The Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary defines alternative medicine as “any of various systems of healing or treating disease (as homeopathy, chiropractic, naturopathy, Ayurveda, or faith healing) that are not included in the traditional curricula taught in medical schools of the U.S. and Britain.” Alternative therapies have become increasingly popular as more and more people have become dissatisfied with conventional medicine and the impersonal nature of managed care. One of the most controversial alternative therapies, acupuncture, is even beginning to gain support within the medical community.

Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese practice that is based on the belief that the body’s vital energy, known as qi (pronounced “chee”), circulates through channels, called meridians, that connect to bodily organs and functions. Illness results when disharmonies develop that block the flow of energy through these meridians. Acupuncture involves inserting...