Alternative medicine broadly describes methods and practices used in place of, or in addition to, conventional medical treatments. The precise scope of alternative medicine is a matter of some debate and depends to a great extent on the definition of "conventional medicine." The debate on alternative medicine is complicated further by the diversity of treatments that are categorized as "alternative." These include practices that incorporate spiritual, metaphysical, or religious underpinnings; non-European medical traditions; newly develop ...

Including:

• Alternative medicine - Definitions
• Alternative medicine - A misleading term?
• Alternative medicine - Complementary and alternative medicine
• Alternative medicine - Regulation
• Alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine
• Alternative medicine - Medical education
• Alternative medicine - Support for alternative medicine
• Alternative medicine - Efficacy
• Alternative medicine - Danger reduced when used as a complement to conventional medicine
• Alternative medicine - Criticism of alternative medicine
• Alternative medicine - Efficacy
• Alternative medicine - Safety

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Alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Complementary and alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Regulation, Alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Medical education, Alternative medicine - Support for alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Danger reduced when used as a complement to conventional medicine, Alternative medicine - Criticism of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Safety

Read more here: » Alternative medicine: Encyclopedia II - Alternative medicine - Complementary and alternative medicine

Alternative Medicine: Any form of medicine or healing other than the type approved by medical doctors and hospitals.

(See also: Alternative Medicine, Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM is a common abbreviation in the USA) is a diverse set of medical and health care systems, practices, and products encompassing both complementary medicine and alternative medicine. It is presently not considered to be part of conventional medicine [1]. Alternative medicine is a broad term for any diagnostic method, method of treatment or therapy, and products whose theo ...

Including:

• Complementary and alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine
• Complementary and alternative medicine - The top ten CAM therapies

Read more here: » Complementary and alternative medicine: Encyclopedia - Complementary and alternative medicine

Wellness is generally used to mean a healthy balance of the mind-body and spirit that results in an overall feeling of well-being. It has been used in the context of alternative medicine since Halbert Dunn began using the phrase high level wellness in the fifties, based on a series of lectures at a Unitarian Universalist Church in Arlington, Virginia, in the United States. The modern concept of wellness did not, however, become popular until the 1970's.[1] The phrase can be seen as an analogue to the medical term "homeos ...

Including:

• Wellness alternative medicine - Introduction
• Wellness alternative medicine - Wellness programs
• Wellness alternative medicine - Secular-based wellness programs
• Wellness alternative medicine - Faith-based wellness programs

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Yoga when used as a form of alternative medicine is a combination of breathing exercises, physical postures, and meditation, practiced for over 5,000 years. Template:CamMenu In India, yoga is a daily part of life. It is common to see people performing yoga in the morning or speaking about food diets and body therapy entirely based on Yoga or the Hindu healing system of Ayurveda. A survey released in May 2004 by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine focused on who used complementary ...

Including:

• Yoga alternative medicine - Overview
• Yoga alternative medicine - Hatha yoga

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In alternative medicine, body work or massage therapy refers to any treatment which involves some form of touching or physical manipulation. It refers to massages or the application of pressure or vibration to the soft tissues of the body, including muscles, connective tissue, tendons, ligaments, and joints. A survey released in May 2004 by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine focused on who used complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), what was used, and why it was used in the United State ...

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The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine or NCCAM, is a United States government agency. NCCAM is dedicated to exploring complementary and alternative healing practices in the context of rigorous science, training complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) researchers, and disseminating authoritative information to the public and professionals. U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Organization and history. The National Center for Complementary and ...

Including:

• U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Organization and history
• U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Role
• U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Operation
• U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Other facts
• U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Sources

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Advocates of alternative medicine hold that alternative therapies often provide the public with services not available from conventional medicine. This argument covers a range of areas, such as patient empowerment, alternative methods of pain management, treatment methods that support the biopsychosocial model of health, cures for specific health concerns, stress reduction services, other preventive health services that are not typically a part of conventional medicine, and of course complementary medicine's palliative care which is practiced by such world ren ...

