Acupressure Therapy May Prevent Diabetic Complications

Acupressure therapy plus diet and exercise plans may inhibit the development of diabetic complications in patients with type 2 diabetes, a report in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine suggests.

After an initial recruitment of 80 participants, the Chinese study followed 64 patients with type 2 diabetes for three years. All study participants were treated with conventional medications plus diet and exercise programs to manage high blood pressure and hyperglycemia. One group was randomly assigned to undergo 90-minute sessions of acupressure four to six times a week in addition to standard treatment.

At the end of the three-year follow up, patients in the acupressure group had lower levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL-cholesterol, and higher levels of HDL-cholesterol. Nerve conduction velocity was also significantly higher in the acupressure group, indicating preserved nerve function. Serum creatinine and urine protein, surrogate markers of kidney function, were similar between both groups at the end of study follow-up.

Given these suggestive results that acupressure may help prevent diabetic complications, such as kidney failure and nerve damage, further studies may be warranted. The Chinese diet and lifestyle may not be globally representative. However, if these results can be replicated in different populations, the authors suggest that acupressure may be an important adjunctive strategy to help prevent long-term complications of type 2 diabetes.

Non-pharmacological management already plays a significant role in the prevention of diabetic complications. Other integrative therapies have also been investigated in managing symptoms. For instance, alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) has consistently been shown to improve blood sugar levels among patients with type 2 diabetes. Ginseng and beta-glucan also have suggestive benefits in inhibiting the development of diabetes-related complications, although the data are not as compelling.

For more information about acupressure therapy, please visit Natural Standard's Health & Wellness database.

Comments

[Ulrich]

It seems that the unknown link in research around preventing cardiovascular events is stress. There is no doubt that stress can be relieved with massage and acupressure, so perhaps it is the stress reduction that is improving the outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes.

It is interesting that one patient could experience one of these events with certain blood sugar levels, yet the next person with the same levels could be absolutely fine. If there was a way to evaluate stress as a risk factor for diabetic complications, as it is in hypertension, then our evaluations of risk for developing neuropathies or nephropathies would be more complete.

[ps]

We already know that diet and exercise are key to maintain healthy blood sugar levels and overall well-being. It’s interesting that research is finding that acupressure may prevent the long-term complications of diabetes; however, we still need a little more insight as to how acupressure is exactly working. Is it just by normalizing a person’s energy flow? By applying pressure at certain points to get the ‘qi’ flowing, does a patient have to visit a specialist that specializes in acupressure? How cost effective will this be? Rather, I’m wondering if a patient would be able to learn which ‘pressure points’ are imperative to concentrate on and do it at home.

It’s exciting to even ponder that an alternative modality can possibly prevent long-term complications of diabetes — something that affects so many people globally.

[AB]

In response to the multiple curiosities about the mechanism of lipid-lowering effects, I wonder if the key may be in the statement “acupressure therapy plus diet and exercise plans…” It has definitely been shown that dietary changes and exercise will improve lipid panels. The acupressure likely had more of an effect on circulation and prevention of neuropathy than lipid effects.

[nina]

The study brings more awareness to the effectiveness of this Chinese healing art, which has been practiced for over 5000 years. Western minds need to see the effectiveness in a scientifically proven study before they will engage in incorporating this long-proven healing art in their own practice of medicine. Acupressure or laser acupressure are wonderful methods to improve the chi flow for the needle phobic.

[praparat]

I wonder if the process of getting acupressure also helps people manage diabetes. I understand that getting this procedure involves lying down. Perhaps spending 90 minutes lying down leads the acupressure recipients to have lower levels of stress than the non-acupressure recipients.

[acai]

Acupressure is very good therapy and this is very good news for the diabetic patients. Thanks for this article.

[Kayla]

AB, I would agree with you, but the study implies that cholesterol levels were lower among those who received acupressure. The acupressure itself doesn’t change a person’s cholesterol level. Yes, I would agree that it may help in the circulation, thus preventing neuropathy.

