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Needling away at the sneezy season

SARAH HOIDA

From Tuesday's Globe and Mail

Latest comment posted at 12:41 AM EDT 17/05/08

Some sufferers are turning to the ancient therapy, saying it works as well as drugs without the side effects ...Read the full article

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  1. No Name Necessary from Canada writes: I know this article is about allergies, but my father-in-law had acupuncture for his migraines. He would have terrible migraines for years and then one year he decided to try it and it worked for him.
  2. J. Gambit from Canada writes: Acupuncture? Are you kidding me? Why not just bang your head against the wall really hard six times during a full moon -- if you believed that it would work, it would probably yield the same amount of relief as sticking needles in your skin, and it would be far cheaper. The placebo effect can be powerful.

    And why, exactly, does something being 'ancient' automatically make it valid? Leeches, I hear, were pretty popular in the middle ages -- why not bring those back?

    I'll stick to modern medicine -- you know, the thing that allows us to live to a ripe old age with a quality of life that would have been unimaginable to the original practitioners of this 'ancient art.'
  3. F/A josquin from Canada writes:
    try a good 'old-fashioned' salty water nasal rinse everyday.

    Works for me, Oprah, and dr. Oz----- not that I watch :-)

    It's ancient, cheap, and effective-------seriously.
  4. Andrea Timmons from Kingston Ontario, Canada writes: I've suffered miserably with allergies for years. Medication has side effects sometimes worse than the symptoms it's supposed to curb.
    Today's allergy sufferers are subject to a worsening of their allergies to natural substances by the increased amount of pollution in our everyday air.
    I discovered ginger works without side effects. I was using it for nausea & gastric distsress & realized my allergy symptoms were gone, like totally gone! I could breathe easily, no sneeze, no wheeze, no cough. I highly recommend it to anyone who suffers from allergies. All my allergic friends have found it works for them too. Keep ginger root in your freezer in a freezer bag, to ensure it's not contaminated by bacteria, which can & does happen. When you need it pare off the peel & scrape off bits of ginger & chew them. It's a refreshing tingly taste. Or make tea. Or buy & eat candied ginger.
  5. Vancouver Canadian from Vancouver, Canada writes: Hey J Gambit... where have you been? Leeches have been back in use for years! You should become more informed!

    Just google Medical use of leeches this has been documented by medical journals that the use of leeches is very beneficial!

    Hope we can open your mind abit here. Seems you're living in the dark ages!

    All kidding aside, I hope that you can read more about these good treatments. If you ever have a medical condition, I hope you consider these treatments which are considered 'alternative' here but not in other parts of the world. Actually, some of our treatments here are considered barbaric in other parts of the world. The dentist I saw in China was shocked that we would even consider putting mercury in our tooth fillings - and some of our surgeries are considered totally unnecessary!

    I had a serious neck injury a few years ago. Here in Canada they said there was nothing I could do other than muscle relaxants... but with accupuncture and chinese massage I'm almost all cured. So much for the medical community here that only seems to prescribe treatments that result in a profit for the drug companies!
  6. J. Gambit from Canada writes: Vancouver Canadian -- I have nothing against people using alternative therapy if that is what they choose, though I suspect that any relief obtained has to do with the placebo effect.

    I also find it interesting that most of the conditions that these therapies treat are non-life threatening. When the issue is something like a heart attack or a serious infection, I don't see too many people opting to consult an acupuncturist.

    Also, the hostility that some people have when it comes to "Big Pharma" needs to be put to rest -- the reason many of us are walking around right now is because of the research that these firms have conducted and the drugs they have developed. They make money, yes, but that's how new medical discoveries get funded.
  7. Lung Hacker from Canada writes: Also, the hostility that some people have when it comes to "Big Pharma" needs to be put to rest
    ____________________________________________________

    As does the hostility that some people have when it comes to alternative treatments they don't care to understand.
  8. M V from Toronto, writes: "As does the hostility that some people have when it comes to alternative treatments they don't care to understand."

    Lung Hacker, if you are claiming to understand the methods behind acupuncture, then pleasue explain "qi" and "meridians" by giving empirical evidence of their existence.

