A typical day for an acupuncturist: You treat your patients. They feel better. You feel incredible that you’re able to make a difference in their health and wellness. Life is a win-win all around.
But, unfortunately, every once in awhile, you run into an avid non-believer who seems to enjoy shouting the uselessness of your profession from the rooftops. While these skeptics can leave you yearning for a needling session of your own, they can also keep you on your toes and up-to-date on the latest breakthroughs in your field.
Here are the five best articles we’ve found to convince even the most impassioned skeptic:
- How to Win an Argument with an Acupuncture Hater
Mel Hopper Koppelman works as a practitioner of Integrative Medicine while maintaining one of the best holistic wellness blogs you’ll ever come across. Her forthright demeanor and conversational tone uncover a deeper fundamental divide between science and conventional medicine. In her must-read blog, “How to Win an Argument with an Acupuncture Hater,” Koppelman gets to the bottom of some tremendously provocative subjects: the placebo effect, death by acupuncture, and the controversy around uncovering “scientific evidence” through biomedical research funded by the pharmaceutical industry. - Acupuncture Provides True Pain Relief in Study
Since this Yale University graduate joined The New York Times in 2003, he’s written two bestsellers and received his fair share of media attention speaking about wellness issues across the nation. Written by Anahad O’Connor, this piece is an evidence-based article detailing the positive effects of acupuncture on osteoarthritis, migraines, and chronic back, neck and shoulder pain. Known to be ‘the most rigorous and detailed analysis of the treatment to date,” the September 2012 study was headed by Dr. Andrew J. Vickers, attending research methodologist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, and proves acupuncture’s effectiveness beyond a shadow of a doubt. - Is Acupuncture a Deception?
Jingduan Yang, M.D., FAPA is uniquely qualified: he’s a respected physician, board-certified psychiatrist, and highly-skilled acupuncturist. Motivated by his family’s rich history in Traditional Chinese Medicine, the fourth-generation practitioner founded the TAO Institute of Mind & Body Medicine where he currently functions as Managing Director. In his 2013 article for the Huffington Post, he presents his case for the effectiveness of acupuncture by sourcing studies conducted by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the World Health Organization (WHO), and The American Medical Association Journal of Internal Medicine (JAMA). Confronting non-believers head on he states, “Overall, it is non-scientific behavior to ignore the clinical and scientific value of acupuncture. And, it is irresponsible, unethical and unprofessional for someone who lacks training and knowledge to misinform and mislead the general public in this very specialized medical area.” - Think Acupuncture’s A Hoax? Think Again
A regular contributor to CNET, Elizabeth Armstrong Moore is a freelance journalist in Portland, Oregon. In her intriguing piece for the technology news-giant, she elaborates on how one journal uncovered the secret behind the ancient Chinese treatment. Published in 2010 by Nature Neuroscience, the study found that adenosine- well known for its anti-inflammatory properties- is responsible for the positive results consistently reported by acupuncture patients. In fact, reports Moore, “the level of adenosine in the tissue near the needles was 24 times greater than before the treatment.” - Chinese Medicine Demystified: How Acupuncture Works
Recently named as one of the 100 “most influential people in health and fitness” by Greatist.com, Chris Kresser, M.S., L.Ac demystifies acupuncture in his six-part blog series. While you’re welcome to read them all, we think Part IV is the most convincing. Kresser explains how acupuncture works from a western, scientific perspective with a focus on the proven benefits of the treatment.