[Rebecca Swan]

I read that "acupressure wear" may be helpful for conditions like headaches, migraines, hot flashes, nausea, indigestion, hangovers and more. I know that acupressure does not work for everyone, but I must say that I use it for nausea, headaches and heartburn, and acupressure wear works for me. I never believed in any of this before until it was my last option, and now I am a believer.

[AB]

In response to the multiple curiosities about the mechanism of lipid-lowering effects, I wonder if the key may be in the statement: “Acupressure therapy PLUS diet and exercise plans…” It has definitely been shown that dietary changes and exercise will improve lipid panels. The acupressure likely had more of an effect on circulation and prevention of neuropathy than lipid effects.

[AJ]

I would have to agree with the above statements by Mery. It is difficult to draw a conclusion about acupressure’s effects on diabetic complications when the mechanism of action is not explained. It is easy to correlate acupressure with the relief of musculoskeletal problems and link that with relief of neuropathic pain, but that is all speculation until the mechanism of action can be properly studied. And how acupressure affects cholesterol levels is even more ambiguous. More scientific studies are needed.

[cc]

Very interesting study. I was surprised to learn that approximately 37 million people in China are afflicted with Type 2 diabetes because I imagined the Chinese to have very healthy diets and lifestyles. With that being said, I am curious to know what diet this Chinese study implemented. Did it incorporate fish, rice, vegetables, etc? If so, that is a very different eating habit from what Americans are accustomed to, so it makes one wonder if this study can be generalized globally. While acupuncture therapy seems to be a promising alternative modality in preventing diabetes complications, the fundamentals (such as diet and lifestyle) must be accounted for.

[MT]

There have been studies that have demonstrated the benefits of acupuncture in various illnesses such as migraine headaches, chronic pains, etc. This is the first study that I have seen that claims acupressure to be beneficial in treating a chronic illness. This is the type of study that certainly needs support from other research before any conclusions and/or recommendations can be made.

[SK]

I wonder what the follow-up plan for this study is. Alhough there was improvement after three years of regular treatment with 90-minute sessions of acupressure, it would be interesting to see if this effect was maintained after the cessation of treatment. If the lowered cholesterol levels are maintained after the end of the study, acupressure would be a feasible adjunct treatment option for some patients.

[MC]

Just like many of the posted comments have already mentioned, although it's great that acupressure may help to prevent complications in diabetic patients, it requires up to nine hours of time per week, and more importantly, I doubt many people could afford this as adjunctive therapy. In the United States, many alternative therapies are not covered by insurance and also tend to be expensive as well. These factors all make acupressure a difficult option to pursue in the therapy of diabetes.

However I do think it helps emphasize again how important non-pharmacological measures can be in the prevention and treatment of various conditions and diseases. Patients shouldn’t simply depend on the drugs to take care of all their health problems. Medications are just one component that may be necessary in the quest to maintain one’s health, and they can usually be even more effective when combined with a healthier lifestyle.

[glucosamine chondroitine]

Acupressure is generally a well-tolerated, natural treatment for diabetes. If you experience any pain or discomfort, you should report this with your practitioner. Acupressure can very well offer you the kind of results you've been looking for.

[Loira]

MT, I could see how acupressure may help with migraine because the belief is that there are points in the body that when they touched, release pressure and help with migraines. My question is, how would that work for diabetes? And what about cholesterol?

[DF]

Whether or not the stress-reducing effects of acupressure are responsible for the benefits seen in people with type 2 diabetes, several relaxation techniques have shown promise. Progressive muscle relaxation (Surwit, 2002), mindfulness meditation (Rosenzweig, 2007), yoga (Malhotra, 2005), and even attending comedy shows (Hayashi, 2003) have been linked to decreased glucose levels in preliminary studies. It’s possible that reducing levels of stress hormones (cortisol and adrenaline) may reduce blood sugar.