Arthritis and Joint Pain
When you think about joint pain, arthritis comes to mind, and for a good reason—between 50 and 70 million Americans suffer from the condition. if you include joint trauma and overuse injuries, about one third of Americans report joint pain.
Arthritis is a term that actually describes over 100 different rheumatic conditions. It involves chronic inflammation of one or more joints. While most people think of arthritis as a condition of aging, two thirds of sufferers are younger than 65.
The common symptoms of arthritis are pain, swelling, redness, and decreased range of motion. Symptoms may appear in one or more joints. Western treatments for joint pain include over-the-counter and prescription pain medications, steroids, fluid injections into the joints, physical therapy, and joint replacement surgery. Research shows that acupuncture can play a role to alleviate pain and stiffness, and improve the function of the joint.
In Chinese medicine, joint pain of any kind is considered to be a blockage. This means that energy, circulation, and range of mobility are hampered due to inflammation, bony spurs, and swelling. Acupuncture works to open circulation to help clear the blockage. Additionally, acupuncture has been proven to cause the body to release natural anti-inflammatory agents. This occurs at the site of needle insertion, helping clear pain and inflammation.
For joint pain with an autoimmune origin, such as rheumatoid arthritis, it is vital to find the causes of inflammation that underlie the autoimmunity. These may include food sensitivities, chemical exposure, heavy metal toxicity, chemical exposure, imbalance of gut bacteria, candida, and/or parasites.
At Revive Acupuncture we use a number of healing tools to help relieve pain and inflammation. These include acupuncture, electro-acupuncture, heat therapy, Chinese herbs, dietary therapy, supplements, and lifestyle changes. Please contact us if you would like to use holistic medicine to help relieve and heal the joint, neck and back pain you are experiencing.
