Are you trying to lose weight? Being overweight or obese is defined as having an abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to health. Maintaining a healthy weight can help control cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar. It might also help prevent weight-related conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and some cancers. People attempting to lose weight try a wide variety of methods, from various diets to supplements and exercise programs. But what about acupuncture?
Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)
A combination of traditional Chinese medicine, making healthy lifestyle choices, and evaluating stress patterns can improve a patient’s chances of successful weight loss. Acupuncture and herbal medicine can also affect the digestive and hormonal systems to help suppress appetite, boost metabolism, and re-balance the organ systems that govern digestion and metabolism. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, excessive weight gain can be caused by imbalances in the Spleen and Liver organ systems, which acupuncture works to correct.
How Acupuncture Works
Acupuncture, the most well-known traditional Chinese medical procedure, is the practice of inserting thin needles into the body at specific points to relieve pain or treat a disease. Acupuncture is not a magic bullet that will make the pounds simply fall off. However, it can be a helpful adjunct to weight loss efforts because it supports overall physical and emotional health. Specifically, it helps balance the major systems of the body, including the nervous system, immune system, and hormones. This means that acupuncture can often help in the following types of situations:
- Stress Reduction: Because it has a calming effect on the body and mind, acupuncture can help relieve emotional eating or compulsive overeating due to stress, depression, or anxiety.
- Improved Sleep: Insufficient sleep can contribute to weight gain, craving for carbohydrates, and poor blood sugar regulation. Acupuncture can help address insomnia, improving sleep quantity and quality.
- Cortisol Regulation: Elevated levels of cortisol in the body, which occur during times of stress, are associated with increased cravings for sugary, fatty foods, as well as the accumulation of abdominal fat. Calming the nervous system and addressing stress or anxiety with acupuncture can help interrupt this cycle.
- Appetite Regulation: Acupuncture can also help regulate appetite in cases of excessive physical hunger. There are small studies that suggest it may help regulate the hormones that signal whether you are hungry or full.
- Support for Exercise: Acupuncture can support regular exercise and physical activity by relieving joint and muscle soreness, addressing injuries that prevent exercise, and improving energy levels.
Acupuncture Points and Their Impact
Acupuncture won’t directly cause you to lose weight, according to Johnson. “In my experience and to my knowledge, acupuncture isn’t going to be the magic bullet for weight loss,” he says. However, Johnson explains it can play a very significant role in weight loss through an indirect approach. He says that this is because acupuncture can improve metabolism, reduce cravings and mitigate stressors on the body that affect one’s appetite.
Weight gain, according to traditional Chinese medicine, is caused by body imbalance. That imbalance, according to ancient teachings, can be caused by a malfunctioning liver, spleen, kidney, thyroid gland, and endocrine system. So, for weight loss, acupuncture treatments commonly target these areas of the body.
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Ear Acupuncture (Auricular Acupuncture)
Auricular acupuncture, needling points on the ear, can also help control food cravings. It has been used successfully to help cigarette smokers and heroin addicts kick their drug habits; when properly administered, this technique may also help some patients lose weight. It’s believed that food cravings can be controlled by manipulating points on the ear. This is a similar treatment to that used by acupuncture practitioners to help smokers and drug users end their addictions.
The Raleigh Acupuncture Weight Loss Program
The Raleigh Acupuncture weight loss program will help you lose weight and keep the weight off. This program is the result of 20 years of intensive research and treatment with hundreds of patients. Being overweight, from a Chinese Medicine and acupuncture point of view, is due to your digestive system not working correctly, leading to an imbalance in the body. It is not your fault. It is the imbalance in your body that causes all the symptoms that you are experiencing, making it difficult to lose weight.
This program is based on Chinese acupuncture and a special family tradition breathing technique from Jinmei Joy’s family. This breathing technique improves digestive function so your body gets the nutrition it needs to be energetic and active. It decreases your appetite so you don’t feel hungry all the time. It also calms your mind, eliminating emotional eating. This special breathing technique, combined with acupuncture, work together so you can control your weight.
This acupuncture weight loss program does not require dieting or exercise. The breathing technique in combination with acupuncture enables you to lose the weight and keep it off. This program helps correct the imbalances in your body and teaches you how to maintain the balance. When your body is in harmony, you feel hungry only at meal times and feel satisfied with the proper amount of food. You have energy and motivation to enjoy life. You enjoy eating but are not dependent on food for comfort and happiness.
The program consists of 3 parts:
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- Weekly acupuncture to correct underlying disharmonies, suppress appetite and cravings, ease stress, and improve motivation.
- Information on how your body works from the Chinese Medicine perspective.
- Chinese Qi Gong Breathing exercises enhance energy and weight loss progress and suppress appetite and cravings.
Each session includes:
- Weekly tips for Lifestyle Enhancement: diet, exercise, mindset/thoughts improvement.
- Chinese Medicine Pattern Diagnosis so you know why you have trouble losing weight.
- A list of physical/mental-emotional suggestions to you so that you know how to correct the underlying issues that cause your weight struggles.
- Time-proven Chinese Medicine wisdom so you can live a healthier and more fulfilled lifestyle.
