Acupuncture treatment is one of the world’s oldest methods to treat people. It is a traditional procedure which has originated from the Chinese medical practices.

Basically, the method of the acupuncture treatment involves the insertion of tiny needles to specific areas of the body to relieve it from energy imbalances and blockages.

These areas which are scattered around the body correspond to the various organs or groups of organs.

When the needles are being inserted in these areas, it can then restore the original health and well being of the body.

Overview on acupuncture treatment

The acupuncture treatment is comprised of different procedures which revolve around the goal of stimulating the different areas in the body through a set of techniques.

Although these techniques may vary from one another, they are deemed very efficient and reliable at restoring the body’s wellness.

Although the acupuncture treatment is considered as an ancient practice, researchers have already studied its effectiveness and credibility. These studies have concluded that acupuncture treatment is a viable way of treating the physical body.

Generally, people undergo the process of acupuncture treatment in order to treat common ailments such as nausea, back pains and even dental problems.

Top 3 benefits from the treatment

Qi Energy

It has been discovered that during acupuncture treatment, the neural activity in the brain is being induced with patterns which in turn stabilize its condition.

In addition, the flow of vital energy is also being released which is commonly known as ‘qi’ (or pronounced as ‘chee’). This kind of energy is what makes a person feel very light within and with a newly found positivism.

Relaxation

People can feel relaxed through acupuncture treatment not only during the whole process but even afterwards. Although the body may be punctured with tiny needles, there is minimal pain to be felt. A lot of people who undergo this kind of process are even energized.

Endorphin Release

With the process of acupuncture treatment, it can also decrease pain in the body by stimulating the circulation of endorphins. When such chemicals are being released all throughout the body, the person can immediately feel fullness in his muscles. When endorphins are then present within the body, it can block the message of pain from going up to the brain.

Further Studies on the Treatment

Although acupuncture treatment is considered as a reliable process of relieving the body from pain, improper placement of the needles can definitely cause the body to feel sore and pain.

It is important that the acupuncture treatment is only done by qualified practitioners so that patients will receive the full treatment that they signed up for.

Likewise, scientists should still continue their researches on acupuncture so that the public will know if indeed it has scientific basis or it is simply a product of the placebo effect.

More so, people should be careful in undergoing such a procedure to know for themselves if the acupuncture practitioner is qualified enough to heal them.

Many dismiss acupuncture as new age mumbo jumbo, but increasingly the scientific community is recognizing the soundness of age old practices and their efficacy is keeping up healthy as well as curing disease.

In a recently conducted study published in the Journal of Nature Neuroscience, Acupuncture and its efficacy is managing pain are examined.

The scientific explanation for how acupuncture works is only now being clarified and consequently even those who have hitherto been skeptical now recognize that acupuncture is very effective for pain management.

Acupuncture is seen to work by stimulating the production of a particular compound: It is a naturally occurring compound called adenosine, known for its anti inflammatory properties, that is seen to arrive at the site that has been aggravated or punctured that helps in reducing pain.

In the study, mice were treated with acupuncture and were seen to obtain the same pain relief benefits as if they had been having drugs to boost their adenosine levels.

The tissue where the acupuncture needle was inserted was seen to have adenosine levels that were 24 times higher than before. In way, you could say that acupuncture is a way to trick the body into relieving its own pain!

Many dismiss acupuncture as new age mumbo jumbo, but increasingly the scientific community is recognizing the soundness of age old practices and their efficacy is keeping up healthy as well as curing disease.

In a recently conducted study published in the Journal of Nature Neuroscience, Acupuncture and its efficacy is managing pain are examined.

The scientific explanation for how acupuncture works is only now being clarified and consequently even those who have hitherto been skeptical now recognize that acupuncture is very effective for pain management.

Acupuncture is seen to work by stimulating the production of a particular compound: It is a naturally occurring compound called adenosine, known for its anti inflammatory properties, that is seen to arrive at the site that has been aggravated or punctured that helps in reducing pain.

In the study, mice were treated with acupuncture and were seen to obtain the same pain relief benefits as if they had been having drugs to boost their adenosine levels.

The tissue where the acupuncture needle was inserted was seen to have adenosine levels that were 24 times higher than before. In way, you could say that acupuncture is a way to trick the body into relieving its own pain!

The quest for eternal youth has always been a matter of desire by most people living on this planet.

