Acupuncture is an official branch of Chinese medicine that, in contrast to Western medicine, does not focus on the organ presenting the symptoms, but takes account of the person as a whole. This holistic approach benefits balance and harmony among the various parts. The origins in acupuncture date back to antiquity, as evidenced by the rediscovery in China of stone instruments of the Neolithic era (about 2000 B.C.) similar in design to the Bian needles mentioned in the ancient texts on Chinese medicine.
The first task of the acupuncture practitioner is to discover the energy state of an unwell person by checking the wrist and the tongue in order to identify the correct energy channels into which the needles are to be inserted.
These channels, known as meridians, are the routes that enable the energy flow and they connect the person with the outside world.
Chinese theory describes quite a lot of these channels in our body and they form connections between all the organs. When a person suffers pain and discomfort, these are indicators of a lack of balance between the various organs, excessive energy generated by one part and a lack or complete absence of energy in the other.
The acupuncture treatment identifies the location of these imbalances and then removes the energy, when this is excessive, directing it to where it is lacking. In order to do this, very thin needles are used at precise points on the body’s surface. These are steel needles about 0.3mm in diameter whose length varies from a centimetre and a half to seven centimetres according to the area to be treated and they are used only once.
When the needles are inserted, the system reacts by putting into action some natural mechanisms that are able to restore the energy balance, with the aim of returning the body to its original state of health.
The sessions are painless, last only half an hour and they benefit from having no contraindications. The most treatable disorders of all using this natural therapy are osteoarthritis, sciatica, cervical pain and cephalea. Acupuncture has also been found to be an effective treatment for disorders of a psychological nature, such as depression, anxiety and insomnia.
