What is acupuncture?
Acupuncture is the gentle insertion of hairfine thin needles into specific points on the body to stimulate the flow of ones Ki (pronounced kee) or natural healing energy. Sometimes rather than just inserting acupuncture needles, your doctor may choose to use fine acupuncture tacks to stimulate it over a long period of time or may use heat or mild electrical stimulation. The technique of heat is called moxibustion and the application of local electricity used is called electrostimulation. Acupuncture needles used in Korea are all sterile and generally disposable.
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How safe is acupuncture?
Acupuncture and herbal treatments are drug free and they avoid many of the side effects and dependencies associated with medication. You should always inform your doctor of the medications you are currently taking and whether or not you are or could be pregnant. In addition, if you have a cardiac pacemaker or cosmetic implants.
Acupuncture is often used along with other medical care to increase their benefits. It is used for pain control after other medical and dental procedures are performed. It is used for improving health generally as well as promoting healing and the lessening the side effects of many drugs including chemotherapy.
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Are there any contraindications for acupuncture?
Yes, generally, it is not recommended to provide acupuncture treatment to pregnant woman and patients with cardiac pacemakers.
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Does acupuncture hurt?
Yes, acupuncture treatment hurts generally only with the insertion of the needle into the skin. This lasts anywhere from 10 to 15 seconds. The acupuncture needles used are very thin. Many times 10 to 12 acupuncture needles can fit into one ordinary hypodermic needle that's used to draw blood.
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Can acupuncture be effective when other things have failed?
Yes, each system of medicine has its own areas of efficiency and excellence. Acupuncture excels in those areas in which conventional medicine usually comes up short such as chronic diseases, pain control, stress reduction.
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What conditions can be successfully treated?
| Eyes-Ears-Nose-Throat |
Emotional |
Digestive |
Gynecological |
Poor Vision
Cataracts
Tinnitis
Toothache
Gingivitis |
Insomnia
Depression
Anxiety
Nervousness
Neurosis |
Abdominal Pain
Hyperacidity
Diarrhea
Indigestion
Constipation |
Infertility
PMS
Menopausal symptoms |
| Musculoskeletal |
Neurological |
Respiratory |
Miscellaneous |
Muscle pain/weakness
Sciatica
Back pain
Neck pain
Muscle Cramping
Arthritis
Lumbar radiculopathy pain |
Migraines
Headaches
Post-operative pain
Stroke
Parkinson's Disease
Neurogenic bladder dysfunction |
Sinusitis
Common Cold
Tonsillitis
Bronchitis
Asthma |
Chronic fatigue
Stress reduction
Smoking cessation
Addiction control
Enhance athletic performance
Blood pressure regulation
Immune system tonification |
The above list is from the World Health Organiztion, United Nations (1979).
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What is the difference between Eastern and Western acupuncture?
Western medicine looks to identify a disease, looks to identify a pathogen, looks to identify an evil influence that has overtaken the body and controls the body whether it is a germ or bacteria, a biochemical abnormality or a blood clot.
A Oriental medical doctor looks at identifUmg the health and dysfunction and status of Ki, blood, phlegm, moisture. The Eastern medical doctor would examine the patient and make a diagnosis based upon the physical characteristics of the pulse at the radial artery, which identifies the twelve acupuncture meridians, and from the patient's tongue - whether it is coated or not, its shape and movement. Also there is observation of the patient's overall physical stature, face, skin, nails, eyes.
So the Eastern medical doctor would diagnose the status of Ki whether it is weak, stagnant, or congested, whether blood or moisture is deficient, stagnant, slack or congested. They would also examine for the five pernicious influences. External influence of heat, cold, dampness, dryness, and wind.
Within each discipline, Western and Eastern, there is an enormous amount of time spent on testing and obtaining information that has its own paradigm and usefulness. Many believe that Western medicines greatest strength is in trauma care and therapies for acute problems. While Eastern medicine excels in chronic problems and preventive medicine.
Within the paradigm of Eastern medicine is the concept of Ki. In the West, it would be described as bioelectric energy. You can't look at it under a microscope, you can't detect it with any scientific instruments. You cannot isolate it in any form or substrate. Acupuncture seeks to treat health on the level of Ki. There are pathways in the body which Ki flows. These are called meridians or channels and the needles are inserted along the meridians to influence the Ki that flows to various organs. Needles are also inserted in areas where specific pain is associated such as strained muscles.
Another Eastern concept is Um and Yang. Um is the feminine qualities of the universe and yan is the masculine qualities of the universe. In western medicine, Um would be anatomy and Yang would be physiology while in Eastern medicine, Um would be blood and yang would be Ki energy.
