Facial Cosmetic Acupuncture Benefits For Skin Care

With the changes in
the environment, the females are more suffering from imbalanced oil and water
content of facial skin. A higher percentage of dry skin reported in females
increased the attention towards traditional methods of rejuvenating the skin.
Cosmetic acupuncture is used to moisturize the skin and rebalance the loss of
water & oil content. Though no studies have revealed the use of acupuncture
in scientific treatments, a significant percentage of humans are adopting this.¹

Cosmetic acupuncture is a noninvasive treatment
that involves using acupuncture to enhance skin and combat the aging procedure.
It is frequently used as a substitute for surgical facelifts and other traditional
processes said to reverse signs of aging in the skin. Cosmetic acupuncture can
help reduce wrinkles, reduce fine lines, remove age spots, and lift droopy
eyelids.

In the US, the same
therapy is termed as Facial Revitalization Acupuncture (FRA) or Facial
Rejuvenation Acupuncture (FRA). Similarly, it is called Mei Rong in Chinese
medical cosmetology.³

^{See: Foods for clear healthy skin}

Facial cosmetic
acupuncture is applied by inserting needles into the head, face, and neck. The
therapy improves the facial elasticity by restoring the resting mimetic muscle
tone. Loren et al. studies suggested this possible mechanism. According to his
research, facial mimetic muscles gradually straighten and shorten with the
increase in age. He used an MRI facility to study the changes in the contour of
facial mimetic muscles concerning the ages. Anti-aging therapy is another name
given to cosmetic acupuncture. Other possible mechanisms responsible for
enhancing beauty with cosmetic acupuncture are increasing or balancing qi,
balancing internal Zang-Fu organs, and increasing blood flow by insertion of
needles at specific acupoints. Now the question arises on how facial elasticity
is measured? Among the several techniques, moire topography developed by Ahn et
al. is an optical procedure that does not require any physical contact, and
highly precise visualization of the face can describe the three-dimensional
shape of the face. Other than the facial elasticity, moire topography is  used in facial palsy, zygomatic fractures,
facial morphology, and facial plastic surgery.²

The side effects or adverse effects associated with
the therapy are bruising, hematomas, headache, and dizziness. The ratio of worsening
of the situation is high in cases in which precautions of grounding the qi and
release of tight neck muscles are not assured before administration of FCA.³

See: Home remedies for dry itchy skin

In traditional Chinese medicine,
acupuncture has been used to enhance the flow of vital energy (known as qi or
chi) through the body. This critical energy is considered to circulate
invisible energy lines that are referred to as meridians. According to
traditional Chinese medicine, health problems occur because of blockages in the
flow of vital energy. By inserting needles into defined points along meridian
lines, acupuncturists aim to restore the circulation of vital energy and,
subsequently, improve health.

See: Acupuncture benefits & side effects

Cosmetic Acupuncture is purported to enhance
skin and act as an anti-aging therapy in part by stimulating the production of
collagen (a protein that acts as a significant part of your skin). As you get
older, your skin’s inner layer loses collagen and, because of this, becomes
less supple and firm. However, there isn’t any scientific evidence to support
the claim that acupuncture may promote collagen production. Cosmetic
acupuncture can help rejuvenate your skin by enhancing your overall energy.

A
report of 1996 submitted by the International Journal of Clinical Acupuncture
revealed 90% of cases in China showing marked results with the course of
cosmetic facial acupuncture. The significant effects reported included the
following:

●     Improvement in skin texture and equalization of
coloring

●     Increased facial elasticity

●     The decrease in facial wrinkles. Deep wrinkles
got faded and fine lines eliminated from the face

●     Rejuvenation not only confined to the face

●     Reduced puffiness of the face

●     Minimization or elimination of double chin

●     Neuroendocrine effects. The establishment of
hormonal balance improved skin acne, and dry skin accomplished with menopause.

●     Brightening of skin which is not possible from
allopathic routes

The
therapy promises to reduce the five to fifteen years of age with significant
effects shown from the first course only. The responses are cumulative, and
treatment enhances the beauty of skin progressively.³

See: Dermatitis

There
is no scientific study that gives the guarantee of the efficacy and safety of
the cosmetic acupuncture therapy. Although research suggests that acupuncture may
provide several health benefits (including reduced stress and management of
issues such as chronic pain and depression), there’s presently a lack of
scientific studies analyzing the effects of acupuncture.

