Modern Science Finds Acupuncture Meridians

Posted by Troy Krebs, L.Ac.
16 March 2008

Even though Acupuncture has been around for well over 5,000 years, the concept is still very new and strange to many Americans. Almost everyone is familiar with the function of organs, blood vessels, muscles and nerves, but a discussion of such things as “energy flows” soon puts most into unfamiliar territory.

The main thing to know about Acupuncture is that it has everything to do with maintaining balance in the body. A body operating in perfect equilibrium will have a much greater ability to maintain good health than one that is not.

A growing number of people have now heard about “meridians” in the body. Meridians are lines, or pathways, along which the body’s energy is believed to flow. Points used in Acupuncture are located along these pathways having evolved through thousands of years of practice in number of different counties.

The knowledge of energy flows and pathways is becoming increasingly recognized and utilized in Western medicine. Even though this energy can’t be detected by sight, it is very much present and can be tapped in both treatment and diagnosis in Western medicine.

Today we have such tools as electrical muscle exams (EMGs), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and a variety of other similar tests. Science and the medical profession have accepted the existence of the meridian system as an integral part of human functioning. It controls and coordinates an electromagnetic system within the body and this may actually control all the other systems of the body.

It could be most simple to consider meridians as being similar to radio waves. The human eye can see neither of these; but both are present and operate at their best when they are totally tuned in. A radio station broadcasting at 94.5 would provide static if it was tuned to 94.6. Similarly, a meridian operating out of balance would not produce optimum health.

With this knowledge in hand, an increasing number of chiropractors are working in conjunction with and making recommendations to patients to seek Acupuncture treatment. It’s another drug-free type of practice that’s growing in acceptance in America — and many are experiencing excellent results.