Dr. Irestone has studied acupuncture and eastern medicine for over 30 years. He has delivered thousands of acupuncture treatments for a wide variety of conditions. Acupuncture is one of the most requested services in his practice.
Acupuncture is one of the main forms of treatment in traditional Chinese medicine. It involves using thin needles that are inserted in the body at very specific points. This process is believed to adjust and alter the body’s energy flow into healthier patterns, and can help treat a wide variety of illnesses and health conditions.
The World Health Organization states that acupuncture is an effective treatment for over forty medical problems including:
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- Allergies
- Respiratory Conditions
- Gastrointestinal Disorders
- Gynecological Problems
- Nervous Conditions
- Disorders of the Eyes, Nose and Throat
- Childhood Illnesses
- And More.
Acupuncture is also successfully used in the treatment of alcoholism and substance abuse. Acupuncture is also an effective and low-cost treatment for headaches and chronic pain associated with problems like back injuries and arthritis. It has also been used to supplement invasive Western treatments like chemotherapy and surgery.
Acupuncture is generally most effective when used as preventative measure or before when used before a health condition becomes acute.
Origins
The original text of Chinese medicine is the Nei Ching, The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine, which is estimated to be at least 2,500 years old. Thousands of books have been written on the subject of Chinese healing, and its basic philosophies spread long ago to other Asian civilizations.
Nearly all of the forms of Oriental medicine which are used in the West today, including acupuncture, shiatsu, acupressure massage, and macrobiotics, are part of, or have their roots in, Chinese medicine. Legend has it that acupuncture developed when early Chinese physicians observed unpredicted effects of puncture wounds in Chinese warriors.
The oldest known text on acupuncture, the Systematic Classic of Acupuncture, dates back to 282 A.D. Although acupuncture is its best known technique, Chinese medicine traditionally utilizes herbal remedies, dietary therapy, lifestyle changes and other means to treat patients.
In the early 1900s, only a few Western physicians who had visited China were fascinated by acupuncture, but outside of Asian-American communities it remained virtually unknown until the 1970s, when Richard Nixon became the first U.S. president to visit China. On Nixon’s trip, journalists were amazed to observe major operations being performed on patients without the use of anesthetics. Instead, wide-awake patients were being operated on with only acupuncture needles inserted into them to control pain. During that time, a famous columnist for the New York Times, James Reston, had to undergo surgery and elected to use acupuncture instead of pain medication, and he wrote some convincing stories on its effectiveness.
Today, acupuncture is being practiced in all 50 states by over 9,000 practitioners, with over 4,000 MDs including it in their practices. Acupuncture has shown notable success in treating many conditions, and over 15 million Americans have used it as a therapy.