    It can't be done. Why? Acupunture is pure "voodoo science"; meaning that it only works on those who "believe".
  9. Alistair McLaughlin from Canada writes: J. Gambit, leeches are back, big time. They're used to treat infections and some blood disorders. Maggots too are making a comeback. They are used to clean out decayed tissue from infected wounds and prevent gangarene. I agree that the vast majority of "alternative therapies" are nothing more than quackery. But some of the old treatments do work. Accupunture for example does seem to have a positive effect for chronic pain sufferers.
  10. Alistair McLaughlin from Canada writes: And since this conversation has morphed into a debate about alternative therapy, I'll throw in my two cents about something that worked for me. It's called Active Release Therapy. It is done mostly by chiropractors, but also by some massage therapists. Unlike traditional chiropractic, (which in my opinion is voodoo) ART actually has a solid scientific basis. It is used to break apart old scar tissue that builds up in the muscle. ART is what saved Gary Roberts' career back in the mid-1990s. He had retired after two ineffecitve surgeries on his neck. Then he found a chiro in Toronto who does ART, and he ended up playing another 13 years or so. (He's still playing, and he'll likely win another Stanley Cup ring this year with the Pens.) There is a chiro here in Ottawa who has also treated Roberts and a number of other hockey players. I went to him to get ART done on my neck and upper back, after 15 years of progressivly worse muscle injuries, resulting in constant nagging pain and weakness in my shoulders. The improvement is nothing short of dramatic. I had six treatments, and I haven't needed to go back in over two years. The goal of ART is to break up the scar tissue and restore the muscle to their former flexibility and range of movement. Quite simple really. No yin vs. yan. No "balancing of energy forces." No ancient herbal remedies that might poison you. It's much like massage, except it requires the patient to do the moving, while the practitioner holds certain muscles in place. This forces them to stretch and breaks up the scar tissue. It also prys the layers of muscle apart that have been bonded together by scarred up fascia, allowing different muscles to slide over one-another as they are supposed to. Anyone who has chronic soft tissue injury should try ART.
  11. Matthew McGarvey from Ottawa, Canada writes: Now if someone could come up with a cure, natural or pharmaceutical, for sanctimonious internet postings, ....
  12. garlick toast from Canada writes: Alistair McLaughlin from Canada,i agree about chiropractory[sp.?].getting the spine into alignment is crucial for allieviating joint pain.my g.p. told me my knees were shot from 30 yrs. of carpentry.after 20 sessions at the chiro. i'm pain-free and''well- adjusted''.(there's some disagreement about that claim].
  13. Jenny L from Newmarket, Canada writes: From the New Scientist article, Needlework, May 26, 2001: Western scientists ... say inserting needles at acupuncture points stimulates the nervous system to release morphine-like substances that block pain signals. It may also trigger neurotransmitters and neurohormones, which influence such dynamic systems as circulation and the immune response.

    The article goes on to explain that exactly where you place the needles is important and Western understanding of nerve pathways has found additional accupuncture points. Flicking the needles also plays a role. Naloxone can block the effect of the endorphins generated. Acupuncture has been used successfully to treat heroin addiction.

