Acupuncture and Allergies at Aletris in Scottsdale, AZ
In China, acupuncture and herbal remedies have been used to combat symptoms similar to seasonal allergies (allergic rhinitis) successfully for centuries.
Symptoms of allergic rhinitis include itchy eyes, watery eyes, sneezing, runny nose, fatigue, and increased risk of sinus infection. From a Western outlook, allergies are caused by an imbalance in the immune system – in which it becomes overactive and reacts to normal particles in the air. Western treatments include a number of different drugs used to suppress the immune system. Eastern treatments focus on balancing the immune system so that it is naturally less reactive. 

A study in the September 2004 issue of Allergy has concluded that a combination of Chinese herbs and weekly acupuncture sessions may be more effective than a placebo at relieving the symptoms of seasonal allergic rhinitis. In the study, a total of 52 patients between the ages of 20 and 58, all diagnosed with seasonal allergies, were randomly assigned to a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) group or a control group. In the Chinese medicine group, patients received a standardized 20-minute acupuncture treatment once a week for six weeks. Additional points were selected based on each patient's individual symptoms.

Along with acupuncture, TCM patients received a basic herbal formula, which they were instructed to take three times per day, parallel to acupuncture treatment. In addition to the basic formula, every patient received a second formula tailored to his or her individual TCM diagnosis.

In the control group, patients were given acupuncture at standardized non-acupuncture points distant from meridians, and were treated superficially with needles smaller than those used on the TCM patients. The needles were not manipulated, and the same points were needled at each acupuncture session. Control patients also received a non-specific herbal formula.

To measure the effect of each therapy, patients used a visual analogue scale to rate the severity of hay fever suffered during the previous week on a 10-point scale, and an assessment-of-change scale to measure any changes in symptoms. Patients also filled out an allergic rhinitis questionnaire to rate the severity of symptoms, and a pair of quality-of-life surveys. In addition, patients were asked to document the number of anti-allergy drugs taken for one week.

At the start of the study, visual analogue scores for each group were nearly identical (4.1 for the TCM group, 4.2 for the control group). By the end of the study period, however, the severity of hay fever was "significantly less pronounced in the TCM group" than in the control patients, and instances of remission (represented by a 0 or 1 on the visual analogue scale) occurred twice as often in TCM patients compared to patients in the control group.

Source: www.acupuncturetoday.com