Alternative medicine

Anatomy or system affected: All

Definition: A wide variety of medical practices and therapies that fall outside traditional, Western medical practice. The approaches emphasize the individual as a biopsychosocial whole, or, in some cases, as a biopsychosocial-spiritual whole. They deemphasize focusing treatment on specific diseases or symptoms.

Science and Profession

Alternative medicine—also known as natural healing, complementary medicine, integrative medicine, or holistic medicine —focuses on the relationship among the mind, body, and spirit. The underlying philosophy is that people can maintain health by preventing disease in the first place by keeping the body in “balance” and by utilizing the body’s natural healing processes when people succumb to disease. Alternative medicine approaches contrast with Western medicine’s traditional focus on treating symptoms and curing disease and its underemphasis on preventive medicine. Thought radical at one time, complementary medicines and therapies are gaining wide appeal as their anecdotal efficacy and reputation grow.

Alternative medicine practitioners treat everything from diseases such as cancer and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) to chronic pain and fatigue, stress, insomnia, depression, high blood pressure, circulatory and digestive disorders, allergies, arthritis, diabetes mellitus, and drug and alcohol addictions.

The major risks associated with alternative medicine include costly delays in seeking more effective treatment, misinformation, side effects from self-administered remedies, and psychological distress if patients believe they are responsible for their illness or lack of recovery. In addition, many alternative-medicine practitioners have little or no formal health training and may discourage traditional medical treatment or oppose proven health measures such asimmunization and pasteurization.

Diagnostic and Treatment Techniques

Numerous alternative medicine treatments exist. They vary widely in the nature of their claims, their acceptability to conventional doctors, and the manner in which they are tested. The treatments can be divided into three main types

The first type consists of those treatments that deal with the mind/body connection or that have recognized benefits and accepted applications and so are often used together with conventional medicine. These approaches include acupuncture and acupressure, biofeedback, chiropractic, hydrotherapy, light therapy, meditation, oxygen therapy, qi gong, sound therapy, Tai Chi Chuan, and yoga. The second type comprises treatments that can be tested by conventional methods and have some accepted applications. These treatments include aromatherapy, cell therapy, colon therapy, detoxification, energy medicine, enzyme therapy, homeopathy, kinesiology, magnetic field therapy, and neural therapy. Treatments of the third type are very difficult to study because they seem to be at odds with Western medicine and cannot readily be tested through standard methods. An example of this type of treatment is herbal medicine.

Acupressure and acupuncture. These treatments are both based on the belief that the body has a vital energy that must be balanced in order to maintain good health. Acupressure uses pressure from the fingertips or knuckles to stimulate specific points on the body, while acupuncture uses needles inserted into the skin to restore the balance of energy. Both acupressure and acupuncture have been shown to stimulate the release of endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers. Acupressure is useful for relieving chronic pain and fatigue and increasing blood circulation. Acupuncture has been used successfully for relieving chronic pain and treating drug and alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Although hepatitis, transmission of infectious disease, and internal injuries have been reported in connection with acupuncture, such problems are uncommon.

Biofeedback. This technique involves learning to control automatic physiological responses such as blood pressure, heart rate, circulation, digestion, and perspiration in order to reduce anxiety, pain, and tension. The patient concentrates on consciously controlling the body’s automatic responses while a machine monitors the results and displays them for the patient. Biofeedback can be useful in treating asthma, chronic pain, epilepsy, drug addiction, circulatory problems, and stress.

Chiropractic. Chiropractic treatment uses traditional medicine techniques such as x-rays, physical examinations, and various tests in order to diagnose a disorder. Muscle spasms or ligament strains are treated by manipulation or adjustment to the spine and joints, thus reducing pressure on the spinal nerves and providing relief from pain. Some research suggests chiropractic should be considered in treating certain types of lower back pain, as it is often superior to conventional interventions. Practitioners should be state-licensed, and caution should be taken with practitioners who often repeat full-spine x-rays or who ask patients to sign contracts at any time during treatment. Chiropractic is practiced either “straight,” involving only spinal manipulation, or “mixed,” involving other biomedical technologies such as electrical stimulation. Chiropractic treatment can be harmful if it is practiced in patients with fractures or undetected tumors or if it is practiced incorrectly.

