Chiropractic Medicine

Mosby's COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE is the only comprehensive book on complementary medicine set up in a true textbook format. It covers the history, philosophy, and mechanisms of complementary medicine and alternative therapies, and includes a thorough review of the clinically controlled trials, indications and contraindications of each therapy. It is the only research-based textbook to present a comprehensive, encyclopedic look at alternative medicine. All sections are complete within the discipline addressed and have been reviewed by experts in each particular field.

Providing a sound introduction to the range of treatments and philosophies within the field of complementary and alternative medicine, this book offers a systematic explanation of the philosophies and practices that underpin these medical practices. The rise in popularity of complementary medicine is examined along with challenges of developing a more integrated system of healthcare. Such questions as What is complementary medicine? What evidence is there to support its use? and What can orthodox medicine learn from holistic practice? are answered. Among topics discussed are herbal medicine, massage, aromatherapy, yoga, and ayurveda.

More than a third of Americans have already begun to explore alternative techniques such as yoga, meditation, nutritional therapies, massage, acupuncture, homeopathy, chiropractic, herbalism, and prayer, but we don't know which approaches to trust, or what accounts for their effectiveness, and our doctors are not able to tell us. We want an authoritative guide to separate what's truly worthwhile from what's simply well promoted, to help us to see what's right for each of us. James S. Gordon is that guide, and Manifesto for a New Medicine is that guidebook. For the last twenty-five years, Dr. Gordon has pioneered an approach to healing that synthesizes the best of modern, scientific medicine with the best of the alternative techniques. Here he leads us step by step through convincing and absorbing case studies of the successful use of these alternatives, presenting clearly and simply the scientific bases for them. He also shows us how each of us can incorporate alternative therapies as an integralpart of our health care and our daily lives.

The growth of complementary medicine over the past decade has been accompanied by calls for greater regulation and for the most part it has been assumed that the regulation of orthodox medicine offers a suitable model for complementary medicine. The result has been confusion over the purpose and effects of regulation and the obscuring of critical issues which deserve far greater public exposure. This book unravels the debates and analyses the benefits and drawbacks of regulation in this area. The book has two aims. First of all it examines in some detail the way in which the law presently affects the practice of complementary medicine. The second aim is to examine all the arguments for and against greater regulation of complementary medicine. In fulfilling the second aim it challenges the notion that the legal and regulatory mechanisms which govern orthodox medicine constitute an appropriate model for the regulation of most complementary therapies. The patient-centred, holistic approach central to the theory and practice of many complementary therapies presents a unique problem for the law: the highly individualized intuitive, whole person approach of complementary medicine is not amenable to the quantification, measurability and certainty required by the law. The authors argue that only by implementing a more dynamic form of ethics-directed regulation can patients be protected and the unique contribution that complementary medicine has to make properly realized.

This no-holds-barred book includes a new chapter presenting a comprehensive, politically achievable, private-public solution to the health care dilemma -- one that preserves the best of the present system, eliminates the worst current problems, and represents our nation's last best chance to contain costs without a government takeover of medicine.

From reflexology and rolfing to shiatsu and dream work, we are confronted today by a welter of alternative medical therapies. But as James Whorton shows in Nature Cures, the recent explosion in alternative medicine actually reflects two centuries of competition and conflict between mainstream medicine and numerous unorthodox systems. This is the first comprehensive history of alternative medicine in America, examining the major systems that have emerged from 1800 to the present. Writing with wit and with fairness to all sides, Whorton offers a fascinating look at alternative health systems such as homeopathy, water cures, Mesmerism, Christian Science, osteopathy, chiropractic, naturopathy, and acupuncture. He highlights the birth and growth of each system (including European roots where appropriate) and vividly describes both the theories and the therapies developed within each system, including such dubious practices as hour-long walks barefoot in snow or Samuel Thompson's "puking and steaming" regimen. In particular, Whorton illuminates the philosophy of "natural healing" that has been espoused by alternative practitioners throughout history and the distinctive interpretations of "nature cure" developed by the different systems. Though he doesn't hesitate to point out the failings of these systems, he also shows that some "cult medicines" have eventually won recognition from practitioners of mainstream medicine. Throughout, Whorton writes with a light touch and quotes from contemporary humorists such as Mark Twain. His book is an engaging and authoritative history that highlights the course of alternative medicine in the U.S., providing valuable background to the wide range of therapies available today.

Nearly 40% of all Americans have no connection with organized religion. Yet many of these people, even though they might never step inside a house of worship, live profoundly spiritual lives. But what is the nature and value of unchurched spirituality in America? Is it a recent phenomenon, a New Age fad that will soon fade, or a long-standing and essential aspect of the American experience? In Spiritual But Not Religious, Robert Fuller offers fascinating answers to these questions. He shows that alternative spiritual practices have a long and rich history in America, dating back to the colonial period, when church membership rarely exceeded 17% and interest in astrology, numerology, magic, and witchcraft ran high. Fuller traces such unchurched traditions into the mid-nineteenth century, when Americans responded enthusiastically to new philosophies such as Swedenborgianism, Transcendentalism, and mesmerism, right up to the current interest in meditation, channeling, divination, and a host of other unconventional spiritual practices. Throughout, Fuller argues that far from the flighty and narcissistic dilettantes they are often made out to be, unchurched spiritual seekers embrace a mature and dynamic set of basic beliefs. They focus on inner sources of spirituality and on this world rather than the afterlife; they believe in the accessibility of God and in the mind's untapped powers; they see a fundamental unity between science and religion and an equality between genders and races; and they are more willing to test their beliefs and change them when they prove untenable. Timely, sweeping in its scope, and informed by a clear historical understanding, Spiritual But Not Religious offers fresh perspective on the growing numbers of Americans who find their spirituality outside the church.