The Acupuncture Clinic receives many inquiries about acupuncture and sleep disorders including sleep apnea which is estimated to effect 23 million people in the United States. It is a condition where during sleep the person can stop breathing or have very low breathing of which they unaware of. This problem can cause moodiness and tiredness as well as snoring being a major concern.
Other medical problems such as stroke, heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure are thought to be caused or complicated by sleep apnea because oxygen flow to the brain is lessened.
There is also increasing evidence that sleep apnea can lead to fatty liver disease.
This modern medicine observation is interesting because thousands of years ago ancient Chinese physicians already had correlated the liver as being involved in the sleep process. In fact Chinese medical physicians treat the liver to address insomnia and sleep apnea problems.
Some acupuncture points on the liver meridian treat insomnia and other liver associated problems such as headaches and irritability.
Researchers have now demonstrated that acupuncture can improve blood oxygen saturation which in turn then improves sleep apnea. Many patients have reported that after receiving a course of acupuncture for another problem such as back pain, their sleep had improved as well. Acupuncture is a self regulating and natural healing system that aims to enhance the bodies own recuperative powers so it is no surprise that symptoms of mood, sleep and digestion by default improve.
All this is not good news for Fisher and Paykel because the cost of a sleep apnea machine is about the equivalent of about 40 acupuncture treatments. This many acupuncture treatments would not only help the patients sleep apnea but also improve many other aspects of their health.
This may be why the Chinese did not consider buying out Fisher and Paykel Healthcare which is listed on the New Zealand stock market but only bought into Fisher and Paykel Appliances.
