Acupuncture is recommended for the NHS as treatment for back pain
Thursday, May 28th, 2009Acupuncture has been recommended as treatment for back pain on the National Health Service in the UK.
It is the first time the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has explicitly backed the use of any complementary therapies.
So this is very important news indicating credibility for acupuncture.
Acupuncture is already at the top of the complementary therapies but has never been recognised by NICE.
Back pain costs the country billions in terms of lost days, and with an aging population slumped in front of a computer or the TV screen, it can only be expected to get worse. So to some extent this may be a cheaper alternative to expensive pills, days in hospita, and certainly days lost to productive work.
This is however a very significant move forward. Maybe pills and potions are beginning lose their authority – even to the medical establishment – and perhaps the side effects are also being factored in to the treatment.
Women who want to want to turn infertility around naturally prefer to consider acupuncture before IVF and IUI, but we are not aware that the general public would think of acupuncture for back pain. It will be interesting to see what effect this recommendation has. The cases of back pain treated by Andrew Loosely at Healthwise Clinic have to date been as a result of people who know and trust the clinic already: they have sometimes been surprised that acupuncture can relieve back pain.
The World Health Authority has been recommending acupuncture for back pain for many years. But they have a a higher regard for traditional medicine as it is so effective in many countries of the world where western medicines are expensive or inappropriate. In “developed” countries pill-popping to mask symptoms has been the orthodox view.
This is an exciting development. However a word of caution .. not all acupuncturists are created equal .. so it is important to find a practitioner who has qualified thoroughly in acupuncture, rather than simply had an additional module as part of another type of training.
NICE is recommending three different types of treatment… including physical exercise according to the BBC.
Acupuncture can be very effective not only with the pain, but in terms of strengthening the body to prevent ill-health. Of course prevention is better than cure, and a gentle exercise programme, the right diet and an enlightened attitude in harmony with the environment is the best defence. Back pain is not just back pain but part of lifestyle choices and even attitude.
