PBS did a documentary special recently on their Frontline specials, in which alternative medicines were examined as a political, social and medical phenominon of modern America. I found the special well done, and even handed.

Here is the website: Frontline Special. I would highly recomment digging deep in there, because there's an enormous amount of information and analysis, as well as video interviews.

Though this site is primarily concerned with the martial arts, I think alternative medicines invariably become part of the martial arts landscape. Acupressure, acupuncture, traditional Chinese healing...all of these and other fields have connections to chinese ideas and outlooks, another branch of which are the martial arts themselves.

What is your experience with alternative medicines? How are they a part of your martial arts experience?

hello -

i read a good deal of that website you indicated. as a future student of the new england school of acupuncture (i will be starting next fall), it was very interesting to see the variety of perspectives out there on "alternative" medicine. what struck me the most is the complete disbelief and disavowal of such therapies by some of the doctors. having received acupuncture for a few health issues, and having had it work, not only extremely well, but twice in less time and more completely than western medicinal treatments i received for the same problems. in fact, in one case, the western treatment made me worse, and it was acupuncture that provided the relief, as well as curing the situation.

i have always walked the line between "true believer" and "total skeptic." i would often argue in favor of this or that philosophical point, including acupuncture, but when faced with an acupuncturist, i become questioning and i require proof. i hope that in my study of acupuncture, i will get the opportunity to be involved in quality research projects on the subject, so that i can help myself and others to truly understand its effects, whatever they might be.

as for how these therapies relate to martial arts, i think that, especially for me, they are critical. for so long, i have been learning the destructive capabilities of the philosophies underlying martial arts studies. i am frankly amazed that it took me so long to realize that what i needed to do in my life was to study the nurturing, healing side of these principles. i am sure that this new field of study will deepen my understanding of martial arts in many ways, just as i know that my martial arts studies will aid me in assimilating the lessons of acupuncture and chinese herbal medicine.

yours,
pj steyer

My six year old daughter has suffered from gross and fine motor delay, and severe epilepsy since her first series of immunizations.
She cannot, walk, talk, or feed herself. She is given liquid through a tube in her stomach because she refuses drink.

Her seizures took away more and more of her physical ability. She nearly died several times. She was put on literally dozens of anti-convulsant drugs. None worked. Even the "alternative" ketogenic diet was only partially sucessful.

We also has some success with homeopathic remedies, though now considered "alternative", "New age" or "ineffective", this is the type of medication that was used for years before alopathic medicine, and is the type of treatment used by the royal family in England today.

After the Fundraiser by TSDMAS and Progressive Tactics, we were able to get in to see a Doctor of Oriental Medicine, Zhou Zhiqun. Herbs, acupressure, and acupuncture. Combined with her homeopathy, Marissa has taken steps, this week has added new sounds to her "vocabulary", and has been much more interactive. Her last EEG brainscan her neurologist (who only sees her once a year) mistakenly thought that Marissa's younger sister Gina was actually Marissa. The EEG results were so close to normal he said if he hadnt already known something was wrong, he probably couldnt find anything wrong now.

Also, Dr. Zhou has doccumented a case of West Nile that had left a woman paralyzed from the subsequent meningitis. She was told that she would never move again. A few months later she could move her toes, and after a year with Dr. Zhou she walked into the neurologist and said "bite me."

The American Medical Journal wouldnt cover this because it was either coincidental, or her credentials were not alopathic... something totally frickin lame like that.

The stuff is still practiced after thousands of years for a reason.

Any questions on this let me know I will field them to those who can answer if I can.

Oh and on a personal level, I have used qigong to rid myself of partial left side paralysis.

After 2 months, it was gone in less than 24 hours.

My wife and I have used homeopathic remedies for several years with great success.
We have regular check ups with a practioner who combines electro-accupunture to diagnose ailments and treats with homeopathic remedies.
Dale

Cool.
My wife is a lay homeopath, I bet she would love to talk to you guys!

I practice shiatsu as part of my living, it can take care of a wide array of problems...i've had friends and family come to me for migranes, pulled muscles, arthritis, you name it...and everyone always finnishes feeling better.
i also do qigong, and external qi healing which helps. herbalism and "food medicine" is practiced among my family.
i dont remember who said it, but they are right...this stuff has been practiced for thousands of years because it works.
even if you only believe in western medicine (cause i'm the first one to admit that antibiotics are the coolest thing in the world!) its good to augment with eastern methods.
Tang Soo!

