Benefits of Acupuncture

Most people ask “You can have Acupuncture for your illness?” or “Oh, my god. Is it painful with the needles?”.

This is one of the common conversations had when someone is asked to perform acupuncture for treatment. In general, people fear that inserting the acupuncture needle is painful without knowing the benefit of acupuncture.

The General Meaning of Acupuncture
The word acupuncture is made up of two words “acu” means sharp and “puncture ” means pricking. Hence the literal meaning of acupuncture is sharp pricking. Acupuncture is one of the component of Traditional Chinese Medicine which has been practiced in China for thousands of years and has spread throughout the world in short duration. The spreading of acupuncture is mostly due to its efficiency and availability for treating diseases.

Although acupuncture shows good result for treating many kinds of disease, most of the people fear more of needles than that of the benefits of acupuncture. In fact, the needles used in acupuncture are very thin. In fact, they are 14 times thin than that of standard blood drawing needles. So, now you can think when you are drawing the blood next time during your doctor visit.

Benefits of acupuncture:
Pain management
Acupuncture is mostly used for managing either acute or chronic pain. The efficiency of acupuncture in managing the pain is comparable with many western drugs. Acupuncture does this by stimulating the release of chemicals and hormones in the brain which have properties similar to natural opiates such as endorphins. Moreover, our body releases natural pain killers (endorphins) stimulated by acupuncture.

Relieve stress
Endorphins released by acupuncture also helps to decrease stress. Also, acupuncture improves the circulation in our body hence increasing the amount of oxygenated blood. Stress-induced elevations of sympathetic NPY pathway & HPA axis hormones are also blocked by using acupuncture. Acupuncture stimulates the Nervous System and releases neurochemical messenger molecules which brings some biochemical changes that influence the homeostatic mechanisms of the body and promotes emotional & physical well being.

Increase immunity
This is one of the major benefits of acupuncture. Acupuncture helps to increase the immunity of our body, hence prevents our body from the attack of external pathogens and helps to increase the healing capacity of our body during various conditions like infection, allergies .etc. The mechanism acupuncture works in improving the immunity is by stimulating the autonomic nervous system. Also acupuncture increases the level of interferon in our body. So, regular acupuncture therapy is beneficial in treating various diseases like Rheumatoid arthritis, Systemic Lupus erythematus, allergies, asthma, and common cold.

Overall well-being
Acupuncture helps in normalizing the flow of vital energy in our body. “Qi” is the vital energy in our body which helps with overall well being. The vital energy has the function of maintaining normal circulation of blood and nutrients in our body; maintaining the normal body temperature, protect the body from external pathogens and maintain proper metabolism of the body. According to Chinese Medicine, any imbalance in the function of “Qi” causes disease. Hence, acupuncture plays important role for the overall well being of our body.

Improve quality of life
Acupuncture can help patients with strokes or cancer improve their quality of life. In regards to stroke patients, acupuncture helps promote the function of the area affected, improves sleep, helps to clear speech, improve bladder and bowel habit, and relieve stress along with many more. Also in cancer patients, it helps to relieve stress, cure pain, and improve sleep. There are many other conditions where acupuncture can be beneficial for improving the quality of life.

These are just 5 of the most common benefits for acupuncture. However, the benefits cannot be limited only to five points. There are still hundreds of other benefits to acupuncture. Book an appointment with us by giving us a call at 702-907-7171.

References:  

Gyawali, Dr. Ishwar. “What Are the Benefits of Acupuncture ?” Acupuncture Nepal, 28 May 2020, www.acupuncturenepal.com/what-are-the-benefits-of-acupuncture.html.