Finding Alternative Medicine and Health Care Practitioners

In its broadest definition, “Alternative medicine” encompasses health care techniques and treatments outside of conventional medicine. By definition, these are not taught in medical schools. Some are more broadly accepted by the medical establishment than others, usually corresponding to the degree with which a physiological mechanism for a therapy’s efficacy can be determined, or the degree to which a therapy can be and has been subjected to double-blind studies. Even though alternative therapies in health and medicine have not necessarily met the gold standard to bring them into the realm of conventional therapy, the practitioners are often rigorously trained in their fields.

Nutritionists Conventional medicine acknowledges the importance of a healthy diet, so nutritionists and dieticians are not always classified as alternative medicine health care providers. However, for people seeking a nutritional or dietary answer to their health care needs, the advice of a certified nutritionist or dietician can be a vital component to an alternative health care and medicine regimen. These food experts can help craft an optimal diet, as well as provide advice on individual nutrients and the health benefits of specific foods.

In the United States, “dietician” is a regulated term nationwide, though dieticians rarely work in private practice with individual clients. The education and licensure requirements for nutritionists vary from state to state.

Bodyworkers The category of bodyworkers includes chiropractors and massage therapists. Yoga, Tai Chi and similar modalities are sometimes categorized with bodyworkers. The nature of bodywork makes the gold standard of a double blind placebo controlled study impossible. However, there are documented physical benefits of these forms of alternative medicine in a health care regimen, both for healthy people and for treatment of medical conditions.

States set educational and certification requirements for bodyworkers, and the requirements often vary with discipline. For instance, some states do not regulate massage therapists at all whereas others require 1,000 or more hours of classroom study plus passing licensure exams and even parts of the state Medical Board exams. Few if any jurisdictions regulate yoga practitioners.

Herbalists Much of modern, conventional pharmacology is based on herbal medicine practices. Some herbal therapies have even been the subjects of rigorous scientific study. Still, herbal medicine is considered an alternative health care practice. Given that herbal remedies are available in retail outlets in most malls, many people design and administer their own regimen of herbal remedies based on information they gather and vet themselves. This can be dangerous, as herbs can interact with one another and with traditional pharmaceuticals, and finding complete information on any particular herb can be a daunting task for the lay person. This is compounded by US law prohibiting herbal supplements from advertising their uses for particular conditions, dosage, administration techniques. Herbalists are educated in these areas and can develop an appropriate and safe herbal treatment and support program.

While there is no government certification program for herbalists, the professional organization, the American Herbalist Guild, sets standards of practice and educational requirements for its members, requiring 1,200 hours or more of training in botany and herbal applications.

A comprehensive health care regimen can include alternative medicine. However, just because a therapy is alternative, that does not mean that there are not educated, professional practitioners available to guide people in the proper use of the therapies.