I went to an acupuncture doctor for pain associated with herniated discs, and she was able to releive the pain and give me back my range of movement. My brother went to an acupuncture doctor who made his pain worse. I wondered if it worked on me because as a martial artist I had a predisposition to believe it would work?
Whatever the reason I still go she is also a practitioner of TCM and gives me herbs and remedies for other problems that seem to do as well or better that western medicine.
mikeb

In shiatsu there is something we call a "healing crisis"...in which the sypmtoms of a problem seem to worsen beefore they get better. i make it a point to tell my patients about it, though often some practitioners do not.
what happens, is that as the body is readjusting itself, or fighting the disease the symptoms increase because (a) the disease is fighting back in the case of bacteria or viral issues (b) the body is re-working its distribution of energy to heal the problem...and often as the body itself directs more attention to the injury or disease, it will seem like things are getting worse.
this could be what happened to your brother...or they could have just been a very busy acupunturist that misdiagnosed the problem, that happens too, just like a western doc...though not as often.

but acupuntcure and acupressure work on physical nervous processes of the body...it works regardless of belief. the only time belief would come into play is if the person had a dependancy on being sick...they would need to be sick and so there mind would disregard the healing process...they may physically get better but mentally produce the symptoms. this too can be treated.

complicated stuff...gets even more complicated applying it to your martial arts and studying effects of injuries.
happy hunting.
Tang Soo! -J

Very ofen the condition will get worse before it improves when using Homeopathic remedies. Using the principle that like cures like..... in other words the agent that causes the disease in a well person can be used to treat the sick person this stimulates the body to throw off any disease.
My wife and I will use conventional medicine but only if we can find no alternative treatment sometimes we link it with Homeopathic remedies to improve the effectiveness of the conventional medicine.
I am still astounded by the amount of people who having witnessed 'cures'in my wife and still turn to conventional means to treat their ailments
Dale

As a skeptic by nature, I've never really held much belief in homeopathic remedies that haven't been backed by research. Although I've read of instances where conventional medicine failed and homepathic remedies succeeded, I wonder if these instances simply represent the 'placebo effect'. Eventhough I'm skeptical, I try to keep an open mind. I'd be interested in reading any studies that you may know of on the subject of homeopathic remedies, acupuncture, etc.

I can be sceptical but I have questioned read researched and yes it works! books research abounds but try it for yourself M.E. Skin complaints, migraine gall bladder problems hormone inbalances various infections untouched by conventional medicine accurate analysis of previous complaints and treated when previously Conventional doctors had mis-diagnosed are just some of the things my family and extended family ave been successfuly treated for
No placebo effect just cures and a better quality of life.
Dale

I am ghardly an expert in the field of homeopathy. Therefore when I saw your issue with evidence and clinical proof, I thought I would ask my wife who is a lay homeopath to cite some examples for you. The following is her response.


Homeopathy has been practiced much longer than any allopathic medicine today. It is superior because it offers the chance for cure, where allopathic medicine only has the ability to suppress things, which invariably leads to deeper and more serious problems. For example, exzema treated with steroids will very often turn into chronic asthma. This is a fact not even disputed by allopaths. They figure it's just an unavoidable hazard.

Homeopathic medicine *is* backed by research. The best place to find such research is in a journal such as the British Medical Journal (BMJ). The research in the US is sorely lacking because the guidlines for setting up studies simply do not work for anything other than allopathic meds. By this I mean, if you were going to do a study on whether or not homeopathy worked for the common cold, you would have to give everyone involved in the study the same remedy, just as you would in allopathy. This does not work. In homeopathy,we look at the symptoms of the person, and do not prescribe based on the fact that someone is sick or isn't. So everyone in the study would have a different remedy. For some reason, allopaths can't seem to wrap their brains around that.

Homeopathic remedies are considered drugs by the FDA. They regulate the production and distribution of all homeopathy. HPUS provides the specific pharmaceutical guidlines (this is a very large reference book, quite similar to the one the allopaths use for their meds).

As for the placebo effect......Marissa has stopped seizing instantly when given the right remedy. NOT when given the wrong one. How would she know the difference? Especially in the middle of a seizure? I'm quite certain there is not much chance for her to ponder what should be happening.

Also, my mother had a cat who had been diagnosed with a urinary tract infection by the vet. She decided to ask me to try to find a remedy. She advised Pulsatilla be given. My mom gave one dose and noticed a big difference. After the second dose, the cat was no longer sick. The antibiotics were never given. But being a skeptic she attributed it to the cooler weather! You can overlook a lot of stuff with that denial thing.
I have a hard time believing the CAT was suseptible to the placebo effect, don't you?

