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The Chinese healing art of acupuncture is one that can be dated back at least 2,000 years. Some authorities maintain that it has been practiced in China for even 4,000 years. The earliest records of acupuncture exist in the Huang Di Nei Jing (Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine). This book was written in the Han dynasty (-206 to 220). The Huang Di Nei Jing explains details of acupuncture, moxibustion (the heating of an herb called mugwort placed near acupuncture points and channels), cupping and healthy lifestyle, leading us to believe these practices were well established at the time of its writing. In 1995, over 12 million Americans received acupuncture treatments and the numbers are growing each year.
The most important concept in Chinese medicine is that of balance. Expressed in the well-known black and white circular symbol, balance is achieved in the alternating rhythm of yin and yang. The yin/yang symbol demonstrates that nothing is pure yin or pure yang; black and white embrace and intertwine in perfect symmetry, each side containing a small seed of its opposite. When there is balance between all that is yin and all that is yang within the body, good health abounds.
Driving this balance is the circulation of the life force qi (pronounced "chee"). The human body, as well as every other living thing, has a natural flow of qi throughout it. Qi travels through the body along channels that connect together the organs, muscles, bones, tendons and emotions. There are 14 main channels, which run roughly the same course on each human body. In its natural, healthy state, qi flows through the channels without disruption. When it becomes disrupted, imbalance of the yin and yang occurs and illness results. Qi flow changes due to trauma, poor diet, medications, stress, excessive emotions or other conditions. Acupuncture focuses on re-balancing these flows of energy by inserting ultra-thin needles through the skin at the specific points where the qi comes to the surface and thus can be manipulated. Traditionally there are 365 acupoints on the body, most of which have specific energetic functions. Some are the meeting points of 2 or more channels, while others are the junction of an internal branch of its own or another channel. Some points move qi toward the interior of the body, while others bring energy to the surface. Some strengthen and tonify qi, while others disperse and move it. The choice of acupoints varies depending on the acupuncturist and the patient's diagnosis. There have been many complex discussions about exactly how acupuncture works according to the Western biomedical model, but it has never been specially determined. However, after looking at the extensive research done in both China and the West, it is clear that acupuncture has a measurable effect on the autonomic nervous system, on vascular and endocrine physiology, brain chemistry and specifically on the production of endorphins, which is why it is so frequently used in the treatment of all types of pain.
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"Day gives way to night, night to day; a time of light and activity (Yang) is followed by darkness and rest (Yin). Flowers open and close, the moon waxes and wanes, the tides come in and go out; we wake and sleep, breathe in, breathe out. Yin/Yang is a constant, continual flow through which everything is expressed on the one hand and recharged on the other. They are an inseparable couple. Their proper relationship is health; a disturbance in this relationship is disease. "