Origins of Alternative Medicine
Blame It On Nixon!

It is a little known fact that when President Richard made his historic trip to China that this occasion opened the doorway to the use of alternative medical therapies in the United States. It so happened that the White House photographer Richard Maxwell developed a serious case of appendicitis while in Beijing. After medical consultation, it was determined that he must have an immediate appendectomy.

However, the surgery was unconventional by Western standards. The Chinese doctors used acupuncture to treat Maxwell and he was able to stay conscious and pain free throughout the procedure. Surprised by the effectiveness of the treatment and shorter recovery period than he expected, Maxwell became a huge fan of acupuncture and wrote articles supporting its use in the New York Times, Saturday Evening Post and Time Magazine among other media outlets.

Maxwell's endorsement provided a huge amount of credibility to the practice of acupuncture in this country. It also helped raise the public's interest in other alternative practices. Nixon's trip to China became one of the great springboards of the use of alternative medicine in this country. To quote Richard Ripley . . . "Believe It or Not!"