|
Biomedical Acupuncture
Mark A. Testa, DC
Acupuncture has been used for thousands of years to help relieve human suffering. The National Institutes of Health recommend acupuncture as safe and effective for many conditions like back pain, arthritis and nausea to name a few. Like much of medicine, new discoveries in acupuncture better explain how it works.
Biomedical acupuncture works from a western premise of anatomy and physiology. It has less to do with meridians and more to do with nerves and blood flow. Most acupuncture points historically are located near nerve bundles. This could account for the success of acupuncture prior to being able to describe how it works. Once a needle is place in the body, signaling to the brain occurs. Studies show that this signaling can decrease pain perception in several parts of the brain. In addition, the body sees the needle as a foreign object and immediately beings to send blood and anti inflammatories to the area. This increase in circulation and release of anti inflammatories eases tight and painful muscles, making them easier to stretch and loosen up.
Twisting the needle causes the muscle fibers and fascia to wrap around the needle shaft. This tugging on these tissues stimulates those tissues to realign, release chemicals that stimulate healing and break down scar tissue. This type of needle manipulation has been done for centuries with exceptional results even though we are just learning how how it works.
Once the needle is removed there are tiny needle holes left in the tissue. There is no bleeding from these small lesions but the body recognizes this as an injury. Studies show that releases of about 12 different healing chemicals are released into the blood to heal the lesions. These healing chemical circulate to all tissues, lasting up to five days helping many ailments.
Acupuncture doesn’t work in a vacuum. The healthier the person is the greater the effects. There is nothing introduced into the body from the needle. Acupuncture stimulates the body’s healing ability. If a body is depleted from a poor lifestyle, diet or repeated injury there may be little left to stimulate. Biomedical acupuncture works well for about 60-70% of people. Biomedical Acupuncture works quickly, is reproducible, and reliable. Biomedical Acupuncture is often painless and works in about 4-6 visits. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
