Making a point - goodnews - acupuncture - Brief Article

Better Nutrition, May, 2003

Acupuncture dates back to at least 100 BCE. It was first included in an American medical textbook in 1892. Currently there are more than 40 colleges and schools of acupuncture in the United States.

And now, a San Diego-based Web site that raises public awareness of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has posted its own favorable review of acupuncture research--based on medical studies appearing in various medical journals over the past seven years.

While the original studies are open to interpretation, the new review points to a number of diseases successfully treated with acupuncture as well as the modality's impressive safety record.

The site, known as The Pulse of Oriental Medicine, suggests that acupuncture is valuable in treating acute strokes, spinal cord injuries, labor pains, nausea after hysterectomy and smoking-cessation treatments. It was found largely ineffective against alcoholism, cocaine dependence, low back pain and rheumatoid arthritis. Acupuncture was found to be safe 99 percent of the time--far superior in safety than pharmaceutical therapies.

The review also contends that acupuncture works by producing "feel good" endorphins and enkephalins, which relieve pain. The section of the site titled "Acupuncture Research for Physicians" reviewed 37 journal citations. Only 12 were double-blind, placebo-controlled trials--considered the most reliable. The review is available at www.pulsemed.org.