University of Yuzuncu Yil, Van, Turkey
(1) - Dept. of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation, (2) - Dept. of Physiology, (3) - Dept. of Biochemistry

MATERIALS AND METHODS

It is documented that auriculotherapy is effective in reducing obesity. Some authors suggested that ear acupuncture could reduce not only body weight but also blood cholesterol and lipids. It was supposed that this effect might be mediated by activation of the satiety centre or inhibition of the feeding center (1).

This study is designed to investigate the effects of ear acupuncture on obesity and serum lipids before and after treatment. A hundred and twenty obese volunteers (31 male and 89 female) were studied at the Rehabilitation Clinic of the University of Yuzuncu Yil. Participants were all nonsmokers and consumed no alcohol during the study. They didn’t use any kind of medications, excluding analgesics and antibiotics. All subjects were overweight according to the Broca Index.

The effect of auricular needling and metallic balls was compared in two groups. Each group was treated for twelve weeks. The needling treated group included 60 patients. The averages of body weight, plasma lipids, cholesterol, LDL-C and HDL-C levels were obtained before and after treatment. Subjects were instructed not to follow any kind of specific diet and were invited to the clinic once a week to change the needles or metallic balls.

Silver needles were horizontally inserted on the following points: antiaggression, shen men, lung and stomach. On each session three needles were inserted on different points. In the control group metallic balls were placed on indifferent points. The needles and metallic balls were changed each week. Student's t test and Pearson correlation regression analysis were used for statistical evaluation of the dynamics of weight and serum lipids in the patients of the two groups. The level of statistical significance was accepted at p < 0.05.

In our study body weight dropped by an average of 5.9 kg (p < 0.05) in 89 % the of "needling" group in twelve weeks. In the control group it was only 3 kg (statistically not significant). The "needling" group total cholesterol dropped to normal values in patients whose total cholesterol had been increased before treatment. Decrease in total cholesterol was statistically significant (p < 0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in HDL-C, LDL-C, triglyceride levels in both groups before and after treatment.

DISCUSSION

Literature data also confirms our results. Sun Q and Xu Y (1) treated 161 patients with simple obesity with or without hyperlipidemia by pellet pressure on auricular acupoints plus body acupuncture for three months in a single blind experimental study. Body weight, circumference of chest, abdomen, arms and legs, appetite, sleep, bowel movement, blood cholesterol, TG, and HDL-C were recorded for comparison. In the acupoint group body weight decreased by an average of 5.04 kg in 84.55 % these patients showed also decreased appetite, blood cholesterol and TG.

The hypothalamic ventromedial nucleus (HVM) is the satiety centre. Stimulation of the rat auricular points that correspond to pylorus, lung, trachea, stomach, esophagus, endocrine and heart evoked potentials in the HVM (2). Needle implantation into any of these points significantly reduces body weight. Stimulation of other acupoints does not evoke HVM potentials and does not reduce body weight. After HVM is lesioned, body weight increases and acupuncture point needling has no effect on body weight. Tekeoglu et al. (3) introduced two different kinds of needles in antitragus points and investigated the results of two different needling techniques on weight loss and appetite. Body weight, appetite, sleep and bowel mevements were recorded for comparison. In the horizontally inserted needle group body weight dropped by an average of 6.85 kg in 85 % patients also had decreased appetite. In the perpendicular needle group it was 3.5 kg weight loss in the same period.

The results of this study confirm that auriculotherapy is an effective method for weight reduction in cases of simple obesity. This treatment may also affect serum cholesterol. But we don’t know the mechanism of this action. Further studies are needed to evaluate the effects of auriculotherapy on serum cholesterol and lipids.

REFERENCES

1. Sun Q, Xu Y, Simple obesity and obesity hyperlipemia treated with otoacupoint pellet pressure and body acupuncture. J Tradit Chin Med, 1993, 13 (1): 22-6

2. Asamoto S, Takeshige C, Activation of the satiety centre by auricular acupuncture point stimulation. Brain Res Bull, 1992 (2) (1): 157-64