve a person’s quality of life and give practitioners more energy.
As for believing in the process, Lin said children like Reffsgaard are quick learners because they are often more open to what appears impossible.
“The most powerful healing energy in the universe is love, unconditional love. His love is so pure,” said Lin of Reffsgaard . “He wants to help others. He used the techniques, and it works.”
At 8 years old, Reffsgaard has now practiced Qigong for four years and said he intends to keep using his wizardry to help himself and his friends.
Monday, January 23, 2012 at 1:56PM 
Berlin (dpa) - Taking a minimum of 15 minutes of exercise a day can extend life expectancy by up to three years, according to Germany's Society of Neurologists and the Stroke Society.
