Acupuncture Awareness Week with the Food Doctor

I received an interesting email yesterday from The Food Doctor (not a doctor), pointing out that 27th February – 4th March is Acupuncture Awareness Week.

To coincide with this, Kate Winstanley, resident acupuncturist and member of their Clinical Team (none of whom are doctors), shares some ‘facts’ about acupuncture. Unfortunately, Ms Winstanley does not seem to fully understand how acupuncture works, what it can treat, or indeed what the CAP advertising guidelines have to say on the subject.

Taking inspiration from anarchic teapot’s wonderful Homeopathy FAQ, I will try to clear up a few points for Ms Winstanley and hopefully make her more aware about acupuncture.

Corrections are in red.

‘Dr’ Who?

A worrying number of alternative health practitioners, all absent from the GMC’s List of Registered Practitioners, continue to enhance their credibility by using the title ‘Dr’.

These ‘doctors’ often carry out unregulated clinical tests and treatments which lack robust evidence to support them. Indeed, many such procedures even lack a plausible mechanism of action.

Some practitioners believe they are able to cure cancer. Some offer to treat autism. Some diagnose ‘invisible illnesses’ not recognised by conventional medicine. In many cases, the tests and therapies provided are not only a waste of time and money, they could also be harmful to consumers.

The Burzynski Clinic in the local news

The above article, from the North Warrington Midweek, was delivered free through my door on 31st January. Almost three weeks earlier, I had first raised concerns with the Warrington Guardian (the parent newspaper) over their previous favourable coverage of the Burzynski Clinic.

British Airways put snakes on a plane!

Travelling with British Airways these days, you could be forgiven for imagining you’re on a one-way trip to La La Land.

How disorientating it must be to find yourself miles in the air, possibly at some ungodly hour, and then be confronted with surreal advertising – relating to the health-giving properties of coloured light, negative ions and snake venom. Claims which can only be based on pure fantasy – since reliable evidence to support them is distinctly lacking.