If you suffer from headaches and migraines, you can ease your pain without resorting to prescription drugs or over-the-counter medications that often have side effects.
For thousands of years, acupuncture and Chinese Herbal medicines have been used to relieve headaches and migraines, as well as their underlying causes. Researchers recently discovered that, compared to standard Western medical care, acupuncture can provide lasting relief from chronic headache pain. While these Eastern remedies are most often used to treat other types of chronic pain, researchers in a large-scale study were surprised by the effectiveness of acupuncture. The study, published in the British Medical Journal, included 401 adults from 18-65 years old with chronic headaches (at least two headaches a month).
Participants were divided into two groups: those who received up to 12 acupuncture sessions during a three-month period in addition to standard medical care, and those who received only standard care. One year later, researchers found those who received acupuncture experienced 22 fewer days with headaches, used 15% less medication, made 25% fewer visits to their doctor, and took15% fewer sick days off from work. In a related study published in the same journal, British researchers found that acupuncture improved the quality of life for chronic headache sufferers. They concluded that acupuncture is a relatively cost-effective headache therapy compared with other treatments. And finally, a case study published in Medical Acupuncture revealed that acupuncture eliminated or reduced the frequency and severity of cluster headaches with a decrease or outright discontinuation of medications.
The study concluded that acupuncture may be used to provide ongoing relief from cluster headaches and to stimulate adrenal cortisol to aid in discontinuing corticosteroids (man-made drugs that closely resemble cortisol, a hormone that your adrenal glands produce naturally). These encouraging results have prompted some health insurance companies to cover acupuncture services rendered for the treatment of chronic headaches and migraines. Acupuncture for Headaches and Migraines available in Pittsburgh & South Hills at Medical Acupuncture, call for your appointment.
Alex A. Kecskes