Ear seeds, a form of auriculotherapy, is a common practice found within Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) that addresses a variety of health concerns. It involves placing small, round metal pellets attached to a piece of adhesive material over specific acupressure points on the ear. According to ancient theories, it is believed that the ear is a microsystem reflecting the entire body, and by stimulating these points, the bodies Qi (energy) can be harmonised.
If you’re looking for natural remedies to help treat anxiety, depression, insomnia or lower back pain, ear seeds may be worth exploring. Take a look below to see how they can benefit each of these conditions.
Easing Anxiety and depression
In our fast-paced modern world, anxiety and depression are complex conditions commonly felt amongst society, but ear seeds offer a complementary solution to help manage their symptoms. From a TCM lens, anxiety is often linked to an excess of energy in the bodies Liver and Heart meridians, whilst depression is viewed as the stagnation of Qi and Blood of the Spleen and Liver meridians. One of the most used auriculotherapy points to address this disharmony is the ‘Ear Shenmen’ (the spirit gate), which is said to calm the mind and the bodies nervous system.
Clinical findings:
A Randomised Controlled Trial in South Korea tested whether ear seeds would benefit nurses in reducing their stress, anxiety, and depression levels at work. The study found that there was a statistically significant improvement in these areas with a reduction in depression scores and an elevation in serotonin levels.
Improving Sleep and reducing insomnia
In the pursuit of a restful night’s sleep, many of us have tried meditation, reducing our caffeine intake, and locking our phones away at 8pm, but what if something as simple as ear seeds could be the missing piece to our sleep remedy routine? In TCM, insomnia is often associated with an imbalance within the Kidney and the Heart meridians. To counteract this, ear points such as the ‘Insomnia Point’ and ‘Point Zero’ are traditionally used to assist in harmonising the body’s internal clock and benefiting sleep quality.
Clinical findings:
A 2021 Clinical study investigating the effectiveness of ear seeds for the treatment of insomnia in Breast Cancer Survivors found that auricular acupuncture greatly improved individuals sleep quality, the time it took for them to fall asleep and they were able to stay asleep longer.
Relieving Lower Back Pain
As we age, lower back pain becomes a common complaint for many but ear seeds may just be the safe, low-cost complimentary treatment that you’ve been looking for! In TCM, lower back pain can be related to stagnation of Qi and Blood and Kidney Qi Deficiency. The auricular points used to harmonise these patterns are commonly found on the large curved area on the ear and have been found to be quite effective.
Clinical findings:
According to a ‘Randomised Clinical Trial of Auricular Point Acupressure for Chronic Low Back Pain: A Feasibility Study’, applying ear seeds lead to a major 70% improvement in back pain intensity for subjects over the course of just 4 weeks!
References
- Centary. (2021). The Incredible Range of Ear Acupuncture Points. CNTC. https://www.cntc.com.au/ear-acupuncture-points/
- Dr Scott Ling. (2016). Lower Back Pain Treatment with Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture. Sustainhealth. https://sustainhealth.com.au/pain/lower-back-pain-treatment/
- Höxtermann, M. D., Buner, K., Haller, H., Kohl, W., Dobos, G., Reinisch, M., Kümmel, S., Cramer, H., & Voiss, P. (2021). Efficacy and Safety of Auricular Acupuncture for the Treatment of Insomnia in Breast Cancer Survivors: A Randomized Controlled Trial, NCBI. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8394534/
- Lee, S.-N., Kim, B., & Park, H. (2021). The effects of auricular acupressure on stress, anxiety, and depression of outpatient nurses in South Korea. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. Pubmed. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34289443/
- Yeh, C. H., Li, C., Glick, R., Schlenk, E. A., Albers, K., Suen, L. K.-P., Lukkahatai, N., Salen, N., Pandiri, S., Ma, W., Perrin, N., Morone, N. E., & Christo, P. J. (2020). A prospective randomized controlled study of auricular point acupressure to manage chronic low back pain in older adults: study protocol. BMC. https://trialsjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13063-019-4016-x
- Yeh, C. H., Chien, L. C., Balaban, D., Sponberg, R., Primavera, J., Morone, N. E., Glick, R., Albers, K. M., Cohen, S. M., Ren, D., Huang, L. C., & Suen, L. K.-P. (2013). A Randomized Clinical Trial of Auricular Point Acupressure for Chronic Low Back Pain: A Feasibility Study. NCBI. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3603381/
