Laser Auriculotherapy: Laser Auriculotherpay is the stimulation of points in the external ear and, in some cases meridian points in the other parts of the body, to aid many health conditions, especially pain, stress, and addictions. The term Laser Auriculotherapy often refers to laser stimulation of the ear reflex points. Tender points on the ear can also be stimulated with direct pressure, magnets, electrical stimulation, and ear pellets.

Laser Auriculotherapy and Addictions: Explanations for the effectiveness of auriculotherapy in the reduction of addictions derive from both Western Neurology and Traditional Chinese Medicine. The first evidence of auriculotherapy in reducing the cravings of drug addicts came from China in the 1970s.

The Western Neurological explanation for reducing addiction cravings with laser auriculotherapy is based on the recent neurological observation that the ear represents a door into the endocrine and autonomic nervous systems. It has been found that laser treatments and auriculotherapy are effective at creating relaxation of many physiological systems, which can reduce cravings, pain, muscle spasms, and stress reduction.

Laser Auriculotherapy, Acupuncture, and Laser Therapy: Laser Auriculotherapy is the use of a laser, which is applied to tender points in the body. It is considered to be one form of acupressure, but there are both differences and similarities between acupressure and auriculotherapy.

Acupuncture is a form of complementary medicine involving primarily the stimulation of acupuncture meridians that run the length of the body. Some of the meridian energy lines connect to the external ear, thus creating the field of auricular acupuncture.

Auriculotherapy, on the other hand, focuses not on the acupuncture meridians but on the ear as a localized reflex technique that modulates the central nervous system and endocrine organs. Many laser auriculotherapy practitioners also treat some body points as an adjunct to their ear protocols.

History of Laser Auriculotherapy: The earliest written records of ear acupuncture date back to acupuncture writings in 500 BC. The style in which auricular acupuncture is practiced today in china is actually based on more recent discoveries that occurred in France in the 1950s by Dr. Paul Nogier. Since then, the use of specific ear points as a reflex system to treat many health problems has been utilized practitioners in many parts of the world. More recently, it has been discovered that lasers are an ideal modality to safely stimulate these points, especially to aid those suffering from addictions of all types and pain syndromes.

Auriculotherpay and Allopathic Medicine: While ear acupuncture has been practiced in Asia for over 2,000 years and auriculotherapy has been used in Europe for the past 50 years, it is quite unknown in the United States, most MDs do not know or understand enough about auriculotherapy to make an informed comment on its effectiveness.

In 1997, a consensus panel of the U.S. National Institutes of Health gave approval to the practice of acupuncture. They included an evaluation of those studies which supported the use of ear acupuncture for pain relief and addiction treatment. As more research accumulates on the efficiency of auriculotherapy, it is expected that even more doctors and researchers will acknowledge the benefits of laser auriculotherapy.

The Autonomic Nervous System: The nervous system is composed of the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves. One important part of the nervous system is the autonomic nervous system. The autonomic nervous system (ANS) conveys impulses from the blood vessels, the heart, and all of the organs in the chest, abdomen, and pelvis through nerves to other parts of the brain. These impulses elicit largely automatic or reflex responses, thereby eliciting appropriate reactions of the heart, the vascular system, and all the organs of the body to variations in the environmental temperature, posture, food intake, and stressful experiences. Thus, the ANS is a regulator of homeostasis and balances the body’s nervous and hormone systems.

There are two major components of the autonomic nervous system, the sympathetic and the parasympathetic systems. The sympathetic nervous system stimulates physical activity, “fight or flight” responses, and heave emotion. Stimulation of the parasympathetic nervous system, on the other hand, creates relaxation, healing, digestion, and sexual arousal.

One reason that this nervous system is so intimately involved with laser auriculotherapy is because these nervous pathways convey stimuli resulting in largely unconscious, reflex, bodily adjustments such as in the digestive functions of the stomach and intestines, the rate and depth of respiration, and dilation or constriction of the blood vessels. Thus, they can aid in the regulation of eating and smoking addictions.

Endorphins and Auriculotherapy: Endorphins are naturally occurring morphine-like molecules that relieve pain in a manner similar to opiates. They have been used as one explanation for how auriculotherapy serves to relieve pain. Research has shown that stimulation of ear acupuncture points appears to cause the systemic release of endorphins while balancing the ANS.

Laser Auriculotherapy and Pain: One cause of chronic pain is due to the constriction of connective tissues when muscles are in spasm. It is believed by those that practice auriculotherapy that chronic muscle spasms may be due to pathological brain reflexes that perpetuate this condition. By stimulating ear reflex points, the pathological brain patterns can be electrically reset to stop the unwanted activation of spinal reflexes. Pain sensations that are due to irritated nerves can also be relieved by the normalizing of pathological, hypersensitive reflex pathways. In addition to these neurological explanations, it is also theorized that pain relief from auriculotherapy is achieved by the release of endorphins into the blood.