Information & Research
There are many sources of information about acupuncture and Chinese medicine.
You might find the information from the following organisations helpful.
The British Acupuncture Council www.acupuncture.org.uk
Email: info@acupuncture.org.uk Tel: 020 873 50400
The Acupuncture Research Resource Centre (ARRC) www.acupunctureresearch.org.uk
Email|: arrc@tvu.ac.uk Tel: 020 8209 4277
The Foundation for Research into Traditional Chinese Medicine www.frtcm.org
Research projects include some looking at the safety of acupuncture.
The World Health Organisation www.who.int has conducted research into the use of acupuncture in various countries worldwide.
UK Professional Journals include:
The Journal of Chinese Medicine www.jcm.co.uk
European Journal of Oriental Medicine www.ejom.co.uk
Chinese Medicine Times www.chinesemedicinetimes.com
And there are many books and websites offering information about other aspects of Chinese medicine and healthcare, such as Tuina massage, herbs, dietary therapy and the energetics of food, Qi Gong and Tai Qi.
Acupuncture for Particular Conditions
Our website used to list the various conditions people who come for treatment commonly have. Since March 2011 we have not been able to do this, as the Advertising Standards Authority decided that the only conditions that can be claimed to benefit from acupuncture are those backed up by Randomised Controlled Trials. However there are other methods of gauging the effectiveness of acupuncture. A broad spectrum of research is ongoing in the UK and in other countries. Following the links given above will help you access some of this information.
Randomised Controlled Trials
Research into the effectiveness of Western medication is carried out by Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs). In these, groups of patients with identical symptoms are divided into two. One group receives the medication on trial and the other group is given nothing, a different medication, or a placebo. Effectiveness of treatment is then measured by comparing the two groups.
This approach is not generally a very helpful way of gauging acupuncture’s effectiveness because acupuncture is a system based upon treating people rather than conditions. The energetic explanation, for example, a migraine, in one patient, may be entirely different from the cause in another patient so different treatment will be given. However giving different treatment for the same symptom is not acceptable in a RCT. As a result, there are not many RCTs into acupuncture and those that exist tend not to show very good results.
However there are other methods of gauging effectiveness, and these produce favourable results for the effectiveness of acupuncture. Following the links given above will help you access some of this information.
