At the Heart of Healing: How Acupuncture Supports Cardiovascular Health
by Dr. Jen Jorgensen, Acupuncturist and Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine
For many people living with cardiovascular conditions, acupuncture is a therapy increasingly used alongside conventional care to help manage vascular health and conditions such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol—helping patients feel more at ease and more engaged in their own well-being (Park et al., 2021).
Studies on the effects of acupuncture have shown that even a single treatment can influence regulation within the central nervous system, reducing the physiological impact of emotional stress and overexertion—common contributors to elevated blood pressure. Moreover, this regulatory benefit may help promote more stable cardiovascular responses to postural changes and exertion—factors closely linked to heart rate variability, blood pressure regulation, and rhythm stability (Zhang et al., 2020). By supporting healthy circulation through the heart as well as the limbs, hands, and feet, acupuncture may reduce tendencies toward sluggish or impaired blood flow, thereby supporting the body as a whole.
More intricately, clinical studies suggest that acupuncture has the potential to influence the body’s internal chemistry. Treatment may stimulate and modulate hormones, neurotransmitters, and endogenous opioids naturally produced in the brain, helping to reduce inflammatory activity that contributes to vascular dysfunction (Li et al., 2021). Research has also expressed that people receiving regular acupuncture often show improvements in their cholesterol profile and lipid levels, including higher “good” HDL cholesterol and lower “bad” LDL cholesterol and triglycerides (Liu, Chen, & Chen, 2024).
Additional benefits through regular maintenance treatments—typically twice monthly or monthly—promote calm, support sleep quality, and encourage the body’s natural healing and self-regulating processes, cultivating greater internal harmony and overall well-being.
The Takeaway
If you are seeking care that supports both immediate symptoms and long-term cardiovascular resilience, acupuncture may be a good fit for you. As an accessible and thoughtful approach, treatments are customized to benefit the whole person, with consideration given to physiology and function, as well as individual influences such as stress, energy levels, circulation, and the body’s capacity to adapt to internal and environmental changes. For many patients, this approach can be an empowering addition to conventional care, supporting both the heart itself and overall quality of life.
Acupuncture is intended as a complementary therapy and is not a substitute for medical care. Individuals with cardiovascular conditions are encouraged to work in partnership with their cardiologist or primary care provider and to seek care from a licensed acupuncturist that is experienced in cardiovascular support.
References
Li, N., Guo, Y., Gong, Y., Jin, X., Wang, H., & Fan, Y. (2021).
The anti-inflammatory actions and mechanisms of acupuncture from acupoint to target organs via neuro-immune regulation: A comprehensive review.
Liu, X., Chen, K., & Chen, F. (2024). Clinical efficacy and safety of acupuncture combined with statin in dyslipidemia: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Medicine, 103(37), e39663. https://doi.org/10.1097/MD.
Park, J., Lee, H., Shin, B. C., & Lee, M. (2021). Acupuncture for hypertension: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine, 8, 695886. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcvm.
Zhang, R., Lao, L., Ren, K., & Berman, B. (2020). Mechanisms of acupuncture-electroacupuncture on the autonomic nervous system: A review. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2020, 2459768. https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/