Complementary Therapies
This web page is designed to help you and your family explore
the vast topic of complementary therapies and make informed
choices, that you feel comfortable and confident about. The use of
complementary therapies is common and increasing, especially for
very sick children. Some families find that this is a way that they
can meaningfully contribute to their child's health, comfort and
well-being. It may be you want to consider complementary medicine
for a particular illness, or you may simply want "to make life a
bit more lovely, pain-free and enjoyable" for your child (to quote
a parent). This page includes:
- Definitions
- Guidelines for checking out different
therapies/practitioners
- Sites to get you started
- Safeguards
Definitions for this Web
page
Complementary means therapies used TOGETHER
with conventional medicine
Conventional medicine refers to the standard
treatments offered in mainstream medicine
Complementary therapies refers to all
complementary and alternative practices
Complementary medicine refers to substances
that are taken by mouth or injected, or applied to the skin, or
inhaled, not prescribed by a doctor (Often referred to elsewhere as
natural medicines. Note that natural does not automatically mean
safe)
What
are complementary and alternative therapies?
They are a diverse range of treatments and practices, based on
different philosophies and beliefs, that are used for healing mind,
body, emotions and spirit. They are not usually taught in medical
schools nor routinely offered in hospitals.
There are around 200 different complementary therapies on
record. They can be divided into four main groups which can help us
understand how they are used. (This is adapted from the Center for
Holistic Pediatric Education and Research in Boston.)
1. Biochemical such as herbs, dietary
supplements, minerals, vitamins, Bach flower essences, aromatherapy
oils
2. Biomechanical such as massage, osteopathy,
chiropractic, Alexander technique
3. Lifestyle such as environment, diet,
exercise, and mindbody techniques such as
meditation, relaxation, imagery, hypnosis
4. Bioenergetic such as acupuncture, Reiki,
therapeutic touch, kinesiology
Guidelines for choosing complementary and
alternative therapies
(adapted from Consultations Newsletter, Winter 1997, Duke
University Medical Centre)
First, make sure you completely understand your child's
conventional medical treatment, and ask your doctors about
anything and everything you want to know more about
Weigh what you judge to be the potential costs and
benefits of any new treatment with quality of life issues
that are important to you and your family (just as you would with
any conventional treatment)
Consider you and your family's unique needs, beliefs and
desires
- You may want to choose therapies for yourself and other family
members as well as your child. Everyone may benefit from stress
management for example.
- Ask yourself how you honestly feel about the treatment. Only do
what feels right.
Be clear about expectations of treatment, so you can monitor
outcome
- Cure disease
- Reduce stress/toxins, increase well-being
- Manage symptoms
- Prevent disease
- Inner peace and harmony
- Any combination of the above
Check out practitioner credentials and
conditions in which they practise
Check training, registration of practitioner and claims being
made. Beware of a treatment that is very expensive, claims that it
is the only one that will work and all other treatments should
stop. Ask whether any studies have been done, or adverse effects
reported, but remember, no evidence is not proof that something
doesn't work, and it may not always be necessary to prove value (eg
listening to music, playing , reading, meditating,
visualizing).
Discuss your options openly with people you trust in the
conventional medical setting
They may be able to help with risk-benefit analysis, and to
monitor the effects of a treatment. Integration of complementary
therapies with conventional medicine is in its infancy. You may
want to talk with other parents, nurses, palliative care
specialists, anyone who may have information or experience.
Selecting information about Complementary Medicine from the
Web
The pick of the sites is the US Government National Center for
Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) site, recently
redesigned to make it easier for the consumer to use. This is a
good place to start and it has some links.
www.nccam.nih.gov
Safety on the net
If you decide to browse the small-scale websites written largely
by practitioners promoting their own philosophy and treatments, it
may be worth bearing in mind the concerns listed below, that have
been discussed in the medical journals.
- Some internet sites/practitioners tell patients to stop their
medical treatment
- Patients may delay seeking conventional treatment which has
proven effectiveness
- More and more interactions are being described between herbs
and dietary supplements with over the counter and prescription
drugs
- Lack of scientific evidence (that is, studies where lots of
patients have had the therapy and it has been evaluated by the
scientific method).
- Cost