Acupuncture in Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) can have a devastating impact on quality of life for affected individuals. A recent study reports that traditional Chinese medicine acupuncture and moxibustion treatment produced greater improvement in a sham-controlled study over a 4-week trial. Acupuncture is a low risk, non-drug procedure that has a variety of possible benefits for people wth irritable bowel. IBS can occur along with several other chronic painful conditions such as fibromyalgia or migraine headaches. Commonly eaten foods that involve intolerance reactions may also trigger worsening in some persons. (Reference Gastroenterol Nursing 2009; 32(4):243-55).