Category Archives: Integrative Medicine

The Integrative Medicine Department at Highlands Hospital combines evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine with traditional or western medicine. Integrative Medicine thus refers to the synergistic blending of these two distinct types of care providing a more holistic approach to healing.

Integrative Medicine therapies are based on the bodys innate ability to heal itself. The focus is on the whole person- physical, emotional social and spiritual. Integrative Medicine involves nurturing touch, sensitive listening, comforting environment and social networking.

A partnership between patient/client and practitioner is essential to the healing process. We are the coach and facilitator but the driving force to heal comes from the heart of each individual. Integrative Medicine empowers each person with the skills to be in charge of his/her own health care.

The program at Highlands Hospital is designed to be gentle yet powerful using learned techniques to deal with stress and negative emotions. A few of the modalities that we use are breathing techniques, progressive relaxation and guided imagery, bio-energy techniques, HealthRHYTHMS drumming and music therapy.

Highlands Hospital is pleased to welcome Jeanne Brinker RN BSN as an Integrative Medicine Healing Arts Practitioner to oversee the program. Jeanne is a consultant and pioneer in Integrative Medicine with 20 years of holistic health care experience in hospital and community environments. She was the former director of Integrative Medicine at Windber Medical Center. In that capacity, she has worked to bring complementary and alternative (CAM) to diverse patient populations from prenatal care, newborns and their families, pre and post-surgical care, critical and cardiac care, cancer survivors, hospice and palliative care, grief and loss support for families, incarcerated young adults and healthy teens, adults and seniors.

Westmoreland Guide to Good Health Brochure Winter 2017 Issue (PDF)

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Highlands Hospital Integrative Medicine

UCHealth offers physician-managed care that emphasizes the wellness and healing of the entire person.

Integrative medicine is the blending of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) therapies with conventional care for the prevention and treatment of health conditions and the pursuit of wellness.

This melding of traditional medical care with the centuries-old healing arts can help decrease stress, strengthen the immune system, reduce pain, and speed recovery.

Our holistic approach treats each patient for balance and wellness of the mind, body, and spirit. Services are customized for your unique needs.

We believe that wellness is not defined by the presenceor absenceof disease. Rather, wellness is the pursuit of the best quality of life in your present circumstances regardless of your medical condition.

Whether youre fighting a disease, recovering from a disease, or striving to maintain good health, we can help you achieve optimal well-being.

Conditions that benefit from integrative medicine

Integrative medicine services & therapies

Our integrative medicine team collaborates with each other, your other healthcare providers at UCHealth, and any outside providers to help you get the most from the integration of CAM and conventional care.

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Integrative Medicine | Fort Collins, Denver & Colorado Springs

Getting healthy and staying healthy isnt only about medical treatments. Sometimes you need a little extra support to help you tolerate treatment and recover from illness and feel better overall.

Integrative Medicine takes into account the whole person. It makes use of different therapeutic practices to address all aspects of your health physical, emotional, social, spiritual and more. The goal is to restore and maintain health and wellness.

At the Elmhurst Integrative Medicine Clinic, we address your mind, body and spirit so you can live a better life now.

We offer the following Integrative Medicine services alongside your medical treatments:

Reiki is a complementary, holistic healing practice intended to promote the balance of energy in the body. The session is safe, gentle and non-invasive, and is used to enhance the effectiveness of conventional medical treatment. Reiki can help promote relaxation and release stress. It can also relieve pain, improve mental clarity and promote sleep.

Mindfulness therapy involves focusing your awareness on the present moment. Mindfulness meditation may involve deep breathing exercises and self-soothe techniques. During it, you acknowledge and accept your thoughts, feelings and sensations without judgment. By connecting with the moment at hand, mindfulness therapy can help you relax, gain mental clarity, reduce anxious thoughts, and feel restored.

Guided imagery involves the process of using directed thoughts and suggestions to guide ones imagination toward a relaxed, focused state. For example, it can help you to prepare for an event or activity by imagining a positive outcome.

Hypnosis is the process by which an individuals body relaxes while the mind enters a state of deep concentration. This therapy can be used to treat people with addictions, pain, anxiety disorders and phobias.

Advanced massage techniques are a useful adjunct to ones health plan to promote healing and maintain health. Massage is beneficial for many conditions, including chronic pain, soft tissue injuries and stress reduction.

This therapeutic practice includes an evaluation and treatment to resolve various body ailments through the use of acupuncture, cupping or gua sha. It promotes a state of optimal health to provide relief from pain, headaches, digestive disorders, sleep trouble, colds and sinus congestion, stress and more.

