Acupuncture
AcupunctureAcupuncture
Alternative medicine, long dismissed by mainstream doctors, is getting a second look as many people in the United States have turned to acupuncture to treat a variety of problems. Proponents of acupuncture have accumulated many statistics and surveys in favor of this ancient method. Even though, many medical professionals still question its validity due to the discovery of adverse effects of acupuncture and problems in researching alternative medicines.
Acupuncture is defined as the "art of healing by the inserting of needles into specific points of the body for therapeutic purposes" (Weiss 70). Needles that are slightly larger than a strand of hair are inserted into different points depending on the specific problem of the patient. The needle is placed in the skin at a certain angle with a particular motion, usually about a quarter inch deep. They are then twirled and sometimes topped with Chinese herbs, which are burned (Abrams 103). Acupuncture is also occasionally combined with electrical stimulation that is supposed to enhance the effects of acupuncture (Consumer 54). Patients that have experienced the treatment claim that acupuncture "is less painful than getting a shot or having blood drawn because the needles are so thin" (Weiss 73).
The question remaining involves the legitimacy of acupuncture treatments. It has a long history of success in Asia dating back over 5,000 years (Duke 224). The method approaches problems as "patterns of disharmony" which are responsible for poor health in individuals (Consumer 55). Oriental acupuncturists believe that either yin or yang,
whose balance affects everything in the universe, influences each of the body's organs. They also believe that the body is full of pathways of energy called qi. Acupuncture restores the normal energy flow of qi that in turn helps the yin or yang, or the organ. Qi can be found on any of the 400 different acupuncture points on 14 meridians, or energy channels in the body (Abrams 102).
The Western model of acupuncture is very different than that of Asia. Doctors in the United States have discovered that natural pain-blocking chemicals, endorphins, are released during acupuncture. These not only relieve pain, but they also trigger anti-inflammatory agents into the bloodstream (Abrams 103).
Acupuncture is used for a variety of problems with pain relief as the most popular. Other uses include relieving the symptoms of asthma and additional respiratory problems. Heart attack patients' arteries can be reopened by triggering the release of certain hormones. Stroke patients can enjoy a speedy recovery with acupuncture by improving motor neuron pathways (Weiss 75). The newest use is for drug addiction. There are over 400 detoxification programs in Europe and the Untied States that specialize in acupuncture. A clinic in New York City treats over 250 addicts a day. In the past six years, 10,000 people have been put through the program either by will or court...
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