Can ear seeds soothe your stomach and help you sleep?
NCT ID NCT07442734
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests whether pressing small seeds on specific ear points can help people with functional dyspepsia (chronic stomach discomfort) who also have insomnia. Researchers will track symptom relief and sleep quality in 176 adults over 8 weeks, and explore how the treatment affects brain function and gut health. The goal is to find a safe, non-drug way to manage both conditions together.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- auricular acupressure (Vaccaria seed on ear points)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a safe, non-drug option for people with both stomach discomfort and sleep problems.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-stage study with no drug involved, so results may be modest. The effect depends on consistent self-application, and the mechanism is still unclear.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 176 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Oct 2025
- Expected to finish
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Oct 2026
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Meet the diagnostic criteria for functional dyspepsia and sleep disorders (25,26) * Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score ≥7 * Right-handed, aged 18 years or above * Have not taken the following medications for at least 2 weeks prior to enrollment: antibiotics (oral, intramuscular, or intravenous), microbiota-related products (probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics, etc.), or any drugs affecting gastrointestinal flora, any drugs or supplements that improve sleep quality or suppress neural activity in the brain, medications related to functional dyspepsia treatment, or other related therapies * Agree to voluntarily participate in this study and sign the informed consent form Exclusion Criteria: 1. Secondary insomnia caused by drugs or other diseases 2. Comorbidity with other psychiatric disorders, or severe heart, liver, kidney, or other systemic diseases 3. Previously received this treatment method or participated in other clinical trials within the past 6 months 4. Presence of contraindications to auricular therapy, such as allergy to skin preparation or damage at the auricular application site 5. Pregnant or breastfeeding women 6. History of cranial organic lesions, cranial surgery, or severe trauma
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
RECRUITINGHangzhou, Zhejiang, 310006, China
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