The document compares and contrasts traditional and alternative medicines for pain relief. It discusses the long histories of both opioids and acupuncture dating back thousands of years. While opioids provide fast relief, they are highly addictive and do not treat the underlying cause of pain. Acupuncture aims to restore balance to the body's energy flow and has milder side effects but lacks extensive research support. The document examines how each approach works, common side effects, and when each may be best suited for different types of pain treatment.

1. Derrick Page
Ms. Zimmerman
ENG 102: W06
05 November 2018
Secrets of
Medicine
Comparing and Contrasting
Traditional Medicines vs Alternative Medicines

2. So You Are In Pain
 When it comes to pain relief, one of the most controversial debates is whether, traditional or
alternative medicine is the superior method.
 Traditional medicines like opioids, offering fast but short lived relief, has been under attack for
being addictive, unnecessary, and otherwise not treating the cause of the pain.
 Alternative medicine such as acupuncture is reported to give long term effects, however is under
scrutiny because there truly isn’t a lot of medical research supporting it.
 When seeking relief from continuous chronic headaches, back or neck pain it is important to
understand which treatment is best for you.
 Knowing the history, how they work, and side effects could help you determine which therapy to
use.

3. The Ancient Arts
 For centuries both types of medicines have been in practice.
 Early reference to opium date back to 3400 B.C. The Sumerians of lower
Mesopotamia called it Hul Gil or the Joy Plant. In 460-357 B.C the father of
medicine, Hippocrates prescribed drinking poppy juice with nettle seeds to
patients.
 Acupuncture originated in China. The Earliest documentation is in The Yellow
Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine, dating to 100 BCE. However, the Ice
Man Otzi, who died in about 3300 B.C. had markings similar to that of
stimulatory treatment involving acupuncture. (White and Ernst 2004)

4.  In 1806, German chemist Serturner named Morphine, an isolated substance
from the Hul Gil, after the god of dreams, Morpheus. The drug was used
commonly during the Civil War as a painkiller (Brownstein 1993)
 In the fifteenth century bronze statues with acupuncture points, that are in
use today, were depicted. They were used for teaching and examination
purposes.
 In 1853 the German company Bayer introduced heroin, a cough suppressant,
as an “non-addictive” alternative to morphine and In 1950 oxycodone
debuted on the market
 The Great Compendium of Acupuncture and Moxibustion was published
with principles of acupuncture between the 14th and 16th centuries under
the Ming dynasty. (White and Ernst 2004)

5. Taxation, Regulation, And Banned
 Despite each being deeply rooted in human history and culture, they both have, at
times, been banned and regulated.
 In 1909 congressed passed the Opium Exclusive Act stopping the import of opium
for smoking. 1914 brought the Harris Act which taxed opiates and requires
physicians and pharmacist to register for distribution and the Heroin Act of 1924
banned all sales of the drug.
 Labeled irrational and filled with superstitions acupuncture began to seen a decline
in the 17th century. The Emperor's decree of 1822 excluded it from the Imperial
Medical Institute
 With rise of Western medicine in the 20th century, acupuncture practices fell further
into disrepute. In 1929 it was outlawed in China only to be revived by the
Communist Government in 1949 and research institutes were established in the
1950s throughout China. (ZHANG 2016)

6. Revitalized
 Despite them both having long histories and being regulated and banned in some
form, traditional and alternative medicines are on the raise.
 AAssociated Press (AP) analysis showed that retail sales of five major painkillers
rose 90 percent from 1997 to 2005. (Potash 2007) With opioid based prescription
drug addiction on the raise its become more imperative to explore alternative
medicines for pain relief.
 In 2007, 38.3% of American adults and 11.8% of children used some form of
complementary and alternative medicine. (Barnes, Patricia M., et al 2008)
 Unfortunately, many have little to any understanding of how either works.

7. How Opiates work
 Opiates act by attaching to specific proteins called opioid receptors, which are
found on nerve cells in the brain, spinal cord, gastrointestinal tract, and other
organs in the body.
 When opiates attach to opioid receptors in the brain, spinal cord, and other areas of
the body and they change how the brain perceives pain.
 They produce feelings of pleasure or euphoria due in part by activating the reward
system to release more dopamine and endorphins.

