Journal claims acupuncture is catching on as anti-aging therapy

• Many people would like to win the war against wrinkles but don't want to go under the knife or subject themselves to treatments like Botox injections and collagen implants.
• Several area doctors of Oriental medicine say cosmetic acupuncture or facial rejuvenation can bring postmodern faces the same youthful appearance it has achieved for Asian royalty for centuries without the trauma or expense of surgery.
• Eva Allred, 46, says she definitely sees an improvement after 12 sessions with Kathleen Mathews, a doctor of Oriental medicine at the Downtown Acupuncture Clinic in Albuquerque.
• Cosmetic acupuncture uses a variety of needle techniques at strategic locations on the face and body to stimulate the circulation of qi (say chee), the body's life or energy force in Oriental medicine, to the face and neck.
• Procedures can smooth out fine lines, reduce the appearance of deeper wrinkles, plump out the texture of skin and help tone underlying muscles to tighten saggy cheeks and droopy necks, according to those who practice them.
• The needles didn't hurt, she says, adding that she not only looks younger, but also feels better.
• "People who have face-lifts look like they've had face-lifts; I didn't want that."
• Someone with dry, thin skin with fine lines would require a different approach than someone with saggy cheeks and dark circles under the eyes, she explains.
• Mathews uses about 40 hairthin needles placed on the surface of the face, but it depends on how old or how much aging appears on a person's face.
• Sometimes working on other conditions has an unexpected benefit of improving appearance, says Joseph Kyriacou, a doctor of Oriental medicine at the Natural Healing Medical Center on Chama NE.
• Patient Patie Kay says she came to see Kyriacou when her vision began to fail several years after an auto accident in which she experienced severe whiplash.