Many have tried different kinds of ways to maintain natural beauty always seeking for more ways to stall the aging process in hopes of keeping youthful appearances.

In general, people have promoted both traditional and modern treatments to accomplish this desire. A perfect example of these traditional treatments is none other than facial acupuncture.

From the term itself, acupuncture is a treatment adopted from the ancient Chinese in which acupuncture needles are slowly inserted in different areas of the body; also known as acupuncture points.

From there, electric energy from these points sends signals to the organs, muscles, or tissues involved to further enhance and speed up the healing process thus enabling the body to rejuvenate itself.

With the application of modern techniques, facial acupuncture is then adopted to rejuvenate facial tissue which allows it to speed up the healing process concerning facial issues.

If you are interested in facial acupuncture, there are basic advantages which need to be fully understood.

Although facial acupuncture is not a treatment, each and everyone is doing for beauty treatments, it is definitely some thing to consider as one of the treatments available today. Here are some of the basic advantages of facial acupuncture:

1. Painless treatment

The idea of having needles stuck into your face is not something that can easily be shunned away.

Facial acupuncture is guaranteed painless but should only be done by professionals and not by you when you are alone and have nothing better to do.

It has been reported that it only has a slight prick at the onset but the feeling thereafter is not something to be considered at unbearable.

2. Removal of wrinkles

Facial acupuncture involves the concept of stimulating the facial nerves and muscles; thus allowing the face to naturally rejuvenate itself to remove fine lines and wrinkles.

Another point to take note is that it is also known to bring out the natural glow to the face and by adding more tone and complexion.

3. No side effects

Acupuncture is a natural process. It only uses sterilized needles and no other chemicals are applied to the face.

Facial acupuncture is not only restricted to simply inserting needles in your face, a couple of visits to the establishment that offers facial acupuncture may be needed in order to allow oneself to be fully prepared for the actual treatment.

Before the treatment itself, it is important that the face is properly prepared by applying natural oils and moisturizers that is needed, and at the same time good for the face itself.

Perhaps a couple of visits after the initial treatment has begun would be necessary to complete the facial acupuncture process.

Research a lot about facial acupuncture before you actually get it. Like all decisions, it should be based on well thought of opinions. Local health treatment establishments offer facial acupuncture, but not all of them actually do.

It would be best to inquire about it in the establishment itself. If your local health establishment does not have facial acupuncture you may always check the internet for other references to choose from.

A couple is not considered as a family without a child. As per Webster dictionary, family is the basic unit in society traditionally consisting of two parents rearing their children.

It gives great pressure to couples if they don’t have children after being married for almost a year. Sometimes, one of them could think that they are infertile.

Infertility is a condition when one is not able to produce offspring. There are a lot of reasons for this. Low sperm count for male and problematic uterus for female are the usual.

Infertility is something that one person whether male or female does not want to have.

But in case one is found to be infertile, there are treatments that can be administered. Some are drug treatments, in vitro fertilization, artificial insemination and infertility acupuncture.

How can infertility acupuncture help treat infertility?

Acupuncture first started in China, a thousand years ago. This is almost 4000 thousand year-old treatment that uses needles and these needles are inserted into different parts of the body. This type of treatment has been found effective so someone came up with infertility acupuncture as a treatment for infertility.

Infertility acupuncture is said to be an alternative way of treating problems with fertility. Paired with other modern treatments on fertility, infertility acupuncture works best.

There are doctors that suggest Chinese herbs to be partnered with infertility acupuncture and other treatments for best results.

How beneficial is infertility acupuncture in the fertility process?

Infertility acupuncture can be helpful in all stages of the journey of fertility. Here are some of the benefits of infertility acupuncture in the fertility process:

• Helps increase sperm count
• Serves as stress reliever
• Helps promote regular menses and aids in the flow of blood in woman’s uterus
• Hormone treatments’ side effects are reduced
• Aids in the successful processing of IVF (in vitro fertilization)
• Improves possibility of giving birth and lessen miscarriages

Does infertility acupuncture really work?

Infertility acupuncture still creates controversy. It cannot be explained by modern science how the use of needles really works. A lot of people believe that this is just a myth or one of those Chinese legends.

But does it really work? It doesn’t give best results when done alone. It supplements the magic of modern medicine. A study in Denmark conducted by the Fertility Clinic Trianglen showed that infertility acupuncture creates significant improvement when it is partnered with IVF (in vitro fertilization) and ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection).