Western medicine tends to diagnose and treat as the effect of the disease state it has on the body. While the practitioner of Eastern medicine diagnosis and acts upon the energy that creates the disease state. With the advancement of scientific discovery and anatomical dissection and microscopic evaluation, Western medicine is based upon a philosophy that all exists in the physical realm as real, that is material. In Eastern medicine terms that equates to Um while Eastern medicine acts upon the Yang of the body or the Chi energy of the body.
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What are the traditional definitions of Ki energy?
Ki (matter energy)- the vital energy of any living organism and source of all movement and change in the universe.
Hyul (blood)-Not only the fluid that circulates in the vascular system but also the Ki within that fluid that vitalizes its nourishing function as well as its flow. Ki and Hyul have mutual interdependent functions.
Joeng (essence)-The essential energy of all living organism which is derived both from the energy we inherent from our parents and from the energy we require from our daily lives principally from food and air.
Shin (spirit) Non-material, mental, emotional aspect of consciousness that is stored in the heart. The heart here is referring to the Chinese heart which is not the simple organ in the chest but the spiritual aspect of the person.
Jin aeck (body fluids) the functional secretions of the body includes tears, sweat, saliva, milk, mucous, vaginal secretion. Jin are the lighter purer more Yang fluids which via the lung moisten and nourish the skin and the muscles. Ye are the denser more Um fluids which are processed in the spleen and the stomach to moisten and nourish the zang Fu or internal organs ( bones, brains and orifice such as mucus for secretory orifices and others).
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What are the functions of Ki?
All five substances are interdependent. However Ki is central to each of them since it is both the prime activator as well as the recipient of other functions. The five main functions of Ki are defined as: (1) impulsing-which is the growth and development of the body (2) warming-maintaining the appropriate body heat (3) defending the body against stress and pathogens (4) controlling the blood and bodily fluids within the body (5) metabolizing Ki, blood and bodily fluids.
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What is the meridian theory?
Oriental medicine describes invisible Ki circulating along a system of conduits. The principle ones are called meridians or channels as well as being carried along with the blood (hyul) This Ki is the vital energy which gives life to all living matter, in a way Ki conduits resemble those of a vascular nervous system. There are twelve principle bilateral channels/meridians of Ki they are connected with one of the visceral of the body and each manifest its own characteristic of Ki.
They are: liver, gallbladder, master of heart, triple heater, heart, small intestine, spleen, stomach, lung, large intestine, kidney, bladder. Then there is one midline meridian called, ventrally in the front, conception vessel and one posterior on the midline called governor vessel.
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How does acupuncture work?
Acupuncture is a method of promoting natural healing and improving function within the body. It is done by inserting needles and applUmg heat and/or electricity at various precise acupuncture points. We explain acupuncture as Ki or energy traveling through channels in the body surfaces. These channels called meridians are like rivers that run through the body and nourish the tissue. Any obstruction of movement of this energy is like a dam which backs up the flow in one part of the body and restricts the flow in other parts. An obstruction or blockage or deficiencies of energy (Ki), blood and moisture would lead to dysfunction and ultimately disease and death.
Meridians can be influenced by acupuncture needling, unblocking the obstruction of the dams within the meridian circulation releasing the regular flow of Ki, blood and fluid, moisture through these meridians. Acupuncture treatments can be helpful for internal organs, connective tissue and promoting digestion absorption and energy production.
Modern science explains the function of acupuncture in the following ways. Needling of acupuncture points stimulates the nervous system to release neuroproteins and neuroinformation packets in the muscles, spinal cord and brain particularly the release of endorphin, enkephalins and dynorphins have been identified in the mid-brain.
These chemicals modulate the perception of pain and the physiological function of the neural-endocrine-harmonal system. They trigger the release of the body's own internal influences on regulating and harmonizing health. Oriental medicine describes Um as negative and yang as positive.
The principle of Oriental medicine is balance and harmony between Um and yang. Um and yang balance is the healthy state of the body, mind and spirit. In modern science, the cellular health is the movement of electrons. The electrons inside cells act according to their own regular patterns. These bioelectrons are constantly moving towards balance and harmony, postive and negative balance.
Energy flow in the meridians is the direct and indirect transportation of bioelectrons. Meridians are the pathways where bioelectrons move more frequently than any other part of the body. When postive and negative charges of the bioelectrical movement are not balanced, Um and yang are imbalanced. This is defined as dysfunction and disease. This beginning stage of pathology start with physiological abnormalities of electron motion.
Only radical change in the cellular structure and the cellular electrical magnetic forces is called, in Western medicine, a disease. All external factors such as mechanical, physical, chemical and biological as well as internal factors such as heredity, mentation, constitutional health force the bodies bioelectrical movement turn to imbalance which could lead to dysfunction and disease.
