INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE
|
What is Integrative Medicine? The Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine defines integrative medicine (IM) as "healing-oriented medicine that takes account of the whole person (body, mind, and spirit), including all aspects of lifestyle. It emphasizes the therapeutic relationship and makes use of all appropriate therapies, both conventional and alternative".
Integrative Medicine is a holistic alternative that makes use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies. CAM therapies include, but are not limited to massage, reiki, traditional Chinese medicine, phytotherapy, yoga, shiatsu, biofeedback, chiropractic, hypnosis, homeopathy, naturopathy, art therapies, etc. This evolution in thinking has brought holistic alternative healing modalities to be included with conventional, mainstream medicine. It is a growing practice in today’s MD offices to include a ND (naturopathic doctor) on staff to address the growing demand from their patients. A Wikipedia definition renders integrative medicine ‘a combination of orthodox and complementary medicine’.
Dr. Andrew Weil, a leading proponent of integrative medicine, does not give an overall endorsement to holistic alternative medicine, but champions combining conventional and alternative therapies. Overall, he is a proponent of the use of plants and feels they are safer and present fewer problems than some pharmaceuticals. He has also written extensively about the healing properties of mushrooms. In 1994, Dr.Weil founded the Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona.
One of the defining principals of The Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine is a renewed partnership between patient and practitioner which considers all factors that produce health, wellness and disease. Their goal is to contribute scientific research combining complementary and alternative therapies with conventional medicine.
The Mayo Clinic home page notes that 40% of U.S. adults report using complementary and holistic alternative medicine. According to the Nutrition Business Journal in 2009, the U.S. market for integrative medicine was valued at approximately 45$ billion. The Consortium for Academic Health Centers’ mission for integrative medicine is “to advance the principles and practices of integrative healthcare within academic institutions.” According to sdcms.org, some of the most common CAM therapies for adults include massage, meditation, yoga and an assortment of natural products. 68% of adults have used at least one kind of alternative or complementary therapy according to naturopathic-physicians.com.
All Things Healing promotes and supports integrative medicine with information updated weekly in article and video form. Visit us online regularly!
Introducing Integrative Medicine |
|
|
EDITORS CORNER
|
|
Please welcome our Featured Guest Editor, Norman Shealy, MD. Norman Shealy, MD is one of the world's leading experts in pain management. He was among the first physicians ever to specia... read more |
| Norman Shealy, MD | |
We are currently seeking a Co-Editor and/or Assistant Editor for this section.
For more information please contact Sherri Carter at sherricarter@allthingshealing.com
|
All title links for INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE |
Use Natural Healing for Anxiety and Panic Disorders
by Luella May When panic attacks occur, you might think you're losing control, having a heart attack or even dying." That is why it is common for a person experiencing a panic attack to feel that death is imminent. Fortunately, there are some good natural solutions to combat anxiety and panic symptoms.   Editors Spotlight
  Our Mission at ATH We at ATH are committed to bringing together a worldwide community of individuals and organizations dedicated to informing and educating people on topics relating to alternative healing of mind, body, spirit and the planet at large.
|
||||||||||
The Shealy Protocols are a system of treatment methodologies based on 35 years of clinical experience at the world's most successful and effective pain and stress management clinic, the Shealy Institute and Wellness Center. Over 30,000 patients have been treated for a wide variety of problems that had failed conventional medical and surgical treatment...
Natural estrogens (phytoestrogens) are found in plant products, and therefore are in many of the foods we eat. According to researchers at Cornell University, there are three main classes of phytoestrogens: isoflavonoids, coumestans and lignans. In the body, phytoestrogens act as our naturally produced estrogen... 
Yes, you know sugar is not good for you, but you NEED it…especially after a meal and certainly after you’ve eaten a bite of chocolate goodness. What was once thought of as a relatively innocuous source of empty calories is now understood as a major contributor to our nation’s increasing rates of obesity, diabetes, ADHD, metabolic syndrome and cancer...
I have taken the liberty of describing alpha lipoic acid as the “miracle molecule” because it is among the most valuable nutritional supplements we can take for our over-all well-being. I believe that alpha lipoic acid ascends to the “miracle” level because it has a wide spectrum of biological activities that are useful in treating serious diseases, it is valuable in protecting against the formation or progression of serious diseases, and it can be a major contributor to achieving “healthy aging”...
Learning how to manage stress is not about becoming skilled at when to avoid or escape the pressures we live with today. It is about gaining the knowledge on how to recognize when the body reacts to these pressures and learning the skills needed to reduce the negative effects of them...
Adrenal fatigue is frequently the problem when a patient comes to me with a chronic sense of exhaustion, need for more than the usual amount of sleep, anxiety, dizziness, and loss of appetite. Sometimes eating is disordered so that foods are overused in an attempt to regain energy or feel an elusive sense of wellness...
While researching alternative treatments for hot flashes, I came across some information on a Japanese herbal formula called Keishi-bukuryo-gan. Do you know anything about it? Is it effective for hot flashes? What about other perimenopausal symptoms?...
Our lives are filled to the brim, and the idea of sacrificing any amount of time to sit and just breathe is unimaginable. And yet this is exactly what I tell them to do...
