Acupuncture Comes Of Age
By Peter A.C. Garrison

If the U.S. Army, Harvard Medical School and MIT are in your corner, you know you're in good company. Acupuncturists and their patients must feel pretty popular lately, because those are exactly the organizations vetting them. A recent paper published in a peer-reviewed journal conducted by Harvard Med School and MIT should silence many of acupuncture's doubters: acupuncture was demonstrated to have an effect greater than placebo. So the positive medical benefits experienced by patients can't be dismissed as "in their heads" any more or the products of chance. Even the U.S. Army believes. They've recently allowed "battlefield" acupuncture to be performed for soldiers suffering from chronic and acute pain.
According to the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture, acute and chronic pain can often be treated with acupuncture as the primary therapeutic modality. So those common aches and pains, spasms, sprains, or repetitive stress injuries you get? Try acupuncture instead of your normal pill. In fact, many common conditions can be just as treated at least as effectively with acupuncture than with the over counter medicine. Migraines, motion sickness, ulcers, liver problems, kidney problems, and arthritis, to name a few, are all conditions acupuncture can help to alleviate, often times with fewer unwanted side effects, than OTC medications.
While it's effective at relieving pain, acupuncture can also be used to treat other physical as well as emotional problems like anxiety, stress, chronic fatigue, asthma, lower back pain, depression, high blood pressure, and infertility. In fact, the World Health Organization recognizes acupuncture as a treatment for digestive disorders such as gastritis and hyperacidity, spastic colon, constipation, and diarrhea. Even patients who initially used acupuncture only to deal with chronic pain have reported other conditions improved as well.
Western science is slowly beginning to understand the science behind the seeming magic that often results from acupuncture. Major pieces of the puzzle, however, have been identified.

When traditional acupuncture points are stimulated with fine needles during the course of an acupuncture treatment, studies have shown that the brain's natural "feel good" chemicals - opioids or endorphins - are released. These same chemicals are responsible for not only elevating mood but for relieving pain. The points that are stimulated during treatment lie along paths which are called meridians in Traditional Chinese Medicine.
According to TCM, living organisms are a series of pathways of energy conduits or meridian channels. Diagnostic acupuncture uses these channels or meridians to detect blockages in flow, indicating blockages of energy. Vital energy, known as Qi in Chinese medicine, flows through 12 paired meridian channels, cycling throughout the body.
While many patients are apprehensive about having needles inserted into their skin, these needles are instrumental in the practice of acupuncture. And you'll be relieved to know that they are actually pretty painless. The worst you'll feel is similar to a mosquito bite, but often, you won't feel a thing when they're inserted. The insertion of these needles at the acupuncture points are what stimulate the dislodgment of "stuck" energy along the meridians. Acupressure also works in the same way but uses pressures, usually delivered manually, instead of needles.
The number and frequency of treatment is dependent on the severity and length of the medical condition as well as the overall health and vitality of the patient. Adverse side effects of acupuncture are extremely low and are often lower than conventional western medical treatment options. Those who suffer from complex or long-standing medical problems may need to seek treatment as often as once or twice per week for several months.
Acupuncture is over 2,000 years old. It began in China, Japan and other parts of Asia but has since become a favored treatment option worldwide. In fact, the World Health Organization recognizes it as a safe and natural method of treating the symptoms and causes of many diseases. It's natural, powerful, and effective.
Do you need help in relieving pain, quitting smoking, or treating infertility? Evolve Wellness is a Los Angeles Acupuncture Center that has been helping hundreds of patients overcome a variety of medical challenges since 1998. Call or schedule an appointment with one of our Los Angeles Acupuncturists today.