The Daily Variance in Impedance at Acupuncture Points

Abstract

Background Low electrical impedance at acupoints is a familiar concept, and it has also been found that this increases with poor organ function. Kovich hypothesizes that organ states are communicated to their related acupoints in real time, and this experiment set out to test this. Methods The electrical impedance at 4 digestion-related acupuncture points (acupoints) was recorded over a 14-hour period and a food diary was recorded. The readings were taken in 23 sessions, between which the participant continued his usual daily routine. Results The impedance at all the monitored acupoints varied considerably throughout the day, and the peaks were aligned with periods of high stomach activity. Conclusions Variations in stomach function produced corresponding variations in the impedance at key stomach-related acupoints. However, the experiment was limited in that samples were only taken at around 30-minute intervals, and further investigations are needed to explore this phenomenon in more detail.

Keywords

• acupuncture point
• impedance
• organ