ABOUT ACUPUNCTURE AND TCM

The fundamental principle of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine is to restore balance and harmony of mind and body, re-establishing order to system malfunction, treating both the cause of disease and the manifesting symptoms and/or pain. As treatment is aimed at the root cause of the condition as well as the symptoms, a more permanent solution to the problem can be found. As a holistic approach to medicine and treatment, Acupuncture and TCM does not solely focus on the indicated problem, but the entire body and mind as an integrated health system.Acupuncture is a unique natural medicine based on the centuries-old concept of Yin and Yang. The Qi, the vital evergy circulates through the body along meridians, similar to the circulatory, nervous and lymphatic systems. When the Qi is imbalanced, disease occurs.In acupuncture, a very fine sterile needle or moxibustion (heat source) is applied to certain points along the meridian to balance the flow of energy and promote health by harmonising the Qi.Unlike drugs used in orthodox medicine, acupuncture has no side-effects.

The World Health Organisation (WHO 2003) in their published research paper entitled "Acupuncture: Review and Analysis of Reports on Controlled Clinical Trials" have found scientific proof that acupuncture is an effective treatment for the following diseases, symptoms or conditions:

Adverse reactions to radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy
Allergic rhinitis (including hay fever)
Biliary colic
Depression (including depressive neurosis and depression following stroke)
Dysentery, acute bacillary
Dysmenorrhoea
Gastritis (in peptic ulcer, acute and chronic gastritis, and gastrospasm)
Facial pain (including craniomandibular disorders, Bell's palsy)
Headache
Hypertension
Hypotension
Induction of labour
Knee pain
Leukopenia
Low back pain
Malposition of fetus (correction of)
Morning sickness
Nausea and vomiting
Neck pain
Pain in dentistry (including dental pain and temporomandibular dysfunction)
Periarthritis of shoulder
Postoperative pain
Renal colic
Rheumatoid arthritis
Sciatica
Sprain
Stroke
Tennis elbow

The WHO also concluded that acupuncture has a therapeutic effect on the following conditions:

Abdominal pain (in acute gastroenteritis or due to gastrointestinal spasm)
Acne vulgaris
Alcohol dependence and detoxification
Bell’s palsy
Bronchial asthma
Cancer pain
Cardiac neurosis
Cholecystitis, chronic, with acute exacerbation
Cholelithiasis
Competition stress syndrome
Craniocerebral injury, closed
Diabetes mellitus, non-insulin-dependent
Earache
Epidemic haemorrhagic fever
Epistaxis, simple (without generalized or local disease)
Eye pain due to subconjunctival injection
Female infertility
Facial spasm
Female urethral syndrome
Fibromyalgia and fasciitis
Gastrokinetic disturbance
Gouty arthritis
Hepatitis B virus carrier status
Herpes zoster (human (alpha) herpesvirus 3)
Hyperlipaemia
Hypo-ovarianism
Insomnia
Labour pain
Lactation, deficiency
Male sexual dysfunction, non-organic
Ménière disease
Neuralgia, post-herpetic
Neurodermatitis
Obesity
Opium, cocaine and heroin dependence
Osteoarthritis
Pain due to endoscopic examination
Pain in thromboangiitis obliterans
Polycystic ovary syndrome (Stein-Leventhal syndrome)
Postextubation in children
Postoperative convalescence
Premenstrual syndrome
Prostatitis, chronic
Pruritus
Radicular and pseudoradicular pain syndrome
Raynaud syndrome, primary
Recurrent lower urinary-tract infection
Reflex sympathetic dystrophy
Retention of urine, traumatic
Schizophrenia
Sialism, drug-induced
Sjögren syndrome
Sore throat (including tonsillitis)
Spine pain, acute
Stiff neck
Temporomandibular joint dysfunction
Tietze syndrome
Tobacco dependence
Tourette syndrome
Ulcerative colitis, chronic
Urolithiasis
Vascular dementia
Whooping cough (pertussis)

In their scientific research, the WHO further claim that for the following diseases, conditions and symptoms, acupuncture is worth trying because treatment by conventional and other therapies is difficult:Chloasma
Choroidopathy, central serous
Colour blindness
Deafness
Hypophrenia
Irritable bowel syndrome
Neuropathic bladder in spinal cord injury
Pulmonary heart disease, chronic
Small airway obstruction (asthma)

Read full report Download or view online, the full paper "Acupuncture: Review and Analysis of Reports on Controlled Clinical Trials" by the World Health Organisation (2003).

How can Acupuncture and TCM help you? The above-mentioned conditions are only a guide for what acupuncture can help. At the Hong Tao Clinic, a thorough assessment of each case is given at the first consultation prior to treatment.To book an appointment with the Hong Tao Acupuncture Practice, please contact our clinic