Complementary and alternative medicine | Alternative therapy

Complementary and alternative medicine. Complementary and alternative medicines (CAMs) are treatments that fall outside of mainstream healthcare.SkiptomaincontentHomeHealthAtoZBacktoHealthAtoZComplementaryandalternativemedicineComplementaryandalternativemedicines(CAMs)aretreatmentsthatfalloutsideofmainstreamhealthcare.Thesemedicinesandtreatmentsrangefromacupunctureandhomeopathy,toaromatherapy,meditationandcolonicirrigation.DefiningCAMsThere'snouniversallyagreeddefinitionofCAMs.Although"complementaryandalternative"isoftenusedasasinglecategory,itcanbeusefultomakeadistinctionbetweenthe2terms.TheUSNationalCenterforComplementaryandIntegrativeHealth(NCCIH)usesthisdistinction:Whenanon-mainstreampracticeisusedtogetherwithconventionalmedicine,it'sconsidered"complementary".Whenanon-mainstreampracticeisusedinsteadofconventionalmedicine,it'sconsidered"alternative".Therecanbeoverlapbetweenthesecategories.Forexample,aromatherapymaysometimesbeusedasacomplementarytreatment,andinothercircumstancesisusedasanalternativetreatment.Anumberofcomplementaryandalternativetreatmentsaretypicallyusedwiththeintentionoftreatingorcuringahealthcondition.Examplesinclude:homeopathyacupunctureosteopathychiropracticherbalmedicinesDecidingtousecomplementaryoralternativetreatmentsTounderstandwhetheratreatmentissafeandeffective,weneedtochecktheevidence.YoucanlearnmoreabouttheevidenceforparticularCAMsbyreadingaboutindividualtypesoftreatment.SeeourindexforalistofallconditionsandtreatmentscoveredbytheNHSwebsite.Somecomplementaryandalternativemedicinesortreatmentsarebasedonprinciplesandanevidencebasethatarenotrecognisedbythemajorityofindependentscientists.Othershavebeenproventoworkforalimitednumberofhealthconditions.Forexample,there'sevidencethatosteopathyandchiropracticpracticesareeffectivefortreatinglowerbackpain.Whenapersonusesanyhealthtreatment,includingaCAM,andexperiencesanimprovement,thismaybeduetotheplaceboeffect.CAMsandtheNHSTheavailabilityofCAMsontheNHSislimited,andinmostcasestheNHSwillnotoffersuchtr

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