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When the Ten Thousand Things are seen in their Oneness, We return to the Origin where we have always been. - Sengtan

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Oriental Medicine Newspaper

NEWS RELEASE

August 29, 2003

For More Information Contact: Rebecca Wilkowski, Phone: (800) 729-0941

Acupuncture Provides Cost-Effective Relief For Asthma Patients

With the state of Minnesota filing a law suit against two drug companies because of inflated asthma inhalant prices, consumers are looking for more cost-effective methods of dealing with such respiratory disorders. Asthma affects more than 15 million people in the United States, but for the 350,000 Minnesota residents who use inhalants made by California-based Dey and New Jersey-based Warrick Pharmiceuticals, the strain of living with asthma has been compounded by inflated average wholesale prices.

Acupuncture, a 5,000-year-old Chinese medical practice, is proving to be one way for some asthma patients to manage their symptoms without over-paying. In a study conducted by the University Hospital of Vienna, over 70 percent of patients with long-standing asthma reported a significant improvement in their symptoms after 10 weeks of acupuncture treatment.

Bronchospasms associated with asthma result from over-stimulation of the parasympathetic nervous system. Stimulation of acupuncture points can relieve both physical and emotional stress because they trigger the release of endorphins in the brain. Asthma sufferers can therefore experience both a physical release from bronchial constriction, and also an emotional or psychological release from the fear of constriction and suffocation.

Acupuncture is also more cost-effective than many Western drug therapies. In 1990, costs related to asthma were estimated at $6.2 billion. According to the American Lung Association, the average cost for one hospital stay for a child with asthma is $4,000. Acupuncture, by contrast, costs an average of $85 per session and can eliminate the need for emergency hospital visits and Western drugs like those made by Dey and Warrick Pharmiceuticals. An estimated 70 to 80 percent of the nation’s insurers covered acupuncture treatments in 1996, making it an even more viable option for those with asthma.

For more information on how acupuncture can help manage the symptoms of asthma, please call 800-729-0941.

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