How auricular therapy works?

Auriculotherapy, or ear acupressure is probably, the most effective and accessible alternative treatment for reducing pain, lowering blood pressure, shedding unwanted pounds, alleviating insomnia, and correcting alcohol and drug addiction etc.

How auricular therapy works?

Auricular therapy is not simply ear reflexology, which uses acupressure to unblock the energy meridians of the body. Rather, ear acupressure stimulates the nerve connections between the ear and the central nervous system.

Applying pressure to the correct points on the external ear triggers nerve impulses from the ear to the brain, thereby communicating powerful healing messages to the organ or system in which the health problem manifests. Upon receiving the ear’s recommendations, the brain releases pain-relieving protein molecules called endorphins into the blood stream, soothing chronic pain and discomfort quickly and with no side effects.                                      

Since the outer ear is a microsystem that connects to every part of the human body, auriculotherapy relieves a wide variety of health problems. Virtually all health conditions can be improved to some degree by stimulating the ear points.

Auricular acupressure points are the same as acupuncture points. Difference between acupressure and acupuncture, is that in acupuncture needles are used to apply pressure on specific points but in acupressure pressure therapy is applied through pressure of fingers or tools.

Auricular Acupuncture:

Auricular Acupuncture is widely used throughout the United Kingdom to treat people with a variety of conditions. It forms the basis of a number of protocols used in the treatment of Stress, Anxiety, Depression, Insomnia and Pain Management. It is also commonly known for the treatment of smoking cessation, weight loss, substance misuse, and alcohol cessation, and has been growing steadily since the 1970’s.

One of the significant advantages of Auricular Acupuncture treatment is that it is complementary to conventional acupuncture treatments. Auricular Acupuncture whilst originally based upon the ancient Chinese practice of acupuncture, has its origins in Modern Europe. It was developed by Dr. Paul Nogier, a neurologist from Lyons in France in 1957.He noticed the correspondence of specific parts of the body to the ear based upon the concept of an inverted foetus. Dr. Nogier believed that pain and other symptoms in the body could be alleviated by needling, massaging or electronically stimulating the corresponding region of the ear.

There are over 200 acupuncture points on the ear, each point named after an area of our anatomy. The outer ear acts like a switchboard to the brain. Each acupuncture point being treated, triggers electrical impulses from the ear via the brain, to the specific part of the body being treated. Clinical Reports demonstrate that acupuncture

• Stimulates the production of pain modulators
• Regulates blood pressure
• Regulates seratonin
• Regulates the sympathetic nervous system
• Enhances the immune system
• Reduces the allergic response 

Useful links:

* Ear Acupressure: The Most Accessible Alternative for Self-Healing 

* Self-healing-ear-acupressure-auriculotherapy

*  A NEW AURICULAR ACUPRESSURE TREATMENT FOR SMOKING AND OVERWEIGHT PROBLEMS BY DR. JUNZO KOKUBO, D.AC (Research paper by Dr.Kokubo on clinical testing of PressPoint Ear Acupressure System, which was contributed to a Japanese acupuncture medicine journal in 1991.)
* Auricular acupressure as a treatment for anxiety in prehospital transport settings.
 Brain-Modulated Effects of Auricular Acupressure on the Regulation of Autonomic Function in Healthy Volunteers

Acupressure therapy for smoking cessation

Auricular therapy (Acupressure therapy of the ear region) has been used successfully for Smoking cessation. Auriculotherapy is thought to be 7 times more powerful than other methods used for smoking cessation; a single auriculotherapy treatment has been shown to reduce smoking from 20 or more cigarettes a day down to 3 to 5 a day.

Acupressure is state-of-the-art therapy for the treatment of over 350 diseases, and is clinically recognized by the World Health Organization and approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

 One of the core principles of this healing technology is that the outer portion of the ear (i.e., the auricle) is a microsystem that represents every part of the human body. In other words, every point of the outer ear corresponds to, and is associated with, a specific part of the human anatomy. Whereas general body acupuncture addresses health problems by working on the energy meridians of the body, auriculotherapy is based on nerve connections (in the human nervous system) and offers specific localized treatment for the organs or systems involved in the health problem.