 Therefore, the treatment for a cautious purpose is not meant for
the following cases:

●     Pituitary disorders such as pituitary tumor

●     Cardiovascular diseases including diabetes and
bleeding disorders such as hemophilia

●     Individuals significantly prone to bruising

●     Migraine

●     AIDS or HIV positive cases

●     History of hepatitis

●     Facial lymphoedema. Patients in these cases are
more prone to infection

●     Asthma especially the individuals reporting
constant wheezing

●     Pregnancy

●     Acute or severe chronic illness reporting
headache, nausea, flu, allergic reaction, hangover or intoxication

Apart
from this, treatment requires cautious measures for the ones who have undergone
plastic surgery, botulinum toxin injections, and other allopathic cosmetic
therapies.³

See: Acupuncture Treatment For Psoriasis

FCA is found to be a
safer alternative when compared to risk involved procedures such as botox.
Fewer costs involved with minimal side effects (only bruising is prominent)
make cosmetic acupuncture a better alternative to cosmetic surgeries, which
include higher disfigurement risks. Moreover, unlike the other therapies, which
require a more extended recovery period from swelling and discoloration, the
acupuncture offers no late trauma.³

Comparing cosmetic
acupuncture with botox, let’s see what the two options offer individually:

Botox is the toxin of
the bacteria which is responsible for causing botulism. It is a condition in
which paralysis of specific facial muscles occurs. With the Botox injections,
one is not able to move the muscles, which reduces facial wrinkles. Hence, the
patients started assuming the absence of lines on its face. But the fact is
when the muscles regain their elasticity, wrinkles appear again. Moreover, the
therapy requires trained professionals as if the target muscle, while injecting
is missed severe drooping, allergic reactions, bruising, and local irritations
may occur.⁴

On the other hand, the facial rejuvenation acupuncture helps in boosting
skin’s natural collagen production within each wrinkle. It results in increased
circulation, balanced oil & moisture content, increased facial elasticity,
and improved muscle & skin tone. Therefore, a relatively painless,
non-toxic, safe, and effective mode of therapy, i.e., cosmetic acupuncture,
proves a better alternative to botox therapy.⁴

See: Diet Therapy For Psoriasis

Clinical Studies on Treatment of Facial Wrinkles with Miso Facial Acupuncture

Objective:The purpose of the study was to
measure the effects of miso facial acupuncture on facial wrinkles with facial
skin photographing system.

Methods: A total of ten times with three times
a week, the therapy was performed on six-middle aged women having no diseases.
The counts of wrinkles in the three facial parts was measured two times
pretreatment and posttreatment

Results: The count of wrinkles on an average
decreased significantly. The improvement of eyelids was the best whereas the
lines outside of the lip reduced a very little⁵

Conclusion: The increase in dry content of
skin due to abrupt changes in the environment leads to higher acceptance of
cosmetic acupuncture by females. The therapy is minimally invasive, and
relatively negligible side effects make this therapy a preferable one. But due
to the lack of scientific studies, the treatment is restricted in a large
number of cases. Moreover, the results depend on the skills of the
professionals opted and the age & other conditions of the patient.

See: Functional Medicine For Psoriasis

Mei Zen Cosmetic Acupuncture

Mei Zen means “beautiful person.” This cosmetic procedure based in Oriental medicine that
addresses the internal and external causes of aging. Throughout a cosmetic
acupuncture therapy, an expert pulse diagnosis is used to
determine where the imbalances are that may be impacting your ability to age
well and be the healthiest that you could be. Then the practitioner needles skin on the
face, neck, and/or abdomen for the cosmetic results

Microneedling Collagen Stimulation

Microneedling can also be known as Collagen
Induction Therapy and can be used as a remedy to reduce wrinkles and lines. The
skin is rejuvenated by needling into skin in which the rejuvenation variables
are abundant using a tool that’s called a dermapen. Microneedling is the skin
care therapy that has the chance to excite keratinocytes, melanocytes, and
fibroblasts of elastin and collagen.

Oxidation Restoration Therapy aka Activated
Oxygen Treatment and Ozone Therapy

Activated Oxygen, also known as ozone (O3) is
created naturally in our atmosphere when the Earth’s oxygen meets the sun’s
rays. Ozone comprises three oxygen atoms as opposed to the two which we usually
breathe. This 3rd atom becomes a scavenger destroying viruses, bacteria, free
radicals, etc.. Medical Activated Oxygen (what I use in my practice) is used to;

– treat skin problems (topically),

– heal pain both topically and with injection
treatment

– oxygenate your blood, make it fitter through insufflation

– kill infections
through insufflation, topically, or via ozonated water.