A new study has shown that acupuncture, using tiny beads instead of needles, can remove up to 10 cm from the waist when applied to the ears.
With its roots in traditional Chinese medicine, beads or “seeds” are attached to six points on the outer ear to stimulate the nerves and organs that regulate appetite, satiety and hunger.
Those who used this technique were able to halve their food intake within three months and significantly reduce their weight, body mass index (BMI), and body fat.
The study included 81 Japanese men aged 21 to 78 who were overweight or obese, with an average body mass index of 28.4, and high levels of unhealthy belly fat.
All were weighted at the start and end of treatment, including body weight, body fat percentage, fat mass, lean mass, muscle mass, body mass index, and abdominal fat.
Known as auricular acupuncture, it was applied with 1.5 mm metal ear beads at six points in the outer ear—esophagus, upper stomach opening, stomach, lungs, and endocrine system.
Beads were attached to these points on both ears so that the participants received the same pressure on each of the six acupuncture points at all times, and were replaced twice a week during hospital visits.
Participants were asked to cut their total food intake in half during the three months of treatment and to keep a food diary.
Researchers at the F Clinic, Tokyo, found that participants lost an average of 10.4 cm in waist circumference, decreasing from an average of 98.4 cm to 88 cm.
They also lost 4% of total body fat, typically between 28.2% and 24.3%, according to a study presented at the European Obesity Conference in Dublin.
Unhealthy abdominal fat decreased and body mass index decreased by about 3 points, from an average of 28.4 kg/m2 to 25.5 kg/m2.
Dr. Takahiro Fujimoto, who led the study, said: “Our findings indicate that ear acupuncture may promote weight loss when combined with diet and exercise. Acupuncture appears to have beneficial effects in suppressing cravings and appetite, improving digestion and boosting metabolism.”
The researchers acknowledged the limitation of including an observational study in a small group over a short period of time.
The experts also suggested that other elements of the intervention could lead to weight loss, such as keeping a food diary that increases people’s awareness of their diet.
Tam Fry, president of the National Obesity Forum, wasn’t convinced it worked, adding that the treatment was “as old as the world.”
“When it was first launched in the early 1990s, there was some hype around it, but like fad diets, it failed,” he said.
Sir David Spiegelhalter, emeritus professor of statistics at the University of Cambridge, said: “This study showed that a group of men who were taught how to lose weight and were regularly observed managed to lose weight on average. Nothing is shown about the rosary, and therefore it seems to everyone to be a waste time. I can’t understand why it has to be in a scientific conference, let alone in the papers.”
Source: Daily Mail
