Acupuncture Research in the News

Photo from:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7011738.stm

In light of my series about what acupuncture can treat, please check out these acupuncture articles making the news! CNN, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (the CBC), and the BBC all showed results of a low back pain clinical trial. Although I have my own feelings about sham acupuncture and the way we have to use it, I'm excited to see the research making mainstream news.

I work in the research department at the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine, and seeing these articles in the news proves to me that Traditional Chinese Medicine is making headway within our culture and all around the world. Read on!

Click here for the CBC article Click here for the CNN article Click here for the BBC article

Technorati Tags: TCM, acupuncture articles, acupuncture, low back pain

What Can Traditional Chinese Medicine Treat? Pain

Acupuncture Photo by: ExpertVillage.com

There are so many different aspects to Traditional Chinese Medicine, and acupuncture is an integral aspect of this medicine, along with the herbs, other methods, and energy work. I'm going to use TCM and acupuncture interchangeably in this blog, as I've noticed that they are often used that way in conversations about what it is and how it heals.

I would think that the most common reasons people come to acupuncturists is for pain control. Upper, middle and lower back pain, shoulder, knee and ankle pain, fibromyalgia (a chronic syndrome often characterized by fatigue and pain throughout the body), and headaches to name several. Migraine and tension-headache treatments can also be quite successful, and even if the initial outcome is simply reducing the amount of medication. I know many ex-migraine sufferers have been more than satisfied with the results acupuncture produced.

A lot of sports injuries such as ankle and wrist sprains, fatigued or pulled muscles, broken bones, and other serious injuries are also successfully treated by acupuncture. My personal experience was lateral knee pain when I was training for a half-marathon, and I was experiencing it at least once per week for three weeks. I went into the acupuncturist for a treatment with needles, some bloodletting (more on that later-it's not as bad as it sounds!) and an herbal patch. The next day there was no pain at all. With acute injuries, the healing time is often faster, as the injury is recent.

Having said that, keep in mind that it does take time to see results with chronic injuries. There is a somewhat "tried and true" formula that for however many years you have experienced the pain or headaches, it will take treatments twice a week for the same amount of months to achieve a realistic result. For example, I had serious allergy and asthma symptoms for around 4-5 years. I was able to get treatments in Korea 2-3 times per week for four months, and I experienced a significant decrease in symptoms.

Enough to make me apply to acupuncture school.

Check back soon for more information on the many, many other conditions that Traditional Chinese Medicine can treat!

Technorati Tags: acupuncture, pain, migraine, headache, sports injuries, acupuncture treatment

Acufinder Magazine

Acufinder started a magazine! I happened to stumble upon their second publication last month, and I think it's a great idea. Like the website, it's a handy source of information about CAM (Complementary and Alternative Medicines) modalities such as massage, qi gong, and naturopathy. If you are unable to find a copy in your neighborhood, you can order it online on theacufinder.com website.

How Does Acupuncture Work?

Having had an avid interest in acupuncture for several years, it’s always good test of my knowledge and communication skills when friends and family ask, “So…..how does acupuncture work?” Indeed, that is the question we would all like to know. There are many different explanations I’ve heard and experienced, but I’m still far from the answer. Acupuncture is an ancient and respected medicine, and it can't be explained simply in one sentence.

One theory that seems to be widely accepted is that Qi (your life energy) flows though your body in a balanced manner in order to keep you healthy and free from pain. When the Qi is blocked or deficient, there may be pain, emotional distress, or disease. Acupuncture balances the energy of the body, therefore reducing pain and emotional distress either quickly or over a period of several sessions, depending on the disease or issue at hand.

To find out more about how acupuncture works, check out the entry on Wikipedia.

And for you Oprah fans out there, if you didn’t catch Dr. Oz and Daniel Hsu, LAc, explaining acupuncture on her show, check this out.

Technorati Tags: acupuncture, Qi, acupuncture theory