Does Traditional Chinese Medicine Really Work?
Written By: Dr. Kristen Burris, DAcCHM Dual Board Certified Doctor of Acupuncture with a Specialization in Chinese Herbal Medicine
This is a question we get in our practice almost daily “Does Traditional Chinese Medicine Really Work?”. Even patients seeking our expertise still question the validity and efficacy of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Even our own doctor, practicing for 24 years, in our own private practice, had her own skepticism when she sought help for her pelvic pain, assumed endometriosis and PCOS nearly 30 years ago. It is a reasonable question. We didn’t grow up with this medicine and it is still not entirely incorporated into our medical system here in the United States of America.
However, a growing body of evidence shows that without a doubt, Traditional Chinese medicine not only works but it is exceptional at addressing thousands of health problems from infertility to anxiety to auto-immune conditions, many of which are very hard to treat with western medical treatments in the U.S.
Medical journals prove the efficacy in studies through western biomedical outcomes and personal patient experiences.
Bell’s Palsy: For patients using Traditional Chinese Medicine in combination with allopathic, medical approaches improved patients symptom scale significantly. The scores prior to the treatment group was 2.907 +/- 1.794, while the control group reported 2.931 +/- 2.034. The scores after acupuncture treatment of the trial group was 18.593 +/- 1.743, whereas the control group was 9.862 +/- 3.091. Observing the scores of the function of facial muscles obtained from the acupuncture group was distinctly higher than that of the control group (Wang et al, 2004). The improvement of facial muscles motor function before and after acupuncture treatment, combined with quantitative evaluation of curative effect, can be objectively read by evaluation of facial muscle functions.
Back Pain with Lumbar Disc Herniation with Sciatica: A randomized clinical trial published in the esteemed Journal of American Medical Association, JAMA Internal Medicine found that acupuncture significantly reduced leg pain and disability experienced in patients with chronic sciatica originating from lumbar disc herniation. Those who received real acupuncture (not sham acupuncture) documented and reported clinically meaningful improvements that continued for a minimum of one year. This further proves acupuncture as a viable treatment for long-term symptom relief from low back pain, disc herniation and sciatica pain. (Tu et al 2024)
Headaches: A significant case series was published in the journal, Neurological Sciences, showed acupuncture is an effective, preventive use of natural medicine for cluster headaches (CH), with all four patients in the study experiencing complete cessation of pain or attacks following treatment. Although a small study of patients a significant and profound finding with all having no pain afterwards offering a viable alternative to medications for headaches (Fofi et all 2014).
Hair Loss and Balding: The Traditional Chinese Treatment application of Shen Bai Hair Growth Decoction, significantly promotes hair growth and reduced local inflammation in a mouse model study of androgenetic alopecia. The profound study findings support its recommendation as a non-hormonal, herbal-based, topical treatment that stimulates modulating inflammatory cytokines and enhancing follicular proliferation. This study warrants future human studies to validate its clinical efficacy. (Gu et al, 2024)
Erectile Dysfunction: Male participants in an acupuncture group demonstrated significant improvements in IIEF-5 scores from baseline to week 6, with sustained benefits observed at the follow-up session. Improvements in EHS, SEP-2, and SEP-3 scores further indicated enhanced erection hardness and satisfaction during sexual activity in the acupuncture group.
Additionally, psychological measures showed that acupuncture was able to alleviate anxiety and also mental depression, as recorded by reduced SAS and SDS scores. These scores highlight the dual physical and emotional benefits of acupuncture for erectile dsyfunction.
The study also tracked performance and emotional wellbeing from a biomedical perspective. The study tested reductions in serum cortisol levels in the acupuncture group, proving a decrease in stress, a major contributing factor to the psychological difficulties while experiencing erectile dysfunction. Additionally, a functional MRI (fMRI) scans showed enhanced activity in the prefrontal cortex and limbic system regions of the brain, correlating improved psychological and sexual function in the participants. (Yu et al, 2024).
Traditional Chinese Medicine has not only survived several millennia but is thriving in integrative medicine in the U.S. and abroad. This is significant, due to the fact that most insurance companies do not cover all the aspects of this medicine. That too is changing because insurance companies are starting to recognize the financial benefits of acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Herbal medicine compared to the expense of surgery, a lifetime of medications and other physical therapies that often require on-going treatment. Traditional Chinese Medicine, including acupuncture and herbal medicine is the fastest growing integrative medicine in the United States due to it’s highly effective nature in difficult to treat diseases and syndromes.
Gu, Lijuan, et al. “Study on the Efficacy and Potential Mechanism of Topical Shen Bai Hair Growth Decoction on Androgenetic Alopecia.” ACS Omega 9, no. 3 (2024): 3570–3579.
L. Fofi, G. Allais, P. E. Quirico, S. Rolando, P. Borgogno, P. Barbanti, and C. Benedetto, “Acupuncture in cluster headache: four cases and review of the literature,” Neurological Sciences 35, no. S1 (2014): 195–198.
Tu, J., Shi, G., Yan, S., et al. “Acupuncture vs Sham Acupuncture for Chronic Sciatica From Herniated Disk: A Randomized Clinical Trial.” JAMA Internal Medicine. Published online October 14, 2024
Wang XH, Zhang LM, Han M, Zhang KQ, Jiang JJ. [Treatment of Bell's palsy with combination of traditional Chinese medicine and western medicine]. Hua Xi Kou Qiang Yi Xue Za Zhi. 2004 Jun;22(3):211-3. Chinese. PMID: 15293466.
Yu, L., Zhang, Q., & Zhao, X. “Acupuncture for Psychogenic Erectile Dysfunction: A Randomized Controlled Trial.” Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, vol. 45, no. 2, 2024, pp. 89–98.