Alternative Medicine: Exploring Options Beyond Standard Care - Essay Sample

Introduction

Alternative and complementary medicines are words that collectively refer to medical practices that do not belong to the standard of medical care practice (Posadzki, Watson, Alotaibi, & Ernst, 2013). Standard medical care practice as may be used in this article relates to the method of medical care that all medical practitioners in the world apply. It is also practiced by other healthcare professionals such as physicians, physiotherapists, psychologists, nurses and other practitioners. Complementary medicine, on the other hand, as shall be used in this context, refers to any medical interventions that are applicable alongside the standard medical practice (Posadzki, et al., 2013). They are, however, not considered as standard therapeutic interventions. For instance, the use of acupuncture to help alleviate some side effects of cancer drugs is complementary medicine. Alternative medicine is a medical approach that is applicable and can be used in place of the standard medical practice. For example, the use of special nutrition for cancer patients instead of the various cancer treatment therapies is alternative medicine.

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Complementary Medicine

In the year 1999, the National Institute of Health made a critical announcement about complementary and alternative medical practice (Posadzki, et al., 2013). The statement was about the funding of research institutes about the complementary and alternative therapeutic method. The report was a sign of embracing these practices. The funding was to increase the number of research institutes. The announcement also proposed a model that was to guide robust scientific studies about complementary and alternative medicine (Posadzki, et al., 2013). The statement was an indicator that the world can embrace the practice of these practices as it shows that there are no such risks associated with their practice.

Alternative Medicine

The practice of alternative medicine is also not a bad practice. Some treatment procedures tend to be expensive and harsh. For instance, treating cancer is costly and cruel to the body such that the majority of the patients are unable to afford and withstand. Getting a better way that is cheaper and less harsh to the body would be good news to the patients. There are times when it is unnecessary to subject patients to these treatments. Alternative management of the disease such as diet can be helpful. Alternative medicine is, therefore, a good idea and should be endorsed by the medical teams. Traditional medicine can also be an alternative treatment even though the current science criticizes these practices. However, alternative medicine can be illegal depending on who is offering and how it is offered to the patient (Posadzki, et al., 2013).

Other medical therapies may include integrative medicine, which refers to a therapeutic approach that incorporates all these therapies; standard medicine, complementary and alternative medicine (Posadzki, et al., 2013). For instance, a cancer patient who is on the conventional cancer treatment therapy, together with a special diet for a cancer patient as well as acupuncture to ease the effects of cancer treatment. Non-traditional medicine involves the use of current medications that have been scientifically researched and approved. Naturopathic medicine consists of the use of natural remedies such as plant parts that are believed to have medicinal value (Posadzki, et al., 2013).

How Safe is Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Some of the complementary and alternative medicine practices are safe. However, some are unsafe. Some of the complementary and alternative medical methods have gone through a robust evolution (Posadzki, et al., 2013). The careful evaluation has also been directed to these therapies to rule out any risk. Through research and critical evaluation of complementary and alternative medical treatments, several have been found out that some of these practices are potentially dangerous. These researches rag behind due to some reasons such as inadequate time and resources, lack of research institutes and stringent regulations by the governments (Posadzki, et al., 2013). There is, therefore, the need to carry out profound studies about these practices. The researches should be as robust as those of the standard medicine. The conventional medical therapies are perceived as the safest. With adequate investigations and evaluations, complementary and alternative medicine can be as safe as standard medicine (Garland, Valentine, Desai, Langer, Evans, & Mao, 2013).

Advantages of Alternative and Complementary Medicine

There are several benefits of using these treatments over the standard medical practice. Some of these benefits include the following: these therapies are cheaper compared to conventional therapeutic methods. For instance, using diet therapy is less expensive than the use of chemotherapy drugs in treating cancer. Secondly, they do not have adverse effects on the body in fact; acupuncture, which is a complementary treatment method of cancer eases the impact of cancer treatment using the standard method (Deng, Rausch, Jones, Gulati, Kumar, Greenlee, & Cassileth, 2013).

The use of complementary and alternative medicine is not without risks. Being vastly dependent on natural remedies does not mean it is all safe. Some of these practices may put a patient into a chance of using harmful medications as a result of inadequate research and knowledge. Additionally, some of these therapies may affect how other medicines work in the body hence causing severe side effects. It is easy to overdose a patient using natural remedies due to insufficient research on their dosages.

Conclusion

These therapies are excellent and can be endorsed in the treatment of diseases. However, sufficient studies should be conducted to ensure that people get the necessary information about them. Such information may include their mode of action, their effects and interaction with other drugs. These therapies must also be applied with exceptional care as we have seen they can be harmful.

References

Deng, G. E., Rausch, S. M., Jones, L. W., Gulati, A., Kumar, N. B., Greenlee, H., ... & Cassileth, B. R. (2013). Complementary therapies and integrative medicine in lung cancer: diagnosis and management of lung cancer: American College of Chest Physicians evidence-based clinical practice guidelines. Chest, 143(5), e420S-e436S.

Garland, S. N., Valentine, D., Desai, K., Li, S., Langer, C., Evans, T., & Mao, J. J. (2013). Complementary and alternative medicine use and benefit finding among cancer patients. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 19(11), 876-881.

Posadzki, P., Watson, L. K., Alotaibi, A., & Ernst, E. (2013). Prevalence of use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) by patients/consumers in the UK: systematic review of surveys. Clinical Medicine, 13(2), 126-131.