Acupuncture
is one of the oldest, most commonly used medical procedures in the world.
Originating in China more than 4,000 years ago, acupuncture began to
become better known in the United States in 1971, when New York Times
reporter James Reston wrote about how doctors in China used needles
to ease his abdominal pain after surgery. Research shows that acupuncture
is beneficial in treating a variety of health conditions.
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| Conditions
that might be helped with acupuncture: |
| Asthma |
Frozen
Shoulder |
| Abdominal
pain |
GI
problems |
| Acid
regurgitation |
Headache |
| Allergies |
Heat
Syndrom |
| Amenorrhea |
Hernia |
| Anxiety |
Hiccup |
| Aphonia |
Impotence |
| Arthritis |
Infections |
| Bacillary
Dysentery |
Infertility |
| Bronchitis |
insomnia |
| Chronic
fatigue |
irregular
Menses |
| Colitis |
Migrain |
| Common
Cold |
Nocturnal
enuresis |
| Constipation |
Overwight |
| Convulsive
disease |
Osteoarthritis |
| Cough |
Pain
managerment |
| Diarrhea
/ I B S |
Palpitation |
| Depression |
Paralysis |
| Deafness |
Peptic
ulcer |
| Dizziness |
Quit
Smoking |
| Edema |
Sciatica |
| Emaciation |
Sinusitis |
| Eczema |
Tonsillitis |
| Facial
Palsy |
Trigeminal
Neuralgia |
| Fibromyalgia |
Vomiting |
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| In
the past two decades, acupuncture has grown in popularity in the United
States. A Harvard University study published in 1998 estimated that Americans
made more than five million visits per year to acupuncture practitioners. The
report from a Consensus Development Conference on Acupuncture held at the
National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 1997 stated that acupuncture is being
"widely" practiced--by thousands of physicians, dentists, acupuncturists,
and other practitioners--for relief or prevention of pain and for various
other health conditions.
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| NIH
has funded a variety of research projects on acupuncture. These grants have
been awarded by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine
(NCCAM), the Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM, NCCAM's predecessor),
and other NIH Institutes and Centers. |
| This
fact sheet provides general information about acupuncture, research summaries,
a glossary that defines terms underlined in the text, and a resource section.
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