The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM) has defined alternative medicines as: Any medical practice or intervention that (a) lacks sufficient documentation, for safety and effectiveness against specific diseases and conditions; (b) is not generally taught in medical schools; and, (c) is not generally reimbursable by health insurance providers. There are many types of alternative medicines, the most popular being, acupuncture, message therapy, and chiropractic treatments. These three alternative medicines are ones most people now consider to be conventional medicines. Given the history of these alternative medicines and their successes, it makes one think that maybe alternative medicines are effective, and should be more widely accepted. The main
reason the medical community is still rejecting the use of alternative medicines is the fact they are not practiced in conventional medical treatment facilities. In fact, when alternative medicines are used in a conventional medical treatment facility, most physicians find their use acceptable. Not only are physicians now starting to accept alternative medicines to be effective, increasingly they are also starting to use them to treat their patients. For example, if a person sees their doctor complaining of a sore back, a doctor might prescribe some painkillers, and recommend them to a massage therapist. This use of both conventional and alternative medicines is now defined as complementary medicines. To date there have been countless research papers published on alternat
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