The Huge Rise in Alternative Health Care

The Jan 28, 1993 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine published a survey, which revealed an increasing number of people, are turning to Alternative Health Care (AHC) in lieu of conventional medical care. The survey reported that one out of every three seeks relief for health problems by going outside of mainstream medicine.

Several years ago the study was repeated, and it confirmed that, "alternative medicine use and expenditure have increased dramatically". Alternative medicine was defined as: relaxation techniques, herbal medicine, massage therapy, chiropractic care, megavitamins, self-help groups, folk remedies, lifestyle diets, homeopathy, and acupuncture. While Chiropractic Care stays relatively stable, the therapies with the greatest increased use have been megavitamins, massage therapy and herbal remedies.

While the majority of patients had also seen an MD during the year, one-quarter of them had sought AHC practitioners without ever visiting an MD. The frequency of visits to AHC providers was also surprising considering that 70% of it is paid out of pocket.

• 4 out of 10 used at least one alternative therapy, and for adults aged 35 - 49 it was 1 out of 2
• Overall use of AHC increased by 25% over the last 7 years
• Total visits increased by 47%, and at 629 million exceeded total visits to MDs by 243 million
• Expenditure rose to $21 billion of which $12 billion was out of pocket (i.e. No Ins. coverage)
• These costs far exceeded out of pocket expenditure for all US hospitalization
• The use of AHC was widely spread among all social and demographic groups
• Of those seeing an MD for a particular condition, 28% sought AHC for the same condition

These figures were proof of the dissatisfaction with conventional medicine. Obviously, AHC works, or people would not be willing to forego reimbursement.

In an editorial in the Journal of the American Medical Association (280(18): 616-1617) MDs are advised that "alternative medicine is here to stay" as its use "reflects changing needs and values in modern society", "a rise in prevalence of chronic disease, an increase in public access to worldwide health information, reduced tolerance for paternalism, an increased sense of entitlement to a quality of life, declining faith that scientific breakthroughs will have relevance for the personal treatment of disease.

In addition, concern about the adverse affects and escalating costs of conventional health care are fueling the search for alternative approaches and management of illness".

The conclusion is this; the increase in the use of AHC should not come as a surprise to anyone. The reasons offered by the JAMA editorial above are valid and compelling. Our entire health care system is being threatened by such factors. A new concept of health and disease as well as a hard look at our individual expectations and responsibilities in health care are urgently required. The average user of AHC is at least somewhat if not acutely aware that change is needed and has taken it upon him or herself to seek the change. Information available via internet is a very valid reason why the consumer has started to question the M.D. in a quest for real answers instead of just accepting medication in order to treat symptoms. The AMA truly does not like the idea of a smarter public.

Government and Health Insurance carriers are being very slow to recognize the benefits of the increased use of Alternative Health Care. The reasons for them are very obvious.

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Why Conventional Doctors Think The Way They Do

When people first hear about alternative treatments they often ask the obvious question: "If this type of treatment is so effective, why doesn't my doctor know about it?"

According to John R. Lee, MD, of Sabastopol California, there are a number of reasons for this. "The first reason lies in the fact that the selection process of medical students depends on large part on collage grades. Students get high grades when they simply repeat in their tests exactly what the teacher wants them to say.

Students who question what they are being taught, on the other hand, usually do not get the higher grades. "Medical schools, therefore, are filled with students who are good at adopting given "wisdom", but not necessarily good at thinking and questioning, because they have learned to follow principles handed to them by supposed authorities."

The second reason is that medical schools tend to be organized into organ-specific departments. "The idea of an underlying link between these different selected diseases is mythical to them within this framework.

"Furthermore, the influence of nutrition on the way cells function is ignored by many department heads who defend their own die-hard traditional concepts." Or, what they have been taught!

The third reason is one of simple economics. "When leaving medical school, the young doctors themselves in a system that rewards what is called "rescue medicine", or those that treat symptoms," Dr. Lee explains. "There is no reward, and there may well be ridicule from fellow doctors, for those who take the time and trouble to try and prevent illness or attempt to correct nutritional deficiencies which may be causing the patient's condition. Medical record keeping and billing for insurance also require doctors to adhere to this superficial, organ classification of disease.

Malpractice is another great fear among doctors. "People should note that the definition of malpractice is not whether the practice is "good" or "bad" for the patient, but rather if the practice in question is what other doctors in the given brotherhood normally do or prescribe." Doctors also, quite naturally seek the professional and social approval of their peers. Both of these factors connive to keep the doctor in line, limiting the likelihood of a doctor adopting some unconventional practices and techniques.

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The Hippocratic Oath states; "Do no harm". Well, the Hippocratic Oath has now become the Hippocritic Oath.

The true healer goes beyond the treatment of symptoms to correct the underlying cause of disease. When the root cause of disease is corrected, its various symptoms clear up, but if treatment only suppresses symptoms and thereby frustrates the body's natural defense mechanisms, chronic illness can result. As toxins, allergens, and pathogens are driven deeper into tissues and organs, the many channels of elimination are overwhelmed and the immune system breaks down. While conventional diagnosis works well for the identification of diseases in their acute stage, it is less effective as a guide to the treatment of chronic ailments.

When laboratory tests come back negative, doctors often prescribe medicine that bypasses healing altogether in order to suppress symptoms. If tests turn up nothing at all, medical doctors are likely to treat them for psychosomatic disorders. From this perspective, anti-depressants make sense for both physicians and patients, which is why they are so widely misprescribed. However, suppose the patient is dissatisfied with this diagnosis, and seeks a natural approach.

These natural alternative remedies, treatments and modalities somewhat always beneficial, give many of these chronically ill people results with no side effects and much improved health and tranquility. The diagnosis of disease has presented a real problem. Symptoms do not conform to any identifiable disease. Many patients are usually misdiagnosed and treated for diseases they do not have.

If symptom-suppressing drugs burden their systems with more toxins, when they are already suffering from the combined effect of numerous poisons, these drug therapies in the long run will aggravate the condition they are prescribed for.

The thing that bugs me most is that the people think the FDA is protecting them - it is not. What the FDA is doing and what the public thinks it is doing are as different as night and day.

--Dr. Herbert Ley, Former FDA Commissioner

A study reported in USA TODAY (9/25/2000) found that half of the experts hired
to advise the government on the safety and effectiveness of medicine have financial relationships with the pharmaceutical companies that will be helped or hurt by their decisions.

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