I had IBS. I underwent 3 months worth of acupuncture at my wife’s behest, and I have to say that it worked.
I’m not a new age hippie spiritualist type - science and the scientific method are my dogma, I only accept what is demonstrable.
However, I understood almost immediately after my first acupuncture treatment that this was a viable option for me - each stick of the needle produced very strong physical reactions. It was quite stunning to be poked in one area and have another seemingly disparate area have a sudden strong reaction (a couple examples - a needle near the bellybutton invoked a highly electrical feeling from that point down to the scrotum, and a poke to the upper inner thigh muscle made my entire leg jerk in response).
In any event, 3 months after starting the treatments (12 treatments total), my IBS has reduced to nothing more than the occasional twinge.
Is it real? Beats me - any number of variables might have contributed to my eventual relief. Am I glad to have relief from my symptoms? Hell yes. Would I try it again for another reason? Yes - it can’t hurt (really, the poke of the needles is nothing), and in the best situation, can actually relieve the symptoms of the problem.
This might be the Cecil column the previous poster is responding to. It’s from 2000, but the key points remain valid today:
*"(1) People really, really want to believe acupuncture works.
(2) There’s pretty sparse evidence that it does.*"
Developments on the research/clinical trials front since then have shown that “sham” acupuncture (using a device that doesn’t actually puncture the skin) is as effective as “real” acupuncture, and using needles on a nonspecific basis works just as well as applying them in so-called meridians. Bottom line: it increasingly looks like acupuncture is yet another form of placebo. Placebos can be just what the, um, doctor ordered, especially for vague and/or chronic complaints incompletely addressed by mainstream therapies, or at least seem to work for a time in certain people, so have at it (assuming the acupuncturists’ sterilization procedures are adequate). Harm is unlikely to occur.
Incidentally, I was getting my reflexes tested once upon a time and the doc was surprised to see the vigor of my patellar reflex, until he noticed it was occurring a fraction of a second before the hammer hit my knee. I was certainly not aware of doing it. It’s interesting how we can unconsciously guide our responses.