Bioelectric magnetic forces resume their normal and regular pattern with Um and yang balance. The more acupuncture treatment the patient has, the longer the normal movement pattern of bioelectrons until finally the electrons inside the cells cannot follow the abnormal pattern anymore. At this point, the condition in the patient can be deemed balanced and completely healthy.
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Is there needleless acupuncture?
Yes, the most common form of needleless acupuncture is auricular therapy which is manual elecltrical stimulation of the acupuncture points of the ear. The ear is a micro-system of the entire body with over 200 acupuncture points available for diagnosis and treatment. Auricular therapy is an effective way of confirming a western diagnosis using an acupuncture system since it uses an instrument that measures skin resistance. The same machine can be used to tonify or disperse the excess Ki associated with that point.
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Does acupuncture analgesia really work?
Research performed in animals and humans shows that specific acupuncture relieved pain while sham acupuncture (needles at acupoint regions) had no pain relieving effect. Several controlled clinical trials on chronic pain patients comparing real acupuncture to sham acupuncture have also shown that acupuncture really works better than a placebo. Perhaps more importantly, when acupuncture was compared to conventional treatment of chronic pain it was found to be just as effective with fewer side effects.
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How does acupuncture analgesia work?
It is evident that needling simulates peripheral nerves in the muscles which send messages to the brain to release endorphins (morphine-like peptides in the brain) These neurochemicals then cause analgesia by blocking the transmission of painful messages. Three main sites for endorphin acupuncture analgesia have been found. The pituitary gland is one site that has been shown to release endorphins into the blood stream. This hormone travels to the three parts of the brain and spinal cord to block the transmission of painful messages. The second site is the periaqaductal gray neurons in the mid brain which release endorphins that act as local transmitters to excite the rostral ventromedial medulla. The rostal ventromedial medulla in turn projects massively and selectively to pain transmitting neurons in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord and the trigeminal nucleus caudalis. Electrical stimulation in the periaqueductal gray (PAG) and rostral ventromedial medulla (RVM) produces behavioral analgesia and inhibitions of spinal pain transmission. This third site, spinal cord endorphin system, is where the spinal cord neurons release endorphins to block the release of neurotransmitters from afferent fibers carrUmg painful messages to the cord.
In 1977, research showed that acupuncture analgesia inhibited the spinothalamic tract neurons from responding from painful inputs. This acupuncture effect was then blocked by naloxone, an endorphin receptor blocker. It has also been shown in mice and humans that naloxone blocked acupuncture anesthesia using behavior measurements. Acupuncture research has progressed since the 1970's to date to have no less than 17 different lines of evidence convergent upon acupuncture endorphin mechanisms verifUmg and supporting acupuncture analgesia.
17 Lines of Convergent Evidence of Acupuncture Endorphin Analgesia
- naloxone blocked acupuncture analgesia
- six opiates antagonist block acupuncture analgesia
- dextro-naloxone doesn't block acupuncture analgesia
- antibodies to endorphins block acupuncture analgesia
- micro-injection of naloxone blocks acupuncture analgesia
- genetic defects in opiate receptors causes less acupuncture analgesia
- deficiency in endorphins causes less acupuncture analgesia
- endorphins rise in cerebral spinal fluid and drop in the brain after acupuncture analgesia
- acupuncture analgesia is enhanced by protecting from enzyme destruction
- cross circulation of acupuncture analgesic effects
- reduce pituitary endorphins block acupuncture analgesia
- a rise in mRNA for proenkephalin with acupuncture analgesia
- C-fos gene protein rises in endorphin areas of brain
- acupuncture analgesia shows cross tolerance with morphine addiction
- acupuncture analgesia works best for emotional pain like endorphin
- lesions of arcuate nucleus blocks acupuncture analgesia
- lesions of periaquaductal gray blocks acupuncture analgesia
The considerable evidence for the three pathways shown above provides convincing proof that acupuncture analgesia is a known physiological phenomenon that can occur and be manipulated through the use of acupuncture needles and electrical stimulation.
Testing the involvement of the pituitary, several experiments were carried out, both surgically removing the pituitary and suppression of the pituitary endorphins by chemical manipulations, all of the experiments suppressed acupuncture analgesia in animals. Experiments to test the involvement of the mid brain was done since it has been shown that morphine pain relief was largely mediated by this system. Such experiments include direct lesions to the raphe by cutting the output fibers in the dorsal lateral tract, the spinal cord blockade of serotonin receptors, blockade of serotonin synthesis and direct micro-injection of naloxone into the mid brain; all of these experiments reduced acupuncture analgesia.
Enhancement of serotonin synthesis increased acupuncture analgesia. An experiment measuring serotonin showed an increase product (serotonin) was released during acupuncture analgesia along with noradreneline.
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