h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

A very interesting entry concerning how acupuncture doesn't stand up to western scrutiny. However, on the subject of acupuncture itself, it falls rather short.

I fail to understand why the people in this thread feel so threatened that they resist the thought of adding a detailed explanation of how acupuncture is supposed to work from the TCM perspective.

Perhaps they fail to realize that someone who reads an entry on acupuncture wants to learn how acupuncture is supposed to work, and not western science's opinion on it?

"Now if I was writing (c) I'd find it pretty easy, because I know that TCM is more than placebo and I'd feel comfortable writing it in a reasonably neutral way eg this is how TCM practitioners see and understand what they are doing (i.e. there is no overt assertion that it's been 'proven' but there is an allowance for it still to be true)."

Now I spend most of time here lurking and usually I don't like reading the posts that go on forever and dissect line for line what another poster has said. However the above paragraph does alarm me. So you know that it's more than a placebo. But you can't prove this. So you can write about, but I have to take your faith in it as evidence.

I and other like minded individuals require proof and understanding, so don't think of me as a twit for putting down acupuncture. Trust me I'm not threatened a lot of my own patients have had problems eased after acupuncture. But a lot of my patients have had problems eased through placebo treatments and in my clinical opinion I can't see a difference in the two.

btw, if you think you have a sprained ankle DO NOT go straight to an acupunturist. I can't stress that enough. See your doctor first.

Perhaps the entry should be titled "Acupuncture and Western Medicine" - since it seems to want to compare the two rather than tell about one of them, it would make sense to do it that way.

It might be an idea to use 'western' or 'conventional' consistently.

This is quite well written. I've had a couple acupuncture treatments because I'm generally willing to try anything once - purely from curiosity. I didn't find anything to quibble with really. Only these two minor points:

>>This inquiry phase will allow the practitioner to assess the patient's condition and decide on appropriate intervention.<<
'Intervention' stands out as odd in the context of acupuncture which is a fairly passive practice as compared to surgery or drugs. I would have just said 'treatment'.

Among the risks to acupuncture, are unclean needles an issue?

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Well done, Sorb. Just re-read it and noticed the puntastic headers. Cool

I actually wrote the headers first, and jigged the entry round to fit them.

Yes, the headers did put into the top drawer

Congratulations

Well done

(did put *this* into the top drawer, i meant)