According to the National Institutes of Health, up to 80 percent of the general population in the United States will suffer from low back pain sometime during their lifetime. Low back pain is the second most frequent reason Americans visit a medical doctor for treatment. It is also, according to a widely publicized study, the most frequent reason that Americans visit a licensed acupuncturist for care.
A German study on chronic low back pain showed that acupuncture works twice as well as standard care (Haake et al 2007). Standard care is defined as using drugs and physical therapy.
Have you ever suffered from a headache? It could have been a tension headache, cluster headache, sinus headache, rebound headache or a migraine headache. The good news is that acupuncture can address ALL of these headaches. As you read further we will focus on migraines today.
Migraines can run in families. They also affect more women than men. A migraine can last anywhere from 4 to 72 hours. It can be on one side or both sides of the head. The quality of pain can vary from a mere throbbing to a moderate or even severe pain that interferes with normal activities. Some people have to literally lie down to recover. And even that will not always offer relief in some cases.
You’ve probably had headaches of some sort. Maybe you popped a Tylenol or Aspirin and forget about it. But some headaches need professional evaluation.
June 5-11 marks National Headache Awareness Week. Headaches obviously are complex, with a wide range of causes from sinus problems, to eyestrain, stress, lack of sleep or even drinking too much caffeine.
The goals of National Headache Awareness Week are: • to attract recognition that headache pain is a real and legitimate condition • to encourage sufferers to see a licensed health professional for proper diagnosis and treatment • to let headache sufferers know that there are treatments for their condition that works.
If you’re like most golf and tennis players, you play to win. But is the condition of your body standing in your way? The truth be told, your body is the most important piece of sports equipment you own. You can have the finest set of golf clubs that money can buy, for example, but if pain and stiffness are holding back your swing, those clubs will do you no good.
A pilot study performed with assembly workers at the Ford Motor Company in Louisville, Kentucky using acupuncture and mind/body therapies in conjunction with conventional medicine reduced the use of pain medications among participants by 58%. The findings were published in a letter to the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
In the study, one group received conventional pain management therapies, including pain medications. The second group utilized integrative therapies, including acupuncture and relaxation/meditation CDs. Both of the groups received treatments over a six-week period, with a 12-week follow-up.
Do you or a love one suffer from TMJ or Temporomadibular Joint Disorder? Do you grind your teeth at night only to wake up in pain the next morning? Do you have pain in your jaw, face, neck and/or shoulders? If so, you may be one of many who suffer from TMJ Disorder or TMD.
What Causes Jaw Pain?
Temporomandibular joint and muscle disorders (TMJ) are problems or symptoms of the chewing muscles and joints that connect your lower jaw to your skull. The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is the area where the jaw and skull connect at a ball and socket hinge in front of the ears. This joint controls chewing and talking so it is one of the most frequently used joints in your body. TMJ can be caused by:
Are you suffering from chronic pain? If so, you may wonder what type of licensed health professional could help you. If you’re like a lot of people in your situation, you may have already tried pain medications, or you may be using prescriptions that only relieve your pain a little bit. You may be suffering from side effects as a result of these medications or the need to increase your dosage as you become immune to the effects of the pain killers. Unfortunately, this is the experience of many who take meds for pain. For some, it becomes so severe that they become addicted to the pain killers and must enter a rehabilitation facility to stop taking them.
You’ve probably had headaches of some sort. Maybe you popped a Tylenol or Aspirin and forget about it. But some headaches need professional evaluation.
June 6-12 marks National Headache Awareness Week. Headaches obviously are complex, with a wide range of causes from sinus problems, to eyestrain, stress, lack of sleep or even drinking too much caffeine.
The goals of National Headache Awareness Week are: • to attract recognition that headache pain is a real and legitimate condition • to encourage sufferers to see a licensed health professional for proper diagnosis and treatment • to let headache sufferers know that there are treatments for their condition that works.
Traditional Chinese medicine has offered effective pain relief to mankind for thousands of years. Now to confirm its scientific validity, this treatment of pain has received support in the May issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, the official journal of the International Anesthesia Research Society (IARS).
Dr. Philip Lang and fellow researchers of the University of Munich used quantitative sensory testing to detect changes in pain sensitivity with acupuncture in 24 healthy volunteers. After applying acupuncture to the leg, the researchers found that pain thresholds increased by up to 50 percent. Effects were noted in both the treated leg and the untreated leg.
According to the National Institutes of Health, up to 80 percent of the general population in the United States will suffer from low back pain sometime during their lifetime. Low back pain is the second most frequent reason Americans visit a medical doctor for treatment. It is also, according to a widely publicized study, the most frequent reason that Americans visit a licensed acupuncturist for care.
You’ve probably had headaches of some sort. Maybe you popped a Tylenol or Aspirin and forget about it. But some headaches need professional evaluation.
Steven Sonmore, LAc is a licensed acupuncturist in Minneapolis, Minnesota with over 20 years experience of health care and pain management.