The Dramatic Rise in the Use of Alternative Medicine

In 1993, The New England Journal of Medicine (280(18):1569-75) published the results of a survey into the use of what it called then "unconventional medicine". The study was conducted in 1990 and served as a wake-up call to conventional medicine in that the use of alternative forms of medicine was far greater than first thought.

The study was repeated in 1997 and confirmed that "alternative medicine use and expenditure have increased dramatically from 1990 to 1997"

Alternative medicine was defined in the article as the following 16 therapies: relaxation techniques, herbal medicine, massage therapy, chiropractic care, megavitamins, self-help groups, imaging techniques, commercial diets, folk remedies, lifestyle diets, energy healing, homeopathy, hypnosis, biofeedback, and acupuncture.

Chiropractic, which increased over the period from 10% to 11% of the adult population, remains the single most used alternative therapy, specifically for neck problems (57% of those who sought alternative care) and back problems (47.6%) Therapies with the most increased use in the 1990's have been megavitamins, massage and herbal remedies.

Other key findings were:

• 4 out of 10 Americans used at least one alternative therapy in 1997 and for adults aged 35-49 it was 1 out of every 2 people.
• Overall use of alternative medicine increased by 25% over the 7 year period.
• Total visits increased by an estimated 47% and at 629 million exceeded total visits to MDs by 243 million.
• Expenditure rose by 45% to $21.2 billion of which $12.2 was out of pocket (i.e. no insurance coverage) which exceeded out of pocket expenditure for all US hospitalization.
• The use of alternative therapies was widely spread among all social and demographic groups.

In an editorial in the Journal of the American Medical Association (280(18):616-1617) MDs are advised that "alternative medicine is here to stay" as its use "reflects changing needs and values in modern society". He summarizes these changes as "a rise in prevalence of chronic disease, an increase in public access to worldwide health information, reduced tolerance for paternalism, an increased sense of entitlement to a quality of life, declining faith that scientific breakthroughs will have relevance for the personal treatment of disease, and increased interest in spiritualism. In addition, concern about the adverse effects and escalating costs of conventional health care are fueling the search for alternative approaches to the prevention and management of illness." Both of these articles pointed out the need for more research, better education, dependable credentials and referral guidelines for MDs.

This increase in the use of what now is commonly called "complimentary and alternative medicine" (CAM) should not come as such a surprise to anyone. The reasons offered by the JAMA editorial above are valid and compelling. Our entire health care system is being threatened by such factors. A new concept of health and disease as well as a hard look at our individual expectations and responsibilities in health care are urgently required. The average user of CAM is at least somewhat if not acutely aware that change is needed and has taken it upon himself to seek this change.

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic