Originally published July 24 2005
Alternative medicine gradually shedding "nonsense science" stigma
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Even traditional medical practitioners are having to admit that alternative medical treatments such as acupuncture and chiropractic medicine work as well as conventional treatments -- sometimes better -- and Daily News Central has some tips from Consumer Reports if you are considering alternative medicine.
Patients and doctors alike are warming toward alternative medicine, according to a new Consumer Reports survey of more than 34,000 readers who ranked the treatments that worked best for them.
Hands-on treatments, such as chiropractic, worked better than conventional treatments for such conditions as back pain and arthritis, according to survey respondents.
Chiropractic was ranked ahead of all conventional treatments, including prescription drugs, by readers with back pain.
Readers also indicated that chiropractic treatments provided relief for neck pain.
However, Consumer Reports does not recommend it, saying neck manipulation can be risky.
Deep-tissue massage was found to be especially effective in treating osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia.
While readers suffering from back pain deemed acupuncture and acupressure less effective than chiropractic and massage, one-fourth of readers who had tried these therapies said they helped them feel much better.
Of all the hands-on alternative therapies, acupuncture has the most scientific support.
Exercise also provides good results, according to the survey -- not only for such conditions as back pain, but also for allergies and other respiratory ills, anxiety, rheumatoid arthritis, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, depression, insomnia and prostate problems.
Those results are consistent with a broad range of clinical studies of treatments for all of those conditions, except allergies and respiratory ailments.
Federal laws ensure that a bottle of prescription or over-the- counter pills contains the amount and kind of medicine stated on the label, and dosages are standardized, but no such standards apply to dietary supplements.
Many doctors will refer patients to preferred alternative practitioners.
And your doctor may be able to steer you away from potentially hazardous alternative treatments.
If your doctor doesn't have a referral list of practitioners, check with a local hospital or medical school.
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