Acupuncture is a form of treatment that involves inserting thin needles through a person’s skin to various depths at specific points on the body. The main principle is to unblock the flow of energy and bring balance. In this way, illness is addressed at its root, with effects that are long-lasting rather than temporary, rather than merely alleviating symptoms.
The needles used in acupuncture are sterile and intended for single use only. They are small, fine, flexible, and about the width of a cat’s whisker. Ten acupuncture needles can fit inside the tip of a hypodermic needle. The World Health Organization (WHO) has recently listed a number of conditions in which it says acupuncture has been proven effective. These include:
- low back and knee pain
- neck pain and spine pain
- stiff neck
- osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis
- headache and migraine
- high and low blood pressure
- obesity
- chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting
- Some gastric conditions, including peptic ulcer
- diabetes mellitus, non-insulin-dependent (type II)
- ulcerative colitis, chronic prostatitis, chronic
- Urinary tract infections
- Urolithiasis, painful periods
- allergic rhinitis
- facial pain
- morning sickness
- sprains
- tennis elbows
- sciatica
- dental pain
- Reducing the risk of stroke
- inducing labor
- fibromyalgia
- neuralgia
- insomnia
- depression (including depressive neurosis and depression following stroke)
- substance, tobacco and alcohol dependence
- vascular dementia
- Whooping cough, or pertussis
- sore throat (including tonsillitis)
- Tourette syndrome
To increase effectiveness, acupuncture may be combined with other treatments, such as Moxa, Tui Na, and Fire Cupping.