Maintaininga healthy, balanced diet is important to control your weight and improve your overall wellness. Heather Bautista, ND, CNS, LDN, naturopathic health coach with the Integrative Medicine Clinic, can help educate you in choosing healthy dietary options that are right for you.

Struggling to quit smoking? Our smoking cessation program can give you the support you need to quit for good.

Smoking is a strong, complicated addiction. You need the best tools to help with the physical and emotional symptoms. Hypnosis and acupuncture are great resources to help you succeed. During hypnosis for smoking cessation, a patient is often asked to imagine unpleasant outcomes from smoking, which can help later when the desire to smoke occurs. Acupuncture can help stop jitters, curb cravings, lessen irritability and restlessness, increase relaxation and detoxify the body.

Our Integrative Medicine Clinic offers a four-week smoking cessation program by hypnosis, counseling and acupuncture (if you wish). The program can give you the support you need to kick the habit for good. Learn more and call 331-221-6135 to register.

Be Activated is used globally by elite sports teams, the fitness industry and health professionals to treat injuries and enhance sporting performance. It is a powerful tool for stress management and can quickly break common patterns of movement dysfunction and chronic pain.

Eric Janota, D.O. is offering Be Activated at Edward-Elmhurst Health Center (located at 8 Salt Creek Lane in Hinsdale) for people with:

The Be Activated philosophy will change the way your body works. Simple changes to dysfunctioning muscles allow the body to make immediate shifts towards resilience, strength and speed. The results are incredible. An activated body will quickly change from a state of tension and pain to a strong and relaxed state of excellent performance. To learn more, call 331-221-2550.

Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) is hands-on care. It involves using the hands to diagnose, treat and prevent illness or injury. Using OMT, your osteopathic physician (D.O.) will move your muscles and joints using techniques including stretching, gentle pressure and resistance.

OMT can help people of all ages and backgrounds. The treatment can be used to ease pain, promote healing and increase overall mobility. OMT is often used to treat muscle pain, but it can also help patients with a number of other health problems such as: asthma, sinus disorders, carpal tunnel syndrome and migraines.

Julia Afridi, D.O., Medical Director of Integrative Medicine at Elmhurst Hospital, is offering OMT at Elmhurst Hospital and at our Oak Park clinic. Please call 331-221-1700 to set up your appointment for OMT.

A DEXA scan provides an accurate, in-depth body composition analysis that can be used to identify health risks and pinpoint problems in the body before they occur. Learn more or call 630-527-3200 to make an appointment for the DEXA scan.

For people with cancer, Integrative Medicine therapies can help to diminish the stress and anxiety of cancer treatment and create a sense of well-being. Often patients forgo this type of therapy because its rarely covered by insurance.Instead, they live with the adverse effects of chemotherapy and radiation treatment.

Hope. Lives. Here. is an initiative launched by the Elmhurst Memorial Hospital Foundation to increase awareness and raise funds for cancer programs and services at The Nancy W. Knowles Cancer Center.

The Foundation has raised funds to provide twocomplimentary 30-minute appointments in the Integrative Medicine Clinic to each new cancer patient that we treat in 2017. To make an appointment, call 331-221-6135.

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Integrative Medicine Clinic | Edward-Elmhurst Health

New Integrative Medicine Clinic at Wake Forest Baptist Health

We are pleased to announce that Wake Forest Baptist Health now offers patients integrative medicine services. At this new clinic, physicians and healerswork side by side to provide collaborative services to address diverse health conditions. We partner with patients of all ages to provide whole person, preventative care to improve overall health and wellbeing. Physicians with specialty training in integrative medicine, internal medicine, family medicine, neurology, pain management, pediatrics, and physical medicine and rehabilitation collaborate with professionals providing acupuncture, psychology, nutrition and integrative energy therapies in an effort to provide patients with comprehensive, evidence based care.

Our services are commonly used to help treat a variety of health conditions, including acute or chronic pain, menopausal-related symptoms, allergies, gastrointestinal symptoms, anxiety, and fatigue, just to name a few. Our Integrative Medicine specialists can help determine if our services are right for your specific health condition.

