THE FOLLOWING ARE SYMPTOMS AND CONDITIONS COMMONLY TREATED BY THE WASHINGTON ACUPUNCTURE CENTER. ALCOHOLISM It is generally agreed that some people are more likely to become alcoholics than others, but identifying potential alcoholics before they begin drinking alcohol is not yet possible. Alcohol is the most readily available tranquilizer. Many people turn to it to relieve emotional or other pain. Few people are willing to admit that they have an alcohol problem until it is far advanced. Some drugs, such as valium, which have been given to treat alcoholism have been found to potentiate the effects of alcohol and are addicting themselves. Barbiturates, antidepressants and other psychotropic drugs also augment the undesirable effects of alcohol and are not indicated in the treatment of alcoholism. Antabuse is a drug which alcoholics are often given to take each morning with the knowledge that if they drink even a little alcohol within 24 hours they will vomit and become seriously ill. Too many people have died from drinking alcohol while on antabuse, sometimes unknowingly. Cough medicines and food flavorings, for instance, contain alcohol. Many alcoholics have poor health and are not able to tolerate the serious complications caused by ingesting alcohol after antabuse medication. Withdrawal symptoms when an alcoholic stops drinking for a day or two are called "Delirium Tremens" and are life-threatening. The fear of these symptoms makes it almost impossible for alcoholics to stop drinking without medical help. Research on alcoholics has revealed that almost all of them have eaten a high carbohydrate, low protein diet since childhood, which has given them hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia is a metabolic disorder in which the blood sugar rises steeply after carbohydrate ingestion but within an hour drops precipitously to levels low enough to cause feelings of faintness and disorientation, headache and depression. Alcohol, a carbohydrate, brings prompt relief but aggravates the condition. A person who drinks enough alcohol to keep his blood sugar up soon becomes very drunk as well as malnourished. The hypoglycemia and malnutrition of alcoholic patients should be treated promptly. Large doses of Vitamins B1 (Thiamin), B6 (Pyridoxin), and Niacinamide are especially useful for controlling alcohol withdrawal symptoms and correcting the hypoglycemic metabolism. These vitamins along with generous amounts of other vitamins and a high protein, low carbohydrate diet should be continued indefinitely to reduce the craving for alcohol. Acupuncture is not a substitute for a good diet but can be used to relieve withdrawal symptoms, regulate metabolism and give the patient a feeling of well-being which makes it easier for him to give up alcohol. Acupuncture treatments should be given once or twice a day until ten treatments have been given. Many of our patients have remained free from alcohol for years after one such course of treatment. Others have returned for another series of treatments after several months of abstinence. A few have found that acupuncture once a week or once a month was needed for maintenance of their sobriety. next