Is Acupuncture Effective for Poor Circulation? Expected Benefits and Remedies

Is poor circulation making your hands and feet painfully cold — not just in winter, but all year round?

This is a concern especially common among women, and poor circulation is often caused by poor blood flow or a disrupted autonomic nervous system, which can lead to overall poor health if left unaddressed.

Acupuncture, a form of Eastern medicine, is useful for improving this kind of poor circulation.

This article details methods for improving poor circulation and the benefits you can expect.

Please read on and get through the cold season together with us.

What Causes Poor Circulation?

Did you know that poor circulation is often greatly related to daily lifestyle habits?

You may unknowingly be continuing habits that cause coldness.

Check the four main causes of poor circulation introduced below, and see if any apply to you.

Knowing the cause and taking appropriate countermeasures can lead to improving poor circulation.

Poor Blood Flow

When blood flow worsens, blood doesn’t reach the capillaries, resulting in cold hands and feet.

The hands and feet are especially far from the heart, and since the body preferentially sends blood to the torso and brain — vital for sustaining life — they tend to be deprioritized.

For women, the abdomen contains the ovaries and uterus, where blood flow tends to stagnate, which can cause internal coldness.

Also, blood loss during menstruation can prevent sufficient blood from reaching the extremities, making coldness easier to feel.

Furthermore, wearing skirts in cold environments, or tight underwear and clothing, can also worsen blood flow and become a cause of coldness.

This is said to be one reason why poor circulation is more common among women.

Reduced Muscle Strength

Low muscle mass lowers basal metabolism, making the body more prone to coldness.

This is because the body can’t produce enough necessary energy to circulate throughout the body.

Furthermore, since fat is slow to warm up once cold, women — who tend to have less muscle and more fat — are more prone to feeling cold than men.

Men can also feel coldness as muscle mass decreases with age and organ function declines, and continued lack of exercise can weaken muscles and worsen blood flow.

The calves in particular act as a pump returning blood to the heart, so when muscle strength declines, this function weakens too.

Also, lifestyle habits like prolonged desk work contribute to poor circulation, so try to consciously move your body.

Frequent Consumption of Cold Drinks and Foods

Frequently consuming cold drinks and foods chills the internal organs and takes away body heat, becoming a cause of poor circulation.

Beverages colder than body temperature in particular tend to chill the internal organs, so those who habitually drink them daily should be cautious.

In hot weather, you naturally want cold drinks, but choosing room-temperature or warm beverages as much as possible helps prevent coldness.

Coffee, green tea, and alcohol in particular tend to cool the body, so watch your intake.

No Habit of Soaking in the Bathtub

Many people finish with just a shower, but a shower only warms the surface of the body and can’t thoroughly warm you from your core.

A shower is convenient in summer, but a half-body soak in lukewarm water is effective for improving poor circulation.

Bathing can be expected to warm the body from its core, and also offers a detox effect, expelling waste through sweating.

Also, maintaining an appropriate bathing time is important — soaking for about 15 to 20 minutes is a good guideline.

Too long can burden the body, so be mindful of a moderate duration.

If you’re busy and don’t have time to soak in the tub, incorporating a foot bath is also recommended.

Just warming the feet promotes circulation, and compared to a full-body bath, it places less burden on the body, making it an easy method for people of any age.

Furthermore, using a bath additive with a scent you like can also promote circulation and deliver a relaxing effect, helping reduce stress too.

How Can You Improve Poor Circulation?

So what specific methods can improve it?

This section introduces three key points.

Actively Consume Warming Foods

Incorporating warming foods into your daily diet can lead to improving poor circulation. In particular, being mindful of consciously consuming foods that promote circulation and warm the body from within is important.

・Root vegetables
Root vegetables have a function that warms the body from within, making them suited for cold countermeasures.
Compared to summer vegetables, they contain less water and are less likely to chill the body, while also being highly nutritious.
In particular, they’re rich in vitamins that promote circulation, and minerals and iron that support blood and muscle formation.
Root vegetables like carrots, burdock, daikon radish, and sweet potato can be used in various dishes like simmered dishes and pork miso soup, so try incorporating them actively.

・Meat, eggs, and fish
Meat, fish, and eggs contain quality protein, which becomes the material for muscle.
Since about 60% of the body’s heat is produced by muscle, maintaining and increasing muscle mass is essential for improving poor circulation.
In particular, chicken tenderloin and breast are high in protein and low in calories, also recommended for those maintaining their health or dieting.
Blue-backed fish like saury and mackerel are rich in DHA and EPA, which improve circulation, helping improve blood flow.
Even those without a habit of eating fish can easily consume it using canned fish.

Avoid Chilling the “Three Necks”

Have you heard the phrase “three necks” as a countermeasure against coldness?

The three necks refer to the “neck,” “wrists,” and “ankles” — areas where the skin is thin and large blood vessels pass through, making them easily affected by outside air and prone to coldness.

However, warming them appropriately improves blood flow, warming your whole body.

When the neck gets cold, blood flow worsens, becoming a cause of shoulder stiffness.

Especially in winter, wear a scarf, neck warmer, or high-neck top to reduce the influence of outside air.

Because the burden from desk work during the day is also significant, incorporating stretches at the end of the day is recommended.

Improving circulation around the neck can lead to improving coldness and stiffness.

Many people probably find cold hands uncomfortable.

The body concentrates blood toward its center to warm the internal organs, so the extremities — hands and fingertips — tend to feel cold especially easily.

When going out, wear gloves or arm warmers to prevent cold.

