Treatment for Depression
with No Side Effects
According to the New England Journal of Medicine, depression is extremely
common in the United States and is among the ten most frequently reported
medical conditions. Approximately fifty percent of the people who seek
treatment for depression are not helped by medication or withdraw from
treatment too early. Of those who recover, more than one third relapse
within eighteen months. This suggests that additional treatment options
may be very helpful for people who suffer from depression.
Worldwide Research
Since the early nineties, studies around the globe have suggested that
treating depression with acupuncture has a positive and holistic effect
on depressed individuals, particularly when used in combination with psychotherapy
and herbal treatments.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) has approved acupuncture as a
treatment for depression.
- The National Institutes of Health (NIH)
funded a pilot study by researchers at the University of Arizona
to study the effectiveness of acupuncture
as a therapy for depression. The study confirmed that acupuncture
is a promising treatment for major depression in women.
- Researchers at the
Department of Anesthesiology, Wayne County General
Hospital, Westland, Michigan, have found that acupuncture produces
an increase in brain chemicals that are believed to be in short
supply in people who
are depressed. Their research found that cerebral serotonin has
anti-depressant and analgesic effects and that cerebral serotonin
can be released
by the stimulation of certain acupuncture points.
- In one study in
Italy, conducted by the Societa Italiana di Riflessoterapia,
Agopuntura, Auricoloterapia, Prato, Italy, auricular acupuncture
(acupuncture treatment to the ear) was found to be effective
in reducing anxiety and
depression levels.
Drugs Often Mask the Root Cause
Each year, according to the NIH, a million people use acupuncture. For
those who are seeking help with depression, conventional treatments that
utilize antidepressant and anti-anxiety drugs often address only the signs
and symptoms of the disease and not the root cause. According to the Physician
Desk Reference, the top antidepressant drugs can cause a myriad of side
effects such as insomnia, anxiety, listlessness, fatigue, tremors, and
sexual dysfunction.
Acupuncture and Conventional Medicine
Why does acupuncture succeed in areas that conventional medicine seems
to come up short? Both systems of medicine have their own areas of effectiveness.
Conventional medicine generally looks to the outside for healing, primarily
in the form of pills, and often focuses on the elimination of the symptoms
of ill health rather than the underlying problem.
Acupuncture is a health care system that focuses on prevention, with an
overall wellness orientation. Acupuncturists look for patterns of ill health
to determine the underlying cause. Looking to the inside and assuming that
the mind, body and spirit are inter-connected, acupuncture concentrates
on the body’s ability to heal itself. Imbalances in the body’s
energy cause illness and acupuncture heals by restoring the body’s
balance.
In support of this principle, the NIH has concluded that acupuncture stimulates
the nervous system to release pain-relieving endorphins and appears to
improve the immune function. Stress related disorders, pain control, and
chronic disease are three of acupuncture medicine’s specialties.
Acupuncture Complements Other Approaches
A system of total body health care, acupuncture can be used as a complement
to other approaches. For example, acupuncture might be combined with physical
therapy, diet and herbal medicine. Acupuncture is also offered as part
of an array of therapies at many well known hospitals throughout the country,
including the famous Memorial-Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, according
to an article in the Medical News Archives of WebMD.
To learn more about how acupuncture can improve the quality of your
life, call The Healing Acupuncture Center at 512 458.7880 or
with your questions.
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