The Cochrane Collaboration, based in Oxford, England, is dedicated to testing different medical concepts in a scientific, and thus provable, fashion without any bias or misinformation. After investigating whether acupuncture can help those who are wanting to quit smoking, they were not impressed with the results.
Acupuncture background
Acupuncture originated in the Far East. It is the practice whereby pins are inserted into the body along certain energy pathways, in the hope that it will cure whatever is ailing the person. Some have turned to acupuncture to quit smoking. Acupuncture to quit smoking is supposed to help you be able to go through it without experiencing side effects or withdrawals, which is common when a body is deprived of a chemical that it has been used to having.
Acupuncture to stop smoking
Using acupuncture to quit smoking is not a new idea by any means, it has been around for years. Acupuncture does indeed help lessen pain, thus it was surmised that it would or at least should also help lessen the pain of withdrawal. With acupuncture, energy channels that run just under the skin and lead to the organs are inserted with needles. Needles that are inserted at specific points along these energy channels are supposed to be able to repair and strengthen the body, to detoxify the body and to help heal the body. NADA (The National Acupuncture Detoxification Association)has declared that they have a withdrawal treatment system that has been proven by studies at different universities, including Yale University.
Smoking cessation group therapy
For those who are using acupuncture to quite smoking, they often go for group therapy. Treatment last for around forty minutes at a time. Everyone receiving treatment sits together, while acupuncture treatment is given. The main energy points that are targeted in this case are those behind and around the ear. This is supposedly where the nerve endings that help with detoxification are located. The points are stimulated with tiny needles, and the detoxification process begins.
Cochrane Collaboration finding on acupuncture
As stated above, the Cochrane Collaboration does not think that acupuncture is effective in helping people stop smoking. In fact, from the few studies made, it seems that it does not have much effect at all and that people react the same whether they receive acupuncture treatment or not. While some short-term benefits were seen,these were not sufficient to prove the success of acupuncture treatments. They feel that tests were not performed on a large enough group of people to say either way whether it could be of any help or not.
Is it worth a try to help you quit smoking
However, the same could be said in reverse of course. That is, that not enough tests have been made to actually prove that it does not work. In fact, some individuals have been helped remarkably by being treated with acupuncture. Many people still believe there must be some substance to the claims that acupuncture works, otherwise there would not have been any claims about it at all. There is certainly no harm from trying it at least, with all the negative facts about smoking. If it works you are better off for it. If it does not work, you did not suffer any harm.
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