This morning I just read an article written for the online version of the newspaper The Vancouver Sun. The Sun is a reputable newspaper, but clearly not immune to inaccuracies. Case in point (no pun intended), their recent article called, “The Intricacies of Acupuncture” by Randy Shore.
The question “What is acupuncture?” is posed. The answer they give includes a paragraph that reads, “The theory is that acupuncture unblocks and rebalances the flow of energy, or Qi, through the body. The modern practice of medical acupuncture – as practised by medical doctors – uses wires inserted into known anatomical structures rather than points dictated by ancient philosophy or astrology.”
So much wrong with this last sentence! Acupuncture is medical acupuncture. We treat medical conditions and I don’t follow astrological charts to do so! Yes, acupuncture uses the philosophies of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) to choose acupuncture points, but just because they are founded on ancient practices doesn’t keep them stuck in a time 3000 years ago. Just as we no longer use sharpened stones as acupuncture needles, so too have we modernized our practice. We learn anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology. We recognize the structures that we are needling as acupuncture points and meridians, but also as muscles and other soft tissues.
I have a degree in kinesiology from the University of Guelph where my training in how the body works included anatomy with a cadaver dissection lab, neuromuscular anatomy, basic physiology, respiratory physiology, cardiovascular physiology and applied sciences of human gait analysis and ergonomics. Traditional Chinese Medicine’s “philosophies” are actually observations that were made over thousands of years and came to conclusions about how the body works. The TCM scientists of the time correctly identified many of more modern science’s current understandings.
Many of my colleagues take extra training in modern forms of acupuncture in addition to the 3-5 years of training and 1-3 provincial licensing exams — depending on whether we train to be registered acupuncturists or registered Dr. of Traditional Chinese Medicine, with the latter requiring the most training. Motor point acupuncture, trigger point acupuncture, studies of myofacial tissues, and biopuncture are all modern forms of acupuncture that I trained in that many “medical acupuncture” performing MDs have not studied.
I do not divorce myself of either the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine or the current understanding of the physiological structures of human anatomy. It’s Yin and Yang. Knowledge, recognition, and practice of both strengthens the results.
Where registered acupuncturists (R.Ac.), registered TCM practitioners (R.TCM.P), and registered Dr. of TCM (Dr.TCM) differ from MD “acupuncturists” is that we have MORE training for the practice of acupuncture. And perhaps even more important is that we can use both the 3000 (or more) years of observational studies of the human body as well as the more modern practice and study of current medical knowledge.
So, while I have asked some stars about their thoughts on acupuncture, those stars are human (acting and sport), not the ones in the sky.
Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/health/intricacies+acupuncture/6161674/story.html#ixzz1meiRqJ84
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