What is acupuncture?

More than two decades ago when I first earned my license to practice acupuncture, the question "what is acupuncture" accompanied nearly every response to "what I do." Today, most people have heard of acupuncture, at least, but still don't know much about what it is, and what it does.

Acupuncture is the traditional health treatment technique, refined over thousands of years, that involves the insertion of very fine, hair-like needles into "acu-points." Acu-points are spots in the skin that follow a specific pattern, called a "channel" or "meridian," that flows up and down the body from head to toes (and fingertips). Each is named after the organ it has the most influence on.

Many studies have been done on the acu-points in an effort to understand how they work. What we have discovered is interesting, but still not fully understood. For instance, there is a difference in the electrical conductivity of the skin where an acu-point is (more conductivity), that is different than a non-acu-point. The histology (skin tissue) is even different. There is increased density of receptors (twice as many), specifically structured bundles (such as neurovascular bundles and others), that differ from non-acupuncture points. There is a battery affect at the tissues when a needle is inserted as well as the release of various peptides.

Acupuncture research has demonstrated that when acupuncture releases pain peptides, that it enhances the central pain inhibition mechanism and breaks the vicious circle of pain. It is able to counteract the imbalanced sympathetic nervous system and assists in organ regulation. Its communication is via an axonal reflex. Every acu-point is associated with a particular therapeutic purpose, and when combined with other points can have completely different actions.

There are about 365 acu-points that are on the main channels, about 700 extra points, and several micro-systems. A micro-system is an acupuncture pattern within a pattern. Auricular (ear) acupuncture is one such micro-system. Anything wrong in the body can be treated using only ear points. Typically, we use ear points to treat addictions, emotional trauma (such as PTSD), high blood pressure, food and sugar cravings, weight loss and sleep disorders. However, those can be treated using body points as well.

Acupuncture is becoming more popular, as more people are enjoying the health benefits. In March 1996 the FDA finally reclassified acupuncture from being "experimental" to being a legitimate medical procedure. In 1997 the National Institutes of Health Consensus Conference on acupuncture in Washington concluded that "Promising results have emerged, for example, showing the efficacy of acupuncture in... [and it goes on to list the many conditions acupuncture is successful in treating]. It then listed other useful areas of adjunctive treatment, then the statement "further research is likely to uncover additional areas where acupuncture interventions will be useful."

Acupuncture has been around for a long time because it works. Best of all, it is natural, safe and effective.

Learn more by attending our upcoming webinar, Acupuncture: Getting to the Point, from 7-8 p.m. Wednesday, March 14. Fee: $5. Call (208) 765-1994 for registration information.

Holly Carling is a Doctor of Oriental Medicine, Licensed Acupuncturist, Doctor of Naturopathy, Clinical Nutritionist and Master Herbologist with more than 32 years of experience. Carling is currently accepting new patients and offers natural health care services and whole food nutritional supplements in her Coeur d'Alene clinic. Visit Carling's website at www.vitalhealthandfitness.com to learn more about Carling, view a list of upcoming health classes and read other informative articles. Carling can be reached at (208) 765-1994 and would be happy to answer any questions regarding this topic.