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Acupuncture as a Safe Alternative Medicine
Author: Julianna Bragg
Website:
Added: Fri, Sep 8, 2006 14:44:09
Category: Medicine
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Like most alternative medicines, acupuncture is often shrouded in uncertainty, and many people would ask if acupuncture is safe. Millions of people use acupuncture to treat a growing number of health problems - from back pain to headaches and sleeping disorders. As a result, acupuncture has become a very profitable industry.
Most people who aren't familiar with acupuncture often worry about needles being inserted into their body. That's understandable, but acupuncture is a safe health treatment when performed correctly. Licensed acupuncturists must pass state-established training standards to become certified, and many doctors and specialists, even neurologists, are being certified so they can use acupuncture as a treatment option for their patients.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of acupuncture by licensed practitioners, and very few complaints have ever been logged with the FDA about acupuncture. The few complaints primarily focus on non-sterile acupuncture needles, which can spread infection and disease. If you should seek acupuncture treatment, be sure that the acupuncture needles have been sterilized. Professional acupuncturists will certainly work with sterile needles to ensure patient safety.
There is a small risk of an acupuncture needle being inserted too deeply, puncturing organs. But this is a very small risk. In the millions of succesful, effective acupunture treatments that have been performed, there have been very few cases of needles puncturing organs.
The best way to avoid this sort of situation is to be treated only by a licensed acupuncture practitioner. Acupuncture needles should never be inserted so deeply that serious pain results. In fact, some people don't even feel the needles being inserted into their pressure points. If you feel pain during or after an acupuncture treatment, you should see a medical doctor right away.
You can rest assured that acupuncture is safe as long as you seek out a medical doctor with acupuncture certification.
About the Author:
Julianna Bragg is a free-lance writer for medical journals on many aspects of health with an emphasis on Women's Health.
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