With more than 30 years of experience in both conventional and integrative medicine, Dr. Greenfield graduated from the Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizonas College of Medicine and was one of the first four physicians to train there under Andrew Weil, MD.He has worked with Harris Teeter as a consultant on its yourwellness initiative, and helped forward Integrative Medicine within the VA nationally in service to veterans and their families. Prior to joining Wake Forest Baptist Health, Dr. Greenfield treated patients through Greenfield Integrative Healthcare, his own integrative healthcare consultancy.Dr. Greenfield is Board Certified in Emergency Medicine, earned his medical degree from the Chicago Medical School, and completed his residency and fellowship training in emergency medicine at Harbor/UCLA Medical Center.

Learn more about Dr. Greenfield | Request an Appointment with Dr. Greenfield

Dr. Coeytaux serves as the Director of the Center for Integrative Medicine, the Caryl J Guth, MD Chair in Integrative Medicine, and Professor of Family and Community Medicine. He is a family physician and clinical epidemiologist with experience both as a clinical scientist and administrator, and before joining us full-time, served as Associate Professor of Community and Family Medicine at Duke University and a faculty member of the Duke Clinical Research Institute.Dr. Coeytaux received his AB from Brown University, his MD from Stanford University, and his PhD in Epidemiology from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. He is a former Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar and Bravewell Collaborative Integrative Medicine Fellow.

Request an Appointment with Dr. Coeytaux

Wunian Chen is licensed by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) to offer acupuncture and Oriental medicine services. He has 30 years of experience delivering acupuncture treatments and helping patients use Chinese herbal treatments to improve their health.While studying acupuncture at the Hubei College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Dr. Chen studied the principles of both Chinese and Western medicine. He graduated in 1983 with the equivalent of a U.S. medical degree. Since then, he has worked with patients to address a variety of conditions both in China and here in the United States. Dr. Chen uses acupuncture to help people with high blood pressure, back pain, depression, joint pain, fibromyalgia, hot flashes, fatigue, and headaches.

Request an Appointment with Dr. Chen

Deborah Larrimore is a nurse educator who specializes in integrative energy therapies. She provides Healing Touch services and strives to understand healing and how we can affect the process of disease. Deborah focuses her teachings on the sacredness of life and is dedicated to the idea that we can improve lives simply through the act of caring, while partnering with patients to help them discover their own path to wholeness.Deborah is a registered nurse, a licensed Massage and Bodywork Therapist, a Certified Healing Touch Practitioner and a Certified Healing Touch Instructor. She received her BSN from East Carolina University, and served for 15 years as a critical care nurse in intensive care at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. Following that, she spent four years as a Nurse Educator for Hospice of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County. In her role as a Certified Healing Touch Instructor, she has locally, nationally and internationally taught many health care professionals the art of Healing Touch. Deborah has remained affiliated with Wake Forest Baptist Health for over 40 years and launched a former volunteer-based Healing Touch Consult Service for patients of the Medical Center.

Request an Appointment with Deborah Larrimore, RN

Vanessa Baute is an integrative neurologist and Assistant Professor of Neurology and Director of Education with the Center for Integrative Medicine at Wake Forest Baptist Health. She enjoys partnering with patients to promote their healing and manages a variety of neurologic conditions such as peripheral neuropathy and headache. She has a specific interest in the role of nutrition on neurohealth and has led seminars regionally and nationally on this topic. She teaches and mentors medical students and residents the importance of self-care and how to serve as role models of wellness. She completed her neurology residency and clinical neurophysiology fellowship at the Medical College of Georgia then went on to complete a two year fellowship in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona training there under Andrew Weil, MD.

Jeff Feldman has a special interest in helping individuals cope with chronic pain, headache, and other chronic and life-changing health conditions that can generate depression and anxiety. He works to tailor his approach to the individual, treating patients with a combination of mind-body techniques including relaxation, meditation, hypnosis, cognitive-behavioral and other brief therapy and stress management approaches. He has been a faculty member at all the International Congresses for Ericksonian Psychotherapy and Hypnosis since 1983, and presented at numerous other national and international meetings. An Associate Professor in the Department of Neurology, he joined the faculty of Wake Forest School of Medicine in 1999.Dr. Feldman is a graduate of Rutgers College of Rutgers University, received his Masters and Doctorate degrees in clinical psychology from Case Western Reserve University, and completed an internship at NYU Medical Center Bellevue Hospital. He has served as the Director of the Wake Forest Center for Integrative Medicine from 2013 until 2016, and as Chair of the Clinical Working Group of the Academic Consortium for Integrative Medicine and Health.

