Allergies occur when your immune system responds to foreign substances often causing reactions from sneezing and itchiness to hives, tingling, rashes, etc. In a place like Minnesota filled with pollen and bees, in addition to the year around dust and mold that accumulates, allergies come in all different forms and severities.

Common treatments for allergies include avoiding the allergenic substance—which often times can be near impossible when it’s a loving pet— or medication which often times has side effects that make the allergy symptoms feel "pleasant". Over-the-counter medication is commonly taken to combat allergy symptoms that arise, however, when allergy symptoms are prevalent in the long run individuals may turn to alternative approaches. In traditional Chinese medicine, allergies are often associated with spleen or kidney deficiencies. In some cases patients are given Chinese herbs as well to complement their acupuncture treatments to treat not only the apparent symptoms that patients come in with, but also to help the underlying immune system imbalances.

In a 2013 study in the Annals of Internal Medicine, 422 individuals from the ages of 16 to 45 with pollen allergies were divided into three groups. The first group received 12 treatments of acupuncture, plus antihistamines if needed; the second group received 12 treatments of sham acupuncture (where needles are inserted at random acupuncture points), plus antihistamines if needed; and the third group received only antihistamines to be taken when needed. After two months of treatment 71 percent of the individuals in the first group reported improvement in their symptoms and a decreased use of antihistamines compared to a significantly lower amount in the second and third group.

If you have any further questions about acupuncture treatment for allergies/asthma, please feel free to give any one of our locations a call to schedule an initial consultation. We look forward to hearing from you!