Acupuncture has a long and fascinating history. Its origins are closely associated with the development of medicine in ancient China, although the acupuncture practised today has changed considerably over time.

It is often said that acupuncture is thousands of years old. While there is certainly a long history behind it, putting an exact date on the beginning of acupuncture is difficult. The theories, techniques and even the needles themselves developed over many centuries.

Modern acupuncture is therefore not simply an ancient treatment that has remained unchanged. It is better understood as a medical tradition that has continued to evolve, eventually giving rise to a number of different approaches that are practised today.

The history of acupuncture is more complicated than is sometimes suggested.

Its theories, techniques and prominence within Chinese medicine changed over the centuries. Acupuncture was also only one part of a much broader medical tradition that included herbal medicine, dietary approaches, massage and other practices.

Historical scholarship suggests that acupuncture declined in prominence during some periods before being revived and reorganised in its more modern forms.

This changing history helps explain why practitioners today may all use acupuncture needles but differ considerably in how they assess a patient, select points and understand what they are trying to achieve.

It is perhaps more accurate to think of acupuncture as a family of related approaches, rather than one completely uniform treatment.

The history of acupuncture is more complicated than is sometimes suggested.

Its theories and techniques changed over the centuries and its prominence within Chinese medicine also varied at different periods. Acupuncture was one part of a much broader medical tradition that included herbal medicine, dietary approaches, massage and other practices.

Indeed, acupuncture has not enjoyed an uninterrupted position of importance throughout Chinese medical history. Historical scholarship suggests that its prominence declined considerably during some periods before being revived and reorganised in more modern forms.

Different ways of understanding and practising acupuncture subsequently developed.

Some of these differences can still be seen in modern practice. Practitioners may share the use of acupuncture needles but differ considerably in how they assess a patient, select points and understand what they are trying to achieve.

That diversity is one reason it is probably more accurate to think of acupuncture as a family of related approaches, rather than one completely uniform treatment.

Descriptions of acupuncture reached Europe centuries ago, and there were periods of medical interest in the practice during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Its profile in the West increased dramatically, however, during the twentieth century.

A particularly interesting chapter began in 1971 when New York Times journalist James Reston underwent an emergency appendectomy while visiting China.

His operation was performed using conventional anaesthesia, but acupuncture was subsequently used when he experienced postoperative discomfort. Reston wrote about the experience in the New York Times, bringing acupuncture to the attention of a huge American audience.

The following year, President Richard Nixon made his historic visit to China. Members of the American delegation encountered Chinese medical practice, and reports of acupuncture — including its use in surgical analgesia — attracted considerable attention.

Nixon himself did not receive acupuncture, despite this sometimes appearing in retellings of the story.

Acupuncture was already known in the West, but these events brought it to a much wider public audience and stimulated considerable medical and scientific interest during the 1970s.

Britain played an interesting part in the modern development of acupuncture, with several quite different approaches becoming established during the twentieth century.

Two influential figures in the development of traditional acupuncture education in Britain were J.R. Worsley (1923–2003) and Dr J.D. van Buren (1921–2003).

Worsley became particularly associated with the development and teaching of Five Element acupuncture, establishing the College of Traditional Acupuncture in Warwickshire. His teaching had a considerable influence in Britain and internationally.

Van Buren founded the International College of Oriental Medicine (ICOM) in 1972 and became particularly associated with the application of traditional Stems and Branches theory.

Their approaches were different, but both played important roles in establishing traditional acupuncture education in Britain.

You can read more about one of these traditions on our Five Element Acupuncture page.

A different approach was developing within the British medical profession.

Dr Felix Mann (1931–2014) became interested in acupuncture during the 1950s and subsequently taught it to other British doctors. Regular meetings of doctors interested in acupuncture eventually contributed to the formation of the British Medical Acupuncture Society (BMAS) in 1980, with Mann as its first president.

