Acupuncture literally means 'needle piercing," the practice of inserting very fine needles into the skin to stimulate specific anatomic points in the body (called acupoints or acupuncture points) for therapeutic purposes. Along with the usual method of puncturing the skin with the fine needles, acupuncturists also use heat, pressure, friction, suction, or impulses of electromagnetic energy to stimulate the points. The acupuncture points are stimulated to balance the movement of energy (qi) in the body to restore health.

Qi, pronounced "chee", means energy. You may see it spelled "Chi" or even "Ki" in Japanese, but they all carry the same meaning. Qi is the energy of the body, of the meridians, of food, of the universe. While it may seem a vague topic there are refined theories regarding the different types of Qi within the body, the creation and actions of Qi and, consequently, ways to determine where imbalances may arise.

Historically, acupuncture points were believed to be holes that allow entry into channels. These holes provide us gateways to influence, redirect, increase, or decrease body's vital substance, qi, thus correcting many of the imbalances. Many studies and research were directed since to understand the mechanism of acupuncture.

Acupuncture has been shown to stimulate the immune system. It also has affects the circulation, blood pressure, rhythm and stroke volume of the heart, secretion of the gastric acid, and production of red and white cells. It also stimulates the release of a variety of hormones that help body to respond to injury and stress.

According to this theory, pain signals must pass through a number of high-traffic "gates" as they move from the area of injury upward through the spinal cord into the brain. Like a road or highway, these nerves can handle only a limited number of nerve signals at one time. The pain signals travels very slowly. We can generate other signals which move faster. The faster signals crowd out the slower ones because of the limited capacity of the nerves. (Remember the time sitting in traffic near a construction zone, where the two lanes merge into one. The fast cars on the merging lanes go further and merge ahead of the slower ones, making it nearly impossible for the slow traffic on the lane to move forward. Now think about the pain signals are the slow ones sitting there waiting for an opening to move through. If one can produce enough fast signals, it can effectively crowd out the pain signals.) Acupuncture generates competing stimulus and effectively blocks the slow pain signals from reaching the brain. The result: we never "experience the pain".

The body continually generates tiny but detectable electrical discharges. This electrical field influences the growth, maturation, and functioning of some types of cells. It is known that acupuncture points are concentrated in regions of low electrical resistance. Studies have shown that there is a correlation between the electromagnetic fields in the body and the channels or meridians. So, this electrical theory of acupuncture suggests that acupuncture works by influencing the body's electromagnetic fields. Acupuncture points have certain electrical properties, and stimulating these points alters chemical neurotransmitters in the body.

Degree of pain is a very individual experience that may vary even from session to session for the same patient. It varies from no-sensation at all to some discomfort. Some acupuncture points are totally painless in most of the patients; however, some of the points can be sensitive in everyone. Usually, ladies are more sensitive to needling during their menstruation.

For a new patient a treatment procedure is usually 2 hours. During an initial intake a patient is asked in details about his or her chief complain, associated questions from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) prospective, and general health questions to understand a whole picture. It is followed by a tongue and pulse diagnosis, abdominal/channel palpation and/or western physical examination as applicable. After all relevant information is gathered the patient receives an acupuncture treatment that may consists of any of the following modalities: acupressure, needling, moxibustion (direct/indirect/stick), electro-acupuncture, blood letting, cupping, Tui Na massage. Usually the patient stays with needles for 25 minutes since that how much it takes for Qi to complete cycle through out of all meridians.

The Chinese ideogram, symbol or character for "acupuncture" is a combination of the characters for "needle" and "moxibustion." While many people have a concept of the needles involved in acupuncture, moxibustion is not as commonly known. Moxibustion is the burning of small cones of mugwort herb (moxa) on or near the skin, usually at acupoints.

Moxibustion is often used for chronic conditions. Chinese classic literature states, "Moxibustion tonifies (nourishes) the deficiency of the Source Qi." In stubborn conditions, it can be the only thing that works.

Moxibustion is hot, but the heat can feel very good. After a moxa treatment the patient feels comfortably warm and refreshed like he or she just took a bath. The patient can feel the warmth penetrating into the core of his or her body.

Moxa stimulates the immune system through the skin in a variety of ways. Moxa cones are placed on the skin and the heat slowly penetrates into the body. The heat first brings an inflammation response to the area. Second, a beneficial chemical contained in the moxa herb has a potent effect on increasing immune cell migration. Third, moxibustion increases regulatory mechanisms to stimulate distant lymph tissues and organs to increase the body's overall immune response.

Moxa stimulation activates a local cascade of effects including an increased circulation of white blood cells. From local stimuli, the effects of moxibustion spread outward throughout the whole body. This results in a definite immunological enhancement.

With its calming heat, acupoint stimulation, and immune system activation, moxibustion has been successfully employed for thousands of years, and has been scientifically shown to be beneficial.

Electroacupuncture is quite similar to traditional acupuncture in that the same points are stimulated during treatment. As with traditional acupuncture, needles are inserted on specific points along the body. The needles are then attached to a device that generates continuous electric pulses using small clips. These devices are used to adjust the frequency and intensity of the impulse being delivered, depending on the condition being treated. Electroacupuncture uses two needles at time so that the impulses can pass from one needle to the other. Several pairs of needles can be stimulated simultaneously, usually for no more than 30 minutes at a time.