Investigating Acupuncture

There are so many different forms of alternative medicine, each one with its own set of cures for many different ailments, or imbalances, which is where illnesses stem from. It is interesting to note the way in which herbal medicine works alongside acupuncture.

Acupuncture is the art of inserting very thin needles just under the skin to stimulate specific points on the body in order to bring about relief of pain and wellness to the body. This is accomplished by restoring the balance of qi to the body.

Qi is the life force which is found in every thing, both human and non human, from breath to the blood that flows through us, and the movement of qi throughout the body is a sensation brought about by acupuncture that you will not want to miss. It kind of feels like blood flowing, as if you could hear it, but not really. When the acupuncturist takes the needles out of your body you can almost feel the qi moving, it feels like a thread being pulled from your leg, or foot, or wherever the needle is being drawn out from. It is a very calming experience. Simply, the flow of your qi is being restored by stimulating it using needles.

The philosophy of Dao, ying and yang, must be understood in order to understand acupuncture.

Dao is the way of life in Chinese Medicine and acupuncture. Dao advocates living in moderation, and striving for balance with nature. The Chinese believe that moderation is the key to living a long life, and use the practice of acupuncture to balance bodies and spirit to maintain health and to bring into balance ill health.

We are made up of three elements, qi (pronounced Chee) is our energy, Shen is your spirit, and Jing is the essence of ourselves. Qi establishes the interconnectedness with everything and is found in ones blood and heart, lungs and oxygen. Shen is compared to ones soul in that it provides thought and the awareness of the self. Jing helps us grow and reproduce. Once we lose jing, it can not be replaced, as the Chinese believe that we are each born with a finite amount. Because we lose jing if we live carelessly, acupuncture can reduce the loss by balancing the qi, or energy, helping to preserve jing. When our Jing is used up, we die.

Now on to ying and Yang, the other elements of life, when these two opposing forces are balanced we are at peace, we are much more likely to let things slide and take life easy, when they are out of balance we exhibit arrogance, pride, lust, gluttony, and the other excesses of living which eat away at our Jing. The emotions run amok and we become sick.

This is also why acupuncture is often used in cooperation with herbal therapy. Acupuncture works with the yang because it comes from outside the body and goes inside (the act of inserting the needle), while herbal therapies are considered to be ying therapies because they move throughout the interior of the body.

While acupuncture is widely thought to be used primarily to control pain, acupuncture can benefit a host of other illnesses, such as respiratory ailments (asthma), cataracts, hiccups, ulcers, migraines, and toothache, just to name a very few.

The truth is that there are very few ailments that can't be alleviated with acupuncture, including alcoholism and addiction cravings. There is a point in the ear which can help alleviate cravings of all addictive behaviors, and acute withdrawal from alcoholism can be helped with the point used for the liver.
Western medicine is beginning to concede to acupuncture for its use in alleviating chronic pain, such as neck and back, which a lot of westerners suffer from. We are only now beginning to accept the fact that it can also be used to help anxiety and chronic fatigue, and more and more medical insurance is beginning to include acupuncture on claim forms.

This article is meant to be informative only, and does not go into the detail that acupuncture deserves; please see a practitioner of Chinese medicine for more information.

Today's Society and Alternative Medicine

Alternative Medicine has been used for hundreds of years. Long before the invention of drugs. Indeed whenever you look at the similarities between natural and man-made it seems to run true to the fact that 'man-made' isn't doing us any good. Do you know what alternative medicine is? If you think that you don't, you are wrong. Alternative medicine has become something of a niche in today's world. The healing treatments that used to be thought of as ineffective to certain people of the world, are now being used more and more frequently. Many well known types of alternative medicine include:

· Massage
· Aromatherapy
· Acupuncture
· Herbal Medicine
· Herbal Tea
· Hydrotherapy
· Meditation
· Spiritual Healing

Any of these forms of treatment sound familiar to you? I'm sure that at least one of them is not only something you have heard of but also a form of treatment that you yourself have attempted at least once before.

There seems to be more than ever, people with ailments and sicknesses that the doctors can not seem to cure. So people are now turning to the alternative medications that once worked for people thousands of years ago.

There is also a large amount of very health conscious people in our society today. These are the type of people who do not like to fill their bodies with prescription drugs. So to avoid this, herbal medications have become their substitutes. Herbal medications are meant to do the same thing as prescription medications, but they are better for you. Completely organic.

Another fact regarding alternative medicine in today's society, is that it is simply "the thing to do". It has turned into one of those fads that takes over a society. Some of these treatments are being misused. There may be absolutely nothing wrong with a person and they are using these alternative treatments as a reward instead of what they really are. Massage is one of the top treatments that can be misused. This is one treatment that has integrated itself into the daily routines of so many people in today's society. Massage is now something that can be used not only to relieve pains but also to relieve stress. It is a very relaxing treatment that many people have taken the time to put into their daily routines as an outlet from their everyday lives.

Meditation is also a spiritual and ancient treatment that is being used more and more throughout the years. Meditation is similar to the art of massage. They are both used for their relief of stress and tension. Meditation however, is not something that you can do without learning anything about it. This is something you do on your own, you are in complete control. Perhaps this is one reason why so many people have taken a liking to this treatment. If you have never tried or learned anything about meditation before, it is something that comes highly recommended by many people in today's society.

