Acupuncture and Diabetes

Can Acupuncture and chinese herbs help with diabetes?       The short answer is YES!

Diabetes is very common in my clinic and in San Antonio. We lead the national average by more than 4% and by 65, 1 in 3 San Antonians will have diabetes. But there's a lot that Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine can do to curb that number, help with symptoms, and even balance hormones and blood sugars. It provides another great way to manage diabetes in addition to medication, and lifestyle and nutritional changes.

Understanding Diabetes
As we consume food, the body breaks it down into glucose (sugar) and is passed into the bloodstream. Then the body uses insulin to transport the glucose in to muscles, fat and liver cells. In diabetes though, the pancreas does not produce enough insulin to transport the insulin and leaves the sugar in the bloodstream. This elevates sugar levels and leads to serious issues that if left untreated can cause blindness, heart attack, or kidney failure to name a few.

How Acupuncture Can Help
Acupuncture is a holistic approach to healthcare that nurtures the body by inserting very fine sterile needles into specific places in the body to promote healing. To learn more about the basics of acupuncture puncture check out this blog post. Ultimately acupuncture works on the regulatory systems in the body to help balance hormones and make insulin work more effectively. Combined with herbs patients often see marked differences in their symptoms and well-being. Of course, one should always work with their doctor and follow their instructions for using insulin. But pairing acupuncture and chinese herbs with dietary changes and lifestyle changes like exercise, patients can learn to manage their diabetes easier and live a fuller life.