Dr. Karvelas grew up in North Carolina and attended both undergraduate and medical school at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. He then completed Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) residency in Chicago at Northwestern Memorial/Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. He specializes in conservative musculoskeletal pain and chronic pain management with a focus on functional improvement. His interest in integrative medicine stems from his time living in San Francisco between undergraduate school and medical school when he attended art school and completed an Internship in Integrative Medicine at California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC) with a focus on Expressive Arts Therapy for both adult and pediatric inpatients. He then used this training in a Schweitzer Fellowship program in medical school providing expressive arts therapy for pediatric and adult cancer patients at UNC. Although he no longer serves as an expressive arts therapist, this training and experience has molded his approach to treating patients holistically. He plans on completing the fellowship in Integrative Medicine offered to physicians in practice.

William Satterwhite, a native of Winston-Salem, received his bachelors degree from Davidson College and his law degree from UNC Chapel Hill. After practicing law for five years in Charlotte, he went to medical school at Wake Forest School of Medicine and completed his residency in pediatrics at Wake Forest Baptist in 2000. He has practiced pediatrics since then, developing significant experience and expertise treating children with ADHD and anxiety.At the Integrative Medicine Clinic, Satterwhite treats children with ADHD or anxiety who need a deeper, more holistic look into what might be causing their symptoms and what other remedies might lessen or even eliminate the need for traditional prescription medications.

Location and Hours of Operation

The Integrative Medicine Clinic is conveniently located near Pavilions Shopping Center in Winston-Salem, at 755 Highland Oaks Drive.

Clinical Coordinator: Kyle Washburn

755 Highland Oaks DriveSuite 102Winston-Salem, NC 27103(clinic map)

Patient Appointments: 336-713-6100Fax: 336-659-8759

Monday - Friday: 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Insurance coverage varies by provider, but most are in-network with most plans. We suggest you contact your insurance provider to verify coverage.

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Integrative Medicine Clinic - Wake Forest Baptist, North Carolina

An evolution in medical practice,integrative medicine supports the unique expression of health and vitality for every individual.If you have an interest in learningaboutnon-allopathic techniques, or if you already have training in them, the UMass Worcester Family Medicine Residency is the place to be!

We canhelp you get the training to be effective and supervise your use of these techniques. Whileyou are fine tuning your skills inWestern Medicine, you willgain extensive experience inthe practice of integrativemedicine:

Acupuncture: the ancient practice of using tiny needles to change the energy patterns of the body in order to restore balance and health.

Cupping: used to treat muscular joint pain as well as many systemic diseases. Uses hand-pump or heated cups to create local suction on the skin.

Functional Medicine: addressing the whole person, not just an isolated set of symptoms,practitioners gather extensive personal, medical and social histories. Then, they evaulate the interactions among genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors that can influence long-term health and complex, chronic disease.

GuaSha: also called "coining". Scraping the skin with a blunt tool (coin, spool or other instrument) to treat local pain or systemic problems.

Hypnosis: each day the human mind controls millions of events through the body. Using hypnosis, "inward focus," you can train your mind to influence many areas of function.

Natural Therapies: using non-prescription compounds such as Western or Chinese herbs, or vitamin and mineral supplements to restore balance and function.

Osteopathic Manipulation: OMT can help people of all ages and backgrounds. The treatment can be used to ease pain, promote healing and increase overall mobility.

"After practicing Family Medicine for a few years, I realized that Western medicine had little to offer many patients. I started looking into non-Western therapies and have become an Integrative Medicine Practitioner.Contact me anytime with questions!"

Melissa Rathmell, MD, Director of Integrative MedicineUMass Family Medicine ResidencyTo learn more about Dr. Rathmell,we invite you toread our recent interview with her!

American Academy of Medical AcupunctureAmerican Osteopathic AssociationInstitute for Functional MedicineNew England Society of Clinical Hypnosis

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UMass Medical School - Worcester

Integrative Medicine means different things to different people, depending on who is defining it. For many docs using the term, it is just the blending of the best of conventional and alternative medicine based on the research evidence. Some people emphasize the doctor-patient relationship, but that should always simply be part of good medical practice.

Some docs are using the Integrative Medicine label for their own branding and self-promotion. Some are even trying to coopt the term in order to own it in one way or another.

For the most part, Integrative Medicine does not exist. The MDs are doing complementary medicine. They are complementing their main-stream medical approaches with a few alternative therapies. They aren't really trained in these other therapies, and they will always neglect one or more of the alternative therapies, based upon their prejudices.

The patients are going to the acupuncturist, chiropractor and herbalist, but those practitioners are not talking with the MD. And the MD is certainly not talking with them. The supplements and vitamins are being prescribed by the home shopping channel or the guy in the health food store. The MD and the other practitioners rarely know what's going on.

