We don’t know. Cured is not defined, and therefore cannot be proven. It cannot be disproven either. For non-infectious diseases, conventional medicine cannot distinguish between remission and cure. Because cured is not defined, all cures are classed as remissions.
There are no claims that a conventional medicine can cure or has cured a non-infectious disease. None. There is no way to prove a medical cure. Conventional medicine clearly cannot cure, and cannot even recognize a cure when it occurs.
So, If we believe a non-infectious disease can be cured by a medicine, the only choice is alternative medicine.
The best cure for most diseases is health. In conventional medicine, in bureaucratic medicine, “There is no cure for the common cold (influenza, measles, etc.).” But people cure colds with health every day. Health is slow and steady, honest and true. When we are healthier, we get fewer colds (flu, etc), and cure them faster. When we are less healthy, we get more colds (flu, etc) and take longer to cure them.
There is no mystery. The mystery comes when cured is not defined, and when we believe only medicines, or believe that only conventional medicines can cure.
Some amazing cures have been reported by alternative medicine, but they are anecdotal. Those cures even when observed by the allopathic medicine are downplayed as “spontaneous remission” without being investigated further or giving credit to the alternative therapy which did that.
The stories of such cures bring hope and a desperate person lives on hope, which is a priceless commodity in life. Alternative medicine tends to believe that under the right nurturing circumstances in many instances, the body can heal itself if given half a chance.
Adherents to alternative methods of treating disease and illnesses have the foundation of thousands of years of practice by nearly every culture and nation as their basis for belief in the ability of the body to heal itself when given what it needs to do so.
Thus, the alternative method has been coined wholistic, and more recently holistic, in that the methods employed give the body mind and spirit every advantage to do what it is designed to do. And, that is to heal.
Chemicals of conventional medicines may be designed to treat or disguise a symptom of disease whereas natural medicine is designed to grant the body the tools it needs to heal the disease.
A naturalist knows the body heals itself…so they work from that perspective and address nutritional, emotional, psychological and physical methods to provide a healing nurturing environment and then let nature takes its course. The body’s ability to heal is really astounding when you think about it! Just as alternative practitioners have done.
The body has the incredible ability to heal itself as long as the brain believes. That does not mean that Western medicine does not have its place but unfortunately it has become a business based on treating symptoms, not discovering the true root cause of the symptoms and healing the body. If you were healed there would be no money to be made treating you by doctors and pharmaceutical companies.
The effectiveness of natural therapies is a surprise only to those who believe that conventional medicine is the only treatment around, and their ability to cure disease is limited.
On the other hand, a chronic illness is not cured only by addressing the cause – it can only be cured by addressing the chronic nature of the cause.
For example, if someone’s diet is chronically deficient in nutrients, or chronically toxic, or if their social relationships are chronically toxic, resulting in chronic physical or mental stress – they might acquire a chronic case of depression. Feeding them a healthy meal or two, free of poisonous chemicals, with a group of supportive friends, might give some relief – but it will not cure. The chronic cause cannot be addressed overnight and hope for the cure. It must be addressed chronically as the cause itself was chronic.
Which Alternative Medicine Treatments Doctors Actually Recommend?
1. Acupuncture to treat pain
2. Yoga for depression and anxiety
3. Hypnosis to calm irritable bowel syndrome
4. Supplements to help cancer patients
5. Tai chi for insomnia
6. Aromatherapy for anxiety and stress relief
Is holistic medicine the same as alternative medicine?
The terms holistic medicine, alternative medicine and complementary medicine have often been used interchangeably. In fact, alternative medicine and complementary medicine are different and holistic medicine is a term which tends to embrace the larger definition of a system of treatment and practitioners who do not work within the system of conventional medicine.
The term “Alternative Medicine” refers to alternative medical systems other than allopathic or traditional (conventional) western medicine. These include Traditional Chinese Medicine, Homeopathy and Herbalism. These all require certification and the practitioner is referred to as a doctor. They might carry the title of Naturopathic Physician or Doctor of Chiropractic. Alternative medicine is used in place of traditional or conventional medicine, although some people use them together.
Is alternative medicine safe?
Many people associate the word “natural” with safe and think that alternative medicines must be benign. This is often not the case! For example, cyanide and arsenic are natural substances and have the potential to create much harm (even death). While most CAM therapies are safe, many have side effects or can interfere with standard medical prescriptions. Problems often arise when people take large amounts of natural supplements thinking that “more is better”, or when people take supplements along with standard medications without first checking to see if mixing treatments in this fashion might cause problems.
Complementary and Alternative medicines have the advantage of being easily available over-the-counter (a prescription is not necessary). The ease of obtaining CAM medicines may lead to a false sense of security about their safety. Remember that CAM remedies are not harmless. Natural substances can have side effects and/or interfere with conventional drugs (either by strengthening or weakening their effects). If you are taking any prescription medications, always check with a qualified health practitioner before starting any natural therapy.
Is alternative medicine scientifically proven?