Scientific Studies and Research
There aren’t many quality studies about acupuncture and weight loss. However, some find it very helpful, and it’s safe for most people to try. Studies suggest that acupuncture may help people lose weight. A 2021 study concluded that acupuncture therapy for obesity involves targeting the neural circuits of the hypothalamus, the region that controls the body’s energy homeostasis and appetite.
A small 2015 study studied the effects of massage and manual acupuncture on 50 participants and found that both manual acupuncture and massage can reduce body weight and body mass index (BMI) significantly. Another small 2015 study from Japan found that acupuncture on the ear area effectively caused changes in active levels of ghrelin, a hormone produced in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract that can increase hunger levels. Study participants in the acupuncture group experienced a reduction in body weight compared to the control group.
A 2019 review and meta-analysis on acupuncture for weight loss in Asians found that acupuncture effectively reduced waist circumference and BMI, but only reduced weight when combined with diet and exercise. Additionally, a 2020 review comparing the effects of acupuncture with so-called “sham acupuncture” for simple obesity showed that acupuncture significantly reduced body weight and BMI compared to sham acupuncture. This appears to counter claims that the effects of acupuncture are merely a placebo effect. Another 2017 meta-analysis reported that acupuncture, whether alone or with lifestyle interventions, significantly reduced BMI.
Limited studies suggest acupuncture may be an effective complementary treatment for overweight and obesity. This may be due to its ability to modulate metabolism, as well as other benefits. Obesity occurs because of problems in energy metabolism and appetite regulation. While the mechanism is unclear, clinical studies, published in 2019, suggest that acupuncture may help to:
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- regulate the endocrine system
- modulate metabolism
- promote digestion
- attenuate oxidative stress
Acupuncture's Impact on Inflammatory Markers
Body acupuncture in combination with diet restriction was found to be effective for weight loss and also reduction of the inflammatory reactions. Obesity is a chronic non-communicable disease with clinical and public health challenges. Studies on human and animal models indicated that adipocytes secrete many inflammatory cytokines, and hence the excess of fat in obesity leads to a systemic chronic inflammation. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL6) are the most important cytokines responsible for the chronic inflammatory process. High sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) is a very sensitive marker of inflammation, which is synthesized in the liver, and this process is regulated predominately by IL-6.
A randomized controlled clinical trial was performed on 80 obese patients. They were divided into three groups according to their body mass index (BMI). In this study, overweight was defined as a body mass index (BMI) of 25 to < 30 and a BMI of ≥30 were defined as obesity. They neither had received any other weight control measures nor had any medical and/or drug history within the last 3 months before their participation in the study. Only classical Chinese body acupuncture and auricular acupuncture were allowed to be used.
In current study, different anthropometric measurements in cases showed highly significantly reduction after the acupuncture. It is believed that acupuncture alters levels of central nervous system by stimulating peripheral nerves at acupoints. Signals are then carried by stimulated nerve resulting in changes in satiety and mood. Acupuncture appears to be able to improve mood by increasing the release of neurotransmitters and suppress appetite by the serotonin and endorphin-induced decreases in stress and depression, whereas this effect was not seen by exercise and diet.
Safety and Potential Side Effects
The safety and side effects of acupuncture depend on the training and experience of the practitioner and on the cleanliness of the needles. Make sure your acupuncturist is trained and licensed in your state. Otherwise, you could suffer serious side effects including:
- infections
- punctured organs
- collapsed lungs
- injury to the central nervous system
Acupuncture is generally safe when a qualified and licensed practitioner performs it. People may prefer it because they experience fewer side effects than they do taking medication. Common, but typically mild, side effects may include:
- needle site pain or tenderness
- needle site bruising or bleeding
- feeling dizzy
- fainting
- drowsiness
Serious side effects are uncommon in acupuncture. Below are rare complications associated with the treatment:
- pneumothorax, or collapsed lung
- central nervous system injury
- peripheral nerve injury
- organ injury
- other tissue injuries
Most practitioners do not recommend people undergo acupuncture if they have:
- active infections
- severe neutropenia
- psychosis
- pacemakers
Treatment Duration and Expectations
Although different acupuncture practitioners recommend different levels and lengths of treatment, if you plan on losing 10 to 15 pounds, having several treatments a week for six to eight weeks is a common program. The number of visits each week might taper off as the program progresses. The number of visits recommended will also vary from one acupuncture practitioner to another.
Like other weight loss methods, a person typically needs several sessions to see changes. To eliminate 10-15 pounds, one would need frequent treatments over an extended period of time - up to 8 weeks with multiple visits per week. The program largely depends on the acupuncturist, but most will taper off visits as the program progresses.
The Importance of a Holistic Approach
Acupuncture is only so strong. To see long-term changes in weight loss you need to commit to lifestyle changes. This includes changes in diet and exercise. If you're having trouble committing to these lifestyle changes, acupuncture may also help with that. Acupuncture can be part of a person’s overall wellness plan, which ideally includes solid nutrition, healthy activity, stress management and social support. Weight is one aspect of health, but true balance is reflected in feeling good physically, emotionally, and mentally. Acupuncture does not replace healthy nutrition and appropriate physical activity, but it can help weight loss efforts because it works to balance the entire body.
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