 'Acupressure diet' suggests these two acupoints:

There are two acupressure points "stomach" and "mouth" in the ear. If those are stimulated, work of the stomach becomes normal and luxury goods like tobacco will become wanting less. It may be hard to keep quitting smoking for one week after quitting smoking. To get through the one week, stimulate the acupressure points in the ear by hands when you want to come to smoke.

Stomach: The acupressure point for the stomach is located around the tip of the cartilage that crosses the hole top of an ear.
 Mouth: The acupressure point for the mouth is located a little inside the one for the stomach.
 Stimulation method: Stimulate each acupressure points with the back (side which is not sharp) of a fingertip or a toothpick. If you want to come to smoke, please push and rub the acupressure points. 

How is the auricular therapy administered?
 While professional auriculotherapists may employ a small electronic pulse to stimulate the point, this is not the only method. Pressure, as in acupressure, can be used, such as finger pressure, or a blunt probe, like the end of a match stick, is all that is required to administer auriculotherapy treatment. Pressure may also be applied by using the forefinger and thumb, on any given point. The point is pressed for between 30 to 60 seconds. The norm is 30 seconds per point. To know that the auriculotherapy is being effective, the ear being treated should turn reddish in color and develop a warm sensation upon being treated.

Useful links:
* Effects of auricular acupressure therapy on smoking

* Research paper by Dr.Kokubo on clinical testing of PressPoint Ear Acupressure System 'Acupressure treatment for smoking and overweight problemss'

Auricular therapy and its benefits

The art of healing with finger pressure over the specific points on the ear is known as Ear Acupressure or Auricular Therapy. In 1957, Dr. Paul Nogier, a well known French Neuro-surgeon, made a careful study of the ear and its relationship to the rest of the body and developed this “Auricular Therapy”.

The ear contains more than 120 acupoints that correspond to various parts of the body. Traditional Chinese medicine teaches that all major meridians, or energy pathways in the body, pass through the ear, making auricular acupressure effective in treating a variety of ailments throughout the body. It is perhaps the most effective and accessible alternative treatment for reducing pain, lowering blood pressure, shedding unwanted pounds, alleviating insomnia, and correcting alcohol and drug addiction, to name just a few of the ailments this age-old technique relieves.

Ear acupressure was first advanced by Chinese acupuncturists in 500 BC and documented in the Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine. But it was French doctor, Paul Nogier, who pioneered modern Auriculotherapy as a complete healing system in the 1950s. Dr. Nogier sought to explain the connection between ear acupoints and their effects on
the body with his apt scientific metaphor of the ear as the micro-imitation of the human bodily system, comparing the shape of the ear to an inverted fetus.


Benefits:
Auriculotherapy is not simply ear reflexology, which uses acupressure to unblock the energy meridians of the body. Rather, ear acupressure stimulates the nerve connections between the ear and the central nervous system. Applying pressure to the correct points on the external ear triggers nerve impulses from the ear to the brain, thereby communicating powerful healing messages to the organ or system in which the health problem manifests. Upon receiving the ear’s recommendations, the brain releases pain-relieving protein molecules called endorphins into the blood stream, soothing chronic pain and discomfort quickly and with no side effects.

 A 2003 study by the University of Vienna in Austria found that patients who received ear acupressure during ambulance transport reported decreased pain and anxiety. A study conducted by the New Mexico State University in 2006 used auricular acupressure in addition to regular substance abuse treatment. Patients who received ear acupressure showed a significant reduction in cravings and emotional stress. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, auricular acupressure may help improve sleep quality and alleviate insomnia. Pressure points in the ear that relate to the stomach may help control the appetite and help with weight-loss efforts.

 How to locate the ear acupressure point?

Imagine a fully grown-up foetus inside the mother’s womb.The whole body is represented by the ear in much the same be activated by pulsating the corresponding points on the ear way as the foetus fits (Fig. 17b). Different parts of the body can be activated by pulsating the corresponding points on the ear.The ear acupressure chart provides a ready-reference for this Purpose.

 An ear massage is very detoxifying and stimulating to the system. Auricular acupressure improves the circulation, strengthens the immunity and relaxes the body and the mind. Briskly rub the palms of your hands together and then cup them over the ears for twenty seconds or more. Then massage the ears for a minute or more. Auricular acupressure massages may also be performed by kneading, rubbing, pulling and pinching the ear.
YouTube video:

  Useful links: 

* Stimulation of auricular acupuncture points in weight loss