English Index
Acupuncture & Health
The Treatment
FAQ Acupuncture
points to post-op comfort
Acupuncture At Work And Play Acupuncture
Stops Sickness Surprising Acupuncture Side
Effect H E A L T H: Acupuncture may
help kids’ nasal allergies Acupuncture gets a
face lift and much more Acupuncture for kids
Acupuncture is effective against
osteoarthritis Acupuncture aids relief for
knee arthritis Energy of acupuncturist's
needles may ease chronic pain Happy ever after
Prozac? Scientific Support for
Alternative Medicine Acupuncture Stops
Sickness Acupuncture in Auckland Where Are We?
Letter: Scientific Support for Alternative Medicine
Sir: Johann Hari asks "How can intelligent people use alternative medicine?"
(Comment, 3 December). I have a Biological Sciences degree from Oxford
University and I am a Chinese medicine practitioner.
My confidence in my profession is not fuelled by spurious anecdote. The
Independent itself recently reported a study showing improvement of 50 per cent
in IVF treatment success following acupuncture treatment; indeed an enquiry to
the Acupuncture Research Resource Centre reveals 19 pages of post-2001
peer-reviewed references (27 papers) supporting the use of acupuncture to
enhance fertility. Similarly, artemisins derived from traditional Chinese herbs
now form the basis of much contemporary anti-malarial research and
pharmaceutical treatment.
The Chinese notion of "Qi" may be esoteric but it is certainly not mysterious. I
can only suggest that Mr Hari's ignorance of Chinese culture and medicine is as
profound as the research for his article was poor. Is a quarter of the world's
population, building on a 4,000-year tradition, really as stupid as he suggests?
GEORGE COOPER
Bristol
Source: Independent, The; London (UK)
Posted on: Monday, 6 December 2004, 06:00 CST
URL:
http://www.rednova.com/news/display/?id=108674
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