You reminded me there are many Homeopathic vets in the UK who very successful.........you cannot use placebo's on animals
Dale

Just another thought when my family moved house to a part of the UK where the incidence of asthma bronchitus was higher than some other areas I was prone to bronchitus & chest infections etc year afer year after major bouts of the above usually combined with influenza that required antibiotics and time off work. I discovered Sulphur a homeopathic remedy now I NEVER have any problems with any chest infections.
Dale

HI evryone,

As a student of 8 principle TCM I can tell you that No one really knows how acupuncture works. It just does. There has been and still is exstensive research on the subject. It follows a different scientific approach that can't be explained well in western scientific terms. (this does not mean western science is inept) the closest correlation is that that Qi is related to ions. A low grade electricity if you will. The needles which are metal are like antenaes that collect Qi to repair the meridian. You could say that the needles are drawing ions from the ionisphere. This is only a theory and a way to explain to the western mind how acupuncture works. I hope this helps any of you who are interested in TCM.
Soo Bahk!
DT

It would seem to me that if Qi is related to ions, studies should be able to determine how ions are working within the body to repair meridians.

My theory concerning acupuncture is relatively simple. Sometimes people will get a cut or injury somewhere on their body that does not heal quickly - almost as if the body has 'forgotten' about the injury. Yet, if that same injury is provoked or reinjured, the body will quickly heal the area. Perhaps acupuncture is a way of making the body aware of an injury in a certain location by using needles and electric currents to 'inform' the brain of the injury and send more white blood cells, lymphocytes, etc.

Although I don't deny that homeopathic remedies work for people, it also seems that their is very little oversight of homeopathic practices. Therefore, the chance for 'quacks' is significantly more than in conventional medicine with board-certified physicians.

Yes...this is true of Homeopathy. But to defend them...allopathic therapies are nothing but 'Best Guess' too. The western medical profession is the most egotistical profession on the planet...even to their own detriment.

As to acupuncture....it IS regulated. You just don't see fly by night acupuncturist.

Chiropractic was making great strides and then for some reason began to experiment with other 'alternate' therapies in conjunction with their practice. Specifically, electro-muscular stimulation. This is often used in place of good old fasion myofacial and deep tissue work to prepare the body for correction of subluxation. It just isn't the same...is unproven...and can actually aggravate your condition. But so many Chiropractors today are taking the 'rack 'em, crack 'em' approach and just don't want to spend any significant time with a patient. Their offices have turned into assembly lines....and ruined the profession.

Massage has been recognized for thousands of years as a great benefit especially to those engaged in a physical life such as martial artists. But who today will take the time...or can afford the skilled masseuse.

As my arthritis worsens with each year....I more and more appreciate Master Yang teaching me Chi Ro Bup. Now I just have to find someone I can trust to teach it to...who will help me as I get older. Finding the right person is very difficult. Chi Ro Bup by its nature is intimate (in the sense you have to put your hands on someone...and get them to relax. The tradition actually stems out of massage practices from India) so the situation can be abused. I've given a lot of massages...but I'm very careful who I am willing to give a 'full' massage to.

JH

Master Hancock...

this is interesting to me, can you explain more about this Chi Ro bop? being a practitioner of healing arts i'm always looking for new ways to make my patients feel better...even if its only to tell them about a method that i dont know. is it pressure points? energy healing? manipulation? all of the above?

if you dont feel like telling me or want to keep the discussion private feel free to email me. -J Tang Soo.

Well...Chi Ro Bup literally translates as 'To Heal Correctly' and it involves a type of massage that is both myofacial and deep tissue. The goal being to break up the toxins in the tissue and then assist the lymphatic system in moving them out of the body. It also involves techinques that are basically the same as western Chiropractic manipulations. It was just discovered by accident really that I am a natural at this stuff and so a little time was spent showing me different things. My education wasn't organized or formal by any means. Techniques vary depending on what you want to accomplish. One of the stranger things is a cupping techniques with the hand combined with with a percussion technique that makes a soft pop when struck on the body. The purpose of which is to stimulate the capalaries and increase blood flow to that area. Actually...from what I saw...this is pretty much common over in Korea...as sort of common folk medicine..but it is massage. Almost everyone knows a little. THey would do this stuff in the barber shops as part of the service. Hell...I was getting my hair cut three times a week!! LOL!! No wonder I have no hair today!!! ROFLMAO!!

JH

JH

Legally speaking, only MDs or DOs can prescribe homeopathic remedies.

