“The experts in the field claim …”;

Certainly, “experts” …

There are significant numbers of investigative medications, therapies, and interventions that are shelved after investigation reveals them to be ineffective or possessing an unacceptable side-effect profile, it’s called research and development. One has to wonder what a pharmaceutical company would do with a ‘procedure’ such as acupuncture if it were investigated as a medicine or therapy which would require FDA approval. It’s quite likely that it would be shelved as ineffective or at least as effective as a placebo. R&D would relegate acupuncture to the shelf where it belongs.

Sure, if they follow proper protocols so that their results are credible.

“This is a good question that could be asked about drugs (the drug companies fund the tests.) Or any other medical procedure. (doctors review the tests…). The problem as I see it is that if one must be ignorant to be unbiased, then only the ignorant will be considered to have valuable opinions. The more ignorant the more useful the opinion.
Clearly this doesn’t work.”

Your error is in assuming that only ignorance affords objectivity. Properly done research and testing controls for bias.

“A dose of doubt regarding claims might work, but it involves questioning those who are considered experts.”

Not so much as it involves careful review of their research and testing protocols and whether their findings have been replicated by others also employing proper protocols for research and testing.

Most of all, I’ve changed my mental and emotional perspective on chronic background and breakthrough pain. I’ve also educated myself quite extensively through quality medical sources about my condition. I’ve been under the care of a neurologist at the nearby medical school for a decade and a half. He and I have an active and enjoyable doctor+patient relationship and as advances in the scientific understanding of my medical condition have changed, we’ve worked together to keep the neuropathy portion of my medical care current and complete. I’ve also participated in some phase III, randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled clinical trials of neuropathy medications, so as a patient participant I’ve seen how knowledge is properly and correctly gained. Other than during the medication study times, I’ve taken anti-PPN symptom medications from various medication classes. I have no formal science background other than a college biology class 25 years ago, yet I do have the ability to read and understand scientific, rational, reasonable, and valid materials and know how to avoid being scammed.

A few years ago an acquaintance repaid me for a large favor my giving me a 12-session gift certificate ($900.00 value!) at an acupuncturist. Oddly, this acquaintance was a big supporter and user of acupuncture although he also concurrently claimed severe PPN after years of treatment. After calling the acupuncturist and discovering that the certificate was non-refundable, I decided I might as well use up the sessions.

The ‘holistic health’ center was quite lovely and after checking in, I was served a cup of green tea in a charming pottery cup and relaxed to calming newage music in the waiting hall. The accupuncturist took me into a small room with soothing sage green painted walls, a grass cloth accent screen, natural wood flooring and oriental rugs, aromatherapy candles blazing, indirect lighting, lovely Asian-themed artwork, cut flowers in a earthenware peasant vase, silk curtains nicely contrasting the pastel walls, and in the center of the room a treatment table rose up I can best describe as altar-zen-chic. I’d filled out a basic information sheet about my medical history and the smooth voiced practitioner was most interested in instilling a belief that accupunture worked better than ‘that toxic drug’ that my neurologist was prescribing. I duly used all the gift certificate treatments over a 12 week period and experienced absolutely no effect on my breakthrough peripheral neuropathy symptoms and nothing with the background pain. The accupunturist began each post-poking session with the same question, ‘How much better are you feeling?’ To which I answered, ‘Not any.’ Her: ‘Nothing?’ Me: ‘Some transient relief immediately after the treatment, but nothing after an hour or so.’ Her: ‘The longer you come for treatments, the longer each treatment will work.’ Me (to self): ‘Oh my.’ I was highly encouraged to believe in the treatment, which in my patient’s mind, confirmed the effectiveness of accupuncture as a placebo with expensive gating potential, nothing more. How I would laugh and walk out if my neurologist would advise me that I had to believe, really believe in the pills, capsules, and/or tablets he prescribed to ensure their effectiveness.

I know that my story is pure anecdote and should be considered only as the basis for a hypothesis, but it is my anecdote to share. Both the acupuncturist and the well-intentioned although scarily evangelical acquaintance blamed me for my failure to experience salvation through the healing powers of becoming a human pincushion. The acupuncturist went as far as to blame the failure on my refusal to cease taking my prescribed PPN anti-seizure class medication during the three months of her sticking me. I asked her how a prescription medication might prevent the effectiveness of her technique since they, um, like, sorta are based on, like, um, you know, like totally different modalities and the answer was a nonsensical mix of pseudoscience, affirmation slogans, and song lyrics (I’m not kidding, she actually quoted both a Joni Mitchell and a k.d. lang song to explain her ‘medical’ technique). If there was anything I learned, it was to trust in my own amateur critical reasoning and thinking skills and be endlessly and mildly amused at the tomfoolery that passes as alternative and complementary quackery.

Acupuncture is purely placebo, and all the “usable” studies show that its efficacy is directly in-line with mathematical chance, and nothing more.

Is there conflict of interest? Definitely. Look at any study that comes out of Asia; claims of 90% effective intervention. Until you find out there are no controls in place, and the placebo effect is tied to cultural affectation.

Acupuncture is right there with remote viewing and criminal profiling; utterly bogus when actual scientific methodology is applied. But that won’t stop it from being a “profession” that rakes in the money.