In today’s society, the pharmaceutical companies seem to be taking over the world. Every time you turn around there’s a pill to “fix” any problem you might have. While sometimes medications are appropriate, many ailments can be treated or prevented by making simple lifestyle changes or by less invasive, natural approaches. Only you and your clinician can decide what is best for you. So before you pop another pill or an herbal remedy, educate yourself on your conditions – including prevention and treatment options – you might be surprised at what you find.

Natural Health Care

Since the first national study on the use of complementary and alternative medicine in 1993 and a follow-up study in 1997, the delivery of health care services in the United States has been altered by a new and more broad awareness of the fact that health care consumers are not only using non-medical approaches in large numbers; these consumers are also spending a great deal of money on these approaches out of their own pockets.  In addition, early survey information shows that natural health care consumers are rarely telling their medical physicians about their experiences.

The reasons for this large shift to alternative health care resources are often complex. For some, they are rooted in dissatisfaction with the relationship they have with their medical doctor(s). For others, clinical outcomes of problems, conditions or complaints may not be to their personal standards.  An interest in different approaches, such as Eastern versus traditional Western philosophies, may also play a part. Some people consider Western medicine to be "alternative" to these well-established professions and systems of healing.

When these types of care are discussed, the terms that are used are often confusing and vague. Trying to determine what can be considered to be alternative, complementary, or natural becomes very pertinent when you remember that many medicinal substances come from nature, although mostly all go through some type of modification before they are consumed. At what point do you say that something is "natural" or not? Some choices are obvious, and some are not.

Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), as defined by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), is a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices and products that are not presently considered to be part of conventional medicine. While some scientific evidence exists regarding CAM therapies, most are left with key questions that have yet to be supported by well-designed scientific studies – questions such as whether they are safe and whether they work for the diseases or medical conditions for which they are used.

The list of what is considered to be CAM changes continually, as those therapies that are proven to be safe and effective become adopted into conventional health care and as new approaches to health care emerge.

Differences Between Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Although complementary and alternative medicine both fall under the umbrella of natural health care, they differ slightly from each other:

• Complementary medicine is used together with conventional medicine. An example of a complementary therapy is using aromatherapy to help lessen a patient's discomfort following surgery.

• Alternative medicine is used in place of conventional medicine. An example of an alternative therapy is using a special diet to treat cancer instead of undergoing surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy that has been recommended by a conventional doctor.

Major Types of Complementary and Alternative Medicine

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) classifies complementary and alternative therapies into five categories, or domains:

• Alternative Medical Systems: These medical systems are built upon complete systems of theory and practice. They have often evolved apart from, and earlier than, the conventional medical approach used in the United States. Examples of alternative medical systems that have developed in Western cultures include homeopathic medicine (link to section) and naturopathic medicine (link to section. Examples of systems that have developed in non-Western cultures include Traditional Chinese Medicine (link to AOM section) and Ayurvedic Medicine (link to section).
  
  
• Mind-Body Interventions: These interventions use a variety of techniques designed to enhance the mind's capacity to affect bodily function and symptoms. Some techniques that were considered CAM in the past have since become mainstream. An example of this is patient support groups and cognitive-behavioral therapy. Other mind-body techniques that are still considered CAM, include meditation, prayer, mental healing and therapies that use creative outlets such as art, music, or dance.
  
  
• Biologically Based Therapies: These therapies use substances found in nature (such as herbs, foods, and vitamins). Some examples include dietary supplements, 3 herbal products, and the use of other so-called "natural" but scientifically unproven therapies (for example, using shark cartilage to treat cancer).
  
  
• Manipulative and Body-Based Methods: These methods in CAM are based on manipulation and/or movement of one or more parts of the body. Some examples include chiropractic or osteopathic manipulation and massage.
  
  
• Energy Therapies: These therapies involve the use of energy fields. There are two types:
• Biofield therapies are intended to affect energy fields that are thought to surround and penetrate the human body. The existence of such fields has not yet been scientifically proven. Some forms of energy therapy manipulate biofields by applying pressure and/or manipulating the body by placing the hands in, or through, these fields. Examples include Qi gong, Reiki, and Therapeutic Touch.
• Bioelectromagnetic-based therapies involve the unconventional use of electromagnetic fields, such as pulsed fields, magnetic fields, or alternating current or direct current fields.

Sources:

Eisenberg DM, Kessler RC, Foster C, Norlac FE, Calkins DR, Delbanco TL. Unconventional medicine in the United States. Prevalence, costs, and patterns of use. New England Journal of Medicine 1993; 328(4): 246-252.

Eisenberg, DM, Davis, RB, Ettner, SL, Appel, S, Wilkey, S, Van Rompay, S, Kessler RC. Trends in Alternative Medicine Use in the United States, 1990-1997: Results of a Follow-up National Survey, JAMA 1998; 280:1569-1575.

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM)