Alternative therapies homeopathy

Complementary and alternative medicine, which includes a range of practices outside of conventional medicine such as herbs, homeopathy, massage therapy, yoga, and acupuncture, hold increasing appeal for Americans. In fact, according to one estimate, 42% of Americans have used alternative therapies. In all age groups, the use of unconventional healthcare practices has steadily increased in the last 30 years, and the trend is likely to continue, although people born before 1945 are the least likely to turn to these therapies. 

CAM. Data about 145 boys and 35 girls, with a mean age of 10 years, were obtained. The most popular form of alternative therapy was vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants (51%), followed by nutritional supplements (14%), herbs and botanical medicines (11%), massage (9%), chiropractic (4%), homeopathy (4%), and acupuncture (2%). (Horrigan et ah, 1998). An anecdotal report described the use of St. John s wort by four teenagers who were under psychiatric care (Walter and Rey, 1999). Three of the patients had been reluctant to reveal this to their psychiatrist, believing the doctor had no interest in alternative medicine or would disapprove of it. 

Alternative therapies like massage, acupuncture, hypnotherapy, and homeopathy are slowly growing in popularity people are constantly looking for new answers to old problems. 

Another aspect is the emerging use of various alternative therapies in certain hospitals, at the patients discretion, for example, at Beth Israel in New York City. As a physician declared, with regard to homeopathy, there are matters that go beyond science and its explanations. (The buzzword is that these alternatives give hope for... 

Turning to the June 2004 issue of the Townsend Letter for Doctors Patients, as mentioned earlier, a number of alternative cancer therapies are further explored for example, saunas, what are called vitaletheine modulators, photodynamic therapy, homeopathy, the oncotest, Coley s Toxins, and an overview of protocols. 

Alternative medicine includes (but is not limited to) the following herbal medicine, homeopathy, aromatherapy, chiropractic, osteopathy, acupuncture, acupressure, yoga, tai chi, meditation, music or art therapy, shamanism, and faith healing. In this chapter our focus is on herbal medicine. The increased use of herbal medicine outside of the traditional physician-patient paradigm represents a search for other sources of health as well as an expression of assuming greater responsibility for our own health maintenance. In one sense, it is a return to an earlier period. The shift from traditional medicine to modern medicine can be traced to the Flexner Report of 1910. 

Herbal products are considered a type of alternative medicine (e.g., herbal medicines, Chinese herbs, homeopathy, acupuncture, biofeedback, color therapy, music therapy, hypnotherapy, aromatherapy. Ayurvedic medicine, massage, therapeutic touch, Bach flower remedies, chiropractic, reflexology, naturopathy, and more). According to the Office of Alternative Medicine of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), characteristics of alternatives medicine include treatments that lack sufficient documentation in the United States for safety and effectiveness against specific disease and... 

Women often seek relief for premenstrual and perimenopausal symptoms from alternative or nontraditional treatments without consulting their health care providers. Herbal therapies, phytoestrogens, progesterone creams, megavitamins, folk remedies, and homeopathy are marketed to women without scientific evidence of efficacy or safety. Clinicians should ask women if they use alternative/ complementary therapies and become familiar with the products (e.g., mechanism of action, efficacy, dosing, side effects, monitoring, and drug-herb and herb-herb interactions). 

In recent years, Americans and others have tended to rely less and less on modern, scientific medical practices and remedies for treating many medical conditions. Popular magazines, television shows, and newspapers routinely include stories about alternative medical treatments, aromatherapy, herbal and natural remedies, magnet therapy, touch therapy, psychic healing, acupuncture, and homeopathy. The debate over the efficacy of such treatments continues. It is safe to say, however, that most, if not all, of these treatment methods have not been subjected to the same rigorous scientific standards as most modern medical practices and treatments. 

Complementary medicine refers to not scientifically proven therapies that are given in addition to conventional therapy (e.g. herb tea with antibiotics for pneumonia, and therapeutic touch), whilst alternative medicine often consists of therapies or remedies that are used alone in place of conventional therapy, e.g. zone therapy, healing, and homeopathy (Cassileth, 1999). 

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