Acupuncture is defined as the placement of metallic needles into certain points in the body for attaining and maintaining optimum health.  Acupuncture is an integral part of Traditional Chinese Medicine dating back thousands of years.  This therapy has been proven to have lasting results with a large variety of diseases and disorders ranging from chronic to acute. 

The main basis of acupuncture in Chinese theory is that if pain and/or disease is present it is the result of the body’s life force energy (“qi”) that has somehow become imbalanced.  Qi flows through certain pathways (meridians) throughout the entire body.  The qi and it’s functions are accessed and then triggered by inserting the needles into certain acupuncture points located along the meridians, promoting the body’s innate ability to heal itself. 

From the Western point of view acupuncture is effective because: 

• acupuncture needles trigger the release of endorphins, which reduce the pain response in the body;
• acupuncture needles stimulate the spinal cord which releases pain suppressing neurotransmitters; and
• acupuncture needles increases blood flow to areas of the body which provides more nutrients and helps to remove toxicity.

Examples of what acupuncture can treat and research:

Acupuncture gets results with in a large scope of health issues.  Disorders ranging from everyday physical and emotional stress, depression, anxiety and panic attacks, menstrual issues and infertility, physical pain  - acute and chronic, sleep disorders, and diseases ranging from the common cold to immune system disorders are all candidates for treatment with acupuncture.

Research into acupuncture has dramatically increased over recent years.  Branches such as The National Institutes of Health (NIH), The Mayo Clinic and The World Health Organization (WHO) have been doing case studies into acupuncture and it’s effectiveness.  “According to the National Health Interview Survey 2002, over 8.2 million Americans used acupuncture in the previous year.” (NCCAM)

According to the World Health Organization, acupuncture has been proven to actually treat and improve over 40 diseases and disorders such as bronchial asthma, acute conjunctivitis, pharyngitis, sciatica, low back pain, rheumatoid arthritis, acute and chronic gastritis, constipation, diarrhea, acute bacterial dysentery, headache, migraine, trigeminal neuralgia, peripheral neuropathy, facial paralysis, Meniere’s syndrome, and much more. 

NIH has found that acupuncture shows promising results with the relief of the effects of chemotherapy, addictions to drugs and cigarettes, etc., stroke rehabilitation, menstrual cramps, fibromyalgia, tennis elbow, myofascial pain, osteoarthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, and much more.   “Further research is likely to uncover additional areas where acupuncture interventions will be useful.” (NIH)

Acupuncture Treatment Details:

Acupuncture treatments last anywhere from 30 to 60 minutes.  Presterilized metallic needles are inserted into different areas of the body.  All needles should be sterilized and one time use, i.e., disposable  (needles are used only once on the person, and then are disposed immediately into a biohazard medical waste container).  It is strongly recommended that if an acupuncturist is not using these types of needles then neither should you use their services.  The needles are incredibly thin, no thicker than the hairs on a person’s head and nothing is ever injected into the person with acupuncture needles.  The needles will usually remain in place anywhere from about 10 to 20 minutes. 

Acupuncture is not supposed to be a painful procedure.  On a few occasions, the person may feel a prick when the needle is inserted and any discomfort or pain should go away in a matter of seconds.  Most people experience sensations of being relaxed to “electrical” tingling, feeling “light” in the body, to heat moving around, to feeling pleasantly tired.  There are close to no side effects of acupuncture.  Once in a while small pin-prick sized bruising may occur at the needle point of insertion and possible fatigue after a treatment.