I had no idea that so many people think of yoga as an alternative medicine. Interesting. I guess I thought most people viewed it (in the traditional sense) as a “path to enlightenment.”
Irish comedian Dara O’Briain has a very funny routine on science and alternate therapies in general.
NSFW language, but it does sound charming when he says “fook” in his accent.
I wouldn’t say I “recommend” herbalism (as a counterpoint to modern medicine), so much as I’d say there are plants which in their whole, natural state act with medicinal effect which is sometimes useful/helpful/effective. I’m thinking of such things as chamomile or valerian, slippery elm, raspberry leaf, etc.
See your doctor, don’t self-medicate, etc, etc.
I can’t help but believe that that is some seriously faulty logic there, mswas.
Eating well-balanced diet == good
Putting bad things into body == bad
Therefore, putting nothing into body == good
Really?
There have been several studies done investigating the effect of acupuncture on IVF success rates - and while it is hard to get an absolute exact control (placebo being harder to do than a pill, and taking into account embryo quality as well), it seems that it does have a positive impact.
I really didn’t believe acupuncture did anything until a friend started having it done on her oldish arthritic dog - after the second treatment there was obvious (even to my sceptical eyes) improvement. I couldn’t see how it could be the placebo effect (my original reason for acupuncture seeming to work)
I don’t generally go in for alternative medicine but I’ve just started giving 5-HTP a try. Fingers crossed. (Does superstition count as alternative medicine?)
In my personal experience, both acupuncture / acupressure and aromatherapy work well. Not miraculous, but good solid benefits.
I think Chiropractic has uses. For injuries to to muscles and such, I’ve had treatments and it helped. I don’t think Chiropractic is useful for things likes the flu or is a total medical treatment, though.
Bo-Feedbacks rocks for certain things like anxiety and other problems where you can train youself out of a bad behaviour like smoking.
I recommend them, for hypochondriacs (for two reasons):
-they are ineffective (mostly just distilled H2O or sugar pills)
-they are harmless (no effect because they contain no active ingredients)
So go down to your latest herbal store and buy a stash of these worthless “drugs”-take all you want! No side effects, no danger ,and no ffect whatsoever (except in your mind).
Not quite.
True, most preparations sold as homeopathic drugs are virtually identical to water (often, the listed dilutions mean that not a single molecule of the supposed drug is actually present in the product). However, some preparations marketed as homeopathic do contain enough of the “active” principle to have an effect, which may be negative - the most publicized recent case being Zicam, the cold remedy which has been associated with loss of smell in numerous users.
Prescription drugs and heavy metals have also found there way into homeopathic products.
“…an Associated Press analysis of the Food and Drug Administration’s side effect reports found that more than 800 homeopathic ingredients were potentially implicated in health problems last year. Complaints ranged from vomiting to attempted suicide.”
Remember that there’s very little regulation of homeopathic products, so you not only need faith in the placebo effect, but also faith that the manufacturer is putting in what’s claimed on the label and not any other ingredients.
Yep. Chiropractic as in massage and manipulation to help with spine/flexibility issues. Not chiropractic as in realigning your bodily energy or any hoo-ha like that. Thing is, it’s really hard to know before you go which one is which.
I’ve been to the chiro a few times, and have always had great results, but I’ve been skeptical that maybe I would have gotten better anyway, or it was just placebo, whatever. But recently, I started going to physician-ordered physical therapy, and they cracked my back and neck just like the chiro did, though maybe a bit more gently.