Researchers conclude that acupuncture reduces hypertension and prevents brain damage due to chronic high blood pressure. A controlled laboratory investigation finds acupuncture effective for the regulation of blood pressure while simultaneously preventing excessive cell death in the brain. In a quantification of acupuncture’s effective mechanisms, researchers identified important biological responses elicited by acupuncture responsible for producing therapeutic benefits.
The research team of Lu et al. identified biochemical responses elicited by the application of three acupuncture techniques. Reinforcing twirling, reducing twirling, and needle retention techniques resulted in reduced blood pressure and downregulation of cell death in the brain when compared with a control group. All three manual acupuncture techniques prevented “target organ damage by increasing the Bcl-2/Bax ratio and inhibiting apoptosis of hippocampal neurons.”
from Acupuncture and Herbs News and Research https://ift.tt/2sjpGvm
