Posts Tagged ‘complementary and alternative medicine’

Health Sites Are A Great Source Of Information

August 17th, 2011

From dysentery to psoriasis, alternative medicine seems to have a cure for anything. With the plethora of today’s holistic therapies that are now available to us, it is very important to stay up-to-date with the latest developments that take place in this specific medical field. This is exactly the purpose of NCCAM, or the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

Part of the National Institutes of Health, NCCAM is engaged in training and research on health topics, especially on the relevant facts that people are or should be most concerned about. The official site, nccam.nih.gov, is one of the most reputable health sites on the internet, where you can find an exhaustive collection of information on various issues such as research funding opportunities, clinical trials or educational series. Many health professional find this information immensely useful, but even simple people who do not know much about alternative medicine can take some time to study some of the information here, as it is definitely worth of a look.

Among the most popular alternative health sites, AlternativeMedicine.com stands out from many of its kind, providing the visitors with a rich selection of information concerning the most common health conditions, holistic health care issues, natural remedies and foods that have certain healing properties. Moreover, here you can find practical strategies and solutions tat are aimed at promoting self care and prevention for a better health condition. The information on this website is simple to apply in your everyday life, and yet extremely effective. For instance, the SAD, or Seasonal Affective Disorder is generally caused by less exposure to sunlight in the short winter days. This condition can be dealt by undergoing light therapy or tanning for ten or fifteen minutes every morning and by having a diet that is rich in omega-3 and protein. Outdoor exercise can also help for recovering, as it will boost the serotonin levels that are normally gotten from natural sunlight. In the most severe cases however, the patient may be required to relocate to a place that gets plenty of sunlight.

There are numerous online health sites that prove to be quite beneficial when it comes to providing people with update information on various topics such as aromatherapy, Ayurvedic, essential oils, homeopathic, herbs and flower remedies, and even other types of alternative therapies and treatments. Such sites also include resources on topics such as medical practices, products and medicine that are not considered to be a part of the medical conventional system yet, but were proven to be equally effective and with no discovered risks.

Complementary and Alternative Medicine Overview

August 17th, 2011

Complementary and Alternative Medicine or CAM are diagnostic or therapeutic techniques that are outside the mainstream of Western medicine. Alternative medicine is used in place of conventional medicine while complementary medicine is used along with conventional medicine though some of the treatments methods are the same. Although most people utilize mainstream medicine for diagnosis and basic information, many are now turning to alternatives for what they believe to be total body health-enhancing measures.

CAM is very popular with people who are terminally ill and has also been used on animals. There have also been sufficient instances of “inexplicable” extension of life and other significant health benefits for people who have pursued these options that the Western health systems are now seriously starting to further assess these systems. Alternative medicine is a fairly broad term which covers many different methods of treatment such as acupuncture, homeopathy, Chinese herbal medicine, Ayurvedic and more.

Therapies such as biofeedback, massage, and exercise are also considered alternative medicine. Alternative medicine includes various systems of healing or treating disease such as chiropractic, homeopathy, and faith healing. Alternative medicine is a comprehensive approach to healing that uses natural methods to bring physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual harmony. Alternative medicine systems believe body has a network of channels (meridians) that carry a subtle form of life energy. Since it uses a holistic approach and time-tested, natural remedies, hands-on treatments to help enable the body’s own innate powers to do the healing, alternative medicine requires the patient to take a highly active part in healing their own body including prevention and treatment.

Complementary Medicine is sometimes used by “conventional” medical practitioners as an add on to “conventional” medical treatments such as drugs and surgery. Complementary therapies are used to improve wellness, prevent disease or treat health problems but the most popular and prevalent use remains pain control. Included in complementary medicine are a large number of practices and systems of health care like acupuncture, homeopathy, aromatherapy, osteopathy, reflexology and chiropractic that for many reasons have not been fully adopted by mainstream medicine. Complementary medicine also includes dietary and nutritional therapies such as macrobiotics, vegetarianism, and orthomolecular medicine.

Although CAM is starting to gain popularity in the West, most clinical research by the health care industry continues to focus on the success of each single modality or therapy within these systems. This is unfortunate as CAM is generally based on the belief that you need to, simultaneously, treat the whole person – body, mind, and spirit – which can include the use of many therapies at the same time.