What Is Acupuncture?

Acupuncture is a technique used in traditional Chinese medicine that acts to redirect the flow of the body’s vital energy, known as “qi” (pronounced “chee”). In traditional acupuncture, a trained practitioner inserts very thin needles about the size of a human hair into designated points along a “meridian” (a path in the body along which qi flows). According to John Pirog, MSOM, of Northwestern Health Sciences University, there are 12 meridians in all, each of which corresponds to a particular organ in the body. “Yin” meridians typically correspond to organs without an empty cavity, such as the heart, liver, spleen and kidney. “Yang” meridians correspond to organs that have an empty cavity, such as the stomach, gallbladder and intestines. By stimulating points along a particular meridian, the acupuncture practitioner balances the flow of energy and provokes therapeutic change in the corresponding organ, Pirog explains.

Although acupuncture employs needles, when done properly, the procedure rarely hurts. Most patients report no sensation at all or a mild feeling of pressure when the needles are inserted. With that being said, some acupuncture points may be more sensitive than others, especially those on the hands and feet. Additionally, some practitioners stimulate acupuncture points further by heating the needles with a mild electrical current, which creates a “pins and needles” effect. In any case, discomfort should be very mild and brief. If it isn’t, you should let your practitioner know. 

In addition to needles, an acupuncturist may use other forms of stimulation to redirect the flow of qi. These include the following:

• Vacuum pressure (“cupping”)
• Application of heat (“moxibustion”)
• Mild electrical current (electroacupuncture)
• Chinese massage (tui na)
• Chinese exercise system (tai ji)

Does acupuncture work?

Practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine have used acupuncture to successfully treat various ailments for about 2,500 years. Here in the West, it first gained popularity as a Integrative therapy in the 1990s, when the FDA approved acupuncture needles as a medical device. In the two decades since that time, multiple studies have confirmed that acupuncture does, in fact, work, says Hopkins Medicine. The conditions that have been successfully treated with either acupuncture alone or acupuncture in combination with more traditional Western therapies include the following:

• Asthma
• Post-surgical dental pain 
• Headaches
• Fibromyalgia
• Addiction
• Tennis elbow
• Low back pain
• Osteoarthritis
• Menstrual pain

Additionally, a 2012 study in which researchers conducted an analysis of four large randomized controlled studies on the efficacy of acupuncture for chronic pain found acupuncture to be superior to both no treatment and “sham” acupuncture for four chronic pain conditions: chronic migraines, neck and back pain, osteoarthritis and shoulder pain. 

Sources

“What is the Meridian System?” Shen Nong. http://www.shen-nong.com/eng/principles/whatmeridian.html 

“What is acupuncture?”. Johns Hopkins Medicine. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/acupuncture 

“Acupuncture for Chronic Pain”. JAMA Internal Medicine. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/1357513