Sports injuries are injuries that typically (but not always) occur while participating in organized sports or fitness activities. Sports injuries can be the result of repetitive action such as running or throwing (chronic) or the result of a single application of force (acute). The most common types of sports injury is a sprain or muscle strain.
While Western medicine might prescribe painkillers or steroids with addictive qualities and negative side effects to treat these injuries, acupuncture is a safe and natural way for the body to recover more quickly.
Acupuncture for Sports Injuries
A strain involves the muscle or tendon, and may be the result of overstretching or a partial tear of the muscle fibers.
A sprain is a stretch of tear of the ligament surrounding the joint.
The symptoms of both injuries are pain, swelling, instability, and a limited ability to move the affected joint/muscle.
Acupuncture increases blood circulation to the affected area of the body to decrease inflammation and pain. Increased blood flow will carry vital nutrients to the damaged muscle and ligament and carry dead cells away to help fibers regenerate more quickly and decrease recovery time.
Herbs used in Chinese medicine can also increase circulation to relieve bruising and pain caused by muscle injury and shorten recovery times. These herbs can be applied topically in a solution such as Zheng Xie Gu Shi (Evil Bone Water) or ingested in a custom formula prescribed by a licensed Chinese medicine practitioner.
In medical study, acupuncture alone had a 70% success rate at restoring mobility after sports injuries. Combined with herbal medicine, it had an 84.4% success rate.
If you are recovering from an injury such as a sprain or strain and want to shorten your recovery time without taking painkillers, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) could be right for you! Call us at (321) 972-2940 to start your natural recovery today.
Sources:
HealthCMI. "Acupuncture Frees Movement from Sports Injuries." (August 6, 2015). Retrieved from http://www.healthcmi.com/Acupuncture-Continuing-Education-News/1512-acupuncture-frees-movement-from-sports-injuries
Pacific College. "Acupuncture Treatment for Sports Injuries." (n.d.) Retrieved from https://www.pacificcollege.edu/news/blog/2014/12/18/acupuncture-treatment-sports-injuries