Although we associate alternative medicine with unorthodox measures, they are becoming more common nowadays. In fact, doctors are starting to incorporate older alternative medicine techniques into their practices. They used to be the norm – herbs have been used throughout history to improve one’s health and cure certain diseases – but with the advancements of technology and medicine, we slowly deviated away from the practice. Only recently have societies become more open once again to a holistic approach towards health.
Medical Doctors and Doctors of Osteopathy all agree on one thing: the body can heal itself.
Science has developed so many riveting treatments and medications that built a misconception about traditional alternative medicine. Most medications and drugs are synthetic and built in a lab.
Not everyone who practices holistic medicine is a licensed medical doctor. But everyone using this approach operates under the same principle of treating the body as a whole. A holistic approach often requires the use of alternative medicine and treatments either on its own or in conjunction with modern medicine.
Doctors have different ways of approaching treatment for their patients, and many disagree on the use of alternative medicines because of how they train in medical school. However, alternative medicine is gaining traction because of an increasing number of licensed doctors adopting a holistic approach.
Osteopaths are registered physicians who are duly licensed to treat and diagnose patients using a more holistic approach as opposed to their MD counterparts. Unlike naturopaths, whose capacity to treat and prescribe medicines vary by state, osteopaths have the same privileges as an MD.
Naturopaths undergo the same medical training and board exam. They combine Western medicine with natural therapies to treat their patients.
They are professional doctors who underwent the same medical education and training. However, they are not recognized as licensed physicians except in India. Ayurveda is an ancient healing practice in Indian medicine that until now continues to be a primary healthcare system. Its aim is to balance doshas through alternative medicine, herbalism, and lifestyle changes.
Like traditional Indian medicine, the Chinese also developed their own healing practices in the old days. In fact, many of their practices are still widely present until now, including herbalism and acupuncture. They believe that balancing one’s qi will help keep a person healthy.
There is still some debate going around about the use of alternative medicine and treatment for patients. They are generally more accepting of supplements, vitamins, and non-invasive treatment like massage therapy, but not as a primary form of patient care. DOs are way more scarce than MDs, and this is one reason why the medical community is dismissive towards alternative medicine.
The focus the medical world has put on modern treatments and technologies has put holistic medicine at the back seat. MDs who are aggressively against this approach say that there is no scientific proof for the claims of efficiency. This is untrue because the best proof is the real-life positive results that many patients experience after getting treated by a professional holistic doctor. However, the lack of funding towards this type of treatments makes it difficult to quantify the benefits.
MDs insist on getting hard evidence without considering the lack of support from the medical community to strengthen alternative medicine. Before all these advances in medicine, societies used to rely on what’s available in their environment to improve their health. They used what’s available in nature and only when mankind found out they could create medicine in laboratories did this practice change.
You will get varying opinions from doctors on the topic alternative medicine depending on who you ask. Even if you’re asking for a professional opinion from a doctor, their answers will also vary because they have different practices and medical beliefs. If you are planning to get alternative medicine and treatment, ask a holistic doctor, because they are the most experienced.
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