    Acupuncture has been used to treat mice whose dopamine receptors were severed (Parkinson's disease model). After needling several times, there was an increase in a specific messenger RNA, one that codes for a nerve growth factor that helps to regenerate dopamine neurons.
  14. carol c from Canada writes: Acupuncture is one of the few alternative therapies that has been studied in any depth. This is partly because it is possible, although difficult, to design double blind placebo controlled studies on acupuncture. These studies do take the placebo effect into account. For examples please see the following meta-analysis: Low back pain http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/abstract/142/8/651 Osteoarthritis of the knee http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/abstract/146/12/868 Fertility in IVF http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article3327648.ece It is untrue to suggest that these studies are 'voodoo science', they are designed in the same way that any medical scientific study is designed. It's very true to say that heart attack or serious infection is best treated by Western, allopathic medicine. They clearly have excellent results in these circumstances. In my opinion acupuncture is a superior treatment for pain. No side effects from powerful medications, no surgery, and the body gradually healing itself. The concepts of Qi and meridians are central to Traditional Chinese Medicine, and they lack empirical evidence. Perhaps if you think of the meridian system as a more primitive concept of a nervous system it will begin to make sense. It is also ridiculous to assume that Western medicine has all the answers, and any other modality is just mumbo jumbo. Clearly there is still a lot of work to do in human health.
  15. M V from Toronto, writes: Carol C writes: "acupuncture is a superior treatment for pain." -Even a simple medications like codeine beats needles, notwithstanding drugs as powerful as morphine. Carol C: "No side effects from powerful medications, no surgery, and the body gradually healing itself." -Remarkably, those same results can occur without acupuncture so what's the need? Carol C: "The concepts of Qi and meridians are central to Traditional Chinese Medicine" -Central to TCM but factual or useful? It's true that TCM has based Qi-gong on thousands of years of "study"; study done without any knowledge of the circulatory system (dissection was against the law in China), ignorance that germs cause disease, and a complete unawareness of cell chemistry, nerve function, and hormones. Carol C: "and they lack empirical evidence." -So how do you know it exists? My young niece has at least some evidence of Santa Claus' existence (he leaves gifts, drinks milk, eats cookies) but even she's beginning to be suspect of his actuality. Yet with less evidence than a 7 year old has to prove the reality of a fat elf who commits B&E every Dec. 24th, TCM practicioners are convinced of an intangible, unidentifiable, unmeasurable, untestable "energy" named qi. Carol C: "Perhaps if you think of the meridian system as a more primitive concept of a nervous system it will begin to make sense." -No, it does not. We can identify the nervous system, not the meridian system. Carol C: "It is also ridiculous to assume that Western medicine has all the answers, and any other modality is just mumbo jumbo" -You're putting up a straw man argument. Of course Western medicine does not have all the answers, otherwise there'd be no disease, sickness, or even death. But if I'm sick or injured I prefer medicine that's a little more up to date over TCM's appeal to traditions from 5,000 years ago.
  16. carol c from Canada writes: Science does prove that acupuncture is effective for certain conditions. The fact that it can't explain the method indicates that science does not understand how it works. So suggesting that Western medicine does not have all the answers is not a straw man argument at all. Good science leaves room for what is unknown. In this case science has proved that in one study (which is certainly not appropriate to draw a complete conclusion) acupuncture relieves allergy symptoms. It doesn't attempt to explain how this occurs.

    TCM is a living modality. Yes it's roots go back 5,000 years, Western medicine's roots also go back a long way too it's not all new. There is a lot to be learned from some of these practices. Leeches are one example, the Traditional Chinese Medical use of artemesia for malaria is another. Old treatments being used for modern health problems.

    If you are a fan of science, if you believe in it's basic principle you must have an open mind.
  17. M V from Toronto, writes: Carol C: "Science does prove that acupuncture is effective for certain conditions."

    -For my own eduction, please detail the "certain conditions", how acupuncture is more effective in treating those conditions than doing nothing at all, and include a few links to studies that prove said claims.

    Carol C: The fact that it can't explain the method indicates that science does not understand how it works.

    -True that science does not know how everything works. The whole purpose of science is discovery and an increase in knowledge through observation, experimentation, and gathering of evidence. Yet TCM followers have no interest in discovery - its appeals to tradition and anecdotal evidence is equivalent to "Why does it work? Because I said so!" and really answers no questions.

    Carol C: "suggesting that Western medicine does not have all the answers is not a straw man argument at all."

