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Survey of Complementary and Alternative Medicines

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Submitted By seniorgato31
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Complimentary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) describes a number of non-allopathic treatments which may or may not have benefit to the patient. According to "What Is Complimentary And Alternative Medicine"(2011),"Defining CAM is difficult, because the field is very broad and constantly changing. NCCAM defines CAM as a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not generally considered part of conventional medicine”. According to"Types Of Complementary Medicine"(2009), "Complementary medicine is a nonstandard treatment or medicine that you use together with conventional treatment or medicine. For example, acupuncture, when used to treat nausea and vomiting that accompany chemotherapy or post-surgery pain, is a complementary therapy. Alternative medicine is a nonstandard treatment or medicine that you use instead of conventional medicine. If you use kava in place of prescription medicines such as benzodiazepines or tricyclic antidepressants to treat anxiety or depression, the kava is considered alternative medicine. Integrative medicine is, according to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), a combination of standard medical therapies and complementary or alternative therapies about which there is scientific evidence of safety and effectiveness. As practitioners of conventional Western medicine pay more and closer attention to the benefits of many complementary and alternative therapies and determine how to use or recommend them, the mainstream health care system becomes more integrative.” CAM differs form allopathic medicine in that many CAM methodologies are not regulated by any governmental agency leading to potential inconsistencies in levels of active ingredients, patient outcomes and sometimes health care costs. However, some of the physical methodologies are regulated, in as much as the

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