Monday, October 5, 2009

What You Need To Know About Acupuncture

By Ralph Goodson Jr

Ancient China has given us a great deal by way of medicine and acupuncture, which has similarities with acupressure, is one of them. It is used to treat ill-health and maintain good health; using fine needles which are inserted into the skin at specific points along pathways of energy called meridians (as in acupressure). Good health is associated with energy, called chi or qi, flowing freely through the meridian channels; disease or injury blocks the chi preventing the free flow of energy. The exterior surface of the human body has 365 acupuncture points across 14 main meridians.

When specially designed needles or acupressure are placed at certain locations on the meridians the blocks are released thus enabling the chi to circulate freely. It's like removing accumulated debris from a river so it can resume flowing freely. Acupuncture is also very effective in cases where either the chi flows too slowly or may flow too fast; acupuncture controls and maintains the speed of the flow of positive energy.

1000 BC). Traditional Yin/Yang theory, Western or medical acupuncture and Five Elements are the three types of acupuncture. All three use similar diagnostic methods and the same system of points, but they take a different approach to the underlying causes of an illness and its treatment.

As the name suggests Five Element Acupuncture follows the five element cycle of Chinese medicine and it also takes the relationship between the mind and body seriously in the diagnosis of illnesses as much as the physical causes. Based on this, it believes that physical cure can be achieved only by removing the mental stress first. Although fiv elements acupuncture may help curing a person completely from his physical aliments it is a slow and gradual process because it begins by treating the fundamental causes of the ailment. The traditional yin / yang theory focuses on restoring the overall balance of yin and yang in the body. Combinations of the different acupuncture points on the meridians are simultaneously stimulated so that more than one element is affected.

Western Acupuncture tends to focus on urgent, short-term treatment, combining Eastern and Western medical techniques. Among the two categories of medical benefits of Acupuncture, the first type, Anesthetic Acupuncture finds its place in surgeries and dental procedures. The second one is the 'symptomatic' one, or also known as first-aid and is not used mainly to cure illnesses but used along with analgesics as a pain reliever and has a temporary effect. Medical researches and studies have revealed that acupuncture has been very successful in the treatment of migraines, depression, asthma, gynecological disorders, allergies, infertility, and arthritis. Acupuncture has been very successful in treating illnesses that do not go away with normal medication; it has also helped in treating psychological disorders that are related to a person's well being. - 14130

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