10/25/2022
The mechanisms underlying how acupuncture relieves pain have been extensively researched for over 60 years.
Read the full evidence summary: 🔗 https://www.evidencebasedacupuncture.org/acupuncture-scientific-evidence/
Sensory nerve pathways involving specialized nerve fibers (Aδ, Aβ and C, to be precise) and descending nervous system pathways have been mapped.
Numerous biochemicals have been identified including opioid and non-opioid neuropeptides, and neurotransmitters such as serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine, cytokines, glutamate, nitric oxide, and gamma-amino-butyric-acid (GABA).
Acupuncture analgesia has been shown to involve several classes of naturally produced opioid neuropeptides including enkephalins, endorphins, dynorphins, endomorphins, and nociceptin (also known as Orphanin FQ). Among the non-opioid neuropeptides, substance P (SP), vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), which plays a central role in the pathogenesis of migraine, have been investigated for their roles in both the analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects of acupuncture.
Acupuncture has been demonstrated to directly initiate a process called purinergic signaling, a primitive and ubiquitous system in the body using adenosine and ATP for signaling and regulation in all tissues and organ systems. It is now understood that all nerve transmission requires ATP as a co-factor and the that the body uses purine levels as a primary background signal of both healthy function and tissue damage.
Purinergic signaling has been demonstrated to play a central role in such diverse clinical areas as migraines and headaches, immune dysfunction and inflammation, cancer, autism, Alzheimer’s, cardiovascular disease, endrocrine function, embryological development, and gastrointestinal disorders.
In addition to biochemical actions, studies also demonstrate direct effects of acupuncture on the central nervous system.
Additionally, modulates parasympathetic activity, the branch of the nervous system associated with rest, relaxation, digestion and tissue healing.