You are right in saying that there is a chance of finding someone who doesn't know what they are doing, because there are a lot of people who, whether or not they have the proper credentials, don't have the proper respect for homeopathy. It's a powerful medicine, but because side effects are non-existent, some might dole it out like candy, without taking the necessary time and/or having enough knowledge. Acute situations are usually not a problem, but for deeper chronic conitions, it is essential to have a good homeopath. But isn't there the same chance of finding a mainstream medical doctor that doesn't know what they are doing? Proper credentials or not? I have certainly met many more than my fair share of those. So.......do you your homework, no matter what path you take, I guess.

You are correct sir,
In addition Chinese herbs are in a sense allopathic themselves and at times are abuses like prescription drugs. This does not happen with an AP (acupunture physician, that is what is used in Florida). Most of the the time it happens when Western Doctors experiment without much knowledge of Chinese diagnosis. Ma Huang (Ephedra) is a perfect example. Ma huang induces sweating. It is used in TCM as ateatment for Wind Cold or flu. It was not intended for weight loss. In europe they started to prescribe it for weight loss. The Chinese dose is about 3 gram a day as needed, in the weight loss medicines it was being prescribed as 21 grams a day. Basically the kidney's overwork themselves and the body goes in to renal failure. Long story short if these doctors would study the chinese diagnosis more indepth this would not happen. Not all doctors are like this but there are few that give all health practitioners and herbs a bad name.
DT

in addition in the state of Florida a MD can study acupuncture for 200 hours and then can needle at their discretion. Without any knowledge of chinese diagnosis! I have to study the full system for 3 years (which I do Not mind at all)because I am not an MD. a little biased if you ask me.
DT

Click on this link:

HERE!

or paste this in your browser window:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?CMD=Search&DB=PubMed

It will take you to the NIH PubMed (Medline database). You can put in 'acupuncture', 'homeopathy' or whatever you want to check out. Quite a bit of alternative medicines have been studied over the past 20 years..

Sir, I hope and pray that your daughter continues to improve, and lives a full and happy life.

Hello Mr. Steyer,

I find it unconscionable that alternative medicines are just now being seriously scrutinized by the US Government. It seems clear to me that an unbiased application of the Scientific Method will shed light on a subject plagued with anecdotal evidence. The scientific method makes no distinction between "herbal remedies" and "western medicine". It's merely an heuristic used to investigate the reality behind a claim. As such, results from an acupuncturist are as investigable as those of your local eurologist.

btw, the entire documentary is able to be viewed from that website.

As far as acupuncture being clinically proven by western methods, that can be a very dificult task. One of the procedures is having a "double-blind" test in which neither the patient nor the practioner knows whether or not they are getting or giving real acupuncture. On the side of the person giving the acupuncture, there are too many variables such as finding a point's proper location (a textbook location may not be what is called for during a treatment) and proper stimulation of the needles in order to have a realistic effect on the body. These are just two variables. When looking at western studies of acupuncture, many tests do not take these in consideration.

In my opinion, acupuncture is nothing but a science that we can't explain yet by western means. Remember that back in the day when people knew the medicinal usage for plants were called wicthes. For example, if a woman gave someone white willow's bark for a headache and they felt better, she was called a witch. Now a days they are called herbologists and pharmachologists.

just my $.02

Chris from CT

Hello Sir,

"As far as acupuncture being clinically proven by western methods, that can be a very dificult task. "

Difficult, but do-able.

The claim is that receiving acupuncture treatment will produce a benefit. As the Frontline special tested, some people were given a placebo (pretend needles), others were given actual acupuncture. One will then view the results. Did the actual acupuncture produce a SIGNIFICANT improvement of the placebo? If it did not, the claim of the efficacy of acupuncture is not helped...

"When looking at western studies of acupuncture, many tests do not take these in consideration. "

Though I cannot comment on the improved efficacy of electrically stimulated needles, acupuncture itself certainly ought to be effective without the juice. To claim otherwise would be to claim that the entire history of acupuncture was pure charlatanry up until a charge was put in the needles. I don't think many would make such a claim.

"Though I cannot comment on the improved efficacy of electrically stimulated needles, acupuncture itself certainly ought to be effective without the juice."

Absolutely. I should have made this more clear. When I said "stimulation," I was refering to the physical manipulation of the needles by the practitioners hand, not necessarily the addition of electrical stimulation. When a practitioner does acupuncture they are not just dropping a needile into a body at any given point. Although there are certain techniques, like those of Dr. Nguyen Van Nghi, that are inserted superficially with no physical stimulation, those are not the norm and are not for every patient nor treatment. Usually some type of manual manipulation is used once the needle is inserted.

Take care