Steve Woodley Acupuncture and Traditional Medicine

06/05/2026

The British Acupuncture Council responds to an article in the Economist about acupuncture for chronic pain and the age old question it asks about placebo effects.

Last weekend The Economist published an article and column by Health & Science writer Tim Cross asking 'Does acupuncture work?' BAcC Research and Policy Manager Ian Appleyard has responded to the interesting topics raised in the article, which you can read here https://www.economist.com/science-and-...

05/05/2026

If you have ever been interested in learning how to make products, the laws around their safety testing, the science of how it works and bringing them to market, there is no one better to learn from than Dr. Anthony Booker.

Besides being my PhD supervisor, he is also a member of the UK Herbal Medicines Advisory Committee, where he provides advice to the UK Government medicines regulators on matters concerning the phytochemistry and quality of herbal medicines.

Final call to join our Ethnopharmacy Full Module 🌿

Starting this Sunday, 10 May 2026, this 5-day module explores global herbal medicine through the lens of traditional knowledge, modern science, safety, quality control, regulation, and hands-on product making.

Led by Dr Tony Booker with guest experts from industry and regulatory affairs.

Join us:
📍 In person at our Manchester venue
💻 Or via live streaming

Perfect for practitioners, acupuncturists, herbalists, healthcare professionals, and anyone looking to deepen their understanding of medicinal plants and herbal safety.

This module can also be taken as CPD or counted toward the UKTATM Diploma in TCM.

Starts: Sunday 10 May 2026
Time: 9:00am – 5:00pm

Teaching Dates:

Ethnopharmacy 1 — 10 May 2026
Ethnopharmacy 2 — 31 May 2026
Ethnopharmacy 3 — 13 June 2026
Ethnopharmacy 4 — 28 November 2026
Ethnopharmacy 5 — 11 December 2026

Final places available.

Apply now: https://form.jotform.com/251614630964357?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAZnRzaARm6ulleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAaf-N1XyCBxkd6CTPqv8LOYvYXru3O7jyNNXpWVVtLUeQz6lJTqKMMpqhK6k0A_aem_lWGBffCfhFgbiOPtHYKzVg&utm_id=97760_v0_s00_e0_tv3_a1denngmjrhhl9

04/05/2026

Acupuncture uses infrared light in the form of moxa that emits many spectra and far infrared heat lamps but the best traditional way to get your dose is plenty of time outside in the sun and surrounded by green which reflects it back onto you.

Whether it can really repair muscles and make skin look younger is up for debate.

03/05/2026

Surgical repair of meniscal knee cartilage tears may cause more harm than good, according to a recent study. However, the Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) and the British Association for Surgery of the Knee (BASK) have continued to endorse the procedure.

Surprisingly, despite several positive reviews of acupuncture for oestoarthritis of the knee, including a recent systematic review and meta-analysis, there is a relative paucity of research on acupuncture for meniscal tears. However, a recent study of integrated Korean medicine, including herbs and acupuncture, for meniscal tears found that the inclusion of traditional Korean medicine provided benefits in pain and function that lasted a long time after treatment, implying this is an area worth exploring.

My own clinical and personal experience indicate this to be correct, whereby acupuncture can effectively control the pain and facilitate function which allows exercise to build strength and enable recovery from non-arthritic and arthritic knee pain.

People with meniscus tears who underwent surgery had poorer knee function and worse osteoarthritis after 10 years than those who did not

30/04/2026

Medicine is not just about length of life but also about how many of those years are spent being healthy and this report shows that this is now going backwards in the UK. This has been observed in the US too and these two countries tend to be the canaries in the coal mine that show what is likely to happen in other countries soon.

Acupuncture is a great way to help you stay active and sleep better which can reduce your chances of succumbing to chronic degenerative diseases that may not affect your lifespan directly but will severely affect your quality of life and that of those who must support you.

Herbal medicine also offers a number of options to supplement your diet in order to improve various health outcomes.

