Acupuncture is an ancient form of traditional Chinese medicine. It is commonly recognized worldwide as a mainstream CAM therapy.
Acupuncture is the practice of inserting a needle or needles into certain points in the body, known as meridian acupuncture points, for therapeutic or preventive purposes. Traditional Chinese medicine also recognizes the mind and body interacting as one, meaning that emotions have a physiological effect on the body. Five emotions are represented by the five elements:
1. Water
2. Wood
3. Earth
4. Metal
5. Fire
Acupuncture provides a customised approach to the patient. It is rare that a practitioner would administer the same treatment for two patients that present with the same problem. So how does it work? What is involved in a treatment? And where can one find a practitioner?
Acupuncture approaches the body as an integrated whole that is not just connected but also integrated with that bodies mind. In Chinese medicine the internal organs each have their own mental and emotional counterparts that, if disturbed, can cause as much psychological harm as they can physically.
Real acupuncture also produced slightly better results than using needles, which suggests the benefits of needling are due to more than the placebo effect.
Effect of acupuncture in the treatment of:
1. Back pain
2. Osteoarthritis
3. Neck pain
4. Shoulder pain
5. Headaches