Meanwhile, in a Fox News article, a woman name Lucy Appert attested that with the help of infertility acupuncture she bore a child after years of trying to get pregnant.

A study made by Dr. Paul C. Magarelli of the Reproductive Medicine & Fertility Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado showed that there is an improvement in administering IVF when partnered with acupuncture compared to IVF alone.

You may believe it or you may not. But for people who think that bearing a child is hopeless this serves as the “pot of gold at the end of the rainbow”.

The National Center on Sleep Disorders Research informs us that as many as 70 million Americans have sleep disorders. Another staggering statistic is that in the year 2006, some $3.6 billion was the amount spent on prescription sleep medication such as Ambien and Lunesta (we are not even including the usual Advil and Tylenol which are available over the counter here).

If you, like a number of others prefer not to load your system with drugs and are concerned about the addictive nature of these drugs, then it is likely that you seek alternative therapy for your sleeplessness or insomnia. One that has shown itself to be effective is acupuncture.

Acupuncture is being seen as the most effective and popular complementary/alternative therapy among Americans.

It is seen to impact insomnia positively since it can calm the nervous system.

Acupuncture assists insomniacs by correcting imbalances that lead to sleep problems and that too without side effects!

Not only insomnia, acupuncture is also seen to treat high blood pressure and reduce stress. For all the insomniacs out there, acupuncture from an experienced and skilled technician may be well worth a try; after all there is nothing to lose but a sleepless night or two!

Back pain is a condition which usually comes from muscles, bones or spine problems. The kind of pain the most people suffer from is the lower back pain. It is next to common colds in the list of common diseases, the latter being the first in the list.

Due to this fact, people have been finding ways on how to treat this problem. Back pain acupuncture is one proven way to relieve back pains.

Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese practice of easing pain and even curing diseases. In all sorts of acupuncture not just back pain acupuncture, the treatment of the body is done by treating the whole body.  

With the use of needles, this highly debated way of medication eases the pain. Back pain acupuncture is same with the others, uses needles in easing back pains.

The odd thing about this process is the needles are placed far from the area which is painful. For example, the needles are placed in the feet when the pain really is in the back.

Just like other acupuncture treatments, back pain acupuncture works best with widely known techniques on treating the condition.

Pain killers are most likely to be recommended to people with back pains, this time pain killers plus back pain acupuncture promotes longer relief to back pains. Back pain acupuncture may be partnered with exercise sessions.

In other studies and researches, a large percentage of people who underwent back pain acupuncture felt well compared to those who just followed the clinical processes of healing back pain.

The process of back pain acupuncture

A certified acupuncturist first massages the patient and would solicit feedback on which part is aching. Then once they know the exact part, the needle pricking process starts.

The needles are strategically placed in different parts of the body. This is to allow the proper flow of energy into the body. Some people might be scared of taking back pain acupuncture because of the needles.

Pictures show that large needles are sticking everywhere of the person’s body. But this process really is painless. You will not feel pain with all those needles sticking in your forehead or stomach.

Normally, patients are asked to shed off their garments when back pain acupuncture is being administered. This is because the acupuncturist needs to view the whole spine when doing the back pain acupuncture. You are not forced to do this but it could be administered better if you do.

Is it effective?

Back pain acupuncture like all of the other treatments that uses acupuncture is very controversial. A study was conducted to prove if it really works.

A significant sample size was taken and they underwent different treatments for back pains. After a year, these subjects of the study were asked how they were doing.

Almost 40% of those who were treated with the normal treatment said they felt better and 60% of those who were treated with real back pain acupuncture said the same way.

But the confusing part is the people being administered with fake acupuncture using toothpicks instead of needles said they felt better as well.

It has been discovered recently that acupuncture for weight loss is an effective tool when it comes to a person’s struggle to lose weight effectively.

This can be a good complement to your weight loss program or diet and can even help you reduce your stress, frustrations and anxiety – feelings that every dieter undergoes throughout the process.

The same feelings also trigger overeating which is one of the major hurdles that one must face when it comes to dieting.

How to Start Using This Treatment?

If you want to consider using acupuncture for weight loss in order to reach your weight loss goals then you should make a consultation with your chosen acupuncturist.

You will find that in these sessions, the acupuncturist would be asking you some questions in regards to your eating patterns. You should also inform your acupuncturist if you are undergoing digestive difficulties.

This is very important so that the acupuncturist would be able to choose the right acupuncture pressure points for you so that the use of acupuncture for weight loss would be effective.