8. How Acupuncture Work
 The acupuncture theory believes that energy flows within the human body which can be
channelized to create balance and health. This energy flow is called qi and pronounced
“chee”.
 These channels known as meridians that represent the 12 major organs and functions of
the body.
 Acupuncture involves the insertion of extremely fine needles into the skin at specific
"acupoints." This causes the brain to release endorphins, the body's natural pain-killing
chemicals.
 This affects the part of the brain that governs serotonin, a brain chemical involved with
mood. (Cline 2014)

9. Side Effects
 With two total different approaches to easing pain come also different results and side affects.
 The side affect that is most related to opioid medicine is that they are highly addictive.
 Caused by the brain recording the feelings of pleasure brought on by the opiate it cues the individual to
experience these feelings again by using more of the drug. The brain begin to produce fewer natural
opiates and less responsive to the drug to combat the over-presence of chemical. (Alotibi, Molook, et al
2017)
 Other side effects are constipation, drowsiness, nausea, and vomiting.
 The most severe side effects are slowed breathing and heart rate which have in many cases led to death.

10.  Unlike opiates, acupuncture have milder side effects.
 Initial side effects of soreness is experienced by new patients but become less
and less with each visit.
 Minor bleeding is common with the application of needle and can be severe
with patients that suffer from bleeding disorders or taking blood thinners.
 In rare cases needles have been know to break and cause damage to internal
organs.
 Unsterilized needles may lead to infections.
 The most severe side effect that can occur from acupuncture is a
pneumothorax.
 No life threatening event have ever been reported following acupuncture
treatment. (Cline 2014)

11. Which Will You Choose
 With both methods deeply rooted in human history and culture it may seem
that their practice will continue to raise.
 If you looking for quick relief that works immediately as with broken
bones, toothaches, any other traumas traditional medicines would be more
suitable and more likely prescribed.
 For ongoing chronic pains like head, neck, and back pains acupuncture
seems more fitting.
 Whatever the pain being experienced or your personal preference, a doctor
should be consulted and other factors such as quality of life, price, and
longevity of treatment should be considered.

12. Work Cited
Alotibi, Molook, et al. "Study of Analgesic Intake among Patients with Chronic Low Back Pain and their
Side Effects." The Egyptian Journal of Hospital Medicine, vol. 69, no. 5, Oct. 2017, pp. 2124-28.
InfoTrac Health Reference Center Academic, doi: 10.12816/0041070,
go.galegroup.com.ezproxy.otc.edu/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=T002&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searc
hResultsTy
pe=SingleTab&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm¤tPosition=32&docId=GALE%7CA517442635&d
ocTyp. Accessed 1 Dec. 2018.
Barnes, Patricia M., et al. Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use Among Adults and Children:
United States, 2007. Department of Health and Human Services Publication, 2008.
Brownstein, Michael J. A Brief History of Opiates, Opioid Peptides, and Opioid Receptors. The
National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 1993. JSTOR Journals, jstor-
org.ezproxy.otc.edu/stable/2362402 . Accessed 5 Dec. 2018.

13. Cline, Christy PhD. “Are There Any Side Effects of Acupuncture?”. Southwest
Integrative Medicine, edited byRobin Terranella, Dec. 2014,
swintgrativemedicine.com/side-effects-of-acupuncture. Accessed 1 Dec. 2018
Potash, Shana. "Prescription Pain Medicines—An Addictive Path?" NIH Medline
Plus, vol. 2, no. 4, Fall 2007, pp. 20-23.
White, A, and E Ernst. "A brief history of acupuncture." Rheumatology, vol. 43,
no. 5, 5 May 2004, pp. 662-63. Accessed 3 Dec. 2018.
ZHANG, Kuo, et al. "History and Literature: Origin and development of
acupuncture manipulation." World Journal of Acupuncture, vol. 26, no. 1,
Mar. 2016, pp. 34-41. ScienceDirect, doi: 10.1016/S1003-5257(17)30046-6,
doi.org/10.1016/S1003-5257(17)30046-6. Accessed 1 Dec. 2018.