This is a story covered by Hawaii's KHON2 News on Oahu.
Thought I should share this with you all.

 Protection from the Flu Through Acupunctur

http://www.khon2.com/news/local/story/Protection-from-the-Flu-Through-Acupuncture/_GegbGmKLUaqijth_E5XeQ.cspxe

Protection from the Flu Through Acupuncture

Reported by: Olena Heu Email: oheu@khon2.com Last Update: 11/19/2009 8:07 am

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< Previous Next > Play Video Video 1 of 1 All Video Protection From the Flu Through Acupuncture Protection From the Flu Through Acupuncture Flu season officially began last month and will run until May of next year, but in Hawaii the rate of infection continues year-round. There are many ways to boost your immune system and prevent getting sick...including a method that will poke you into good health. It’s just another visit to the doctor's office…with a steady hand and precise placement, the use of needles, heat and incense, if done right, is said to improve circulation, boost the immune system and offer relief for pain and prevent illness. “Everybody said how you take care is the answer of how you live a healthy longer,” Dr. Jun Ae Ha of Dr. Ha’s Clinic said.(Dr. Jung Ae Ha) In an effort to keep healthy and stay flu free many are seeking out traditional acupuncture. “Just mainly our local patients they tell their friends, their daughters and they come in and they bring their friends in,” Sunnie Kim said. “Maybe the ear acupoint very much good yeah,” Dr. Ha said. Acupuncture is said to have originated in china thousands of years ago and uses needles to stimulate nerves, muscles and connective tissue. “Now number one topic is how we can help and how we can keep or how we can increase immunity,” Dr. Ha said. Dr. Ha's office also recommends an organic all natural way to prevent illness with herbal supplements. “They're grinded, dried, packed herbs that’s actually used for the liquid medicine but Dr. Ha grinds them herself,” Kim said. Dr. Ha says she uses organic herbs to treat almost any ailment including the flu. “We have patients coming in and they freak out and they are coming here “oh I need three hundred pills,” Kim said. At about a dollar a pill the herbal supplements are proving to be very popular...but maybe not as popular as the resident therapy dog Rosie.  People come from all over the island to receive treatment and spend time with their little furry friend.

The Growth of Acupuncture

[My mom's acupuncture clinic. Rosie, therapy dog with Dr. Ha]

I can recall when people used to think that Acupuncture was a "fake" medical practice and was frowned upon because it was different. probably it's because the theory and philosophy of Acupuncture is hard to understand and to accept. If someone who has never experienced or heard of Oriental Medicine will have a hard time understanding Qi and meridian channels used in Acupuncture studies.


What's really great is that now a days, Acupuncture is more frequently searched for as a means of medical practice. Acupuncture is not the only medical practice that's rapidly growing, Naturopathic Medicine, Chiropractors and other alternative medicines are growing throughout the nation. Dr. Oz from the Dr. Oz Show and Oprah Winfrey Show graduated with a Ph. D in Naturopathic Medicine at Bastyr University last year.  The fact that Naturopathic Medicine and Alternative Medicine is being accepted in society is a big step up from the types of social label these practices had in the past.

The number of Acupuncture schools are growing also along with the number of medical health insurances that are covering for Acupuncture and Chiropractors. What really surprised me is that Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine degrees are being offered at universities that are not specifically focused on alternative medicine. For example, So Cal University of Health Sciences, Southern Cross University, and University of Bridgeport.

I personally like University of Bridgeport because you can get your Acupuncture Degree and play sport and be part of a bigger community. Usually universities that are merely focused on alternative health sciences do not have any extracurricular activities or NCAA sports. UB has the degree that you want and you can have a real college experience.

You see, Acupuncture has grown a lot and is slowly making it's way to state schools. Hoping that one day it'll be even more well recognized by the society.

Acupuncture and Sleep Apnea

There are many people who suffer from sleep apnea, "a common disorder in which you have one or more pauses in breathing or shallow breaths while you sleep" (www.nhlbi.nih.gov).

Such extremities like jaw surgeries are required to tame sleep apnea and most people do not know if they have the disorder because there aren't overwhelming symptoms. 

My boyfriend snores a lot, every time he sleeps so that made me think about sleep apnea. I've done some research for a previous community college newspaper last year which lead me to suspect that he is suffering from sleep apnea.

Doing some light reading, I came across this website called sleepdisordersguide.com where there was an article about sleep apnea and acupuncture. 

http://www.sleepdisordersguide.com/blog/sleepdisorders/acupuncture-an-alternative-treatment-for-sleep-apnea-that-works/

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Sleep apnea is a disorder that can seriously affect your health and quality of life.
Have you tired trying with all the treatments for sleep apnea?
Acupuncture is one of the best treatments for sleep apnea.
Acupuncture is one of the oldest alternative treatments for the treatment of many medical problems including sleep apnea.
Alternative treatment is preferred for sleep apnea treatment due to various advantages over conventional treatment. Acupuncture is well accepted because it avoids the risk of side effects as it includes natural treatment.
According to the assumption made in traditional Chinese medicine, your body is supposed to function properly. When all are in harmony, body will function properly.
You have to in certain way to make your body work properly. You have to consider diet, exercise, mental and spiritual well-being that contributes to harmony.
When something is out of order, there is a definite reason. It is the search of underlying cause rather than concentration on symptoms that make acupuncture recommended treatment for sleep apnea.
Acupuncture involves application of fine needles into the human body into one or more of the 2,000 acupuncture points.
These points link twelve main and eight secondary pathways. The channels or pathways are called meridians. The meridians conduct energy between the body’s skin and internal organs.
The energy conducted by meridians coordinate the balance between one’s spiritual, mental, physical and emotional state.
Acupuncture body parts have been identified that are related to sleep issues to such a point that a method known as acupressure is used to induce sleep. Acupressure is nothing but applying light pressure to the acupuncture body point.
This can be done by pinching the point mildly between the thumb and finger. Both acupuncture and acupressure reduce tension, increase circulation, brings down levels of stress and regulate breath so that the body is enabled and relaxes deeply.
Using acupuncture for sleep apnea can over time correct whatever imbalances are causing sleep apnea, minus any side effects. Apart from improved sleep, people who have used acupuncture for sleep apnea obtained a greater feeling of well-being and improvement in health.
Once you start use acupuncture, your sleep improves slowly. During the treatment, do not consume caffeine, stress hormones should be decreased, daily routines and diet should be modified.
After several sessions, there is no need of any treatments to help in getting sleep. Each type of acupuncture for sleep apnea treatment consists of a different combination of meridians or points. Treatment with acupuncture differs for specific needs of individuals to fit that person.