Acupuncture Therapy
Acupuncture therapy – a traditional Chinese medicine based on circulating the body’s life energy to promote healing & relaxation. Acupuncture penetrates the skin with thin, solid, metallic needles, which are then activated through gentle and specific movements of the practitioner’s hands or electrical stimulation. Improve your health with acupuncture treatment – learn how it stimulates endorphins, impacts the autonomic nervous system & more.
Discover the benefits of acupuncture therapy – from releasing endorphins to influencing the autonomic nervous system. Most people report feeling minimal pain as the needle is inserted. The needle is inserted to a point that produces a sensation of pressure or ache. Needles may be heated during the treatment, or mild electric current may be applied. Some people report acupuncture makes them feel energized. Others say they feel relaxed.
by Dr Alex Jimenez DC, APRN, FNP-BC, CFMP, IFMCP | Acupuncture Therapy, Weight Loss
New research has found that acupuncture could be effective as a tool to aid weight loss.
Carried out by the School of Chinese Medicine (SCM) of Hong Kong Baptist University in cooperation with the Hong Kong Hospital Authority, the study looked at 72 participants, 13 males and 59 females, aged between 18 and 68.
All participants had a body mass index (BMI) of 25 or above, and had not used any other weight control measures or any medication in the three months before the trial.
The team randomly assigned the participants to two groups for the controlled trial — either the “real acupuncture group” or the “sham acupuncture group.”
All participants completed a total of 16 sessions of acupuncture treatment over an eight-week period.
The treatment included certain acupoints in the body — the areas where needles are inserted and manipulated — including areas on the abdomen and the lower limbs.
The participants also received auricular acupressure in the ears targeting the auricular points of Hunger, Shen men, Spleen and Stomach. According to Chinese medicine, these acupoints can restore and harmonize the flow of energy in the intestines as well as transform body fluid and expel phlegm.
After undergoing the acupuncture treatment, the team found that the “real acupuncture group” showed a 2.47 kg decrease in average weight and a decrease of 1.56 kg/m2 in average BMI.
The most successful result recorded was a participant who lost 7.2 kg with a drop of 3.2 kg/m2 in BMI.
On the other hand, the “sham acupuncture group” had an average weight loss of just 0.54 kg with an average lowering of 0.19 kg/m2 in BMI.
Dr Zhong Lidan, who worked on the study, suggested that the weight loss may be due to acupuncture having a stimulating effect on serotonin and beta endorphin, which suppresses appetite and increases lipolysis activity — the breakdown of lipids — resulting in weight loss.
She added that the trial could be used as the basis of future larger studies, paving the way to integrating acupuncture in a weight-loss or weight control program.
The results also come just days after a study published in the journal Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine appeared to find a reason why acupuncture is an effective treatment for relieving pain.
by Dr Alex Jimenez DC, APRN, FNP-BC, CFMP, IFMCP | Acupuncture Therapy, Conditions Treated
Acupuncture is a safe and effective alternative to pain medications for some emergency room patients, a new study reports.
“While acupuncture is widely used by practitioners in community settings for treating pain, it is rarely used in hospital emergency departments,” said study lead investigator Marc Cohen. He is a professor in the School of Health and Biomedical Sciences at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia.
The study — billed as the world’s largest randomized, controlled trial of acupuncture in the emergency department — included 528 patients.
The study participants were seen at four Australian emergency departments for acute low back pain, migraines or ankle sprains. Patients who said their level of pain was at least 4 on a 10-point scale received one of three treatments: acupuncture alone; acupuncture with painkillers; or painkillers alone.
One hour after treatment, less than 40 percent of all patients had significant pain reduction, meaning at least a 2-point decline on the 10-point scale. More than 80 percent still had a pain rating of at least 4, the findings showed.
But two days later, most patients were satisfied. Overall, nearly 83 percent of acupuncture-only patients said they would probably or definitely repeat their treatment, compared with about 81 percent in the combined group, and 78 percent who took painkillers alone.
“Emergency nurses and doctors need a variety of pain-relieving options when treating patients, given the concerns around opioids such as morphine, which carry the risk of addiction when used long-term,” Cohen said in a university news release.
The study results suggest acupuncture would be especially beneficial for patients who can’t use standard pain-relieving drugs because of other medical conditions, Cohen added.
But he noted that more research is needed because some patients remained in pain no matter what treatment they received.
The study was published June 18 in the Medical Journal of Australia.
