Alternative Health 101
Now, more than ever, people want more choices in healthcare. Alternative medicines have been around for a very long time, some are actually thousands of years old. Alternative medicine is a western term, because the various modalities do not conform to mainstream, conventional medical practices these ancient healing arts are dubbed alternative.
While conventional medicines usually focus on the affected area, many alternative medicines focus on the whole person. Alternative medicines are those which aspire to treat individuals naturally, safely, and entirely. Advocates of alternative medicines realize that a person is not made up of just physical parts. There is also the mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of the whole person that affect health and wellbeing.
The most familiar of the complimentary and alternative medicines are: Herbalism, Chiropractic, Homeopathy, Yoga, Aromatherapy, Pilates, and Biofeedback. Others less well known in the west: Ayurveda, Vivation, Naprapathy, Reiki, Polarity Therapy, Osteopathy, and Chromotherapy. This is only a very short list of the alternatives to modern medicine here in the west. We can be thankful, however, that there are alternatives.
Those who advocate natural healing will hold to the definition of alternative medicine as set forth by the National Center for Complimentary and Alternative Medicine, (NCCAM) which states:
"What are considered complementary or alternative practices in one country may be considered conventional medical practices in another. Therefore, our definition is broad and general: complementary medicine includes all such practices and ideas which are outside the domain of conventional medicine in several countries and defined by its users as preventing or treating illness, or promoting health and well-being.
These practices complement mainstream medicine by:
- contributing to a common whole,
- satisfying a demand not met by conventional practices,
- diversifying the conceptual framework of medicine.
If you are looking for a more natural, holistic approach to healing or maintaining health, there is a drug free, noninvasive, alternative out there for you. Whether you need a new way to battle cancer, a way to heal a skin rash, or you are just looking for natural, preventative care, there is an alternative medicine therapy that will fit your physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual needs and personality.