How well do you know your acupuncturist? Do you know if they are fully trained in acupuncture or if they are minimally trained under the guise of medical acupuncture? There is a major difference! The majority of practitioners whose post graduate education and schooling is based in the field of Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine (AOM) receive about 80% of their education exclusively in the field. ...

Stay away from undertrained medical acupuncturists if you don’t want your lungs punctured. Acupuncture is one of the most popular complementary therapies in the world and it’s crucial to go to a licensed acupuncturist (L.Ac.) to avoid serious complications while avoiding medical doctors, chiropractors, and other practitioners with minimal acupuncture training calling themselves acupunc...

If you go to the site of the AMAA, the American Medical Acupuncture Association, there are many thoughtful studies that dedicated allopaths, as acupuncturists, have performed and published.  This is definitely a genuine contribution.  I believe that most of these practitioners have no interest in” taking over” as they are motivated by results and discovery. However, the Medical Acupunctu...

Your doctor, chiropractor, physician’s assistant or even physical therapist may say to you, “I do acupuncture”.  What they really mean is that they do neuromodulation (referring to the technique’s reputed ability to modulate, enhance or diminish, the effect of neurotransmitters) or trigger point needling (needling local points of nerve pain in muscles).  Often these practitioners will ca...

Although pneumothorax is reported to be a highly rare adverse effect relating to acupuncture, it is higher for those practicing medical acupuncture versus traditional or Chinese acupuncture (L.Ac.) It is not rude to question the qualification of the person who intends to treat you for a physical ailment, especially if they offer to perform a treatment secondary to their advertised expertise. Ask y...