So for the vast majority of instances, Integrative Medicine does not exist. It's a nice idea, but it's not happening, and it's not going to happen. The best we can do is to get our patients to keep records of the various things they are doing for their health, so that we can at least look it over for safety issues.

Patients will always try some new pill or run off to Aunt Millie's homeopath. That's OK -- they have that right. But it's really hard to keep track of all this, even for the patient.

Five percent of Medicare enrollees cost Medicare 43% of its payout. This 5% of Medicare patients has on average 5 major medical problems, and they have on average 14 doctors in their medical records. Do you really think that all 14 of these doctors are integrating or coordinating their care? Even a few of them?

There are only 3 or 4 of us in the U.S. who have the full cross-training to be able to actually do the integration of alternative therapies with conventional medicine for patients in our offices. But even for us, it's a challenge. So for the most part, Integrative Medicine doesn't really exist.

Good health to you -

James

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What is integrative medicine? | Integrative Medicine - Sharecare

Gregory Shumer, M.D.,Jill R. Schniederhan, M.D.,Tarannum A. Master-Hunter, M.D.,Suzanna M. Zick, N.D., M.P.H.,Ricardo R. Bartelme, M.D.,Carissa A. Orizondo, M.D.Missing from photoCheryl E. LaMore, M.D.

University of Michigan Integrative Family Medicine, an interdisciplinary program, is committed to the thoughtful and compassionate integration of complementary therapies and conventional medicine through the activities of research, education, clinical services and community partnerships. As a healing-oriented approach to medical care, integrative medicine takes into account the whole person (body, mind, spirit and emotion),and also includes all aspects of lifestyle.

The vision, mission and values of the University of Michigan Integrative Family Medicine (IFM) program reflect our belief that patients and our community are best served when all available therapies are considered in concert with an approach that recognizes the intrinsic wholeness of each individual. It also reflects our belief that the best medicine is practiced in collaboration with a wide variety of healthcare professionals and with our patients.

To facilitate healing and wellness of mind, body, heart and spirit through clinical services, research and education.

To provide responsible leadership in the integration of complementary and conventional medicine.

To live and work in balance with the community, the environment and each other. To touch beyond our reach and see beyond our vision.

Integrative medicine is the practice of medicine that reaffirms the importance of the relationship between practitioner and patient, focuses on the whole person, is informed by evidence and makes use of all appropriate therapeutic approaches, healthcare professionals and disciplines to achieve optimal health and healing.

Developed and Adopted by The Consortium of Academic Health Centers for Integrative Medicine, May 2004 Edited May 2005.

Please call: (734) 647-5640or visit the Integrative Family Medicine Clinic home page

E-mail: umim-info@umich.edu

IFM Faculty

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Welcome to the Integrative Family Medicine Program ...

Integrative medicine pairs traditional medicine with other treatments to care for your mind, body, and spirit. For example, your doctor may suggest chemotherapy to fight cancer as well as acupuncture to help manage its side effects.

It isnt just medicine. Your care team may also design a plan to help you build healthy behaviors and skills -- like smart eating habits and stress-busting activities. These things can keep you healthy for the long term.

Integrative medicine uses complementary treatments, but they have to be backed by good science. Always tell your doctor before you try a nontraditional treatment. That way, youll know if its safe and likely to work.

There are a lot of new terms to learn when you go outside regular medical care:

Conventional medicine. This is what you get from medical doctors, nurses, physical therapists, psychologists, and similar health care professionals. You might hear it called:

Alternative medicine. True to its definition, this type of care is used instead of (an alternative to) standard medical care. For example, you might go on a special diet that claims to cure cancer instead of taking drugs your doctor prescribes. This isnt common, but it does happen. Talk to your doctor before you decide to skip traditional treatment.

Complementary medicine. Its often used along with traditional medicine. It can help you manage the side effects of cancer treatment.

Integrative medicine. This approach takes the most effective treatments from different disciplines, including standard medicine and complementary approaches. The result is a personalized health plan for your unique physical and emotional needs.

Its a medical specialty. That means you can find a doctor who is board-certified in integrative medicine and trust that your treatments will be safe and proven to work. What you can expect from this kind of medical care?

You might hear it called integrative oncology. No matter what the name, the idea is the same: Treat the whole patient, not just the disease. For cancer patients especially, that includes ways to ease stress and worry and boost your sense of well-being. You might try:

Evidence is what makes the big difference between the complementary treatments that are considered part of integrative medicine and all the other complementary and alternative treatments out there (you may hear your doctor lump them together into one term: CAM). With integrative medicine, you get science-backed therapies that your doctor has chosen to treat your condition. If you try CAM on your own, you may not know whether a product or treatment is safe.

