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While acupuncture has been around for hundreds of years (and acupressure for thousands of years), it has only recently begun to be validated by western medicine. Many organizations in western medicine have now admitted that acupuncture does offer many benefits to its patients. Although many people think acupuncture is just poking people with needles, its background is much more scientific than that.

Acupuncture relates to the energy and the flow of it throughout the body. The flow of the energy through meridians is the essential component of acupuncture. The needles help to alleviate any blockage in these pathways throughout the body. By clearing out a meridian, it allows vital energy to travel through the body. This in turn, allows the body to work as it should.

Acupuncture is part of Oriental tradition and is widely accepted there as a form of medical treatment. It has slowly gained credibility over the years in the western hemisphere. Today, a large percentage of hospitals in the United States use it to treat pain.

It has been proven to help the body in several different ways. They include reducing pain levels, as well as making pain more tolerable. It can help regulate your emotions and keep you from getting too high or too low. It undoubtedly can increase your energy, which almost everyone could use. It has also been proven to help you perform your everyday tasks more efficiently and generally enhance your quality of life. It also can help reduce dependency on medications that you might be using too frequently. In China acupuncture is also used as anesthesia on patients.

Large organizations have gradually accepted acupuncture and admit the amazing effects it can have on a person. The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes acupuncture to treat over 30 different conditions or diseases. The list includes but is not limited to: Headache, migraine, Trigeminal Neuralgia, Peripheral neuropathies, Cervicobrachial syndrome, "Frozen Shoulder", "Tennis Elbow", Sciatica and low back pain, and Osteoarthritis. It has also been shown to help common sicknesses like cold and flu.

Several studies involving placebo and double blind aspects have proven the benefits of acupuncture. One study had one group of patients actually receive treatment. Another group thought they were getting acupuncture. The second group witnessed a tool like a theatrical knife that retracted when pushed against the skin. The patients felt a poke of the needle; however, it never actually penetrated the skin. The study showed that the group who actually received treatment had much better results than the group that didn't.

Another study used brain imaging to determine pain levels in its test subjects. Pain was induced in all of the subjects. Then some were given acupuncture directly after. Those that were treated showed a much lower pain level in the brain. These studies helped to prove that acupuncture helps healing as well as pain management.

Overall, acupuncture is a treatment that has been proven to be extremely beneficial to nearly everyone. Whether you suffer from back pain, arthritis, or a host of other diseases, acupuncture may help. However, the only way to know for sure is to try it out for your self.