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Acupuncture And Depression

Although traditional Chinese medicine does recognize the modern illness of depression as an actual illness, acupuncture can be used to treat the attendant symptoms of depression without using chemicals or other therapies. Acupuncture is intended to realign the energies and blood flow in the human body for a more harmonious balance, which can alleviate many of the symptoms experienced by depressed patients.

Acupuncture in the Treatment of Depression: A Manual for Practice and Research

Traditional acupuncture was not intended to treat existing illnesses, but to act as a preventative treatment for disease. Though this was traditionally the case, current practices have effectively utilized acupuncture to treat chronic pain and discomfort caused by existing illnesses.

Acupuncture Treatment for Depression (English and Chinese Edition)

There have been several studies around the world, since the nineties, to try and find a correlation between acupuncture and relief from depression symptoms. The most notable study was conducted by the University of Arizona and involved thirty-four female patients who met the medical diagnosis criteria for depression.

Of the thirty-four study participants, on third received acupuncture treatments specifically designed to treat depression. The second group of one-third received generalized acupuncture treatments that were not specific to any particular symptoms and the last group received no acupuncture treatments at all.

The study lasted for eight weeks and, at the end of the study, researchers discovered the group of patients receiving the tailored acupuncture treatments no longer qualified medically as depression patients. Over half of the tailored treatment group experienced such a significant relief from their symptoms that they no longer needed treatment for the disease.

Though this particular study may suggest acupuncture alone would be enough to treat the symptoms of depression, there needs to be more significant studies done to quantify the results. The World Health Organization has recognized and approved acupuncture as a treatment for depression, but most areas of Western Medicine are holding for results from larger study groups before wholly endorsing acupuncture as a solo treatment for depression.

It is found to be quite effective as a treatment used in conjunction with typical Western medicine treatments such as anti-depressant medication and psychotherapy. There is hope for the future of treatment for depression as more studies are done on the effectiveness of acupuncture and other holistic treatments that have no chemical or psychologically detrimental side effects.