Acupuncture can be used to treat depression and anxiety instead of drugs, reveals recent study.
It is best known as a treatment for controlling our aches and pains but few of us know that acupuncture can also be used to treat anxiety and depression.
Depression
Depression is one of the most common mental disorders affecting approximately 340 million people in the world. No one is immune from depression - it occurs in people of all social classes, all countries and all cultural settings.
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The research by the British Acupuncture Council and the charity Anxiety UK, revealed that only 10 percent of sufferers use acupuncture to deal with their anxiety, whereas almost half (49.2 per cent) are prescribed medication, the Daily Express reported.
Almost all participants of the study (93.8 percent), commissioned to mark World Mental Health Day on Thursday, said they would be open to trying a complementary therapy but nearly two thirds (62.7 percent) were not even aware that acupuncture could help their condition.
![Quiz on Anxiety Disorder]( "Quiz on Anxiety Disorder")
Intense fear, persistent worry, bad dreams, feelings that you may be going crazy � sounds familiar? Take this quiz and find out more on symptoms and treatment of anxiety disorder.
Anxiety UK believes this could be down to a lack of understanding of the condition, cost of treatments as well as problems accessing therapies, especially complementary therapies.
Acupuncture originated in China and has been in use for more than 2,000 years and practitioners claim that by inserting tiny needles into specific areas of the skin, they can affect the meridians - or channels of pain - that run up and down the body, blocking pain.
Previous research has shown that acupuncture can help ease anxiety by acting on areas of the brain known to reduce sensitivity to pain and stress, as well as promoting relaxation and deactivating the 'analytical' brain, which is responsible for anxiety and worry.
The acupuncture practitioners questioned for the study said the most common form of anxiety they treat is depression (94.9 percent) closely followed by panic attacks (86.1 per cent) with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) not far behind (50.6 percent).
Source: ANI
Quiz on Anxiety Disorder
Intense fear, persistent worry, bad dreams, feelings that you may be going crazy � sounds familiar? Take this quiz and find out more on symptoms and treatment of anxiety disorder.
Advertisement
Anxiety UK believes this could be down to a lack of understanding of the condition, cost of treatments as well as problems accessing therapies, especially complementary therapies.
Acupuncture originated in China and has been in use for more than 2,000 years and practitioners claim that by inserting tiny needles into specific areas of the skin, they can affect the meridians - or channels of pain - that run up and down the body, blocking pain.
Previous research has shown that acupuncture can help ease anxiety by acting on areas of the brain known to reduce sensitivity to pain and stress, as well as promoting relaxation and deactivating the 'analytical' brain, which is responsible for anxiety and worry.
The acupuncture practitioners questioned for the study said the most common form of anxiety they treat is depression (94.9 percent) closely followed by panic attacks (86.1 per cent) with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) not far behind (50.6 percent).
Source: ANI
Questions Arise Over Acupuncture
Opposing viewpoints regarding the use of acupuncture for pain relief have been expressed by researchers the world over.
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Acupuncture Could Help Improve In-vitro Fertilization Rates, Say ResearchersAcupuncture may improve the rates of in-vitro fertilization depending on the baseline pregnancy rates of a fertility clinic, say University of Maryland School of Medicine researchers. | Advertisement
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