Whole Health Wellness Blog | Acupuncture, Chiropractic, Massage, Nutrition | Denver, Colorado

Recently I was asked what sticking needles in your body could possibly have to do with managing diabetes. That a complex disease such as type 2 diabetes needed medication to control the way the body handles excess sugar in the blood.

Acupuncture is a whole body, natural approach to health. When one of the systems in your body isn’t working, acupuncture can balance the energy your body produces and uses. Blocks and problems producing energy are what cause the symptoms that are diagnosed as disease.

Type 2 diabetes affects the way your body gets, stores and uses energy. When food is digested it is converted into glucose (sugar) which enters the bloodstream. Your pancreas produces a hormone called insulin. Insulin moves glucose into your muscles, fat cells and liver cells.

When you have type 2 diabetes one of those systems doesn’t work properly. Either your pancreas doesn’t produce enough insulin or doesn’t respond to the glucose properly so you end up with high levels of sugar in your blood.

When you have too much sugar in your blood you can develop complications of diabetes like blindness, heart conditions, stroke, kidney failure, nerve damage and the need for amputations. Type 2 diabetes has an impact on all the systems of your body and it only makes sense to take a whole body approach.

Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can work in conjunction with Western medicine to improve your pancreatic function, protect your kidneys and heart and lessen the symptoms of an imbalanced body. Diet and exercise can change the amount and the way your body handles sugar.

Traditional Chinese Medicine aids in the production and the flow of Qi (pronounced chee). Qi is vital energy that protects the body from illness and provides the “fire” we use to live. Qi flows through meridians in the body and provides energy and nourishment to all organs and glands. When there is a block or an imbalance, symptoms occur.

In TCM, type 2 diabetes is known as the wasting and thirsting disease. It is caused by an imbalance of Qi and Yin. The body produces heat which both drains and consumes body fluids. Symptoms that are related to heat appear – thirst, itchy dry skin, dry mouth, swollen gums.

Having needles stuck in your body can restore balance, relieve symptoms, improve pancreatic function and control glucose levels. An acupuncturist can also determine and relieve other blockages and symptoms. Coupled with diet and exercise, many people at Whole Health not only lowered their blood glucose levels and, of course, felt better, but some have gotten off medication and gotten their levels low enough that they are no longer considered diabetic.

In western medicine that is not supposed to happen.

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