Now, the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the World Health Organization smile on certain uses of acupuncture; it is part of the array of therapies offered at the famed Memorial-Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and other well-known hospitals offering an integrative approach; and is often routinely added to a massage or trip to the orthopaedist or chiropractor. A million people use acupuncture each year, according to the NIH (half of all adults in the United States use some form of complementary or alternative therapy).

"Explained classically," says Peter J. Degnan, MD, adjunct assistant professor of community and family medicine at Dartmouth Medical College in Portsmouth, N.H., "the body contains a life force the Chinese call "chi," which we have translated to mean energy, though it is more than that. When the chi is in proper balance and flow, one has a sense of optimal wellness and health. Disturbance in the chi, on the other hand, results in ailments, such as pain and allergies."

Pain and allergies are just the beginning of the conditions for which acupuncture is offered. A study done at Cornell University shows that treatment with acupuncture can increase fertility in women by reducing stress and increasing blood flow to the reproductive organs (similar claims have been made with respect to erectile dysfunction). The technique also holds promise for helping people kick cocaine, according to one study from Yale University.

A recent study published in the Journal of Contemporary Pediatrics shows that despite children's legendary fear of needles, about half of the youngsters who submitted to acupuncture said they achieved significant pain relief and found the experience pleasant. (Acupuncture needles are very thin, not chunky like a needle used for an injection, and most people cannot feel them being inserted.)