TAIWAN: According to VnExpress, Taiwanese actress Joe Chen is facing some backlash for using acupuncture to help her lose weight and keep her skin looking young. Critics are worried because the method seems painful, and they say there’s insufficient scientific proof that it works.
On June 6th, the actress revealed on her Weibo page that she was undergoing cosmetic acupuncture treatment, a detail reported by Znews and Sina.
More than a hundred needles
Imagine this: more than a hundred needles all over her body! But she swears it works wonders, claiming it keeps her skin looking young, helps her manage her weight, gets her blood flowing, eases her back pain, tightens her pores, lifts her face, and brightens her skin.
The actress shared that the treatment works by hitting specific acupuncture points to help your body feel better. However, she admitted it’s incredibly painful and most people probably wouldn’t be able to stick with it.
She shared that her back and legs were the absolute worst spots for the pain. She remembered, ‘My friend seriously cried out loud during the treatment.’ And despite her own high pain tolerance, she admitted she could only continue for a week.
Positive effects
Despite the intense pain, the actress shared that she personally experienced the positive effects the treatment brought.
She explained that she’d been dealing with leg numbness from a filming injury and wanted to get it treated. “After just two acupuncture sessions, I made a miraculous recovery and don’t feel any pain anymore,” she shared.
Because of the pain, a lot of social media users have voiced reluctance to utilise the procedure. Beyond the pain, some users also brought up concerns about whether the method’s supposed benefits are actually backed by science.
Concerned netizens
A netizen said that the process looked painful and that women go through a lot to look good. Another said that a truly experienced practitioner did not need to use so many needles. It only requires a few dozen at most.
They added that it looks like ‘overkill,’ warning that if the acupuncture points aren’t hit correctly, it could even cause facial paralysis, which is a really serious danger.
Chen, who’s 46, is a really big deal in TV dramas – she’s pretty much earned the title ‘Queen of Idol Dramas’ for starring in all those popular hits like ‘The Queen of SOP’, ‘Fated to Love You’ and ‘The Prince Who Turns Into A Frog.’
Last month, after hitting up Lady Gaga’s concert in Singapore, she ended up with stomach pains and diarrhea that eventually put her in the hospital with appendicitis.
She’s married to Malaysian businessman Alan Chen. Their story began on the Chinese dating show ‘Meeting Mr. Right 2’ in 2019. This is followed by their wedding in 2022 in a ceremony in Langkawi, Malaysia.