Acupuncture is a staple of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and has been used for thousands of years. While it's relatively new to mainstream medicine in the western hemisphere, there is a growing body of evidence that acupuncture is an effective therapy, particularly for back pain, neck pain, osteoarthritic knee pain, and headache. There is also some evidence that acupuncture may help in many other ways ranging from smoking cessation to relieving some symptoms of cancer treatment.
Acupuncture entails very thin needles being inserted at various depths and locations on a patient's body, typically along designated "meridians" as defined by TCM. These meridians are invisible channels within the body through which energy, or qi, flows. The needles help restore proper balance to the body's energy flow, allowing for it to heal itself and function optimally.
While the uses for acupuncture in TCM are vast, at Kennedy Family Chiropractic, we predominantly use acupuncture as an adjunct therapy to chiropractic care, focusing on neuromusculoskeletal wellness. Feel free to contact Kennedy Family Chiropractic with any questions!
- Acupuncture: In Depth. Jan. 2016, www.nccih.nih.gov/health/acupuncture-in-depth.
- Lim, Rodney Choon Huat. “Painless Laser Acupuncture for Smoking Cessation.” Medical acupuncture vol. 30,3 (2018): 159-162. doi:10.1089/acu.2018.1295
- Lhommeau, N et al. “Acupuncture et arrêt de la consommation tabagique, une revue de la littérature” [Acupuncture and smoking cessation, a review of the literature]. Revue des maladies respiratoires vol. 37,6 (2020): 474-478. doi:10.1016/j.rmr.2020.02.016
- Deng, Gary, et al. “Understanding the Benefits of Acupuncture Treatment for Cancer Pain Management.” Cancer Network, 15 June 2018, www.cancernetwork.com/view/understanding-benefits-acupuncture-treatment-cancer-pain-management.