Today's society is in need of a change. Alternative medicine is that change. The change and the great difference that alternative medicine brings to the lives of people who use them is something that many people have been searching for. Stress has become a very pertinent factor in the average person's life. These alternative forms of treatment and medicine relief this stress and tension that people bring on themselves.

Today's society is full of stress and tension and illness. Without these alternative treatments, the stress would be harder to relieve for those who do not know how to monitor the stress in their lives. Massage and meditation are the two most common of the alternative medicines and they are effecting the society of today in an extremely positive way. In time, you will begin to see more and more of the other alternative medicines in the society of today as well as the future.

Using Alternative Treatment for Children

When my children were young, like many children, they were always getting cuts and bruises, some of which were quite traumatic for them at the time. I was so pleased when I found out about homoeopathic medicine which seemed to work like magic for them in so many instances and it was no problem getting them to take the sweet tasting little 'pills'!

There are many diseases and illnesses that children have which are difficult to treat. They are difficult to treat because it may be harder to administer the conventional treatments to a child or they may refuse to take their medication. This is where alternative medications and treatments come into place. Children easily accept these alternative treatments because they do not associate these treatments with medicine. These treatments are something new and exciting in their eyes.

Asthma is one disease in particular that is difficult to treat children for. The children do not enjoy using their puffers or any other type of treatment that is given. Before you begin choosing the alternative treatment for your children or child, you must remember to keep in mind that these treatments have no scientific research and are not equal to conventional medications. These treatments do work to an extent however.

Acupuncture:
This is a technique where needles are placed into key points of the body. Evidence suggests that these needles release endorphins in the brain, which help reduce pain. Children with asthma who endure this treatment may find it easier to breathe more calmly and relaxed.

Hypnosis:
This is a treatment that may give children more self-discipline to continue on with their medicine in a more regular manner.

Massage and Relaxation Techniques:
It has been suggested that stress or anxiety can constrict the airways even more for children or even adults with asthma. Massage helps reduce this stress, therefore making it easier for the child to breath. You can also learn great techniques to do on your own to help control your own breathing patterns. This gives the child confidence that they are in control of their asthma.

There are many other diseases that children have where alternative treatment can be used. Perhaps used with conventional methods as well. Children with serious diseases such as cancer or diabetes may need to take advantage of massage or meditation techniques. Children with life threatening disease are prone to bottle up their stress and this can sometimes make their disease that much worse. By using alternative treatments along side of your doctor prescribed medications can be a great combination! Children with diseases need as much help as they can get.

As a parent a great deal of research and doctor's opinions are necessary. Depending on what your child has you must research carefully any alternative treatments you are considering. You want to ensure that the treatments will do something for your child and not harm them in any way. You may find with treatments such as acupuncture that your child will be reluctant to try it. That is why research for something that the child will want to participate in. These treatments are more about relaxation and making your child feel like they are in control and not helpless to their illness.

Children are more prone to need alternative treatments because they are more reluctant to follow through with their prescribed medicines. Children are hard to treat, but if they like the treatment, then it becomes that much easier! A great way to make your child excited for their new treatment is to describe it like it is a treat. Get them excited to go. The more excited they are to try something new the more willing they will be to make it part of their weekly or even daily routine. As a parent you know, that children need to enjoy what they are doing otherwise you will be defeated! Take the advice from this article, but always ensure that you run your ideas past your family doctor just to be safe. Alternative treatments can make all the difference in your child's health and attitude!

Vitamins

Many people take vitamins to supplement their diet but the recommended daily allowance (RDA) may not be enough to make much difference. Everyone has different requirements, for examaple, people with allergies may require more of the B vitamins. The important thing is that vitamins, taken in the right quantities, can be useful as a form of preventative medicine.

The amount of information available about vitamins today is almost overwhelming. But that's actually an improvement over several decades ago when most people gave vitamins little thought. Even doctors used to say that we can get all the vitamins we need from our daily diet. They didn't used to know that smoking is linked to cancer either.

Now many doctors recommend that people take at least a daily multivitamin, and there is a growing trend in the medical professions for doctors to learn more about nutrition and vitamins and how they affect health. Even now, however, many medical schools don't offer much in their curricula in terms of nutrition, vitamin intake and their role in staying healthy. That's partly because in the West doctors are trained to treat disease. They don't necessarily learn very much about how vitamins can keep you healthy. We've got all sorts of high tech interventions, drugs and therapies that save lives. It's almost like magic. But vitamins can play a role in helping many of us avoid the need for drugs and invasive medical procedures down the road.

Back to the idea of getting all the vitamins we need from our daily diet, that may have actually been more true 100 years ago than it is today. Now so much of our food is cut, dried, canned, pounded, extracted, packaged and repackaged, in other words highly processed that many of the vitamins that promote health are lost in the process. Having the food production and distribution system that we now have means that fewer people go hungry, but it also means that a lot of what's filling our bellies doesn't contain enough nutrients for optimal health. That means taking vitamin supplements is a very good idea. Eating as many fresh vegetables, fresh fruits and whole grains as possible helps too. In earlier times, those were the main elements of people's day-to-day diets.

The thing to do is read up on them a little bit, try some and see if your overall energy and resistance to illness increases.