Why do we eat more than we need to? A major reason is a legacy of our primitive past, when food was not as easily and regularly available. Looking past true medical conditions, another major reason is that our modern lifestyles lead to chronic stress and other psychological grounds, for which we turn to food for comfort.
The Problem
Dieting is the number one measure we use to reduce our excess weight. Low calorie intake may work in the short term but our bodies will not tolerate this for very long. With restricted calories comes restricted nutrition, which can lead to a variety of medical conditions. It’s a solution that frequently leaves one worse off than before. The psychological stress of keeping to such a regimen creates cravings, leading to bouts of binge eating and the body’s storing of fat in preparation for the next bout of food restriction.
There is no single solution for safe and effective weight loss. The impulsive eater, the constant nibbler, the chocoholic, the victim of constant stress, anxiety, frustration or insecurity, the person with hormonal disturbances or slow metabolism – these all face different challenges.
Avoiding the pitfalls
Whatever therapy may be recommended to control a person’s unhealthy eating tendency often can be aided by acupuncture, resulting in a more effective and satisfying solution. Acupuncture can’t, by itself, bring on weight loss. Acupuncture is an accessory therapy that makes it easier to maintain the eating and lifestyle changes that usually are required.
Acupuncture has been noted for centuries as an effective treatment for anxiety and stress, the most common eating triggers. Furthermore, in Oriental medicine (TCM), an imbalance of Qi is a common condition which, when set into balance by acupuncture treatments, improves one’s feeling of well-being and the effectiveness of their weight control program.
Confirming Studies
A 2003 study in The Journal of Medical Acupuncture found acupuncture assistance achieved more than three times the weight loss of a control group without acupuncture support. A study in 1998 conducted by the University of Adelaide in Australia reported 95 percent of participants experienced appetite suppression after receiving electro-stimulation on relevant acupuncture points.
Our advice
Consider acupuncture to improve the effectiveness and ultimate long-term success of the approach to weight loss and weight control you are following.
Sources
Kuruvilla A, Acupuncture and Obesity, Medical Acupuncture 2003: 14(2):32-33
Acupuncture and Massage College: Acupuncture Weight Loss
“Experimental Biology and Medicine”; Effects of Bilateral Auricular Acupuncture Stimulation on Body Weight in Healthy Volunteers and Mildly Obese Patients; T. Shiraishi et al.; 2003
University of Hawaii: The Treatment of Obesity by Acupuncture
University of Maryland Medical Center: Acupuncture
Acupuncture for Weight Loss By: Joey Komada, L.Ac.
The Acupuncture Weight Loss Solution By: Diane Joswick, L.Ac., MSOM
http://www.livestrong.com/article/300664-acupuncture-for-weight-loss/ Nov 8, 2010 | By Nicole Langton
http://www.nyacuhealth.com/weight-loss.php
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9679359?dopt=Abstract
Aust Fam Physician. 1998 Jul;27 Suppl 2:S73-7.