09-02-2009, 04:45 PM
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Administrator
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Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Posts: 108
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Brain Scans Show How Acupuncture Works, Study Says
Traditional Chinese acupuncture, increasingly popular in the West for a variety of ills, eases pain by regulating key receptors in the brain, according to a new study.
The study showed that acupuncture increases the binding availability of mu-opioid receptors in regions of the brain that process and weaken pain signals -- specifically the cingulate, insula, caudate, thalamus and amygdala. By directly stimulating these chemicals, acupuncture can affect the brain's long-term ability to regulate pain, the study found.
A report on the findings is in the September issue of NeuroImage.
Using positron emission tomography scans of the brain, the researchers examined 20 women with fibromyalgia, a chronic pain condition. The women took no new medications for their pain during the study period.
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Read the full story at Imaging Sheds Light on How Acupuncture Works - US News and World Report
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