Why Alternative Health?
Alternative health is the pursuit of healthcare that uses multiple different natural modalities instead of allopathic, pharmaceutical interventions. Alternative medicine (also called complementary medicine) aims to address the root cause of an illness instead of simply suppressing the symptoms. Alternative medicine practitioners use the symptoms as a way to communicate with the body and heal the whole person.
Although it is called ‘alternative’, this methodology actually leans on many ancient modalities of healing, like Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda. Ancient (alternative health) therapies include acupuncture and fasting. But it is not simply ancient wisdom– alternative health uses cutting edge technology and science to support the body in healing itself and achieving vibrant health. Modern alternative health technologies include hyperbaric chambers, stem cell therapy, and IV therapy.
Instead of treating the illness or symptoms, the person as a whole is treated. Alternative healing treats the person, and the entire system is patient-centered. As more and more people are feeling unseen or unsupported by their allopathic medicine practitioners, the shift towards alternative medicine and its holistic therapies is strengthening. Over the past years, the demand for alternative healthcare has skyrocketed.
The pursuit of alternative medicine is on the rise, and not only among the rich. Although alternative healthcare therapies are increasingly being cut from insurance coverage, the demand is surging in all social classes. A new Centers for Disease Control report demonstrated that Americans are spending over $30 billion per year, on non-conventional medical services, out-of-pocket. Of that $14.7 billion is being spent on services from holistic practitioners annually, and $12.8 billion is being spent on supplements and natural products. The report highlighted a wide range of non-pharmaceutical interventions being used including Ayurveda, homeopathy, chelation, biofeedback, acupuncture, chiropractic, diet-based therapies, naturopathy, targeted dietary supplementation, and more.
Instead of matching a symptom with pharmaceutical intervention, alternative medicine is using a wide range of natural interventions. In doing so, patients are often able to find relief without the host of side effects. Acupuncture, for example, is being used to alleviate musculoskeletal pain without the host of harmful side effects associated with anti-inflammatory drugs.
Not only is alternative medicine healing without side effects, but it could also save the county hundreds of billions of dollars. New research out of Tufts University found that ‘prescribing’ healthy foods could have over $100 billion in healthcare costs. And that’s in addressing diet alone!
Americans have one of the highest mortality rates among developed countries, and there is no doubt that this shift towards alternative health is a reflection of a population taking back their power to reclaim vibrant health.