Complementary and alternative healthcare and medical practices (CAM) is a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not presently considered to be part of conventional medicine. The list of practices that are considered as CAM changes continually as CAM practices and therapies that are proven safe and effective become accepted as the “mainstream” healthcare practices. Today, CAM practices may be grouped within five major domains: alternative medical systems, mind-body interventions, biologically-based treatments, manipulative and body-based methods and energy therapies.
TCM is a system of healing that dates back to 200 B.C. in written form. China, Korea, Japan, India and Vietnam have all developed their own unique versions of traditional medicine. Alternative medicine is commonly categorized together with complementary medicine under the umbrella term “complementary and alternative medicine”. Complementary medicine refers to therapies that complement traditional western (or allopathic) medicine and is used together with conventional medicine, and alternative medicine is used in place of conventional medicine. Alternative medicine refers to therapeutic approaches taken in place of traditional medicine and used to treat or ameliorate disease. Integrative medicine refers to combining complementary treatments with conventional care. The basic philosophy of complementary and alternative medicine include holistic care, which focuses on treating a human being as a whole person.
Examples of complementary and alternative medicine healing systems include Ayurveda, which originated in India more than 5,000 years ago, emphasizes a unique cure per individual circumstances. It incorporates treatments including yoga, meditation, massage, diet and herbs; Homeopathy uses minute doses of a substance that causes symptoms to stimulate the body’s self-healing response. Naturopathy focuses on non-invasive treatments to help your body do its own healing. Ancient medicines (complementary and alternative medicine treatments) include Chinese, Asian, Pacific Islander, American Indian and Tibetan practices.
Conventional medicine relies on methods proved to be safe and effective with carefully designed trials and research. But, many complementary and alternative treatments lack solid research on which to base sound decisions. The dangers and possible benefits of many complementary and alternative treatments remain unproved.
While the whole medical systems differ in their philosophical approaches to the prevention and treatment of disease, they share a number of common elements. These systems are based on the belief that one’s body has the power to heal itself. Healing often involves marshalling multiple techniques that involve the mind, body and spirit. Treatment is often individualized and dependent on the presenting symptoms.
Basic principles of integrative medicine include a partnership between the patient and the practitioner in the healing process, the appropriate use of conventional and alternative methods to facilitate the body’s innate healing response, the consideration of all factors that influence health, wellness and disease, including mind, spirit and community as well as body, a philosophy that neither rejects conventional medicine nor accepts alternative medicine uncritically, recognition that good medicine should be based in good science, inquiry driven and open to new paradigms, the use of natural, less invasive interventions whenever possible, the broader concepts of promotion of health and the prevention of illness as well as the treatment of disease. Studies are underway to determine the safety and usefulness of many CAM practices. As research continues, many of the answers about whether these treatments are safe or effective will become clearer.
The use of alternative medicine appears to be increasing. A 1998 study showed that the use of alternative medicine in the USA had risen from 33.8% in 1990 to 42.1% in 1997 [1]. The most common CAM therapies used in the USA in 2002 were prayer (45.2%), herbalism (18.9%), breathing meditation (11.6%), meditation (7.6%), chiropractic medicine (7.5%), yoga (5.1%), body work (5.0%), diet-based therapy (3.5%), progressive relaxation (3.0%), mega-vitamin therapy (2.8%) and visualization (2.1%) [2, 3]. In the United Kingdom, limited data seem to support the idea that CAM use in the United Kingdom is high and is increasing.
Increasing numbers of medical colleges have started offering courses in alternative medicine. Accredited Naturopathic colleges and universities are increasing in number and popularity in the USA. They offer the most complete medical training in complimentary medicines that is available today [4, 5]. In Britain, no conventional medical schools offer courses that teach the clinical practice of alternative medicine. However, alternative medicine is taught in several unconventional schools as part of their curriculum. Teaching is based mostly on theory and understanding of alternative medicine, with emphasis on being able to communicate with alternative medicine specialists.
Why do patients use alternative medicine?
Research both in the United States and abroad suggests that significant numbers of people are involved with various forms of alternative medicine. However, the reasons for such use are, at present, poorly understood.
Along with being more educated and reporting poorer health status, the majority of alternative medicine users appear to be doing so not so much as a result of being dissatisfied with conventional medicine but largely because they find these health care alternatives to be more congruent with their own values, beliefs, and philosophical orientations toward health and life.
Three theories that have been proposed to explain the use of alternative medicine were tested:
Dissatisfaction: Patients are dissatisfied with conventional treatment because it has been ineffective,5,6 has produced adverse effects,6,7 or is seen as impersonal, too technologically oriented, and/or too costly.6-15
Need for personal control: Patients seek alternative therapies because they see them as less authoritarian16 and more empowering and as offering them more personal autonomy and control over their health care decisions.14,16-19
Philosophical congruence: Alternative therapies are attractive because they are seen as more compatible with patients’ values, worldview, spiritual/religious philosophy, or beliefs regarding the nature and meaning of health and illness