Hydrotherapy. The use of water for healing or therapeutic purposes is termed hydrotherapy. It is used to treat chronic pain; to relieve stress; to improve circulation, mobility, strength, and flexibility; to reduce swelling; and to treat injuries to the skin. Because the buoyancy of water offsets gravity, more intense exercise can be done when standing in water, while a lower heart rate is maintained and pain is decreased. The risks associated with hydrotherapy are minimal, such as overdoing exercise, or rare, such as slipping or drowning.

Light therapy. Phototherapy, or light therapy, is used to treat health disorders that are related to problems with the body’s internal clock, or circadian rhythms. These rhythms govern the timing of sleep, hormone production, body temperature, and other biological functions. People need the full wavelength spectrum of light found in sunlight in order to maintain health. If the full wavelength is not received, the body may not be able to absorb some nutrients fully, resulting in fatigue, tooth decay, depression, hostility, hair loss, skin conditions, sleep disorders, or suppressed immune functions. Treatment involves spending more time outdoors, exercising, and using light boxes that mimic natural sunlight. Phototherapy is commonly used to treat seasonal affective disorder, a recognized subtype of depressive illness.

Meditation. Meditation is used to relax the mind and body, to reduce stress, and to develop a more positive attitude. By focusing on a single thought or repeating a word or phrase, a person can release conscious thoughts and feelings and enter deep relaxation. Meditation can affect the pulse rate and muscle tension and so is effective in treating high blood pressure, migraines, insomnia, and some digestive disorders.

Oxygen therapy. Hyperbaric oxygenation therapy, or oxygen therapy, is used to treat disorders in which the oxygen supply to the body is deficient. This therapy can help with heart disease, circulatory problems, multiple sclerosis, gangrene, and strokes. Oxygen therapy is also used for traumas such as crash injuries, wounds, burns, bedsores, and carbon-monoxide poisoning. Treatment consists of exposing the patient to 100 percent pure oxygen under greater-than-normal atmospheric pressure. The body tissues receive more than the usual supply of oxygen and so can compensate for conditions of reduced circulation. The increased oxygen helps keep tissues alive and promotes healing.

Qi gong. Qi gong (pronounced “chee-kung”) translates from the Chinese as “breathing exercise.” The Chinese believe that exercise balances and amplifies the vital energy force—Ch’i or qi—within the body. Qi gong is used to increase circulation; to reduce stress; to promote health, fitness, and longevity; and to cure illness. The most common exercises involve relaxation, strengthening, and inward training. Because the exercise involves movement done with gentle circular and stretching movements, people with decreased flexibility or disabilities can participate.

Sound therapy. The use of certain sounds can reduce stress, lower blood pressure, relieve pain, improve movement and balance, promote endurance and strength, and overcome learning disabilities. The body has its own rhythm, and illness can arise when the rhythm is disturbed. Tests have shown that particular sounds can slow breathing and a racing heart, create a feeling of well-being, alter skin temperature, influence brain-wave frequencies, and reduce blood pressure and muscle tension.

Tai Chi Chuan. Originally designed as a form of self-defense, Tai Chi Chuan is now practiced as physical exercises based on rhythmic movement, equilibrium of body weight, and effortless breathing. The exercises involve slow and continuous movement without strain. Tai Chi Chuan is beneficial because it demands no physical strength initially. The exercises increase circulation, stimulate the nervous system and glandular activity, and increase joint movement and concentration.

Yoga. The ancient art of yoga seeks to achieve the balance of mind, body, and spirit. Practitioners believe that good health is created through proper breathing, relaxation, meditation, proper diet and nutrition, and exercise. The deep breathing and stretching exercises bring relaxation, release of tension and stress, improved concentration, and oxygenation of the blood. The exercises can also provide muscle toning and aerobic respiration, which are beneficial to the heart.

Aromatherapy. Used extensively in Europe and Japan, aromatherapy involves the use of the essential oils or essence from the flowers, stems, leaves, or roots of plants or trees. These essences can be absorbed through the skin, eaten, or inhaled in vapor form. There is evidence that inhaling some scents may help prevent secondary respiratory infections and reduce stress. Practitioners believe that aromatherapy can benefit people suffering from muscle aches, arthritis, digestive and circulatory problems, and emotional or stress-related problems. Absorption through the skin and inhalation are considered safe, but eating any essence could result in poisoning.

Cell therapy. Although not approved in the United States, cell therapy is widely used worldwide. It involves the injection of cells from the organs, fetuses, or embryos of animals and humans. These cells are used for revitalization purposes; that is, they promote the body’s own healing process for damaged or weak organs. Cell therapy seems to stimulate the immune system and is used to treat cancer, immunological problems, diseased or underdeveloped organs, arthritis, and circulatory problems.

