Lesson 6: Alternative & Complementary Medicine
An alternative method to treatment comprised of natural remedies
Walk On The Wild Side
What is complementary and alternative medicine? CAM, as it is known, is a group of practices and products which are not considered part of conventional medicine. Conventional medicine is what is generally accepted as the normal practice of medicine by doctors, nurses, physical therapists and the other health professionals.
Over the past 5 years or so CAM has gotten lots of mainstream attention, for several reasons.
1)Since so many people are trying it, the medical profession decided to check it out further (some of the therapies are dangerous).
2)Many of the therapies are beneficial when used in conjunction with conventional medicine.
Complementary medicine is the use of therapies/products which work in tandem with conventional medicine. Alternative medicine takes the place of convention medicine. The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) groups the therapies into 5 divisions:
- Alternative medical systems
Homeopathic medicine
Traditional Chinese medicine
Mind-Body interventions
Visualization
Relaxation
Manipulative body-based methods
Chiropractic
Massage
Biological-based therapies
Vitamins
Herbs
Energy therapies
Qi gong
Reiki
Therapeutic touch
If you want to consider CAM, do what I advocate you to do for all your treatments, research, think about it, and decide what is right for you. I personally am a bit old-fashioned about CAM. I do use or have used some of the complementary therapies, but only after checking with my oncologist, and only in moderation. If you are leaning in this direction, weigh the facts carefully:
*How can I benefit from this therapy? *What are the known risks of this therapy? *Will the benefits outweigh the risks? *What are the potential side effects? *Will this therapy interfere with my conventional therapies? *Is this therapy part of a clinical trial? *Is this therapy covered by my health insurance?
Always let your healthcare provider know if you are trying any complementary or alternative therapies. Some therapies may interact negatively with your conventional therapies, or may negate the effect of those therapies.
