As regards the  objective effects produced by needling, six different effects may be enumerated. Of these the best-known is the analgesic (pain-relieving) effect, which is achieved by a raising of the pain threshold. This is the physiological basis of acupuncture anaesthesia.     (Some writers prefer the term acupuncture analgesia on the basis that there are no total lack of sensation produced by acupuncture. The word anaemia as applied to a patient does not mean a total lack of blood. Semantically therefore, this author believes that the term “acupuncture anaesthesia” is not altogether improper.) The analgesic effect of acupuncture is commonly seen during therapy since it is able to relieve the pain of arthritis, toothache, headache, low back ache and other similar painful disorders.

 

 Secondly, the needling of certain specific acupuncture points result in sedation. Some people may even fall asleep during treatment and wake up refreshed. It has been shown that there is a decrease in the Delta and theta waves activity on the electro-encephalogram during Acupuncture treatment. These effects are utilized in the acupuncture treatment of insomnia,  mental disorders, anxiety States, hysteria, addictions, epilepsy and behavioral problems. Sedation is believed to be due to an action on the midbrain reticular formation and in certain other areas of the brain like the basal ganglia and the raphe system.Measurable effects have also been reported on the metabolic chemistry of the brain tissue. For instance, there is an increase in the dopamine content of the brain after acupuncture. This may account for its Effectiveness in certain mental disorders and in parkinsonism, where there is a depletion of the dopamine content of the brain.

 

 The third effect is very important. It is called the homeostatic or the regulatory effect which means adjustment of the internal environment of the body towards the state of normal balance. normally and bodily homeostasis is maintained by the balance activity of the sympathetic or parasympathetic divisions of the autonomic nervous system and also by the endocrine system. in addition there are numerous other homeostatic mechanisms in the body for regulating vital functions such as respiration, heart rate, blood pressure, urinary excretion, metabolic rate, sweating, temperature, ionic balance of the blood, and many other vital parameters. these mechanisms are seriously deranged in many diseases, and in such cases acupuncture is extremely helpful in resolving the original state of equilibrium or normality.

 

 Fourthly, there is the immune enhancing action of acupuncture whereby a body resistance to disease is enhanced. This has been shown due to the increase and white corpuscles (leucocytosis), antibodies, gammaglobulins in other mechanisms which increase the natural resistance of the body. In many cases are 224 hold increase in the antibody titre  has been observed, Presumably brought about by the activation of the reticuleondotheial  system. Acupuncture is there for very useful in combating infections. Some workers believe that acupuncture increases the interferon levels in the body the serving as a protective against infections (and perhaps even against certain malignant disorders).

 

The fifth objective effect of acupuncture is the psychological effect, which is the a calming and tranquilizing  action, apart from near sedation. the psychological effect mentioned above should not be confused with the hypnosis or autosuggestion. These effects follow (they do not precede)  use of acupuncture and are therefore not a precondition of its success or erroneously  presumed by some critics. ( Psychogenic and Ideological Theories of Kroeger et al.)  hypnosis and suggestion are very different to acupuncture in many important respects. Hypnosis has been found to work only in 10 to 15% of a population where are some degree of acupuncture analgesia  can be induced in any person or animal. Patients with low Hypno stability scored respond equally well to acupuncture as though scores, showing that suggestibility is by no means a requisite factor for success in acupuncture treatment. Also, prolonged training periods are required for hypnotic analgesia  whereas emergency surgery may be performed under acupuncture. Spontaneity of movement,gestures and facial expressions are found in acupuncture patients unlike on hypnotized patient who move around like robots. Further, injection of local anesthetic (procaine block)  at the needle site has been found to nullify the analgesic effective acupuncture does pointing to a neutral and not hypnotic explanation. Naloxone  reverses the Acupuncture of facts but not the hypnotic effects.

 

 The six important effect of acupuncture is that it hastens  motor recovery in patients who suffer from paralytic conditions.  even late cases  of motor paralysis respond reasonably well to acupuncture therapy despite previous failures of other forms of therapy. The explanation, which is complex, involves antidromic stimulation  of the anterior horn cells and their reactivation through a bio feedback mechanism operating through the Renshaw and Cajal cells of the spinal cord or their cranial equivalents.