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Six months ago, my seventy-eight
year old grandmother was quickly losing

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her independence.

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Severe arthritis in both knees 
hampered her ability to take care of

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herself.

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Shopping, getting around the 
neighborhood, even walking down her

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front steps was becoming almost 
impossible.

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Pain medications helped 
somewhat, but the side-effects created

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their own problems.

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Then her doctor suggested acupuncture.

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My grandmother was skeptical at 
first but she was willing to try just

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about anything.

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She did and the results were miraculous.

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After six weeks, her pain and
stiffness were significantly reduced.

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She was able to take care of her
apartment again.

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She could get on her own to go 
shopping, to visit friends and family,

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and to do the other things that her
arthritis had prevented in the past.

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Acupuncture restored her quality of 
life and her independence.

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My grandmother's story is not unique.

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Performed for well over two 
thousand years in China and other

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parts of Asia, acupuncture is 
becoming more and more popular in

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the U.S. and other western 
countries for one simple reason: it works.

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Impressed by my grandmother's 
experience, I began acupuncture

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treatments for my migraine 
headaches and now my headaches

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are completely gone.

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Not surprisingly, I wanted to learn 
more about this treatment that

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produced such miraculous results
for both my grandmother and myself.

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Today I will share part of what I 
have learned by explaining what

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happens when you receive an 
acupuncture treatment, how

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acupuncture works, the kinds of 
medical conditions that can be

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treated by acupuncture, and the 
growing use of acupuncture in

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combination with western medical 
techniques.

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Let's start by looking at a typical
acupuncture treatment.

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Acupuncture is the insertion of 
needles into the skin to achieve a

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balanced flow of energy which in
turn restores and preserves health.

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To prevent a chance of 
contamination from one person to

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another, acupuncturists in the U.S. 
use sterilized needles that are

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individually packaged and are 
disposed of after a single use.

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I realize that the notion of having 
needles stuck into you may seem

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frightening, but the needles are so 
thin that the process is painless.

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Acupuncture needles are much 
smaller than the needles used for

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drawing blood or getting shots.

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Here are some needles that I received 
from my acupuncturist.

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After my speech I'll pass them 
around so that you can see how

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incredibly light and small they are.

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They're so thin, about the thickness 
of a human hair, that you can hardly

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tell when they're inserted and 
there's usually no sensation other

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than pain relief once they have 
been inserted.

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After being left in for twenty or thirty 
minutes while you lie in a darkened

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room, the needles are removed 
and the treatment is over.

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Now that you know what happens 
when you're treated by an

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acupuncturist, you're probably 
wondering how acupuncture works.

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The process is explained by Dr. 
Felix Mann, president of the Medical

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Acupuncturist Society in his book 
Acupuncture: The Ancient Chinese Art

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of Healing and How it Works 
Scientifically, "According to traditional

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Chinese medicine, every life 
process is based on the flow of vital

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energy through the body.

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This energy is known in Chinese as
xi and flows along channels or

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pathways called meridians."

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These meridians are shown in this 
visual aid.

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As you can see, they cover the 
entire body, running from the top of

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the head to the bottom of the feet 
and down both arms.

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When the freeflow of energy 
through these meridians is blocked,

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the result is pain, illness, disease or
other physical problems.

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The aim of acupuncture is to
restore the open flow of energy

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through these meridians.

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This is done by placing needles at 
specific points on the meridians.

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Altogether, there are more than one 
thousand acupuncture points on the

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meridians.

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These points have been mapped 
out over the centuries with scientific

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precision.

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In China, there is a saying, "There 
is no pain if there is freeflow. If

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there is pain, there is no freeflow."

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Although acupuncture is based on 
different view of the body from that

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held by western doctors, the 
evidence is clear that it works in

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treating a wide range of medical 
conditions.

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The World Health Organization lists 
more than forty conditions that can

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be effectively treated with 
acupuncture, including ear, nose and

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throat ailments, asthma and other 
respiratory problems and nervous

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system and muscular disorders.

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A study in the Annals of Internal 
Medicine confirms that acupuncture

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can relieve low back pain while the 
American Cancer Society reports that

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acupuncture may even help smokers 
kick the habit.

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People also use acupuncture to 
build immune system, to control

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allergies and to combat depression
and anxiety.

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Of course you can't use 
acupuncture to heal a broken arm,

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but people in Asia often use 
acupuncture during surgery instead

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of western anesthesia and it can 
speed recovery time after surgery.

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In light of all of this, it is not 
surprising that a number of clinics

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and hospitals are combining 
acupuncture with western medicine

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in an effort to provide the patients 
the benefits of both.

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For example, Massachusetts 
General Hospital in Boston, the third

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oldest hospital in the U.S., has 
added acupuncture to its wellness center.

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Positive results have also been 
seen at the Mattel Children's Hospital

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at UCLA.

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Dr. Lani Zeltzer, director of the 
hospital's pediatric pain program

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confirms that acupuncture really 
does help.

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Most children accept acupuncture 
and in fact really feel good about it.

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Another example of the integration 
of acupuncture with western

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medicine is at the Wasser Pain 
Management Center at Mt. Sinai

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Hospital in Toronto, Canada.

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Neurologist Alan Gordon, director 
of the center, says that "introducing

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acupuncture into the hospital 
expands the treatment available to

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chronic pain sufferers and provides 
multiple options of care to our patients."

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The National Institutes for Health 
report that more than eight million

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Americans have tried acupuncture 
and its use throughout the rest of the

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western world is growing fast.

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Today we have learned what 
happens during an acupuncture

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treatment, how acupuncture works, 
some of the illnesses that can be

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treated with acupuncture, and the 
growing integration of acupuncture

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with western approaches to medicine.

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I hope that you now know more 
about this ancient medical practice

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and the benefits that it can provide.

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After years of skepticism about 
acupuncture, the west is finally

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beginning to recognize that 
acupuncture is a highly effective way

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to improve health and reduce pain 
and suffering.

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Just ask my grandmother.

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[Applause]