Cosmetic Acupuncture

What happens in a session

Cosmetic acupuncture is acupuncture with extra attention to the face. It always starts from a Chinese medicine diagnosis, so your first visit includes a full health history, questions about sleep, digestion, stress and your cycle where relevant, and a look at your tongue and pulse.

Jason trained in the Meizen facial protocol, a system of facial acupuncture.

Cosmetic acupuncture is $195 for the initial visit and $125 for each follow-up, paid per visit. See Fees.

1. Body points. A visit may include needles on the arms, legs or abdomen, chosen for your diagnosis. These are the same fine, sterile, single-use needles as in any acupuncture treatment.
2. Face points. Very fine, short needles are placed in the face, for example along the forehead, around the eyes and mouth, and along the jaw. They go in shallowly.
3. Rest. You lie quietly with the needles in. Most people find this part relaxing, and some fall asleep.
4. Other techniques. A visit may include gentle facial gua sha (smooth scraping with a flat tool) or small silicone cups moved lightly over the skin.
5. Afterwards. The needles come out, and you can go back to your day. Leave off heavy makeup for the rest of the day if you can.

What it is used for

People usually come with a concern about how their face looks or feels: skin that looks tired or dull, fine lines, or tension in the forehead and jaw. Many also have something else going on, like poor sleep, stress or digestive trouble, and body points may be chosen for that in the same visit.

It is a gentle treatment, and it does not change your face overnight. Results vary from person to person, and the research is limited: the study listed below was small, had no comparison group, and its authors say larger controlled trials are still needed. I cannot promise a particular result.

Cosmetic acupuncture is not a substitute for, and works differently from, injectables or other procedures from a dermatologist or cosmetic physician.

How Chinese medicine sees the face

In Chinese medicine, the face is read as a reflection of the whole body rather than as a separate problem. The main channels run up to the head and face, and the complexion is traditionally one of the signs used in diagnosis. Dull or sallow skin is often linked with weakness of the Spleen and Stomach, which Chinese medicine sees as the source of Qi and Blood. Dryness can be linked with Blood or Yin deficiency, and redness or flushing with Heat.

That is why cosmetic acupuncture may include body points as well as face points. The face points are local; the body points are chosen for the pattern behind it. These are traditional ideas used to guide treatment, not biomedical findings. From a Western point of view, facial needling stimulates the skin and small facial muscles, and how much that does is still being studied.

Safety and who should avoid it

Facial acupuncture is low-risk in the hands of a registered practitioner, but you should know about these before booking at the clinic in Keswick:

• Bruising. A small bruise at a needle site is the most common side effect, and on the face it shows. Avoid treatment in the week or two before an important event.
• Active skin infection. No needles go into infected, broken or inflamed skin, such as an active cold sore or a flare of infected acne.
• Bleeding disorders or blood thinners. Tell me if you take anticoagulants or bruise very easily. Facial needling may not be suitable.
• Pregnancy. Tell me if you are or may be pregnant. Some body points are avoided, and the plan is adjusted.
• Recent injectables, fillers or cosmetic procedures. Tell me what you had and when, so treated areas can be left alone.
• Keloid scarring. If you tend to form raised scars, tell me first.

Cosmetic acupuncture does not diagnose or treat skin disease. A changing mole, a rash that will not settle or a persistent skin problem needs your family doctor or a dermatologist.

In Ontario, acupuncturists and Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners must be registered with the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of Ontario (CTCMPAO), and you can check any practitioner on the College’s public register.