This hypertension acupuncture research examined patient blood pressure levels when acupuncture was added to conventional hypertension medication. The study concluded that giving patients acupuncture in addition to just medication resulted in significantly lower blood pressure rates.
Background
Hypertension is the medical term for high blood pressure. Blood pressure is the force of blood in the arteries traveling from the heart to the rest of the body. When the pressure is consistently high, it damages the heart and leads to a host of health problems. This hypertension acupuncture research studied how acupuncture lowers blood pressure levels.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) published the following statistics about hypertension:
- High blood pressure puts you at risk for heart disease and stroke, the leading causes of death in the United States.
- 75 million American adults (32%) have high blood pressure—that’s 1 in every 3 adults.
- About 1 in 3 American adults have prehypertension—blood pressure that is higher than normal, but not yet considered too high.
- Only half (54%) of people with high blood pressure have their condition under control.
- High blood pressure was a primary or contributing cause of death for more than 410,000 Americans in 2014.
- High blood pressure costs the nation $48.6 billion each year.
Hypertension Acupuncture Research
This hypertension acupuncture research study was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial conducted at Kyung Hee University Hospital in South Korea. Forty-one participants with high blood pressure were randomly assigned into either real or sham (fake) acupuncture groups.
The subjects continued to take their blood pressure medication during the study. The real acupuncture group received individualized acupuncture treatments in addition to medications. The sham acupuncture group received fake acupuncture while still taking their medications. They believed they were receiving acupuncture, when in fact they were not. This provided the blind aspect of the study, ruling out the possibility of placebo effect.
Measurements were performed at the beginning of the hypertension acupuncture research study, and again at week 4 and week 8. Blood pressure, scales of overall health and pain, and anticipation or satisfaction for the treatments were all recorded.
Results
Thirty subjects completed the hypertension acupuncture research, all of whom were on anti-hypertensive medication. The sham acupuncture group showed no significant change in mean blood pressure rates. However, the real acupuncture group showed a significant decrease in average blood pressure after 8 weeks of treatment. Average blood pressure rates dropped from 136/83 to 122/76 mmHg.
Conclusion
Acupuncture offers an additional benefit in the treatment of high blood pressure patients.
Treating Hypertension at Raleigh Acupuncture
We have been treating patients with high blood pressure for over 15 years. In our experience, acupuncture helps to lower blood pressure in both borderline hypertensive and hypertensive patients. This hypertension acupuncture research supports our own experience treating patients who have high blood pressure.
The benefits of using acupuncture for borderline hypertensive patients is to help them avoid the need to start blood pressure medications in the first place. Acupuncture, plus dietary changes and exercise can significantly improve blood pressure values.
As this hypertension acupuncture research concluded, acupuncture also helps hypertensive patients who are currently taking medications to further reduce their blood pressure.
Next Steps
If you are struggling with blood pressure control, try acupuncture. It is a safe, natural treatment for hypertension, with no negative side effects.
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High Blood Pressure Acupuncture Research References
Acupuncture, a promising adjunctive therapy for essential hypertension: a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial
ChangShik Yin,ByungKwan Seo,Hi-Joon Park,Miran Cho,WooSang Jung,Ryowon Choue, https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1179/016164107X172220#
CDC website: https://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fs_bloodpressure.htm
What our Clients are Saying
My doctor was trying to get me to start hypertension medication because I was borderline for over a year. I didn’t want to because I knew I’d be on them forever. My wife did research and found Raleigh Acupuncture. They treated me and were able to lower my blood pressure to 135/85. My doctor says that if I maintain that level I don’t need to start the meds. I recommend Raleigh Acupuncture. They are professional, kind and know their stuff.
I was taking blood pressure medication but was unable to stabilize my blood pressure. Acupuncture reduced my stress and brought my blood pressure under control. Thank you Raleigh Acupuncture!!!