Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Types Of Cam

The NCCAM has categorized CAM practices into four domains. (See Figure 9.5.) There is some overlap between these CAM domains:

• Mind-body interventions—Mind-body medicine is a range of practices that aims to use the power of the mind to influence symptoms of disease and healing. Increasingly, this type of alternative medicine has gained acceptance among medical professionals. Mind-body therapies—such as support groups for FIGURE 9.5 Broad classes of CAM PRACTICES "NCCAM Groups CAM Practices into Four Domains," in The Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in the United States, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, National Institutes of Health, September 2004, http://nccam.nih.gov/news/camsurvey_fs1.htm (accessed January 20, 2006) people suffering from a variety of medical problems; relaxation techniques; and art, dance, and music therapies—are now widely used by practitioners of conventional medicine. Less widely accepted mind-body techniques include meditation, breathing, hypnosis, and prayer.
• Biologically based therapies—This type of treatment uses organic (naturally occurring) substances such as herbs, food, and vitamins to treat symptoms of disease and improve health and wellness. Examples of biologically based therapies include dietary supplements, herbal remedies, and the hotly debated use of hormones such as human growth hormone (HGH) and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA, the most plentiful steroid hormone in the body) to combat disease and to slow aging.
• Manipulative and body-based practices—Movement therapies, manipulative methods, and bodywork are another type of CAM. Examples of these methods are massage therapy, chiropractic, and osteopathic manipulation (also referred to as craniosacral manipulative therapy).
• Energy medicine—These techniques aim to influence energy fields that practitioners of this form of CAM believe exist in and around the body. Also called "biofield therapies," some are "touch" therapies FIGURE 9.6 Complementary and alternative medicine use by domain, 2002 "Figure 3. CAM Use by Domain and Whole Medical Systems," in The Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in the United States, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, National Institutes of Health, September 2004, http://nccam.nih.gov/news/camsurvey_fs1.htm (accessed January 20, 2006)and others do not involve direct contact with any part of the body. Reiki and Qi Gong are examples of biofield therapies. Other forms of energy therapies known as bioelectromagnetic-based therapies use magnetic energy, electromagnetic fields, pulsed fields, alternating current, or direct current fields to influence "energy flow."

The NCCAM also considers whole medical systems. Many of these alternative medical systems developed before conventional Western medicine or independent of it. Alternative medicine systems are based on different beliefs and philosophies and, as a result, approach both diagnosis and treatment of disease quite differently from traditional Western medicine. Examples of alternative medicine systems that began in Western cultures are homeopathy and naturopathic medicine. Alternative medicine systems that developed in other cultures include acupuncture, Ayurvedic medicine, and traditional Chinese medicine. The NHIS found that just 2.7% of respondents said they used whole medical systems. (See Figure 9.6.)

When prayer is included in the scope of CAM practices, mind-body medicine is the most frequently used (52.6%) of the NCCAM domains. (See Figure 9.6.) According to the NCCAM in The Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in the United States (2004, http://nccam.nih.gov/news/camsurvey_fs1.htm), when prayer is not included, biologically based therapies (21.9%) are more popular than mind-body medicine (17%) Prayer for oneself (43%) and others (24.4%) is the most commonly used CAM practice, followed by natural products (18.9%) and deep breathing (11.6%). (See Figure 9.7.)