%0 Journal Article
%T The Holistic Effects of Acupuncture Treatment
%A Jing-Wen Yang
%A Qian-Qian Li
%A Fang Li
%A Qing-Nan Fu
%A Xiang-Hong Zeng
%A Cun-Zhi Liu
%J Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine
%D 2014
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2014/739708
%X Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), as a complex medical science which reflects philosophical principles and embodies large dialectical thought, is used to place the human body into a large system for observation. Acupuncture as a vital part of TCM, has been practiced to treat various diseases and symptoms. However, acupuncture is also facing severe challenges resulted from insufficient modern scientific research. Nowadays, the holistic effects of acupuncture can be researched by some modern approaches, such as the systems biology and fMRI technique. It is believed that having a better understand will greatly promote acupuncture research and be beneficial to scientization and modernization of acupuncture. 1. Introduction Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), as a complex medical science which reflects philosophical principles and embodies large dialectical thought, is used to put the human body into a large system for observation [1]. As we knew, there are abundant differences between TCM and modern medicine. For example, health means a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being in modern medicine, whereas the concept in TCM includes the unison between man and universe, the fusion of shape and soul, the people-oriented view of values, and the balance of qi-blood-yin-yang in the human body [2]. Acupuncture, as a vital part of TCM, has been practiced to treat various diseases and symptoms for more than 2500 years and been accepted by the society as a priceless treasure. Despite cultural differences, acupuncture is being used by practitioners in western nations. More and more studies have indicated that acupuncture is safe and effective in treating a wide range of diseases [3¨C8]. However, acupuncture is also facing severe challenges. One of the reasons is that the methodology used in the acupuncture research is unable to capture the holistic and dynamic nature of diseases [1]. Nowadays, we lacks necessary well-defined molecular mechanism and basis, although acupuncture has been effective in treating many diseases especially chronic illness [2]. To conduct a systemic analysis on human body and diseases under the guidance of holistic view will be an utmost important way for developing acupuncture. There have been many recent attempts to address these issues but most of them were still based on the ˇ°reductionismˇ± philosophy, whereas acupuncture is based on ˇ°holismˇ± philosophy. The human body, a complicated system, could be identified as a self-controlled system network. The network is connected by the meridian that exists in whole body.
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2014/739708/