Mann's thinking changed considerably during his career. Although initially influenced by traditional acupuncture, he became increasingly sceptical of traditional explanations surrounding acupuncture points and meridians and explored how needling might instead be understood through anatomy and physiology.

This helped shape the development of Western medical acupuncture, where acupuncture is considered predominantly in relation to contemporary physiology, the nervous system and pain mechanisms.

You can read more about this approach on our Medical Acupuncture page.

Britain was also important in the academic study of acupuncture.

In 1980, historians of Chinese science and medicine Lu Gwei-Djen and Joseph Needham published Celestial Lancets: A History and Rationale of Acupuncture and Moxa.

The book became an important English-language scholarly account of acupuncture's historical development. Lu and Needham were also interested in whether aspects of acupuncture could be understood using contemporary physiology.

Some of their interpretations have subsequently been questioned or developed as historical scholarship and scientific research have progressed, but Celestial Lancets remains an important landmark in the Western academic study of acupuncture.

Traditional and medical acupuncture were, for much of the twentieth century, often presented as quite separate - and sometimes opposing - approaches.

Important differences remain. Traditional acupuncture may use concepts such as qi, channels and traditional diagnostic patterns, whereas medical acupuncture predominantly interprets needling through contemporary anatomy and physiology.

There is, however, greater professional dialogue today.

Organisations representing different approaches to acupuncture in Britain - including the British Acupuncture Council, British Medical Acupuncture Society and Acupuncture Association of Chartered Physiotherapists - have collaborated on professional statements and issues of shared interest.

Their underlying theories have not become the same, but there is considerably more common ground around research, evidence, safety and professional standards.

Acupuncture is now practised internationally in a variety of healthcare settings and by practitioners from different professional backgrounds.

Some practitioners work predominantly within Traditional Chinese Medicine. Others practise Five Element acupuncture or Medical Acupuncture, while many draw upon more than one approach. Other developments include Auricular Acupuncture and Electroacupuncture.

Our guide to the different types of acupuncture explains these approaches in more detail.

Research into acupuncture has also expanded enormously. Contemporary research has investigated effects involving sensory and pain-processing pathways, endogenous pain modulation, the nervous system and other physiological processes.

Importantly, the evidence is not the same for every condition. It is therefore more meaningful to consider the evidence for a particular clinical problem than to make broad claims that acupuncture either “works” or “doesn't work” for everything.

Exeter Acupuncture has been providing acupuncture in the Exeter area for many years.

We are now based at Estuary Clinic in Topsham, Exeter, where acupuncture is provided within a multidisciplinary clinical environment alongside osteopathy, podiatry and other healthcare services.

Our own approach reflects some of the history described above. We have training and experience in traditional approaches to acupuncture while also taking a strong interest in contemporary anatomy, physiology, pain science and clinical research.

We don't see this as requiring an uncritical choice between traditional and contemporary approaches. Traditional theories can be understood within their historical and clinical context, while contemporary research allows us to investigate what happens physiologically when acupuncture is performed and what the clinical evidence actually shows.

Treatment is considered in the context of the individual patient, their presentation and the available evidence.

You can find out more about acupuncture in Exeter or meet John Wyn Parry and Lisa Roberts.

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2. Lehmann H. Acupuncture in ancient China: how important was it really? Journal of Integrative Medicine. 2013;11(1):45–53.
3. Kuo WH. An Ecumenical Medicine Yet To Come: Reflections on Needham on Medicine. Isis. 2019;110(1).
4. Baldry P. The origins and early development of the British Medical Acupuncture Society. Acupuncture in Medicine.2005;23(1):2–5.
5. Chen T, Zhang WW, Chu YX, Wang YQ. Acupuncture for Pain Management: Molecular Mechanisms of Action. American Journal of Chinese Medicine. 2020;48(4):793–811.
6. Leung L. Neurophysiological basis of acupuncture-induced analgesia—an updated review. Journal of Acupuncture and Meridian Studies. 2012;5(6):261–270.