Acupuncture is a procedure that involves inserting needles into specific points on the body for therapeutic purposes. Although acupuncture is still fairly new in the United States, it has been practiced for thousands of years in China and is an integral part of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).

Western medicine is now paying more attention to acupuncture for its healing potential, and the data so far lends support to it being a valid form of health intervention. In fact, a recent study has found for the first time that acupuncture can affect the brain in a way that affects a person's emotions, thus making it a possible way to treat depression and other neuropsychiatric disorders.

The researchers employed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques to measure changes in certain regions of the brain, specifically the very front of the brain, or the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and subcortical nuclei, after stimulation with laser acupuncture.

The fact that these areas "light up" is significant because these are the regions of the brain responsible for mediating conflicting thoughts, choosing between right and wrong, and overseeing social interaction, including the control of emotional and sexual urges. It also has the most influence on intelligence and personality.

Furthermore, the PFC is the region of the brain where normalization is most consistently reported after anti-depressant therapies are initiated. For this reason, the current findings suggest that acupuncture may in fact be a possible method to address neuropsychiatric disorders.

In the study in question, published in PLoS online, 10 healthy volunteers were treated with a fiber-optic infrared laser on four key regions on the body, known as acupoints, that are usually targeted in TCM. A random "non-acupoint" with no known therapeutic relevance was also employed as a control.

The subjects did not know that the acupoints had any significant value in terms of their health, and the study was able to avoid a placebo effect of needle pricks by using a low-level laser that produced no skin sensation. The subjects were thus unaware of which areas of the body the lasers were targeting.

Due to the fact that the study was done on normal, healthy adults, the authors stress that while the results were intriguing, more research must be done to study any possible benefits the therapy may have on people who are actually suffering from psychological problems, including depression.

It has been estimated that nearly 19 million Americans suffer from depression,usually (but not always) targeting people between 30 and 40 years of age, with more women being affected than men. Depression is a significant cause of morbidity and a serious condition that requires immediate attention.

If you or someone you know is suffering from depression, seek out help as soon as possible. For more information about depression, visit the website for the National Institute of Mental Health.