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Did you know that acupuncture can be an alternative or complementary treatment for seasonal allergies?
The research is in! According to an article published in Expert Review of Clinic Immunology in 2014:
“Specifically for allergic rhinitis and asthma, acupuncture may be cost-effective in terms of money spent per quality-of-life gained. Acupuncture plays an increasingly important role as an evidence-based therapy for allergy relief and can be recommended as adjunct therapy for allergic rhinitis.”1
A clinical trial published earlier this year showed that persons who used acupuncture for relief of allergic rhinitis had a decrease in number of days of antihistamine use to decrease their symptoms.2 In addition to improvement in allergy symptoms, patients may also receive relief from other conditions worsened by their allergies including headaches.
Acupuncture involves insertion of fine, sterile needles beneath the skin to produce a physiologic response. Acupuncturists are graduates of Masters or Doctoral degree programs, and in Virginia are licensed by the Board of Medicine. Acupuncturists determine which points are used on a combination of application of the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine and modern research. Although the mechanism by which acupuncture works remains unclear, increasing evidence indicates its effectiveness for a wide variety of conditions, including allergic rhinitis.
Anna Kutcher attended the New England School of Acupuncture, the oldest school for acupuncture and Chinese Medicine in the US. She has over 15 years of experience in acupuncture and Chinese medicine. She also has a Master’s degree in Nursing from Virginia Commonwealth University.
1 Expert Rev Clin Immunol. 2014 Jul;10(7):831-41. doi: 10.1586/1744666X.2014.924855. Epub 2014 May 31
2 Acupunct Med. 2018 Feb 10. pii: acupmed-2017-011382. doi: 10.1136/acupmed-2017-011382.