Portal:Complementary and Alternative Medicine

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Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) is an umbrella term for alternative medicine, complementary medicine, and integrative medicine.

Alternative medicine describes practices used in place of conventional medical treatments. Complementary medicine describes practices used in conjunction and cooperation with conventional medicine. While integrative medicine is viewed as the best of complementary medicine by its advocates.

The list of therapies included under CAM changes over time. If and when an approach regarded as "unproven therapy" is proven to be safe and effective, it may be adopted into conventional health care and over time may cease to be considered "alternative".

Definitions and descriptions

"Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is a broad domain of healing resources that encompasses all health systems, modalities, and practices and their accompanying theories and beliefs, other than those intrinsic to the politically dominant health system of a particular society or culture in a given historical period. CAM includes all such practices and ideas self-defined by their users as preventing or treating illness or promoting health and well-being. Boundaries within CAM and between the CAM domain and the domain of the dominant system are not always sharp or fixed." [1]

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine defines complementary and alternative medicine as "a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not presently considered to be part of conventional medicine". It also defines integrative medicine as "[combining] mainstream medical therapies and CAM therapies for which there is some high-quality scientific evidence of safety and effectiveness".[2]

CAM has been described as comprising "a diverse group of treatments, ranging from symptomatic interventions to be used in conjunction with traditional therapies—therapeutic touch or meditation—to unique treatments meant to replace conventional chemotherapy or surgery. CAM includes complex and longstanding fields of study, such as acupuncture, ayurvedic medicine, and homoeopathy, but can also be as straightforward as taking a specific dietary supplement to lower blood pressure or blood lipid concentrations."[3]

Ralph Snyderman and Andrew Weil state "integrative medicine is not synonymous with complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). It has a far larger meaning and mission in that it calls for restoration of the focus of medicine on health and healing and emphasizes the centrality of the patient-physician relationship".[4]

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Topics

Looking for a specific topic in CAM?

Any branch or form of complementary and alternative medicine can be classified into one of the following commonly used classification systems.

Alternative Medical Systems - A finite list of classical forms of alternative medicine that are built upon a complete system of theory and practice.
Biologically Based Therapies - Alternative treatments that use substances found in nature and/or some other natural therapy.
- Diet-based therapies
- Exercise-based therapies
Energy Therapies - Alternative treatments that involve the use of purported energy fields or auras.
Manipulative Therapies - Alternative treatments that are based on manipulation and/or movement of one or more parts of the body
Mind-Body Interventions - Covers a variety of techniques designed to enhance the mind's capacity to affect bodily function and symptoms.

If you are looking for a biography or are not sure what you are looking for then you might prefer to browse the following annotated lists.

Biographies of people in CAM - These articles are about historical people in CAM.
Glossary of alternative medicine -- A major list of the terms and concepts used in alternative medicine.
List of branches of alternative medicine - These articles are either about fully developed systems of alternative medicine or they are about generic alternative methods of treatment or therapy.

Wikipedia's Categories are yet another way to find CAM related topics.

Browse CAM related Categories

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Selected Article

Bodywork is a term used in alternative medicine or complementary medicine to describe any therapeutic, healing or personal development work which involves some form of touching, energetic work or the physical manipulation of a rational and practically oriented physical and somatic (see somatics) understanding of the body.

Most forms of bodywork are listed under Somatic disciplines. Some of the best known forms of bodywork are: Yoga and pranayama breath work and respiration techniques; Respiratory therapy; Body-Mind Centering; Continuum; Feldenkrais method; Rolfing; Trager Approach. Other methods involve voice, movement or dance such as 5Rhythms by Gabrielle Roth. Often bodywork is combined with methods for personal development and body-psychotherapy, especially with Gestalt therapy and Psychodrama.

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Selected Picture

This is an example of an iridology chart, correlating areas of the left iris, as seen in the mirror, with portions of the left hand side of the body. Changes in color or appearance of the iris are said to indicate changes in the health of the corresponding section of the body. edit

Contemporary Use of CAM

The popularity of CAM therapies is extensive. 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 form of CAM in 2002 rose to 62 percent ([1], abstract on page 1).
Consistent with previous studies the present study found that the majority of individuals (i.e., 54.9%) used CAM in conjunction with conventional medicine ( page 6).
"The data confirm most earlier observations that most people use CAM to treat and/or prevent musculoskeletal conditions or other conditions associated with chronic or recurring pain" (page 5).
"The fact that only 14.8% of adults sought care from a licensed or certified CAM practitioner suggests that most individuals who use CAM self-prescribe and/or self-medicate" (page 6).
"Women were more likely than men to use CAM. The largest sex differential is seen in the use of mind-body therapies including prayer specifically for health reasons" (page 4).
"Except for the groups of therapies that included prayer specifically for health reasons, use of CAM increased as education levels increased" (page 4).

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Quotes

"There is no alternative medicine. There is only medicine that works and medicine that doesn't work."

Richard Dawkins Professor of the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford edit

Selected Biography

Sylvester Graham (July 5, 1794 – September 11, 1851) was born in Suffield, Connecticut, and was ordained in 1826 as a Presbyterian minister. He entered Amherst College in 1823 but did not graduate. He was an early advocate of dietary reform in United States most notable for his emphasis on vegetarianism, and the temperance movement, as well as sexual and dietary habits.

In 1829 he invented Graham bread, and the recipe first appeared in The New Hydropathic Cookbook (New York, 1855). It showed that Graham bread was made from unsifted and unbolted flour and free from chemical additives such as alum and chlorine.

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Did you know?

The 10 most commonly used CAM therapies in the United States during 2002 when use of prayer is excluded. [Full Text pdf, table 1 on page 8]

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WikiProjects

WikiProjects that may be of interest to you.

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Things to do

The WikiProject on Alternative Medicine and Portal

A few good places to start would be:

Join the Wikiproject on Alternative Medicine.
Glossary of alternative medicine -- A major list of the terms and concepts used in alternative medicine. Always something to be fine tuned or added to this gateway to CAM articles.
Category:Alternative medicine stubs -- You can help Wikipedia by expanding these articles. Then be sure to remove them from the stub category.
Start a new article

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