Every day, newspapers and television news programs present stories on the latest controversies over healthcare and medical advances, but they do not have the space to provide detailed background on the issues. Websites and weblogs provide information from activists and partisans intent on presenting their side of a story. But where can students - or even ordinary citizens - go to obtain unbiased, detailed background on the medical issues affecting their daily lives? This volume in the Health and Medical Issues Today series provides readers and researchers with a balanced, in-depth introduction to the medical, scientific, legal, and cultural issues surrounding alternative medicine and its importance in today's world of healthcare.
Alternative Medicine is organized to provide students and researchers with easy access to the information they need:
Section 1 provides overview chapters on the background information needed to intelligently understand the issues and controversies surrounding complementary and alternative therapies, such as the theories that serve as the foundation for alternative treatments.
Section 2 offers concise examinations of the contemporary issues and debates that provoke the most heated disagreements and misunderstandings, such as the debates over the efficacy of alternative treatments and whether the government should regulate herbal treatments.
Section 3 includes reference material on alternative medicine, including primary source documents from important clinicians and researchers in the debate over alternative treatments, a timeline of important events, and an annotated bibliography of useful print and electronic resources.
This volume in the Health and Medical Issues Today series provides everything a student requires to understand the issues involved in alternative medicine and serves as a springboard for further research into the issue.
Arvustused
"[ T]his volume aims to help researchers, clinicians, and consumers make sense of the prevailing debates about alternative health care. Drawing on preventive strategies and treatments that include lifestyle changes, clinical nutrition, and some alternative therapies, Larson outlines a proactive program for managing degenerative diseases. The author clarifies terminology and explains integrative medicine's relationship to holistic care. Larson suggests a strategy focused on using successful and safe practices in alternative therapies together with Western medicine. This comprehensive analysis of this diverse field will be a valuable addition to academic, medical, and hospital libraries. Highly recommended. Upper-level undergraduates and above; general readers." - Choice "In her doctoral research, Larson focused on evidence-based medicine in women's health. Her mission here is to provide a savvy consumer's guide to healthcare alternative medicine in particular. She explores its principles, research support, regulation, insurance coverage for, and other controversies surrounding holistic medicine in the context of escalating US healthcare costs and conventional medicine errors. A major portion of the volume is devoted to an annotated list of primary sources. It also feature timelines for alternative medicine systems and specific therapies (e.g., botanical medicine, homeopathy, naturopathy)." - SciTech Book News "For an introduction to this topic and some details about its scope, this book serves the reader well." - Journal of the Kentucky Medical Association
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"Chris Larson has written a comprehensive, objective and definitive guide to alternative medicine. This book offers a concise and simplified game plan in the utilization of alternative therapies in one's quest for optimum health." -- Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D., F.A.C.C., C.N.S., Author of The Sinatra Solution, The Fast Food Diet and Reverse Heart Disease Now "This stimulating, well-referenced review of alternative and complementary medicine is a cause for celebration. Its even-handed and sensible approach will prove instructive for adherents and skeptics alike. Healthcare consumers need an objective, comprehensive analysis of the diverse and confusing field of alternative medicine in order to make informed choices. This terrific book is just such a resource." -- Stephen Lawson, Co-Director, Laboratory for Research in Gene Regulation, Linus Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine, Oregon State University "Today's research is now showing that the most effective preventive and treatment for degenerative diseases are life-style changes, clinical nutrition and some alternative therapies. This book outlines how a successful program can be achieved." -- Frederic Vagnini, M.D., F.A.C.C., Medical Director, Heart, Diabetes and Weight Loss Center of New York, Author of The Carbohydrate Addict's Healthy Heart, Thirty-Minutes a Day to a Healthy Heart and Countdown Your Age "Today, more than ever, patients need to actively participate in their health-care decisions. Prevention is the key to good health, and this book describes the ways to get the best from preventive strategies, alternative medicine and western medicine." -- William Parker, M.D., Clinical Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, UCLA School of Medicine, Author of A Gynecologist's Second Opinion
Christine A. Larson is an adjunct faculty member in the University of Kentucky system with twelve years of business development experience for Fortune 500 firms in healthcare and financial services. Her doctoral research focuses on evidence-based medicine in women's health. Her objective is to ensure good science drives both diagnosis and treatment in healthcare.
