Acupuncture is a branch of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)
that has been practiced for thousands of years in China (and the Far East). Acupuncture
is a medical practice that includes stimulating certain points on the body with
a needle that penetrates the skin to alleviate pain (or to help treat various
health conditions).
Acupuncture is usually done by hand with a
trained practitioner carefully inserting the needles into specific points in
the body shallowly into the skin. Normally about 10 to 20 thin needles are used
at one time. The needles are small enough to fit inside of a normal-sized
needle that would be used to take blood, which makes the process pretty for
most people.
The Food and Drug Admonition (FDA) regulates
acupuncture needles as medical devices and requires that the needles be
sterile, nontoxic, and labeled for single use by qualified practitioners only.
To date, there have been very few complications reported from the use of
acupuncture needles so the risk is thought to be very low. This doesn’t mean
that risk doesn’t exist because some serious side effects have
occurred when non-sterile needles have been used.
Acupuncture may be able to assist with the
following conditions: anxiety, depression, inflammation, hot flashes, side
effects of chemotherapy, improves
cancer, insomnia, muscle spasms, chronic back pain, headaches (migraines), neck pain, osteoarthritis, knee
pain, allergies, digestive problems, postoperative dental pain, prevent cognitive
decline addiction, stroke rehabilitation, menstrual cramps, tennis elbow,
fibromyalgia, myofascial pain, osteoarthritis, low back pain, carpal tunnel
syndrome, and asthma, pregnancy, labor, and postpartum health.
There are 14 major energy-channel meridians
on the body, with hundreds of points located along each meridian where
acupuncture needles are inserted. These include some 360 different points on
the hands, arms, feet, head, back and over the major organs. The belief is that
by inserting needles lightly into certain points on the body, the chi flow can
be tapped into and the patient’s energy can be rebalanced. Acupuncture points tend to be located where
nerves enter a muscle, the midpoint of a muscle or at a point where muscle
joins with bone.
[i] Sources used:
·
“History of Acupuncture” by
British Acupuncture Council
·
“What is Acupuncture? 6 Ways It Can Improve Your Health!”
by Dr. Josh Axe
·
“What is Acupuncture?”by
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