By Lubna Abdel-Aziz When conventional medicine fails would you consider non conventional alternatives? Would you subject yourself to be stuck with dozens of needles all over your body in order to relieve what ails you? In other words, would you consider acupuncture? If you shrug your shoulders, or shake your head, you may belong to a minority in this world who do not acknowledge this ancient method of treatment. Acupuncture is a standard health practice in China, Japan, Korea, and other Asian countries, and has been for 4,000 years, successfully treating a range of ailments. In the history of the world, more people have been treated by Traditional Chinese Medicine than any other medical modality. it has found its own pathway to the rest of the world. Ak-yuh-puhngk-chur (Latin, acus = needle, pungere = prick) is an ancient Chinese method of relieving pain, and treating diseases by inserting needles into the right points among the hundreds of points in the human body, strung along 12 meridians. What is the mystery or miracle contained in these needles? Scientists suggest the needles stimulate the release of endorphins that help balance your yin and yang. Your what? According to Chinese philosophy, disease and pain occur when there is a poor balance between two opposing forces of nature called yin and yang. Acupuncture changes the flow of a mysterious life force in the body, improving the balance between the yin and the yang. It unlocks the qi, (pronounced chi), which is an energy that penetrates all things. When yin and yang are in harmony, qi flows freely through the body, maintaining good health. When sick the flow of qi is obstructed along one of the 12 meridians. Traditional Chinese medicine has identified some 500 points where needles are inserted to produce specific effects. Historically, acupuncture points are believed to be holes that provide gateways to enter, influence, re-direct, or decrease the body's qi, thus correcting many of the imbalances. How did the ancient Chinese detect this qi, which empirical science still defines as being undetectable? Early man gained all his knowledge from nature. The ancient Chinese observed nature's water systems -- the oceans, huge rivers, man-made canals and irrigation methods, and deduced that the human body must have a similar system of moving life-giving fluid. This fluid, or qi, or vital energy, must flow freely, but pain or illness blocks this flow, thus losing the balance between the yin and the yang energies. By restoring the normal flow of qi, pain is relieved or diseases are cured. Many patients claim to experience "the sensations of stimulus known in Chinese as deqi, " that is, obtaining the qi, or feeling its arrival. If you are still rolling your eyes, you will be surprised to learn that even in the US some 15 million have tried acupuncture, especially for chronic pain that doctors fail to treat. Applications for acupuncture are endless. It is an acceptable alternative for treating an ever growing list of disorders -- addiction, stroke, headache, menstrual cramps, tennis elbows, fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, low back pain, asthma, carpal tunnel syndrome, to name a few, says David S. Keifer, MD of the University of Arizona: "even people who are not very open minded find they feel good after treatment. Traditional medicine may finally be grasping these ancient methods of the Orient." While medical science is still perplexed, it is beginning to behave with admiration towards this strange treatment, unable to ignore its popularity and final results. Recent advances in technology have helped unlock some of the biological mysteries of this ancient Chinese medical practice. Ever on their guard, the men of medicine must widen their horizons. A Scandinavian study found that 25 per cent of patients previously scheduled for knee surgery, cancelled their plans after acupuncture treatment. Scientists continue to study the mechanism and efficacy of acupuncture. According to the protocol of medicine, there is good evidence that it is effective in treating nausea and chronic back pain, neck pain, headache, and rheumatic pain. The American Medical Society, its major discreditor as well as other institutions, now at least acknowledge that it is safe when administered by swell-trained practitioners, and added that "further research is warranted." Of course, Chinese medicine is based on a different paradigm from biomedicine. Tradition is the most trustworthy advertisement, and now Western scientists are beginning to comprehend the relative accuracy of the yin and yang principle. The Journal of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine reported a new and surprising German study involving over 1,000 patients receiving in- vitro fertilization (IVF), half the women received standard IVF treatment, and the other half were given acupuncture treatment before and after. In the acupuncture group 42.5 per cent became pregnant, and in the IVF-only group 26.3 per cent conceived. Acupuncture stimulates blood flow and egg production in women who will not use fertility medication to become pregnant. Ifeoma Okoronkwo MD, professor of medicine at NY University School of Medicine believes there is a clear link between acupuncture and the body's natural "feel good" brain chemicals. Still sceptical? Let us never to be tempted to underrate the success of others. Consider the achievements of the ancient Chinese civilisation and their vast and unique legacy in all fields of art, religion, and philosophy; why not medicine? Consider further the second rise of the Chinese people surpassing all others, not only in number but in discipline and productivity. Is it possible that you are not wearing, using, or listening to some item that is not made in China? Over 4,000 physicians in the US alone have had extensive acupuncture, training especially among rheumatologists. The University of California at Los Angeles has one of the largest acupuncture training courses in the US for licensed physicians. The 200-hour programme teaches nearly 600 physicians every year. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has classified acupuncture needles as medical devices for general use by trained professionals. Acupuncture is also used extensively in the UK, Canada, Australia, and several European countries. A study by the National Institute of Health (NIH) concluded that "there is sufficient evidence of acupuncture value to expand its use into conventional medicine....." Let the serious researchers carefully seek their lengthy and dim message till captive science yields her last retreat. The full weight lies on science to prove or disprove its efficacy. Meanwhile keep the yin and Yang happy. If by inserting a needle in the pinkie toe you can reverse the position of a breech baby, what would you call that? Magic? Mystery? Miracle? By whatever name, "if it relieves my chronic pain, it is good enough for me!" says a contented patient. And for me too! Science is simply common sense at its best -- that is, rigidly accurate in observation, and merciless to fallacy in logic. -- T.H. Huxley (1825-1895)
