Acupuncture (TCM) Cannabinoid Research

Description of Acupuncture (TCM)

Acupuncture, an essential tool in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), involves the use of very fine needles that are placed very specifically on strategic points along or near the body’s subtle-energy channels or meridians. TCM posits that our life force, called qi (or chi), circulates through the meridians. In the Mandarin language, qi is synonymous with breath. According to TCM, if qi is blocked, out of balance, or weak, pain or disease results as a warning that something is wrong and needs adjusting. The general idea here is that to attain and maintain health and vitality, one must unblock, balance, and cultivate a healthy and free-flowing chi.

Not unlike cannabinoid-based approaches acupuncture induces complex therapeutic effects via modulation of diverse components of the ECS (e.g., AEA). More specifically, activation of endocannabinoid receptor sites (e.g. CB1, CB2), via indirect (allosteric) modulation of neurotransmitter receptors such as dopamine (e.g., D1, D2), GABA, or endogenous opioids (i.e., endorphins), which has led to the hypothesis that the ECS may be a primary mediator and regulatory factor of acupuncture's diverse therapeutic effects.