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Author:
J. Brian Keith

To preface discussion about the benefits of acupuncture, lets talk about what acupuncture is. First used in China more than 2000 years ago, and is one of the oldest medical procedures known to man. It is a family of procedures that stimulates the anatomy of the body and helps to balance the energy flow throughout the body. It is the same type of acupuncture that is practiced in the United Sates today, through the use of tiny, metallic needles placed in affected areas and manipulated by hand or by electrical stimulation.

Acupuncture is the foundation for Traditional Chinese Medicine and is based on the belief that there are two opposing and forces in our body. They are known as the Yin and Yang of the entire person. The Yin is representative of the cold, slow, or passive principle, and yang represents the hot, excited or active principle. A healthy state is achieved by maintaining a balance state of the yin and yang. This is done through vital pathways or meridians that allow for the flow of qi, or vital energy. The vital energy flow occurs along pathways known as meridians. These meridians connect over 2,000 acupuncture points along the body. There are 12 main meridians, and 8 secondary meridians. Although traditional western medicine does not completely understand how acupuncture works, the proof that it does work has been shown in several studies conducted by western medical facilities. Does it work? According to the National Institute of Health, the answer is absolutely yes. Acupuncture has been shown to be effective in many areas of health care. Areas such as postoperative nausea, chemotherapy side effects, osteoarthritis, low back pain, headache, menstrual cramps, addiction, carpal tunnel syndrome, and asthma, just to name a few. The study revealed that acupuncture was able to provide pain relief, improve function and mobility of joints due to arthritis inflammation, and served to complement standard care.

There are many who doubt the effectiveness of acupuncture, although once they become patients, they become believers. It has been suggested that acupuncture works and produces its effects through regulating the nervous system. The theory suggests that since acupuncture produces its effect through regulation of the nervous system, it induces the release of endorphins and immune system cells at specific sites on the body. There is also the theory that acupuncture alters the brain chemistry by the changing the neurotransmitters in the brain. There is no doubt acupuncture was beneficial in the study. Although acupuncture is classified as an alternative medicine therapy, and there is still much to be understood about the way it works, it is a proven aid in maintaining optimal health.

What about the healthy individual, can acupuncture provide a benefit to them? Absolutely. Because acupuncture works off the belief that we must maintain balance of our vital energy flow in order to remain healthy, acupuncture serves as the tool for realignment. Our vital energy flow can be out of balance, and we still feel and appear quite healthy.

About the author:

J. Brian Keith is a Exercise Equipment author and contributor at exercise-equipment-directory.com, where innovative ideas and information about the Bowflex Home Gym is openly shared. See Exercise Equipment related articles.

A Quick Note From The Publisher... If you like the article above, you may be interested in the following article which is also related to Acupuncture... Acupuncture Eases Tension Headache Pain Copyright 2005 Daily News Central The ancient Chinese practice of acupuncture has proven to be an effective treatment for tension headache. It not only relieves pain, but also cuts rates of recurrence by almost half, a recent study indicates. Traditional Chinese acupuncture therapy involves insertion of needles up to 3 inches deep into the body at prescribed acupuncture points, according to licensed acupuncturist Rong Zeng of the New York Good Health Clinic in Manhattan. However, a new, randomized blind study in Germany involving 270 patients with a similar severity of tension headache has shown that a minimal course of acupuncture works almost as well as the traditional method. Fewer Headaches After Treatment Researchers divided the patients into three groups. Over an eight-week period, one group was treated with traditional acupuncture, another received minimal acupuncture (needles inserted only superficially into the skin at non-acupuncture points), and the control group had neither treatment. The subjects were monitored for four weeks after their period of treatment. Those who had received traditional acupuncture care subsequently experienced seven fewer headaches. The group that had been given minimal acupuncture therapy had surprisingly similar results -- 6.6 fewer headaches. The control group did not fare as well, with only 1.5 fewer headaches. Improvements in headache rates continued for months after the acupuncture treatment, though they began to rise slightly as time went on. Results Subject to Interpretation Such a negligable difference in results between traditional and minimal acupuncture treatments possibly indicates that the location of acupuncture points and depth of needle insertion do not make a major difference...