The trouble with most of these remedies, in the view of many members of the Medical establishment, is that, by normal standards of scientific investigation, they don't really work, and they are based on utterly fantastical theories about how the human body works. By inserting very thin needles into points along these meridians, various ailments can be cured or pain alleviated. Western science has never found empirical proof of the existence of these meridians or any relationship they might have with, say, back pain, or hemorrhoids, or allergies. The acupuncturist argues, well, they must exist because acupuncture works. There is, in fact, a good deal of anecdotal evidence that acupuncture can be effective in treating certain conditions.
Some alternative remedies offer maddeningly mystical explanations of how they work.
Therapeutic touch claims to modulate the patient's energy field, detect imbalances, and then redirect the energy to locations in the body requiring healing. Reiki claims to draw the body's own healing power back into itself, through the channeling of the reiki therapist. Iridologists claim to detect symptoms in the patterns of the iris. A bit like reading your palm, and about as convincing, to the scientific establishment. Most people don't care about the theoretical underpinnings of alternative medicines.