Also, when you feel cold, lightly massaging your wrists promotes circulation and warms them up.

The feet play an important role in returning blood accumulated in the lower body to the heart against gravity, making them an important area for preventing coldness.

In particular, warming your ankles improves circulation and can lead to improving coldness.

In winter, avoid exposing your ankles and thoroughly keep them warm with socks or leg warmers.

Furthermore, doing stretches while bathing or before bed, to soothe the day’s fatigue, promotes circulation and is effective for reducing coldness.

Eat Three Meals Without Skipping

What’s important as a coldness countermeasure is properly eating three meals a day.

If meal timing becomes irregular, temperature regulation doesn’t work well, making the body more prone to coldness.

In particular, those who skip breakfast due to dieting or being busy should be mindful of a habit of properly eating starting tomorrow.

Breakfast isn’t just an energy source for the day — it’s also important for producing heat and preventing loss of muscle mass.

Not eating lowers metabolism and makes the body more prone to coldness.

At the start of the day, the key point is properly getting carbohydrates and protein.

Carbohydrates act as an energy source that warms the body, while protein maintains muscle and raises basal metabolism.

Combining a staple food like rice or bread with protein sources like eggs, natto, meat, or fish helps raise body temperature and aim for a body less prone to coldness.

Is It True Acupuncture Is Effective for Poor Circulation? Benefits You Can Expect from Acupuncture

So is acupuncture actually effective for poor circulation?

Acupuncture therapy, a tradition passed down from ancient China, has the effect of promoting circulation and boosting natural healing ability by placing needles along the body’s meridians.

Stimulating the meridians and improving the flow of stagnant “qi” balances the body, leading to a rise in body temperature.

Let’s look at the specific benefits.

Promotes Circulation

Acupuncture has an effect of loosening muscular tension and improving stagnant blood flow.

Stimulating specific acupoints balances the body and promotes blood circulation.

Placing needles causes a minute, localized inflammatory response, and the accompanying vasodilation makes it easier for oxygen and nutrients to reach the skin and tissue.

As circulation improves, waste expulsion also becomes smoother.

Regulates the Autonomic Nervous System

The autonomic nervous system consists of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, which regulate bodily function while balancing each other.

However, when this balance is disrupted by stress or an irregular lifestyle, various discomforts can appear due to autonomic disruption.

Stimulation from needles and moxa is transmitted to the brain via sensors in the skin and muscles, promoting regulation of the autonomic nervous system.

This can suppress overactive sympathetic activity or boost underactive parasympathetic function, balancing the autonomic nervous system and guiding you toward physical and mental stability.

Regulates the Skin’s Turnover Cycle

As circulation improves, oxygen and nutrients reach deep into the skin, supporting cell regeneration.

Also, when the fine stimulation from needles creates tiny “wounds” in the skin, the function to repair them becomes more active, promoting collagen and elastin production.

This regulates the turnover cycle, improving the skin’s regenerative power.

Furthermore, because beauty acupuncture also has an effect of boosting the skin’s defensive function through external stimulation, repair ability improves, smoothing the skin’s surface and helping improve spots and pigmentation.

For more benefits of acupuncture, see this article.

You May Also Like

Is Acupuncture Good for Puffiness? Causes of Swelling and Recommended TreatmentsDoes morning or evening "puffiness" bother you? A face that looks different in size in the morning versus at night, legs that feel heavy and sluggish, shoes that...Read more

You May Also Like

What Is the “Healing Response” to Acupuncture? Common Symptoms and Who Tends to Experience ItReceiving acupuncture treatment is said to deliver various benefits — improving circulation, easing coldness and puffiness, and regulating the autonomic nervous system for a relaxed state. On the...Read more

You May Also Like

Can Acupuncture Help You Lose Weight? The Pros and ConsAcupuncture can be expected to deliver benefits like raising basal metabolism, expelling waste, and regulating internal organ function. Since these are essential elements for successful weight loss, acupuncture...Read more

For Acupuncture, KADOMORI’s “Hedgehog Beauty Acupuncture” Is Recommended!

KADOMORI’s “Hedgehog Beauty Acupuncture” offers advanced technique made possible precisely because we thoroughly understand the golden ratio of muscular balance and correct muscle movement.

・Lifting effect
・Resolving sagging
・Improving nasolabial folds
・Resolving a double chin
・Easing jaw prominence
・Improving skin quality through better circulation
We balance the muscles across the whole face and promote circulation, guiding you toward tightened, beautiful skin from within.

Troubled by Poor Circulation? Consult KADOMORI!

Poor circulation is caused by various factors, including poor blood flow, autonomic disruption, and lifestyle habits.

At KADOMORI, through specialized treatments including acupuncture, we promote circulation from within the body and support building a body less prone to coldness.

Furthermore, improved skin quality and a lifting effect from beauty acupuncture can also be expected, so if you’re troubled by poor circulation, please consult KADOMORI once.

For more on acupuncture, see this article as well.

You May Also Like

Which Women’s Concerns Does Acupuncture Help? Expected Benefits and TreatmentsAcupuncture is a treatment based on traditional East Asian medicine, and it is said to be effective even today for a wide range of women's concerns. Did you...Read more

For more on acupuncture insurance, see this article as well.

You May Also Like

Is Acupuncture Covered by Insurance? Conditions for Coverage and KADOMORI’s TreatmentsAcupuncture treatment may have insurance coverage applied for certain conditions. However, there are conditions that must be met for coverage to apply, so if you're curious, be sure...Read more