How does Acupuncure Work?

Boy, if I had $45 every time someone asked me this question...  Oh wait, most people do pay me that to answer this question!  Well, I let their own body do the answering for me.  Here's a list of what happens when you get acupuncture.  Maybe you'll see something here that you could use help with.

1. Pain Relief Effect.  This is easily the best known of all the effects of acupuncture.  The effect is actually achieved by raising the pain threshold as opposed to reducing the pain in the area, although that happens as well.  The great thing about this, is that one point alone can affect the pain in the entire body!  So if I've only got one needle, and someone is in lots of generalized pain, simply putting into Li4 (that's the one between the thumb and forefinger on that muscle that pops up when you bring the thumb in) will help you feel better, often, loads better.  Some points on the body are better at this than others, the best being Li4.  But, St44 and St43 (these are located on the foot between the 2nd and 3rd toes) are also useful for this, but are a bit more sensitive.  Mind you, having said that, it's been my experience that most people dislike the local sensation of having Li4 needled.  I disagree.  The worst needle to get is P6!  Well, K1 is nasty too, but it can be done in a way that is virtually painless, but don't tell my patients that it's supposed to hurt like crazy, because most barely notice that I've put it in!
   
   
2. Sedation Effect.  Most people will actually fall asleep during treatment, and wake up refreshed.  I believe that this is one of the most important aspects of acupuncture, because the root of all healing is rest.  If I can get someone to rest properly even for the duration of the treatment, that's a fantastic push in the right direction for most people. 
   
   Studies show that there is a marked decrease in Delta and Theta wave activity in the brains of people who are being treated with acupuncture.  This effect is why acupuncture can be used to effectively treat insomnia, anxiety, addictions, epilepsy, mental disorders and behavioral problems.
   
   
3. Homeostatic or Regulatory Effect:  This means that there is an adjustment of the internal environment towards a state of normal balance.  Generally, homeostasis is achieved in the body by the combination of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, and by the endocrine system.  In addition, there are numerous homeostatic mechanisms in the body, such as temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, metabolic rate, sweating, acid/alkaline balance and many other vital balances that need to be kept in proper ratios to keep the body healthy.  What happens in the application of acupuncture, is that all of these systems tend to move towards equilibrium.  This is why the exact set of points can be used to treat both high blood pressure and low blood pressure, or constipation and diarrhea. 
    
4. Immune-Enhancing Effect.  It has been shown that acupuncture results in an improvement in the bodies' ability to resist disease.  It has also been shown that there is an increase in white blood cell activity, sometimes as great as two or four fold.  It seems that the bodies reticuloendothelial system is activated with acupuncture.  Studies have shown that acupuncture can have a curative effect on even serious infections, such as appendicitis and tonsillitis.  As with pain relief, there are some acupuncture points that are better than others.  The best immune enhancing points are Du14 (located in the back of the neck, a hand-width below the hairline), Li11 (at the lateral end of the elbow crease when the elbow is semi-flexed) and Sp6 (one hand-width above the medial malleolus [that's the bone that juts out on the inside of the ankle joint])  It has been shown that acupuncture can be used when antibiotics cannot be, and that it has little or no side effects, which is not the case with antibiotics.
   
5. Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Allergic Effect:  Again, some points are better than others at this, but generally speaking, any acupuncture point that is used in an area that is inflamed will have an anti-inflammatory effect.  The anti allergic effects are a little more obtuse, as you have to know where they are to use them.  However, any acupuncture point that is near a skin reaction will help relieve the allergic reaction.
   
6. Psychological Effect:  This is the calming and tranquilizing effect that is quite separate from mere sedation.  Measurable effects have been reported on the metabolic tissues of the brain.  For instance, there is an increase in the dopamine content of the brain after acupuncture.  This may account for it's effectiveness in certain mental disorders, where there is a depletion of the dopamine content of the brain. 
   
   This psychological effect should not be confused with hypnosis or autosuggestion.  These effects follow acupuncture, and do not proceed it.  Hypnosis only works in about 10-15% of the population, whereas some degree of acupuncture analgesia can be induced in almost any person or animal!
   
7. Motor Recovery Effect:  Acupuncture hastens the motor recovery of patients that have been paralyzed for one reason or another.  Even late cases of motor paralysis can respond well to acupuncture, despite previous failure of other forms of therapy.  The explanation of this effect is complicated, as it involves antidromic stimulation of the anterior horn cells and their re-activation through a bio-feedback mechanism, operating through the Renshaw and Cajal cells of the spinal cord.  Whew.
   
   There was an amazing experiment done that proved that acupuncture is not simply mind over mater, and that some physiological changes are occurring during and after treatments.  A rabbit was acupunctured, and it was found that the pain threshold rose.  Then, they circulated the cerbrospinal fluid into a non-acupunctured animal, that animal's pain threshold also rose!  The exact nature of which neurotransmitters were involved is still under investigation, but the implications of this research strongly suggest that our endocrine system and neurotransmitter system is involved and stimulated with acupuncture.
   
   Pretty neat stuff, eh?  So when someone asks you how acupuncture works, send them this article!