Using Acupuncture to Treat Headaches
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Defined Tag: Headache Remedy.

Most people are still heavily reliant on painkiller tablets, whether prescribed or self-medicated, to relieve their headaches. However, a huge number of people are getting dissatisfied withconventional headache treatments such that there is currently a shift towards the use of alternative therapies or treatments.  One of the alternative treatments gaining popularity in the west is acupuncture. Acupuncture has been subjected to several clinical trials and proven to work when dealing with headaches and related pains.

Issues with Conventional Medicines

Most of the time, different medications have to be taken for different types of headaches. Some may be trusted to relieve migraine headaches while others are more helpful for tension headaches. Yet, conventional medicines cannot be totally depended on to effectively treat varied headaches. Then, there is always the possibility when an ordinary migraine transforms into what is called Chronic Daily Headache (CDH), a more difficult headache type to treat.

Frequency of CDH occurrence is about 15 times or more per month. When a headache that is supposedly being treated by drugs transforms into anoather headache type, it can be very frustrating to both the patient and doctor. CDH has been observed to be on the rise, which is probably the reason why a great number of people are seeking alternative treatments.

Certain foods or lack of sleep are known trigger factors for most headaches. The conscious headache sufferer can take precautions, but it is not always possible to avoid these triggers. This difficulty plus the drawback on conventional medicines seem to justify the search for other methods.

What is Acupuncture Therapy?

Acupuncture has been used in Eastern cultures, particularly China, for over five millenia. It has been employed to treat a wide variety of ailments. Acupuncture is the technique of inserting and manipulating extremely fine needles into "acupuncture points" on the body and leaving them in place for a few moments or longer -- may extend to several hours.

Oriental medicine upholds the concept of the Qi (chi) or energy force that governs the human body.  Under the same theory, it is believed that the Qi occasionally becomes unbalanced and therefore must be restored to regain good health and well-being. The needles are used to stimulate the flow of Qi in specific points or meridians in the human body.

Despite the long history of acupuncture, research and documentation on its effectiveness in treating headaches is only very recent.

Studies Prove Effectiveness of Acupuncture

The British Medical Journal published a study conducted in the UK, reporting that sufferers often absent from work due to headache pain took fewer sick days after going through a three-month acupuncture treatment. Similarly, a study was made in the United States by the University of North Carolina giving an account of definite improvements for CDH sufferers treated by acupuncture.

Some Interesting Results

Two studies were made in Germany and the findings indicate that acupuncture benefited those who suffered from migraines and tension headaches as compared to the others who did not obtain acupuncture treatment. The interesting point is that there was no real difference established between the authentic acupuncture and the so-called placebo acupuncture. In placebo acupuncture, needles were inserted into random areas of the body without any known benefits. This observation can imply that the desired positive results were merely a product of the power of suggestion. Still, the researchers are bemused on the possibility that the "phony" acupuncture may lead to an unexplored but beneficial aspect of the method.

Notwithstanding the different indications, the different studies were successful enough to convince the British National Health Service to accept acupuncture as an alternative means of treating headaches without any adverse side effects. General practitioners within the UK have already offered acupuncture to many of their patients.

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