Two weeks left to stop the consultation of Department of Health about acupuncture.
It's very interesting to find a new article from Guardian.
One recent study found that traditional acupuncture was no better than sham acupuncture.[2] In sham acupuncture, needles are only put a short distance into the skin, or they're put in places that aren't traditional acupuncture points. Since sham treatment seems just as effective, it suggests that some of the benefits of acupuncture might come from the placebo effect. Both real and sham acupuncture worked better than having no treatment at all.
The problem is that it is hard to find a point on the body that is not somehow an acupuncture point. There are about 400 classical acupuncture points. In addition, there are also ah-shi points which are acupuncture points that are not standard. Then there are the extra points which have officially been added. Acupuncture is over 3000 years old, but new points are still being discovered and new approaches or techniques are still being developed today. Also, consider that even though acupuncture is most effective if a prescribed acupuncture point is used, being “a bit off” of the exact point location is still effective and yields positive results. The drawback with using real acupuncture needles on “non-acupuncture” points is that the points could possibly be real acupuncture points after all. Another drawback to using fake points is that it still involves inserting acupuncture needles into the body. This simple act still sets off a chain of hormonal and chemical reactions which could have a profound effect on the body.(source:http://www.kenshim.com/index.php/2009/10)