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Alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Complementary and alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Regulation, Alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Medical education, Alternative medicine - Support for alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Danger reduced when used as a complement to conventional medicine, Alternative medicine - Criticism of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Safety

Read more here: » Alternative medicine: Encyclopedia II - Alternative medicine - Support for alternative medicine

Due to the wide range of therapies that are considered to be "alternative medicine" few criticisms apply across the board. For more information about a particular therapy or branch of alternative medicine, including specific criticism, please refer to the following link: List of branches of alternative medicine. Criticisms directed at specific branches of alternative medicine range from the fairly minor (conventional treament is believed to be more effective in a particular area) to in ...

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Alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Complementary and alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Regulation, Alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Medical education, Alternative medicine - Support for alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Danger reduced when used as a complement to conventional medicine, Alternative medicine - Criticism of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Safety

Read more here: » Alternative medicine: Encyclopedia II - Alternative medicine - Criticism of alternative medicine

Alternative medicine broadly describes methods and practices used in place of, or in addition to, conventional medical treatments. The precise scope of alternative medicine is a matter of some debate and depends to a great extent on the definition of "conventional medicine." The debate on alternative medicine is complicated further by the diversity of treatments that are categorized as "alternative." These include practices that incorporate spiritual, metaphysical, or religious underpinnings; non-European medical traditions; newly developed approaches to healing; and a number of others. Proponents of ...

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Alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Definitions, Alternative medicine - A misleading term?, Alternative medicine - Complementary and alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Regulation, Alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Medical education, Alternative medicine - Support for alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Danger reduced when used as a complement to conventional medicine, Alternative medicine - Criticism of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Safety

Read more here: » Alternative medicine: Encyclopedia II - Alternative medicine - Definitions

Alternative medicine: This term was originally coined to describe health care approaches not taught in medical schools. It has been replaced with “complementary medicine” since Americans rarely use these approaches to the exclusion of Western, conventional medicine. Integrative medicine refers to the proactive, deliberate combination of conventional and complementary therapies.

(See also: Alternative medicine, Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Jurisdiction differs concerning which branches of alternative medicine are legal, which are regulated, and which (if any) are provided by a government-controlled health service or reimbursed by a private health medical insurance company. A number of alternative medicine advocates disagree with the restrictions of government agencies that approve medical treatments (such as the American Food and Drug Administration) and the agencies' adherence to experimental evaluation methods. They claim that this impedes those seeking to bring usefu ...

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Alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Complementary and alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Regulation, Alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Medical education, Alternative medicine - Support for alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Danger reduced when used as a complement to conventional medicine, Alternative medicine - Criticism of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Safety

Read more here: » Alternative medicine: Encyclopedia II - Alternative medicine - Regulation

Alternative Medicine  - Almost any form of therapy that differs from conventional medical practices. Examples include homeopathy, chiropractic, and naturopathy. The name suggests an alternative method other than the more conventional treatment.

(See also: Alternative Medicine, Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Edzard Ernst wrote in the Medical Journal of Australia that "about half the general population in developed countries use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)" (Ernst 2003). A survey (Barnes et al 2004) released in May 2004 by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, part of the National Institutes of Health in the United States, found that in 2002, 36% of Americans used some form of alternative therapy in the past 12 months — a category that included yoga, meditation, herbal treatments and the Atkins ...

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Alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Complementary and alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Regulation, Alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Medical education, Alternative medicine - Support for alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Danger reduced when used as a complement to conventional medicine, Alternative medicine - Criticism of alternative medicine, Alternative medicine - Efficacy, Alternative medicine - Safety

Read more here: » Alternative medicine: Encyclopedia II - Alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine

The popularity of CAM therapies is great. A survey released in May 2004 by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine focused on who used complementary and alternative medicine, what was used, and why it was used in the United States during 2002. According to this new survey, 36 percent of U.S. adults age 18 years and over use some form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). When prayer specifically for health reasons is included in the definition of CAM, the number of adults using some f ...

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Complementary and alternative medicine, Complementary and alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine, Complementary and alternative medicine - The top ten CAM therapies

Read more here: » Complementary and alternative medicine: Encyclopedia II - Complementary and alternative medicine - Contemporary use of alternative medicine