1.0Glossaryhttps://www.healthbenefitstimes.com/glossaryGlossaryhttps://www.healthbenefitstimes.com/glossary/author/adminglossary/rich600338<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="xbox56oXE2"><a href="https://www.healthbenefitstimes.com/glossary/alternative-medicine/">Alternative medicine</a></blockquote><iframe sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" src="https://www.healthbenefitstimes.com/glossary/alternative-medicine/embed/#?secret=xbox56oXE2" width="600" height="338" title="“Alternative medicine” — Glossary" data-secret="xbox56oXE2" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" class="wp-embedded-content"></iframe><script> /*! This file is auto-generated */ !function(d,l){"use strict";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&"undefined"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!/[^a-zA-Z0-9]/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),c=new RegExp("^https?:$","i"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display="none";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute("style"),"height"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):"link"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute("src")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener("message",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll("iframe.wp-embedded-content"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute("data-secret"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+="#?secret="+t,e.setAttribute("data-secret",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:"ready",secret:t},"*")},!1)))}(window,document); //# sourceURL=https://www.healthbenefitstimes.com/glossary/wp-includes/js/wp-embed.min.js </script> Practices not generally recognized by the medical community as standard or conventional medical approaches and used instead of standard treatments. Alternative medicine includes the taking of dietary supplements, megadose vitamins, and herbal preparations; the drinking of special teas; and practices such as massage therapy, magnet therapy, spiritual healing, and meditation.Medical systems, therapies, or techniques that are used in place of conventional medicine.The treatment of illness using therapies such as homeopathy or naturopathy which are not considered part of conventional Western medicine.Unconventional therapies, such as massage, biofeedback, herbal remedies, and acupuncture. There appears to be consensus that these therapies should be evaluated; contention arises from insistence by physicians that the therapies should be judged by the same research standards as are other therapies, while their advocates resist this rigid protocol. In Europe, and increasingly in the United States, the term "complementary medicine", is used for alternative medicine, since its techniques are usually not replacements for other therapies, but rather are additional treatment resources. A 1992 report to the National Institutes of Health, Alternative Medicine: Expanding Medical Horizons, classifies alternative medicine methods into 7 categories: mind-body interventions; bio-electromagnetics applications in medicine; alternative systems of medical practice; manual healing methods; pharmacological and biological treatments; herbal medicine; and diet and nutrition in the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases.Treatment approaches that are not accepted by mainstream Western medical practice, such as acupuncture, chiropractics, hypnosis, etc.Techniques, methods, and practices of health care used as alternatives to conventional medicine. Examples of alternative medicine include ancient healing traditions such as acupuncture, herbal medicine, to newer methods, such as chiropractic and megavitamin therapy.All therapies that are an equivalent substitute to modern scientific medical practice. Equivalent when applied to medical practice means having equal value for a particular curative purpose.In 1983 the British Medical Association set up a scientific committee to “consider the feasibility and possible methods of assessing the value of alternative therapies, whether used alone or to complement other treatments.” The major difficulty with this task was that the term covers such a wide range of practices, some used purely as complementary medicine and others used totally as an alternative treatment.A group of diverse medical and health-care systems, practices, and products that are not currently considered part of conventional medicine. (Sometimes referred to as complementary or integrative medicine.)An unconventional approach or substance employed as an alternative to conventional medical or surgical treatment methods.A distinctive therapeutic approach or substance employed as a substitute for conventional medical or surgical interventions.Referred to as complementary medicine, alternative medical systems encompass various theories of disease and treatment methods that differ from conventional Western medicine.