The first of two Confucius Institute seminars on traditional Chinese medicine ended Saturday with six needles sticking out of a student’s head.

The seminar in Gaylord Hall, featuring certified doctor Xiaohai Li, D.O.M., was held to commemorate the 30-year anniversary of the establishment of American-Chinese diplomatic relations. Western medicine increasingly accepts the alternative Eastern brand, including acupuncture.

“I strongly believe the successful development of the Sino-U.S. relations largely rely on people-to-people interaction. Chinese medicine can greatly increase the interaction between Chinese and Americans on the personal level,” said Sharon Gou, director of the Confucius Institute.

She said the demand to understand Chinese medicine has grown quickly in recent years, and the institute wanted to meet that demand when it was deciding which free seminars and workshops to offer.

“We chose to offer a traditional Chinese medicine seminar because it is a major part of Chinese culture, and probably the most recognized,” said Amy Liu, Confucius Institute managerial associate.

Li is a traditional medicine professor and practitioner in Norman. He received his medical degree at Beijing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in 1982 and moved his practice to the U.S. in 1989.

“Chinese medicine is a more natural form of medicine and it looks at the whole body for diagnose,” Li said. “Many American doctors understand Chinese medicine and highly recommend or favor it when western medicine isn’t enough.”

Oklahoma is one of the four states in the U.S. that does not require licensing and certification to practice Chinese medicine professionally.

“We need to talk to our state senators and representatives and have them change the requirements in Oklahoma,” Li said. “Acupuncture is more than poking someone in the right places on the body, other techniques, such as moving the needles, are very important in curing the body’s ailments.”

At the end of the seminar, Li took volunteers to demonstrate his acupuncture skills and stood by to answer any medical questions.

“[Chinese medicine] is something that I have always been interested in. It is pretty much the original start of medicine,” letters sophomore Samantha Mohr said. “I was surprised to learn how large acupuncture needles are and that they don’t hurt.”