Everybody knows you should see your family physician at least once a year and your dentist at least twice a year. But not everybody knows about acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine and the many benefits it can provide for you. If you start incorporating acupuncture into your health and wellness regime, you may not have to rely on the family physician so much for those minor little issues. Let’s look at how getting regular acupuncture treatments can help you stay happy and healthy.

There are many ways acupuncture treatments can change a person’s life. One of the most noticeable is acupuncture can get you to look at your health from a completely different perspective. This could mean you might start taking a more in depth look at your health, which may allow you to veer away from some of the mainstream medical practices such as multiple pharmaceuticals. Many long-term acupuncture patients find they no longer need all the medications prescribed by their family physician, because the symptoms have been controlled using acupuncture.

Acupuncture is great for prevention. Because regular acupuncture treatments can balance hormones and boost immunity, there is a good chance you won’t need that annual flu shot or all those over-the-counter cold medications. A trained acupuncturist can spot a problem like decreased immunity from a mile away. It can appear as symptoms such as chronic fatigue, insomnia and even body temperature fluctuations. A couple of treatments can make a big difference.

What about relieving some of that extra stress we all deal with? Yes, regular acupuncture treatments can keep that at bay too. Many people don’t equate being poked with tiny needles as a relaxation technique, but it truly is relaxing. Many patients actually fall asleep after or while the needles are being placed. And the effects can last for days or even weeks. So the next time you feel irritable and overwhelmed, check out your local licensed acupuncturist.

Regular acupuncture treatments can help you save money. What? It’s true. This goes back to the previous benefits. If you don’t need as many pharmaceuticals, you will ultimately save money. Also, conditions like stress, anxiety, fatigue and depression can keep you from going to work, possibly costing you several days of pay. But with regular acupuncture treatments, your moods can be more effectively managed and you won’t need to miss work as frequently.

And the most popular reason to get regular acupuncture treatments is that it will help you remain pain free. We all have aches and pains. But research has shown acupuncture is more effective than opioids for controlling things like arthritic pain in the joints. It is also be incorporated into hospital emergency rooms throughout the United States, so people don’t need as many pain medications. As a matter of fact, in Asia, acupuncture is sometimes used by itself during and after surgical procedures to treat pain.

While many of you may have a needle phobia, don’t let that deter you. Acupuncture is part of an amazing medical system that has been around for nearly 3,000 years. In comparison, Western medicine has only been around for about 200 to 250 years. That puts things in perspective a little, especially when you consider most people in Asian countries live longer, happier, healthier lives than almost everybody in the United States.

There’s no better time than the present to start a good habit. Just be sure to seek out a fully trained and licensed acupuncturist like Heidi LaBore Smith, MS, L.Ac., PT in Duluth MN. Your whole life just might change for the better.

Allergies, seasonal or otherwise, is one of the biggest health issues people deal with in the United States. And the numbers are rising every year. Part of this is because our agricultural practices have changed drastically in the past 40 years and our bodies are not accustomed to dealing with genetically modified foods or the excessive amounts of pesticides now being put in and on our food. We are also being over-medicated with antibiotics used in livestock we eat and that we are prescribed by our own doctors. This has created superbugs like MRSA that no longer responding to antibiotics. Our immune systems just can’t keep up. So every year, the number of people experiencing allergies is increasing.

But what if there were a way to combat seasonal allergies without the harsh side effects of medications and to actually get to the root of the problem instead of just masking the symptoms? There is a way to do this and it’s called acupuncture.

Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine offer a permanent solution to seasonal allergies and relief from everyday allergies with an all-natural approach that will ultimately save you money. Since TCM attacks allergies in a much different method than Western medicine, there is a good chance your allergies will cease to be a problem. Western medicine knows how allergies work and what happens to the body, but there is still no explanation as to why. But, TCM doesn’t need to know why because it looks at the body as a whole and uses an elemental system to determine where there are excesses and deficiencies in each person. So the TCM treatments are completely customized to each patient, thus making them much more effective than one-size-fits-all over-the-counter medications.

When using TCM to treat allergies, practitioners focus heavily on something called Wei Qi. Wei Qi is similar to the immune system in Western medicine. Wei Qi protects the body against foreign materials that can lead to inflammation and eventually allergies. People with lower immunity/Wei Qi are more susceptible to allergies and frequent colds. Acupuncture helps to boost the Wei Qi making it more difficult for allergens to attack the body. This is one of the best reasons to get regular acupuncture treatments if you suffer from allergies of any kind.

When energy becomes blocked due to inflammation caused by allergies, symptoms will flare back up. Acupuncture helps re-establish the flow of energy throughout the body. This will help to alleviate allergy symptoms. Many people who receive acupuncture treatments report they notice changes immediately. And over time, this will help to bring the body back into balance permanently.

Acupuncture has been shown to decrease heat associated with allergies. This can manifest as a sore throat, swollen sinuses and red eyes. There are specific acupressure points on the body that can almost instantaneously relieve these symptoms.

Many allergy sufferers also report pain in various areas of the body, especially the eyes and head. Relieving pain is what acupuncture is most frequently used for and it is also what most scientific studies focus on. The pain associated with allergies can prevent people from enjoying life. But regular acupuncture treatments can help resolve that and allow people to be more active and happy.

Probably the biggest reason to seek out acupuncture for the treatment of allergies is the amount of money a person will save. People spend over $18 billion per year on over-the-counter allergy medications, most of which only give minimal relief and have side effects like drowsiness and immune system suppression. TCM can provide relief without adverse side effects and for a lot less money overall.