Acupuncture has been found to be effective for reducing body weight (BW) with few adverse effects.
Objective:
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of auricular acupressure plus exercise in primary obese women in a randomized controlled clinical trial.
Design, Setting, and Patients:
Sixty Chinese women (ages 18–54) with primary obesity (body mass index [BMI] ≥25 and waist circumference [WC] ≥80 cm) were enrolled in this study.
Intervention:
The patients were randomly assigned to 2 groups: Group A and Group B. Patients in Group A (n=30) were instructed to do aerobics exercises such as jogging, rope skipping, walking, etc. Patients in Group B (n=30) were treated with auricular acupressure plus exercise.
Main Outcome Measure:
BW, BMI, and WC in primary obese women were measured at the beginning and end of the treatment.
Results:
BW, BMI, and WC decreased in both groups after 4 weeks of treatment. The participants' BW decreased more (p<0.05) in Group B than in Group A. Yet, there were no statistical differences in BMI and WC between the 2 groups.
Conclusions:
Both auricular acupressure and exercise play important roles in weight reduction. Auricular acupressure plus exercise is better than exercise alone for BW reduction. Auricular acupressure is an effective, convenient, and low-cost treatment for primary obese women, and can be self-administered by the patient when this is required.
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