Acupuncture Could Help to Prevent Diabetes

The ancient medical practice of acupuncture has been used to treat a number of diseases for thousands of years, but it might still offer new unrealized modern health benefits.

Evidence: An Australian study finds it could be a useful tool in preventing type 2 diabetes.

Researchers at Edith Cowan University came to this conclusion when they investigated a large number of studies that looked at the effects of acupuncture on more than 3,600 people who were diagnosed as being prediabetic.

Prediabetes is a condition in which people have blood glucose levels that are higher than normal without them being so high that they can be diagnosed as diabetic. It can lead to diabetes which is a leading modern health concern that is estimated to affect some 11% of the world’s adult population.

Estimates by the International Diabetes Foundation are that almost 1.3 billion people will either be prediabetic or diabetic by 2045.

The analysis revealed a clear trend, the researchers say. Several key markers that are associated with diabetes improved in those people who were given acupuncture treatment.

Among the markers were two-hour plasma glucose, fasting plasma glucose, and glycated hemoglobin. In addition an overall greater decrease in the incidence of prediabetes itself was noted.

No Side-Effects

An extra benefit was that none of the patients who were studied reported any negative or adverse side-effects.

Without intervention of some sort 93% of people who suffer from prediabetes will develop type 2 diabetes within 20 years says lead researcher Min Zhang. Unlike diabetes, however, prediabetes is reversible with lifestyle changes such as increased exercise and diet.

Many people battle to keep to these changes, however, she adds. In those cases treatments that are non-pharmacological such as acupuncture might prove to be valuable.

Holistic Help, Too

It is not only about blood sugar levels, Zhang explains. If you experience high blood pressure, sleep problems, and a lot of stress these factors can add to your problems. If acupuncture can assist in these fields as well it can work in a holistic way to help people to balance their lives.

When people think of acupuncture, needles come immediately to mind, Zhang says. The research team explains, however, that the technique also includes light electrical pulses as well as additional Chinese medicine treatments such moxibustion, which is the burning of moxa (dried leaves of an Asian plant) near a person’s skin as a nonirritant.

It is important that this aspect be noted, Zhang says, because diabetic people can have problems with their skin and it might not always be ideal to have needles put in their bodies.

Extensive Search

To arrive at their assessment, the team searched 855 randomized controlled trials involving acupuncture interventions for managing prediabetes.

They concluded that acupuncture-related treatment is a potential strategy to add to better glycemic control in the management of prediabetes.

More Research Needed

The researchers suggested, however, that more research including different ethnic groups should be conducted. The research also should look into the long-term effectiveness of the acupuncture treatment.

More research should also be conducted into acupuncture and diabetes, Zhang adds, as we need to find more ways to stop prediabetes from developing into type 2 diabetes.

Many people who suffer from prediabetes fail to have any symptoms as they say they feel fine. Some of those people, however, progress into diabetes in as few as six months after they are first diagnosed as prediabetic, she says.

It should be seen, therefore, as an investment to intervene in prediabetes rather than an expense, she says.

The study is published in Holistic Nursing Practice.