- Acupuncture is part of traditional Chinese medicine and has several potential health benefits, including pain relief.
- Researchers are still working to fully understand the benefits of different acupuncture techniques.
- One study found that applying acupuncture pressure using beads in the ears may improve weight loss efforts.
People can use a variety of strategies that combine aspects of nutrition and exercise with elements of complementary and alternative medicine in their pursuit of a healthy lifestyle. One area of interest is gathering more research on how acupuncture techniques can help people trying to lose weight.
Researchers are presenting new findings in this field at the 30th European Congress on Obesity (ECO).
They found that using gold beads for acupuncture stimulation to key points in the ear may help improve weight loss results in men.
Acupuncture is a form of alternative medicine. Often, a trained doctor inserts a thin needle into the skin. Some people seek acupuncture as a way to reduce pain.
Several
Although this therapy has been around for a long time, researchers are still trying to understand the benefits of acupuncture and its underlying physical mechanisms. One area of interest is how acupuncture techniques can help people lose weight.
Jamie Bacharach, Dipl. Ac., a licensed medical acupuncturist and practice director at Acupuncture Jerusalem, explained to Medical News Today:
“Acupuncture can cause the release of endorphins, activation of the nervous system, modulation of neurotransmitters, and regulation of immune responses, all of which promote healing and health.”
“When it comes to weight loss, acupuncture has been suggested as a complementary therapy to help with weight management. The ear, in particular, is thought to have acupuncture points that influence appetite, metabolism, digestion, and stress levels. Also known as auricular acupuncture. The techniques used specifically focus on stimulating these acupuncture points.
— Jamie Bacharach
Based on previous data, researchers wanted to investigate the weight loss effect of auricular acupuncture stimulation. Rather than using needles, this acupuncture technique uses beads to apply pressure to key areas of the ear.
This study was observational and looked at data from existing weight loss programs. They collected data from 81 Japanese male participants. They sought to compare weight loss effects with women who underwent the same weight loss program.
Participants in the weight loss program received auricular acupuncture stimulation in six major areas of the ear using small gold beads placed under the tape. They were also instructed to cut their food intake in half. Participants took specific nutritional supplements to avoid deficiencies and visited the clinic twice a week to monitor their progress.
They found that participants lost an average of 8.6 kilograms and saw a significant reduction in waist circumference. There was also an improvement in the ratio of muscle mass to body fat. This shows that participants lost overall fat while their muscle mass remained about the same.
Men showed more improvement in muscle mass and fat ratio than women. However, men had a greater loss of muscle mass and a greater decline in their basal metabolic rate than women.
However, the overall results suggest that the benefits of this weight loss intervention are similar or greater for men than for women. There was no control group for men or women to assess how much weight they lost compared to people who were told to follow the same dietary instructions without acupuncture.
“The main finding of the study was that stimulation of acupuncture points using beads, rather than traditional acupuncture, may support weight loss beyond exercise and diet. [Thus] It is possible to support weight loss treatment by suppressing your appetite in a very simple way. ”
— Research author Takahiro Fujimoto, Ph.D. Today’s medical news
Dr. Zeeshan Afzal, a clinical scientist who was not involved in the study, elaborated on the findings. MNT:
“The results of this study provide evidence that auricular acupuncture combined with nutritional guidance may be an effective strategy for weight loss in both men and women. For men, these strategies reduced weight loss over a three-month period. It has been shown that there was a significant average weight loss of 8.6 kg and waist circumference reduction of 10.4 cm.”
“Furthermore, this study found that men showed similar or greater improvement than women, suggesting that the benefits of auricular acupuncture are not limited to gender,” he added.
This data has certain limitations and indicates the need for further research.
First, this study included only a small number of participants and lacked ethnic diversity as all participants were Japanese, so further research should include a larger and more diverse sample size. There is a possibility. This study also cannot establish a causal relationship between the acupuncture techniques involved and weight loss.
The researchers only used a short follow-up period, so further studies could include longer-term data. Also, the study did not appear to have a control group, so it is unclear how much of the results were due to the acupuncture stimulation intervention and how much was related to other weight loss interventions.
Further research is also needed to understand the underlying mechanisms involved. Researchers don’t fully understand why this method helps with weight loss.
Dr. Fujimoto noted current speculation and the need for further research in this area.
“The actual mechanism is thought to involve improving leptin production through stimulation of the parasympathetic nervous system, so we would like to obtain further data on this mechanism.”
Dr. Afzal also cautioned about the interpretation of the study results:
“While the results of this study provide a promising perspective on the role of auricular acupuncture in weight loss and body composition management, more rigorous experimental studies (randomized comparison tests, etc.) are required.
— Dr. Zeeshan Afzal
“This will help substantiate the claim that auricular acupuncture can suppress appetite during diet restrictions and will provide a more solid foundation for using this method in weight loss programs,” he added. .
