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Acupuncture Is All Placebo and Here Is Why
Author(s) -
McGeeney Brian E.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
headache: the journal of head and face pain
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.14
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1526-4610
pISSN - 0017-8748
DOI - 10.1111/head.12524
Subject(s) - acupuncture , misinformation , alternative medicine , medicine , faith , placebo , medline , psychotherapist , psychology , epistemology , pathology , law , political science , philosophy
Background Alternative and complementary medicines such as acupuncture remain popular with the general public and many clinicians. The term “integrative medicine” is often now used to describe this type of non‐science‐based medicine, which has become more of a faith‐based method of practice, making it harder to challenge. Acupuncture is commonly used to treat headache along with just about any other symptom and condition known to man. Discussion Physicians regularly fall into many misunderstandings when erroneously believing a real effect from acupuncture, when there is none. A perfunctory and poorly informed media contribute to the misinformation. Sixteen logical traps are identified which together explain most of the false reasoning behind the alleged effect of acupuncture. Conclusion Practitioners need to do a better job of discerning truth from information and data available on acupuncture.