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Acupuncture Treatment | Herbal Remidies | Clinic Location | Chinese Herbal Search |
Acupuncture
Acupuncture is a main component of the health care system of China that can be traced back for 5,000 years. The general theory of acupuncture is based on the premise that there are patterns of energy flow (Qi) through the body that are essential for health. Disruptions of this flow are believed to be responsible for disease. Acupuncture may correct imbalances of flow at identified points on the skin. The practice of acupuncture to treat medical conditions in American medicine was rare until the visit of President Nixon to China in 1972. Since that time, there has been an explosion of interest in the United States and Europe in the application of the technique of acupuncture to Western Medicine.
Acupuncture has been used by millions of American patients and performed by thousands of acupuncturists, physicians, dentists and other practitioners for relief or prevention of pain and for a variety of health conditions.
FDA has removed acupuncture needles from the category of "experimental medical devices" and now regulates them just as it does other medical devices, such as surgical scalpels and hypodermic syringes under single-use standards of sterility.
Over the years, NIH has funded
a variety of research projects on acupuncture including studies on the
mechanisms by which acupuncture may produce its effects, as well as clinical
trials. There is also a considerable body of international literature
on the risks and benefits of acupuncture.
The World Health Organization (WHO) lists a variety of
medical conditions that may benefit from the use of acupuncture.
Such applications include prevention and treatment of nausea and vomiting;
treatment of pain and addictions to alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs;
treatment of pulmonary problems such as asthma and bronchitis; and rehabilitation
from neurological damage such as that caused by stroke.
“Acupuncture as a therapeutic intervention
is widely practiced in the United States.....
promising results have emerged, for example, showing
efficacy of acupuncture in adult post-operative and chemotherapy nausea
and vomiting and in post-operative dental pain. There are other situations
such as addiction, stroke rehabilitation, headache, menstrual cramps, tennis
elbow, fibromyalgia, myofacial pain, osteoarthritis, low back pain, carpal
tunnel syndrome, and asthma where acupuncture may be useful as an adjunct
treatment or an acceptable alternative or be included in a comprehensive
management program. Further research is likely to uncover additional areas
where acupuncture interventions will be useful.” -National Institute
of Health
What Is Known About the Biological Effects of Acupuncture
That Helps Us Understand How It Works?
1. Many studies in animals and humans have demonstrated
that acupuncture can cause multiple biological responses such as the release
of neurohormones. These biological responses can effectively manipulate
the body which makes acupuncture a powerful tool in health care.
2. A focus of attention has been the role of pain
killers in acupuncture analgesia. Considerable evidence supports the claim
that pain killer(s) are released through acupuncture and that the analgesic
effects of acupuncture are at least partially explained by their actions.
These provided direct evidences to support the uses of acupuncture for
drug and smoking addictions and pain management.
3. Stimulation by acupuncture may also activate the hypothalamus
and the pituitary gland, resulting in a broad spectrum of systemic effects.
4. Alteration in the secretion of neurotransmitters and
neurohormones and changes in the regulation of blood flow, both centrally
and peripherally, have been documented.
5. There is also evidence of alterations in immune functions
produced by acupuncture. Which of these and other physiological changes
mediate clinical effects is at present unclear, but may be uncover in future
studies.
The most common problems
treated in our Acupuncture & Herb Clinic:
and more ….. |