Popularity of alternative therapies health medicine gains traction at warp speed in the industrialized world.
The United States’ population consists of millions of people from every cultural and religious background. Therefore, many people use traditional medicines from their cultures. They also share them with others.
However, the medical system considers these methods of treatment as alternative therapies health medicine. But many holistic treatments consistently gain popularity among every culture in the U.S.
Alternative Therapies – Health Medicine For Every Ailment
You can find various alternative therapies health medicine for almost every ailment and disease. Holistic care consists of different therapies so common that people probably do not even think of them as alternative medicine.
A cup of chamomile tea to help you relax? Massage therapy to increase circulation and release tense muscles?
People seek out alternative therapies for all sorts of physical ailments. This includes colds, flu, inflammation-based diseases, hormone imbalances, cuts, burns and even cancer.
Holistic treatments often shine with mental and emotional issues such as stress, anxiety, depression, and panic attacks.
Psychotherapy Or Counseling As Alternative Therapy
For instance, psychotherapy or counseling is considered a form of alternative therapies health medicine. Same with spiritual and religious therapy.
Reports show almost 50% of all Americans use some sort of alternative therapy for an ailment or illness. This means half of the United States obtains help initially derived from a culture other than Westernized medicine.
Prayer As Alternative Therapy
Would you be surprised to know the most used form is prayer as alternative therapy? Over 60% of the population use prayer as a form of treatment during health related crises.
Women & Educated More Likely To Seek Alternative Therapy
Women are more likely to seek alternative therapy. However, those women encourage men to seek alternative therapies health medicine. Thus, in the last few years, more men approve of holistic healing or complementary medicine.
The higher education level, the more likely they are to accept alternative therapies. Although, acceptance in all walks of life increases as alternative therapies health medicine become more mainstream.
Money partly keeps some people using allopathic medicine. Unfortunately, supplements and many so-called “alternative” holistic treatments are not covered by medical insurance.
Until that changes, many people simply have no choice. They HAVE to use the medical treatment paid by their insurance.
Herbal Supplements, Meditation, Acupuncture, Chiropractic & Diet
Next to prayer, the most common of the alternative therapies health medicine includes herbal supplements. Meditation follows closely.
Other forms of popular alternative therapies health medicine include
- Acupuncture
- Acupressure
- Chiropractic
- Diet regulation
- EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique)
- Energy therapies such as Reiki
- Massage therapy
- Aromatherapy and essential oils
The increased use of alternative therapies is a sign that people are expanding their horizons. People trust the old traditional (holistic) methods of medicine. Also, people are taking control of their own health.
Many people report having fantastic results with the following supplements to ease depression and improve mood:
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Self Directed Health Care
Self directed health care allows the patient to make the best possible choices for their self. Why make decisions based on what someone else wants for us?
Self-directed health care allows freedom to make decisions based on cultural and moral beliefs. This is essential for non-discriminatory health care.
Further, it also allows patients to use traditional methods combined with alternative methods. The combination of both is essential to people having a health crisis or going through something extremely difficult.
Traditional allopathic methods are not the only way for people to obtain relief.
Ethics Against Alternative Medicines Not Necessarily Reasonable
How do you feel about the raging debates over holistic healing techniques and alternative therapies versus allopathic medicine? (Allopathic claims to be the only version with a scientific basis. They accept no other standards.)
We contend that so-called ethics against alternative medicines are not reasonable.
Ethics can be defined as a philosophical mentality of right conduct and good living. Ethics in medicine are typically about what is appropriate practice and inappropriate practice.
It defines specifics about what is allowed in the workplace, in the profession, and with clients.
Medical Field Is Big Business
However, the medical field is big business. Just like alternative medicines is a business. In fact, they are somewhat competing businesses. They are each other’s competition.
Ethics against alternative medicines are typically produced by people in what is now considered the traditional medical field. In other words, the allopathic Western medical belief system.
Therefore, look at the information with a grain of salt. Analyze ethics against alternative medicines using:
- Information about the author,
- Their possible motive or objective, and
- Where they produced the information (e.g. what company).
Fake News – Spreading Misinformation Online
“Trolls” spreading misinformation about every possible subject abound on today’s world wide web.
Alternative medicine debunkers and “Quack-watchers” write articles on websites “exposing the fraud” of different claims and therapies. Also, they write comments in social media, forums or after blog articles.
Many claim to be doctors or scientists to gain credibility. And they probably are, but paid for their statements. You see, they don’t present their viewpoint as their opinion. They challenge credentials of other doctors or scientists who present alternative viewpoints.
Companies or organizations hire these debunkers to head off alternative therapies health medicines gaining traction online.
Follow The Source To Identify The Motive
Always follow the opinion as far back to the source as possible to identify the motive. A money trail is easy enough to follow, especially if they sell a product.
It’s harder to find professional affiliations. But alternative medicine “debunkers” claiming scientific basis usually represent a special interest. Sometimes it’s a particular company, sometimes a medical organization.
Of course, some of the information may be true. In that case, the information should be available on many different places or by the alternative medicines companies as well.
PubMed is a reliable source of science-based research results.
Ethics Against Alternative Medicines From Different Cultures
Roots of alternative therapies are often founded in different cultures. So, the concern with ethics against alternative medicines have a built-in bias in western medicine. Just because something is different does not mean that it is less or ineffective.
Open Minds To Ancient Cultures Medical Systems
Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda are centuries older than allopathic western medicine. Think we might have something to learn by keeping our minds open?
Clearly, we should analyze ethics against alternative medicines. Ethics in any profession should be governed and determined by that profession. The medical field has been around for a really long time. So, it benefits from centuries to develop their code of ethics.
Alternative or holistic healing business is booming. However, the arena of modern alternative therapies is a relatively new field in the U.S.
“Natural” alternative therapies health medicine need time for each element of that field to develop a code of ethics.
We say “modern” because holistic medicine now considered “alternative” by the mainstream was thoroughly accepted before the Big Pharma took control.
In the mid 1900s, powers behind the new allopathic medicine suppressed highly developed natural therapies. You can read about homeopathy, aromatherapy, and herbology (including medicinal cannabis) pre-Big Pharma.
Different Systems Use Different Standards
The countries in which the alternative medicines have originated are not always governed with the same standards as the United States. Therefore, may not determine a set of standards equivalent to or in the same manner as the U.S.
Does this mean these modalities are not as effective? Proper ethics against alternative medicines should not try to deter people from accessing these services.
Elements of the field of alternative therapies definitely do have codes of conduct and ethics.
For example, strict standards apply to psychology and chiropractic medicine. Laws and standards guide massage, acupuncture and acupressure.
They just may not use the same standards. Or they may achieve them in different ways as the western medical profession.
Let Patients Make Decisions About Alternative Therapies Health Medicine
Why are various medical factions opposed to let patients make decisions about alternative therapies health medicine?
People accessing treatments from alternative therapies are smart. Patients are capable of weighing the pros and cons of alternatives. They make reasonable decisions about their own care.
Patients may choose allopathic care, complementary or alternative therapies health medicine. Or a combination.
If someone wishes to publish information regarding specific therapies, then set out information in a way to help the consumer. Don’t just tell the consumer their best decision.
It’s time the allopathic health care system starts respecting patients’ intelligence and logic.
The ironic thing is that traditional medicine in China and other places are alternative medicines in America. So that leaves the question:
What makes medicine traditional or alternative?
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