Colon therapy. This technique involves the cleaning and detoxification of the colon by flushing with water, using enemas, or ingesting herbs or other substances. A healthy colon will absorb water and nutrients and eliminate wastes and toxins. Most modern diets, however, are low in fiber, a substance that helps clean out the colon. Further, most people are relatively sedentary and eat acidic foods. For adults, most digested food takes fifty to seventy hours after digestion to move through the bowels. In contrast, evidence indicates that in the early twentieth century, fecal material was released within twelve to twenty hours after ingestion. A baby’s food is defecated within four to ten hours after ingestion. If not completely eliminated, layers of wastes can build up in the colon and toxins can leak into the bloodstream, causing many health problems. The thought is that the more time fecal material spends in the body, the more time there is for impacted feces, bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites, and toxemia to develop. Although not a specific cure for any disease, colon therapy removes the source of toxins and allows the body’s natural healing processes to function properly. Practitioners claim that symptoms related to colon dysfunction, such as backaches, headaches, bad breath, gas, indigestion and constipation, sinus or lung congestion, skin problems, and fatigue can be relieved when the toxins are removed from the colon.

A person trained in colonic therapy guides a speculum into the rectum and cleanses the area by gently guiding water, herbs, vitamins, or oxygen through the entire five feet of the colon. Enemas cleanse only the lower or sigmoid colon, which is only eight to twelve inches of the bowel.

Detoxification. This therapy focuses on ridding the body of the chemicals and pollutants present in water, food, air, and soil. The body naturally eliminates or neutralizes toxins through the liver, kidneys, urine, and feces, and through the exhalation and perspiration. Detoxification therapy accelerates the body’s own natural cleansing process through diet, fasting, colon therapy, and heat therapy. Symptoms of an overtaxed body system include respiratory problems, headaches, joint pain, allergy symptoms, mood changes, insomnia, arthritis, constipation, psoriasis, acne, and ulcers.

Energy medicine. Bioenergetic medicine, or energy medicine, uses an energy field to detect and treat health problems. A screening process to measure electromagnetic frequencies emitted by the body can detect imbalances that may cause illness or warn of possible chemical imbalances. One of several machines is then used to correct energy-level imbalances. Energy medicine claims to relieve conditions such as skin diseases, headaches, migraines, muscle pain, circulation problems, and chronic fatigue.

Enzyme therapy. This treatment uses plant and pancreatic enzymes to improve digestion and the absorption of nutrients. Since enzymes provide the stimuli for all chemical reactions in the body, improper eating habits may cause a lack of certain enzymes, resulting in general health problems.

Homeopathy. Based on the belief that “like cures like,” homeopathy is thought to provide relief from most illnesses. During therapy, the patient receives small doses of prepared plants and minerals in order to stimulate the body’s own healing processes and defense mechanisms. These substances mimic the symptoms of the illness. While studies on this approach remain inconclusive, homeopathic medicine has wide appeal, possibly because most (but not all) homeopathic practitioners are traditionally trained medical physicians.

Kinesiology. This therapy employs muscle testing and standard diagnosis to evaluate and treat the patient's chemical, structural, and mental aspects. The principle behind kinesiology is that certain foods can cause biochemical reactions that weaken the muscles. Diet, exercise, and muscle and joint manipulation are part of the treatment. There are risks of injury caused by an unqualified practitioner.

Magnetic field therapy. Also called biomagnetic therapy, magnetic field therapy uses specially designed magnets or magnetic fields applied to the body. Electrically charged particles are naturally present in the bloodstream, and when magnets are placed on the body, the charged particles are attracted to the magnets. As a result, currents and patterns are created that dilate the blood vessels, allowing more blood to reach the affected area. Magnetic field therapy is used to speed healing after surgery, to improve circulation, and to strengthen and mend bones. It is also used to improve the quality of healing in sprains, strains, cuts, and burns, and to reduce or reverse chronic conditions such as degenerative joint disease, some forms of arthritis, and diabetic ulcers.

Neural therapy. This therapy is used to treat chronic illness or trauma (injury) caused by changes in the natural electrical conductivity of the nerves and cells. Every cell has its own frequency range of electricity, and tissue remains healthy as long as the energy flow through the body is normal. Neural therapy uses anesthetics injected into the body to deliver energy to cells blocked by disease or injury. Conditions that respond to neural therapy are allergies; arthritis; asthma; kidney, liver, and heart disease; depression; head and back pain; and muscle injuries.

