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The Not So Hidden Danger of ‘Alternative Medicine’.
With an increasing number of people turning to alternative therapies, does misinformation about their effectiveness pose a real danger?
complementary and alternative medicine
noun
any of a range of medical therapies that are not regarded as orthodox by the medical profession, such as herbalism, acupuncture or crystal healing.
Many of the concepts which fall under the umbrella of ‘complementary and alternative medicine’ (CAM) were practiced long before what we consider to be the rise of ‘modern medicine’ in the 19th Century. Pinpointing the exact origin of many of these techniques is practically impossible. Records state that Chinese herbal medicine dates back at least 2,000 years, and evidence of the practice of reflexology dates back to the Ancient Egyptians.
Research has been carried out into their effectiveness and has shown that the majority of these techniques do not affect the ailment which they claim to cure. The exceptions to this being: acupuncture, osteopathy, and chiropractic, which are all approved by the NHS in the United Kingdom, as there is clear evidence of their efficacy. More and more people are beginning to shun conventional medicine and seek…