And of course, mitochondria lie at the root of all of this, governing our exercise capacity, detoxing whole we sleep, and being affected by our diet and lifestyle to change our health outcomes.

Check in with me if you want to learn more about the time tested ways mankind has used the natural environment to improve their mitochondrial health and live longer and healthier lives since written records began.

25/04/2026

SUN TEN are the supplier of Herbprime Co., Ltd, whose concentrated herbal powders I use primarily in my practice. One of the reasons I choose them is their commitment to sustainable, ecological cultivation practices. This article explores some of the advances they have made in the last decade with biomimicry, where crops are cultivated pesticide free by encouraging natural ecosystems to flourish.

This is part of what enables Herbprime to be awarded the Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine approved supplier status which requires suppliers to be audited for standards of safety, sustainability and compliance with the principles of no animal cruelty and no illegal trade in endangered species.

In today's pursuit of sustainable development, Sun Ten Pharmaceutical is embracing biomimicry-based, eco-friendly farming, opening a new chapter

22/04/2026

RCHM Approved Suppliers are specialized, audited companies providing safe, legal, and sustainable Chinese herbal medicines to practitioners. These suppliers undergo annual audits to ensure high standards, including contamination checks and CITES compliance.

Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine

14/04/2026

The Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine has issued a response to the BBC News article on topical steroid withdrawal whose sufferers face few options and even questions on the syndrome's existence from the medical establishment. However, there is no doubt that their suffering is real and Chinese medicine needs to be a part of that conversation. With 30 years of peer reviewed evidence and a tradition going back much further, it is definitely an option worth considering, because more steroids are clearly not the answer.

Two BBC News investigations by health reporter Ruth Clegg, published on 29 March 2026 and 11 April 2026, have brought the issue of topical steroid withdrawal (TSW) to national attention, generating millions of readers and hundreds of personal testimonies from people living with complex, treatment-re...

12/04/2026

This Finnish study on exercise, health and lifespan makes an excellent example of the role of mitochondria in Chinese medicine.

By comparing twins with different levels if physical activity, the researchers found that, after 30 years, there was a 7% improvement in overall mortality between the moderately active and the sedentary group, but that benefit disappeared in the highly active group. Both sedentary lifestyles and high levels of physical activity accelerated biological ageing equally.

This can be explained through the concept of mitohormesis whereby small stressors encourage adaptive benefits but excessive stress is maladaptive and potentially even harmful.

Chinese medicine has a similar paradigm that encourage moderate activity in forms like qigong and tai chi, and warnings that excessive physical activity will start to draw on your innate reserves and start reducing your potential lifespan once again.

Physical activity is seen as a way to extend the human lifespan, but Finnish twin studies found the benefits of physical activity for longevity may not be as straightforward as has been previously thought.

01/04/2026

The healing power of nature has long been recognised in Daoist healing art and was first formalised as a practice in modern times by the Japanese in the concept of forest bathing (森林浴 𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘳𝘪𝘯-𝘺𝘰𝘬𝘶).

The interesting part of this article is that it also looks at the benefits of bringing a little nature into your own space.

If this is something you would like to achieve, my partner at embbody has a masters degree in art and wellbeing focusing on the effects of biophilia, and can offer online consultations on how to organise and arrange your home or office space to bring the power of nature to you.

Spending just 20 minutes in nature can lower blood pressure, heart rate and stress levels.

31/03/2026

New clinic gadget: A near infrared lamp for photobiomodulation.

It provides the wavelengths 660, 850 and 940 nm, aimed at stimulating mitochondrial activity to accelerate tissue repair, reduce inflammation and enhance vascular health.

Combined with my existing TDP lamp that emits far infrared in the region of 5 - 25 μm, providing a deep, penetrating heat, and my daylight bulb that covers the full visible spectrum (380 - 780 nm), for adjusting circadian rhythms, I am able to offer a wide range of electromagnetic therapies that modulate mitochondrial activity.