    -Your more recent alternation of "Western medicine does not have all the answers" avoids the straw man but your original declaration that "it's ridiculous to assume that Western medicine has all the answers" IS a straw man argument.
  18. M V from Toronto, writes: Carol C: "Good science leaves room for what is unknown." -WRONG! While scientists do not claim to know everything (if they did, why practice?) when seeking answers/information they do not say, "Well, I don't know what or how this came to be so I'll ignore it." Carol C: In this case science has proved that in one study (which is certainly not appropriate to draw a complete conclusion) acupuncture relieves allergy symptoms. It doesn't attempt to explain how this occurs. -You're right that that study does not explain how it occurs. Yet with no proof of the existence of Qi or meridians, how do you know that manipulation of this magical, unidentified "energy" is the cause of the allergy relief? -I could as easily claim that it wasn't the acupuncture that contributed to the allergy relief. No, it was having the study subjects laying under flourescent lights or wearing pink underwear that improved their conditions. Actually, my claims would be more valid because then you could at least test my claims as flourescents and underwear truly, physically exist; unlike Qi. Carol C: "TCM is a living modality." -I'm not sure of your definition of modality; do you mean "equivalent to a mode of sensation", such as touch or vision? Carol C: "Western medicine's roots also go back a long way too it's not all new." -No, but what we've learned in the past 130 years outweighs the total medical knowledge prior to 1880 (when Koch discovered the transmission of disease by bacteria which led to the development of germ theory). Carol C: There is a lot to be learned from some of these practices. -And even more to be disregarded, which modern medicine has done. A short list includes phrenology, belief in the humors, trepanation, bloodletting, miasma, and incantations.
  19. M V from Toronto, writes: Carol C:"Leeches are one example, the Traditional Chinese Medical use of artemesia for malaria is another. Old treatments being used for modern health problems." -Correct! Artemisia IS used for malaria treatment. Yet it's not the exclusive domain of TCM. See, medical science tests the claims through double-blind experimentation and if the drug or treatment performs then it's adopted. Western medicine does not pick and chose results - if it works, use it! -As an aside, do you know why artemisia is used today? Because in the 60's Chinese scientists, in a search for adequate treatments for malaria to be used by the army, tested nearly 200 TC medicines, all of which from "thousands of years of use" were believed to treat malaria. But the studies found that ONLY artemisia was effective - the other 199 TCM treatments failed scientific testing and were disregarded. That is how science works! Carol C: "If you are a fan of science, if you believe in it's basic principle you must have an open mind." -I'm a huge fan of science! That's why when people profess results (as your and this G&M article do) based on paranormal or metaphysical claims, I take issue. -And why, oh why, is it always those who are devoted to quackery who trot out the "you must have an open mind" chestnut? Science IS open-minded because it questions, tests, searches for evidence and forms theories. Yet most TCM does not. As I mentioned previously, it forms conclusions from the "because I said so" argument. -Yes, it's good to have an open mind but not so open that your brains fall out. To insist upon claims (e.g. Qi, meridians) when all the evidence suggests otherwise is foolish. -I ask you, which is more open-minded? The method which asks questions and progresses (science) or that which remains stubbornly frozen in time following 5000 year-old practices based on "tradition"?
  20. M V from Toronto, writes: Please exuse my above posted one-chunk paragraphs. I don't know why they are posted like that because when I'm typing my comments, I make sure to double space between paragraphs yet they still show up in a huge blob. Strange.
  21. T J from Canada writes: Carol, I think it's telling that your "scientific" argument presented in favour of acupuncture involves a newspaper article (effectively irrelevant to truly scientific discourse) and two meta-analysis, one of which indicates the positive results are clinically insignificant, and the other of which has a very small positive result which is better explained by the overall poor methodologies of the studies than by any actual efficacy of acupuncture. Acupuncture has mixed results in the literature, with poorer studies more likely to show effect, does not conform to any modern understanding of physiology, is not internally consistent (the acupuncture points to use for any given condition vary greatly by practitioner), is poorly regulated, and as such simply does not belong in evidence based medical practice.
  22. Gyula Voros from Oakville, Canada writes: The key paragraph in this article is this one: "At first, relief from congestion and sneezing was temporary, but the cumulative effect of two years of acupuncture, plus her regular allergy shots, now allows Ms. Perth to enjoy the warm weather." From multiple rigorous scientific studies, we know that allergy shots -- especially when taken yearly for 4 years like with this patient -- reduce allergy symptoms, much as described. We have only very weak evidence for acupuncture to do the same. Perhaps her allusion to allergy shots 'losing their potency' was simply not giving them enough time, taking them too late in the season, using expired injections, etc. -- impossible to do anything but speculate with the information given -- but it is much more likely that her real improvement was due to this proven therapy rather than acupuncture.

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