How much do we need to be protected from quacks?

I recently saw this sign over a small shop in a mews behind Hastings' main shopping centre.  Among other establishments, the mews contains a dog-groomer, a reptile shop, a place to have your computer repaired, and a couple of alternative health establishments, of which Andrey Shipilov is one.

For me, the sign highlighted the difference in approach between the English and the French in matters relating to complementary medicine.  Basically, the French are suspicious of anything outside the mainstream.  When I told my French dentist that I was going to an osteopath she gave me a lecture about quacks and how I needed to be sure that I went to someone properly trained in France.  In the event I found myself in the hands of an excellent English osteopath who had been trained in the UK and been the first person to have her foreign qualification recognised in Aquitaine. 

The basic principle in French legislation is that the public needs to be protected from charlatans.  But I'm not convinced that the public is so dumb as the French legislators think.  Certainly Andrey Shipilov, who proclaims himself as a Russian doctor, appears to be under few constraints in his mews in Hastings.  I'm a fan of acupuncture and massage, having greatly benefited from both, but I'd not heard of Akabane testing.  When I saw the sign I immediately thought it was some additional quackery.  However, on Googling it, I came across a blog entry by Nora Franglen, founder of the School of Five Element Acupuncture in London.  This told me that Akabane testing was a way of testing an imbalance of energy between the two sides of the body, as a preliminary to treatment.

So the laugh is on me.  Yesterday I was laid low with a migraine, which usually involves a severe headache on my left temple and the left side of my forehead.  An excellent acupuncturist who has treated me in the past, explained to me several years ago that my migraines arise from an energy imbalance.  Foolishly, I had not located an acupuncturist here to continue the necessary maintenance treatment.  Paul has now rectified that, and I am due to see someone tomorrow.  I shall find out more about Akabane testing then. 

I may have reason yet to thank the Russian doctor for a tip.  Cupping, however, may be a step too far!

Antony Mair