Scientific Report, Acupuncture Effective Against Migraine

Those who suffer the interminable discomfort or pain caused by migraines and headaches often turn to swallowing large amounts of pills and lying in a darkened room for three days.

An ancient but seemingly effective alternative is the Chinese medical art of acupuncture.

Scientists have published the results of a study in the highly respected British Medical Journal that for the first time indicates the effectiveness of acupuncture on chronic headaches and migraines.

The study involved over 400 patients who suffered multiple headaches each month. They were split into two groups, one group receiving a dozen sessions of acupuncture over a 12 week period.

The other group received the standard Western medical solutions for the same three months. After a grace period of 12 months the researchers re-examined the patients and discovered that the ones that had the relatively few acupuncture sessions had suffered over 20 less serious headache pain days than those who had used Western medicine.

The acupuncture recipients also made only 75% of the number of visits to doctors compared to the non-acupuncture patients. They also had 30 less work sick days per year.

Anecdotal evidence from the patients also indicated that their general quality of life had improved considerably with much less general minor headache discomfort.