INDY ACUPUNCTURE & HEALTH SERVICES, Inc.
Mission Statement
Indy Acupuncture & Health Services, Inc. is dedicated to promoting health and wellness with the traditional Eastern medical techniques of Acupuncture, Herbology, and Lifestyle recommendations.
We strive to improve the quality of healthcare through an integrative model, utilizing the accumulated wisdom of different cultures and perspectives.
By respecting the body's natural intelligence and individual uniqueness, we offer a pathway for healing in the present. Through our commitment and dedication to a therapeutic relationship with every guest, we provide the knowledge for future self-care.
Chinese Herbal Medicine Effective in Treating IBS
An Australian study recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association lends strong scientific support to the traditional use of Chinese herbs in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). The authors believe theirs is the first clinical study to rigorously document the effectiveness of Chinese herbal medicine in the treatment of IBS - and the first to incorporate traditional Chinese diagnosis and treatment methods for IBS into a strictly controlled, conventional study model [Bensoussan et al., 1998].
The randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study involved 116 people with active IBS recruited from hospitals and private gastroenterology practices in Sydney, Australia. Patients were diagnosed first by gastroenterologists using standard western diagnostic methods, and then by Chinese herbalists according to the principles of Chinese medicine. Results were evaluated by gastroenterologists after eight weeks and again at the end of the 16-week treatment period.
Both the standard herbal formula and the individualized treatments were significantly more effective than placebo in relieving IBS symptoms. Patients receiving the herbal formulas had significantly better scores in four out of five key outcome measures.
As many as 10 to 20 percent of Americans and may be afflicted with IBS, a chronic gastrointestinal disorder marked by abdominal pain, bloating, and disturbances in bowel function alternating from constipation to diarrhea. According to the authors of the study, no single medical treatment provides reliable relief or resolution of the condition. According to physician assessments in this study, 78 percent of patients taking the standard Chinese herbal formula and 50 percent of those receiving individualized formulas improved during treatment, compared with 30 percent of those taking placebo. - Evelyn Leigh (HRF)
