Approximately 2,500 years ago, acupuncture originated as a conventional Chinese medicine, which has now become a common medicinal practice in many countries. With acupuncture, the skin gets penetrated at certain points on the body with fine needles. The goal is to alleviate various health conditions through restoration of specific nerve endings. Acupuncture provides comfort from various ailments including anxiety, arthritis, nausea, migraine, chronic pain etc.
Magical Effects Of Acupuncture
1. Sacroiliac Joint Problems
The sacroiliac joint is located in the body’s lower back and connects the ileum bones of the pelvis with the sacrum. Sacroiliac pain may be caused by a change in normal joint motion. The probable reasons of this alteration are:
- Hypomobility (Too little movement)
- Hypermobility (Too much movement)
According to researchers, acupuncture can be an effective method for treating sacroiliac joint problems. In acupuncture, the imbalance of Qi (flow of energy) is corrected, which helps to alleviate pain and improve health. According to popular belief, the effects triggered by the stimulation of central nervous system can activate chemical releases into the spinal cord, muscles and brain, thus promoting a feeling of well-being.
2. Lupus
Lupus is an autoimmune, chronic disease that can harm body parts like joints, organs in the body, as well as the skin. According to a study conducted by NIH, acupuncture has the ability to effectively lower pain and decrease fatigue in Lupus patients. Acupuncture may successfully treat a variety of symptoms experienced by people with Lupus, including headaches, skin disorders, joint pain, memory loss, and breathing difficulty.
3. Neurological Disorders
Acupuncture combined with oriental medicine has shown its efficacy in treating neurological disorders. It can be helpful for patients with the following neurological disorders:
- Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: It’s developed by a tweaked nerve in the wrist and causes prickling and numbness.
- Peripheral neuropathy: The peripheral nervous system becomes damaged.
- Headaches: Acupuncture can treat different types of headaches including stress-related headaches, sinus headaches, tension headaches, migraines and headaches caused during the menstrual cycle.
- Trigeminal neuralgia: It’s an extremely painful condition that upsets the trigeminal nerve.
4. Psychological Disorders
According to various studies, mental health disorders can be effectively treated by acupuncture. Acupuncture treatments can improve disorders like anxiety, insomnia, depression and stress.
- Anxiety: Symptoms associated with anxiety like rapid breathing and heartbeat, tightness in chest, digestive disturbance can be reduced by acupuncture.
- Insomnia: The relaxing nature of acupuncture treatment can aid in eliminating impediments to sleep. This is usually effective for situational insomnia but for patients with chronic insomnia, more specific treatment might be required.
- Depression: Acupuncture is a strong cure for physical pain which might be a manifestation or cause of depression. Acupuncture can be effective for both chronic and acute depression.
- Stress: Acupuncture is the perfect treatment for stress and various stress-related conditions like high blood pressure, headache etc.
5. Gastrointestinal Disorders
Acupuncture is a technique where fine needles are inserted and controlled in different acupuncture points of the body. It aids in remedying the pain and alleviating gastrointestinal disorders like GI mobility, acid secretion and visceral pain. When acupuncture is applied to upper abdomen, it triggers muscle relaxation while its application to lower limbs promotes muscle contractions.
6. Eczema
From ancient times, acupuncture has been used to treat various skin maladies including eczema. While treating eczema, acupuncture points are restored along the torso, legs and arms. Top-grade surgical steel needles are used to restore these acupuncture points. Depending on the required effect, the acupuncturist can keep the needles from 10 minutes to 1 hour.
7. Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis is the most frequent from of arthritis and causes wearing down of joint cartilage. A study conducted by the University of Maryland revealed that acupuncture can effectively lower knee osteoarthritis pain without any major side effects. The prevalence of knee osteoarthritis increases with age and there is no complete cure for it at present. But with application of acupuncture, the pain and discomfort can be lowered. Since acupuncture is well-known for its pain relief characteristics, it’s now being widely used for treating osteoarthritis.
Final Note
Increasingly, mainstream medical institutions and doctors are welcoming the practice of acupuncture, especially for treating pain and nausea. World Health Organization keeps a detailed list of pain related conditions and diseases which can be possibly treated by acupuncture. Many doctors these days encourage their patients to opt for acupuncture treatment when traditional treatment fails or when the usual treatment entails a number of negative side effects. Acupuncture not only performs better notably compared to the other treatment modalities but provides effective results in treating neurodermatitis and pruritus as well.
Perhaps Tim Daly has said it best.
“Thank God for acupuncture. It’s been around for 2000 years. It’s not going any place and people use it all of the time for a variety of cures and to avoid illnesses.” — Tim Daly