Herbal medicine. This field uses plants and flowers to treat most known symptoms of physical and emotional illnesses. An estimated 80 percent of the world’s population relies on herbal remedies as a primary source of health care, according to a 2014 Frontiers in Pharmacology article, and much of Western conventional medicine is derived from plants. However, herbal medicine mixtures can be complicated, and like any medications, can be toxic if taken incorrectly.

Perspective and Prospects

While relatively new to Western society and medicine, many alternative or complementary therapies are ancient and derive from nontechnological understandings of how the human body and the world work. What specifically works for whom, when, and for what conditions remains a complex problem. Anecdote and hearsay, and the limits and failures of Western medicine, guide and motivate interest in these approaches.

Renewed interest in alternative therapies occurred in the 1970s and has grown since. By 2012, an estimated 33 percent of all Americans had used some form of complementary therapy. In 1992, with Americans spending more than fourteen billion dollars annually on alternative medicine, the US government established the Office of Alternative Medicine (later renamed the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, or NCCAM) as a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH); in 2014, the office became the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH), reflecting yet another shift in the public perspective on the field to one of integrating conventional and complementary medical treatments. This office evaluates complementary treatments on a scientific basis and provides public information. Health insurers maintain a key interest in alternative medicine, and an increasing number are paying for it. Many traditionally trained physicians are prescribing or recommending some form of alternative medicine as a complement to their own.

In 2012, the NCCIH found that 33.2 percent of American adults and 11.6 percent of American children aged four to seventeen used some form of complementary or alternative medicine (CAM). Probiotics, prebiotics, and other non-vitamin, non-mineral dietary supplements constituted the most common CAM approach used. A 2004 survey indicated that, if one included megavitamin therapy and prayer associated with health concerns, the number of adults who use CAM was 62 percent. The survey found that the main reasons that people used complementary and alternative medicine were beliefs that it would improve their health when combined with conventional medicine, that it would be interesting to try, or that conventional treatment either would not or did not work. People most likely to use CAM were women, those with a high level of education, those who had been hospitalized in the last year, and former smokers. The NCCIH also found that the most commonly used alternative methods were natural products (such as supplements and the like), deep breathing exercises, and exercise such as yoga and thai chi.

The American Holistic Medical Association had hundreds of members; in 2014 it merged with the the American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine to form the Academy of Integrative Health and Medicine (AIHM). Physicians can become board certified in holistic medicine, meaning that they are committed to treating the whole person, emphasize prevention rather than merely treating symptoms, believe in integrating other modes of treatment and not limiting themselves to only Western medicine, and believe in the importance of the healing relationship and in treating the patient as a unique individual. In 2010, the AIHM reported that 43 percent of American medical schools offer complementary and alternative coursework and training, and the numbers are sure to increase as patient interest in it grows.

As public interest in alternative and integrative approaches has grown, so too has the field of academic inquiry into their efficacy. Research studies and clinical trials for natural products have become more common, and physicians often point out the difficulties in performing double-blind, placebo-controlled studies (considered the gold standard for research) with alternative medicine treatments, such as acupuncture. One is that creating a believable placebo or "sham" for such a technique is far more difficult than giving one person a sugar pill and another an active drug. Another is that the person administering the technique may convey suspicions about which treatment group is which and thus subtly affect the outcome. Herbal medicines and dietary supplements are not regulated or standardized, thus presenting problems in terms of dosing. Many skeptics dismiss the reported positive effects of alternative treatments as simply "placebo effect," wherein the individual's faith in the treatment actually causes the benefit, not the treatment itself. Nonetheless, the placebo effect itself demonstrates a strong mind-body connection, a key tenet of many alternative medicine systems.

Covid-19 and Alternative Treatments

Beginning in 2019, public responses to the Covid-19 pandemic, unfortunately, became influenced by political considerations as well as medical. “Alternative” treatments for Covid-19 became the preferred approach for large segments of the American population. In many cases, these were not aligned with the precepts of what traditionally had been considered alternative or complementary treatments. Many unprincipled and unethical persons took the opportunity to market products or cures that, in many cases, were toxic and did not contain a scientific or medical basis behind their claims as legitimate treatments. Others were drugs that had been developed for altogether different purposes. These large occurrences, as well as the level of misinformation circulating on social media sites, prompted a large government communication effort advising against such alternative treatments.

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