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Acupuncture & Arthritis: How It Can Help

Arthritis, a condition that causes pain and inflammation in your joints, is a common problem that over ten million people here in the UK suffer from. It can affect anyone of any age, with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis the two most common forms.

The symptoms of the condition will vary depending on the type in question, but if you have joint pain, stiffness or tenderness, inflammation in and around your joints, restricted movement, weakness and muscle wastage, or warm red skin over the affected area, you should perhaps go and visit your GP.

One possible way to treat arthritis is acupuncture, where pain is diminished by the release of tight and shortened muscles to their typical resting state using needles in various places on the body.

The theory behind the procedure is that everyone has a life energy known as qi (pronounced ‘chee’) that flows around the body along invisible channels (or meridians). When the flow of this energy finds itself out of balance or blocked, pain or illness is the result.

Interestingly, Liam Gallagher himself recently came out as a big supporter of the treatment, revealing that he has arthritis in his hips, which causes pain in his calves as well.

In an interview with Q Magazine, reported on by Radio X, the former Oasis frontman said: “This geezer is proper. Gets the needles and whacks them in. He sorts it out, but obviously it keeps coming back.”

If you are in serious pain and have tried other avenues with little success, it certainly couldn’t hurt to give acupuncture a try.

There is currently no cure for arthritis but there are treatments available that could help to slow it down, whether that’s surgery, medication or lifestyle changes. With osteoarthritis, one of the most important treatment methods is exercise and physical activity should include a series of different exercises in order to strengthen your muscles but also to improve your overall fitness levels.

Weight loss can also help ease symptoms because if you’re overweight or obese, you’ll be putting your joints under increased strain. Being more active and eating healthier food is the best way to start your weight loss journey, even if it is just one little step at a time.

It’s not just arthritis that acupuncture could potentially help with and if you’re experiencing chronic pain because of something like muscle pain, post-surgery pain, fibromyalgia, nausea from cancer treatments like chemotherapy or dental pain. It could also help with headaches and even be used to help you quit smoking!

A typical acupuncture session will see needles inserted into different parts of the body, staying in place for anything from a couple of minutes to an hour. You’ll probably feel a slight sense of discomfort at insertion but the needles are a lot thinner than those used for injections, so this shouldn’t be a cause for concern.

For acupuncture in Cheshire, get in touch with us today.

Thanks,

Matthew Budd BSc (Hons)