Health Brief

EARLY STUDY RESULTS SHOW ACUPUNCTURE OFFERS HOPE FOR HEARTBURN SUFFERERS

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A report on the first phase of a study of Acupuncture treatment showed that some people suffering from chronic heartburn may benefit from a needle-free form of Acupuncture.

The researchers administered electrical stimulation of an Acupuncture point in the wrist of 14 healthy volunteers to discover the effect of this stimulation on "relaxations" of the lower esophageal sphincter muscle, the band of muscle that closes off the esophagus from the stomach. When this muscle relaxes, stomach acids can creep up into the esophagus and cause heartburn or acid reflux.

Among these volunteers receiving this treatment, there was a 40% reduction in these relaxations. In a second experiment, the researcher speculated that the improvement might be the result of the body's release of pain-killing chemicals called enkephalins so they blocked their production with medication and tried the experiment again. Still, the acupoint stimulation produced an improvement in the relaxations of this muscle.

The researchers utilized an Acupuncture point on the wrist that has historically been used by Chinese medicine to aid gastrointestinal symptoms.

Researchers stressed that these results were preliminary and planned to follow these findings with more study.

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SOURCE: http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1490600,001100020006.htm