Research: Acupuncture Treats Allergies

Acupuncture has been used for centuries to treat allergy symptoms such as nasal congestion, scratchy throat, puffy eyes and more. A multicenter randomized controlled trial conducted by researchers at the University Medical Center in Berlin assessed 422 people over the course of 2 months. The study concluded that acupuncture led to significant improvements in both quality of life and reduction of antihistamine use for allergy sufferers. Another study performed in 2018 concluded that acupuncture significantly reduced the number of days antihistamine was used while improving quality of life and seasonal allergic rhinitis symptoms.

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References:

Brinkhaus, B., Ortiz, M., Witt, C. M., Roll, S., Linde, K., Pfab, F., Niggemann, B., Hummelsberger, J., Treszl, A., Ring, J., Zuberbier, T., Wegscheider, K., & Willich, S. N. (2013). Acupuncture in patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis: a randomized trial. Annals of internal medicine, 158(4), 225–234. https://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-158-4-201302190-00002

Adam, D., Grabenhenrich, L., Ortiz, M., Binting, S., Reinhold, T., & Brinkhaus, B. (2018). Impact of acupuncture on antihistamine use in patients suffering seasonal allergic rhinitis: secondary analysis of results from a randomised controlled trial. Acupuncture in medicine : journal of the British Medical Acupuncture Society, 36(3), 139–145. https://doi.org/10.1136/acupmed-2017-011382