For example, the label all natural doesnt mean a product is safe. Some natural ingredients can be toxic. Others might keep your cancer treatments from working like they should.

What might CAM treatments do for you?

Acupuncture:

Hypnotherapy (hypnosis):

Massage therapy:

Meditation:

Physical activity:

Nutrition counseling:

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Can Integrative Medicine Help Fight Cancer? - webmd.com

A Contemporary Blending of Traditional Medicine & Complementary Therapies

Career Opportunites at Advanced Integrative Medicine:

Lisa Durham won for having the most positive reviews posted on AIM. Congratulations, Lisa!

28-day Guided Summer Detoxification & Nutrition Course - Led by Dr. Diana Milling, ND

Career Opportunites at Advanced Integrative Medicine:

Advanced Integrative Medicine is excited to announce:

Advanced Integrative Medicine is looking to grow!

We are very excited at how well we have been received in our community and we are now looking to expand! We are now interviewing for Internists, Physicians Assistants and Osteopaths wanting to be involved in a leading medical office that offers alternative options to our patients. This is an excellent opportunity for someone who wants an unlimited possibility for income. Please call the office at (303) 708-0246 or email us your resume at info@aim4yourhealth.com if you are interested. We are also OPEN to New patients!

Advanced Integrative Medicines primary goal is to provide our patients with team based health services that combine Western (Allopathic) medicine with complementary treatments in a modern setting emphasizing integrated treatment modalities.

We believe that your active involvement with our providers who are Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Family Practice along with two highly trained Physician Assistants are essential to your personal health and wellness.

In addition, our professionally licensed health care providers in Clinical Psychology, Diet and Nutrition, Chiropractic, and Acupuncture services work closely together with our traditional medical providers

Mon - Fri : 8am - 5pm

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Advanced Integrative Medicine | A Contemporary Blending of ...

What is complementary medicine?

The word "complementary" means "in addition to." Complementary medicine is a term used for a wide variety of health care practices that may be used along with standard medical treatment.

What is considered standard treatment in one culture may not be standard in another. For example:

Examples of complementary medicine include:

Some complementary practices have been studied and tested. But most haven't been studied with well-designed trials. That means there are still many questions about these practices. We often don't have good evidence from science about whether they are safe, when they should be used, and how well they work.

In the U.S., the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health was formed within the National Institutes of Health to test the safety and effectiveness of these treatments. The center has guidelines to help you choose safe treatments that are right for you.

People often use complementary practices along with care from their medical doctor to deal with chronic health problems, treat symptoms, or stay healthy.

Find out about the safety of any complementary product or practice you want to try. Most mind and body practices-such as acupuncture, meditation, and yoga-are very safe when used by healthy people with a well-trained professional. Choose an instructor or practitioner as carefully as you would choose a doctor.

Talk with your doctor about any complementary health practice that you would like to try or are already using. Your doctor can help you manage your health better if he or she has the whole picture about your health.

Some of these treatments may be covered by your health insurance. But check to see what your plan covers.

The greatest risk is that you may use these treatments instead of going to your regular doctor. Complementary medicine should be in addition to treatment from your doctor. Otherwise you may miss important treatment that could save your life.

Some natural products may be safe when you take them on their own. But they may not be safe if you have other medical problems. And they could be dangerous when they are combined with another medicine you take. To be safe, always check with your doctor before you use any new natural products or supplements.

Natural products can vary widely in how strong they are. And they may also contain harmful things not listed on the label. Your doctor or practitioner may be able to recommend a brand you can trust.

Also, complementary medicine isn't controlled as much as standard medicine. This means you could become a victim of fraud. Sellers or people who practice complementary medicine are more likely to be frauds if they:

One benefit is that many people who practice complementary medicine take a "whole person," or holistic, approach to treatment. They may take an hour or more to ask you questions about your lifestyle, habits, and background. This makes many people feel better about the treatment, the person giving the treatment itself, and the condition.

In some cases, this type of medicine works as well as standard medicine. Also, these treatments may cost less and have fewer side effects than standard treatment.

Some people feel more in control when they are more involved in their own health. And since most complementary medicine looks at the connection between mind and body, many people who use it feel better. They like working toward overall wellness instead of just relief from one problem.

WebMD Medical Reference from Healthwise

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Complementary Medicine - Topic Overview - WebMD