The acupuncturist might also check your pulse in order to find out the state of your energy and also to measure your stomach’s energy in particular. They will also be checking your tongue to see if there are any cracks.

They would also try to see if there are signs of puffiness in your stomach area. These inspections are very necessary in order to look for clues as to why you are gaining weight so that the acupuncture for weight loss treatment can be administered in an effective manner.

The Acupuncture Points

When the acupuncturist gets all the information that he or she needs in order to devise acupuncture for weight loss treatment made personally for you and your needs, the acupuncture points would be determined.

Most of the points that are deemed to be important when it comes to acupuncture for weight loss are the following:

• Mouth – for impulsive eaters who are talkative and who smoke
• Stomach – for eaters who still eat even if they are full or those who nibbles on food constantly
• Lung – for those who are addicted to a certain kind of food such as chocolate, sweets, etc.
• Endocrine – this is for water retention which is one of the reasons why people gain weight
• Spleen – for weight gain caused by hormonal and sugar imbalances
• Thyroid – for those who have a slow metabolism

In acupuncture for weight loss treatment, the acupuncturist would use two or more of these acupuncture points depending on your problem and personality in regards to your eating habits.

The Acupuncture Treatment Plan

When you get acupuncture for weight loss you will find that the needles would be kept in place in your body for about thirty to forty five minutes.

The number of sessions that you would need to use acupuncture for weight loss would depend on your weight loss goals, the rate of speed on how fast you want to lose weight and your commitment to keep the weight off.

For the average person who would want to lose five to ten pounds then one treatment every three days or twice a week would do.

Usually the patient and the acupuncturist would mutually decide when to terminate the use of acupuncture for weight loss.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any event which results in psychological trauma and is something that is frequently seen among war veterans and others who have been in very stressful and traumatic situations.

It is a condition that is serious enough and considered a mitigating circumstance in a crime and which may be seen as clouding the judgment.

And now PTSD sufferers may have hope from one branch of alternative medicine; which is acupuncture. When treating PTSD, acupressure points are tapped into and past traumas bought up. This is seen to reduce symptoms of PTSD such as pain and depression.

According to the San Bernardino County Sun in California as many as 50,000 cases of PTSD were encountered and treated at the Veteran’s Center in Loma Linda.

In this connection, a research group called The Stress Project wants that alternative therapies (or alternative medicine emotional freedom techniques (EFT) therapy) be included in treatments of PTSD among veterans.

Acupuncture is already being used and is seen as being very helpful for war veterans who have horrific mental scars from Iraq and Afghanistan as well as for those who still bear the wounds of Vietnam.

A reader of this blog wanted to know what could be done in order to relieve the pain caused by sciatica using acupressure.

Well acupressure and acupuncture use the same results by applying consistent pressure at the same meridians; only the process is different.

While acupressure uses consistent pressure to be applied, acupuncture entails the insertion of fine needles at the various points.

Sciatica pain is caused by the compression of a sciatic nerve root that emerges from below the spine and runs along the both legs via the buttocks. This is why the pain also seems to originate in the buttock area and then radiates down the sides of the legs.

The compression can be due to trauma, natural narrowing of the spinal cord or degeneration due to advancing age. Sometimes it could be a pinched nerve that causes sciatica pain, or even something as seemingly benign as a bad posture.

The point or area to be targeted for the purpose of relieving sciatica pain is the buttock. The center of the depression at the side of the buttocks should get hard pressure to relieve this pain.

In this area is the largest muscle of the body and the nerve lies deep within; so it is necessary to apply hard and deep pressure. The pressure is also required to be consistent and when done in the proper way can release the sciatic nerve from muscular tension and pain.

Some people also advise the relieving of pressure on the piriformis muscle, which runs next to or surrounds the sciatic nerve by sitting on a tennis ball.

The tennis ball is to be placed squarely in the middle of the buttock and then it has to be sat on which will apply pressure on the appropriate muscle to relieve the pressure on the nerve.

It is also important to identify the cause of the sciatic pain; it could range from disc herniation, piriformis syndrome, myofascial pain syndrome, lumbar facet syndrome, sacro-iliac joint syndrome, lateral recess stenosis, central canal stenosis, tumor, infection, etc.

Many stretching exercises are also found to be extremely useful for treating sciatica pain, so it is important to keep doing these to keep the muscles of the area in good condition and the pain itself at bay.