If sticking a bunch of needles into your body could help improve your breathing, would you do it? A recent study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests that maybe you should! 

The primary symptom of COPD and often the most difficult to control is dyspnea on exertion (DOE). Modern study determined acupuncture is better than placebo in managing DOE in patients who are receiving standard medication during their COPD treatment. Patients in the real acupuncture group demonstrated significantly better scores on the 6-minute walk  test than those in the placebo group. Patients in the real acupuncture group also saw an improvement in the distance traveled during the 6-minute walk test which is indicative of an improvement in exercise tolerance and a reduction in DOE. 

Results concluded that using acupuncture in addition to standard COPD treatment is useful in reducing DOE in patients who have COPD.

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