Migraines are chronic headaches accompanied by severe and sometimes debilitating pain. This pain often occurs on one side of the head. Sensory warnings such as arm or leg tingling or light flashes may precede a migraine. Migraines can also cause vomiting, nausea, or sensitivity to sound or light. The exact cause of migraines remains unclear. However, a number of things are known to trigger a migraine, such as stress, bright lights, certain foods and physical exertion. For those seeking drug-free relief, the ancient practice of acupuncture has become the alternative treatment of choice to help prevent and alleviate migraines.
Acupuncutre Origins
The history of acupuncture stretches back more than 5,000 years. Throughout history, people from throughout the world have practiced forms of acupuncture, including Arabs, Eskimos, and South African Bantu tribesmen.
However, it was the Chinese who studied, researched and popularized acupuncture as a medical treatment. The ancient Chinese medical text "Huangdi Neijing", written around 200 B.C., included information about acupuncture. Today, acupuncture is one of the most common alternative medical treatments, with more than 8,000 practitioners in the United States alone.
Tradtional Chinese Philosophy
According to traditional Chinese medicine, qi, or life energy, should flow freely throughout our body. The health of the body depends upon maintaining the proper balance of two opposing forces, yin and yang. An imbalance of yin and yang causes our qi to be blocked, resulting in pain or illness. The circulation and health of our blood and body fluids also depends on the proper, unobstructed flow of your qi.
Our qi flows through our body along channels called meridians. Acupuncture and acupressure stimulate specific points, called acupoints, along the meridians, which unblocks our qi and allows our body to return to a proper balances of yin and yang, thereby treating pain, illness, or other bodily ailments.
Acupuncture and Western Medicine
Acupuncture has largely become an accepted practice in Western medicine, though there are differing opinions on why and how it works, as well as its overall effectiveness as medical treatment.
One Western theory of why acupuncture works is that the insertion of needles into particular points in our body stimulates our central nervous system to release biochemicals such as hormones and neurotransmitters. These biochemicals then help ease pain, regulate our body functions, produce feelings of well-being, and strengthen our immune system.
Acupuncture Treatment for Migraines
Acupuncture is a common alternative treatment for migraines. After making a diagnosis as to what exact type of internal imbalance is causing your migraine, the acupuncturist inserts thin needles into the corresponding acupoints that help rid your body of obstructions, allow your qi to flow freely through your body, and increase blood flow to your brain. Some of these acupoints may be on your hands or ears. The insertion of the needles does not cause pain. In fact, some people even fall asleep during the procedure.
Efficacy
Findings on acupuncture as a treatment for migraines have been inconsistent. A study by a conglomerate of European doctors published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in May 2005 concluded that acupuncture was no more effective than sham acupuncture in treating migraines.
However, an Italian study published in the Journal of Traditional Medicine in 2000 concluded that acupuncture improved migraine symptoms "more significantly" than pharmacological treatment, and a recent review of acupuncture studies done by the the Cochrane Collaboration concluded that there is consistent evidence that acupuncture can be beneficial in treating migraine headaches.
Conclusions
Though it cannot definitively be said that acupuncture cures migraines, acupuncture as a treatment for migraines has gained wide acceptance in the international medical community. If you decide to undergo acupuncture treatment for migraines, talk to your doctor first and make sure to see a licensed acupuncturist.
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