A Need to Integrate Naturopathy and Acupuncture with the Western Orthodox Medical - Essay Example

Running Head: NATUROPATHY, NUTRITION & ACUPUNCTURE INTEGRATION Naturopathy, Nutrition & Acupuncture Integration [The Writer’s Name] [The Name of the Institution] Naturopathy, Nutrition & Acupuncture Integration 1-Significance of Natural Medicine Human beings have been suffering from disease since they first appeared on the earth about two and one -half million years ago. Throughout most of this time, they knew little about how the human body works or what causes disease. But medicine has gone through many stages throughout history. Naturopathy is both a way of life and a concept of healing that utilizes natural means such as botanicals (herbal medicines), hydrotherapy (sitz baths, colonic irrigation, etc.), nutrition, massage, manipulation, exercise therapy, counselling, acupuncture, homeopathy, and other methods to treat and prevent disease. Traditional naturopathy is a health/ healing discipline that was established in the 19th century. It views disease as the body's attempt at self-cleansing and regeneration in order to self-heal. The human organism is designed to strive toward health, not disease. Disease is often a defensive reaction brought about by poor lifestyle habits. (Thomas, 2000, 77-80) Therefore, the power to cure disease resides only within the patient's body, but that innate power cannot fully prevail until wrong living habits stop and the fundamental elements of life and health, in necessary measure, have been set in place, namely, proper diet; pure water; flesh air; sunlight; adequate exercise, warmth, rest, and sleep; emotional harmony; and proper posture. The present Western health care system deprives patients of many needs. It fails to provide patients their right to seek optimum medical help even after they have failed to respond to any conventional therapy. They then move from doctor to doctor to find one willing to try the alternative therapies, or they will move to naturopaths and chiropractors and even to untrained alternative practitioners who do not have the discipline which professional therapists have been taught. (Tonkin, 2005, 362-64) The New England Journal of Medicine report last year concluded that more patients sought alternative practitioners in the U.S.A. than medical doctors. It forces patients to wait decades before they can take advantage of newer treatment. Obviously, patients cannot afford to wait up to 40 years before these discoveries are made available to them. Throughout many, many centuries, medicine has been used in hundreds of different forms. But the main goal of every different form was the same, to help the diseased and unhealthy. Every passing day, another scientist or doctor discovers another breakthrough in science and medicine. In years to come, we will have cures to incurable diseases, and people will be living ten to twenty years longer then they are today. Medicine provides us with the needs and hopes for the future, as our technology makes the path for us to follow. (Conrad, 2006, 210-17) 2-Holistic approach towards Natural Medicine as Preventative Medicine The most fundamental response to arthritis is not painkillers and inflammatory drugs, but, rather, the introduction of proper nutrition, exercise and the other basic elements of life and health. They are the only things that can once again make normal joint function feasible. Naturopathy is holistic medicine and a philosophy that believes in the inherent capacity of the body to heal itself with the aid of non-toxic, natural therapies. Their treatments have worked in the past, so why stop now? The Chinese believe in Ch'i, which is someone's life force. When that life force dies or escapes, so does the individual that possesses it. Acupuncture, meditation, aroma therapy, Tai-Ch'i, and several other Chinese treatments allow the ch'i to revive itself and become more active. Chinese medicine is a healing art, while western medicine is strictly a science. Chinese medicine emphasizes the role of the body in healing, while western medicine mainly relies on medication and procedures. Chinese medicine also uses herbs and natural agents, while western medicine uses pure chemical compounds. The medicine that the Chinese use works just as well as several western medicines in scientific studies because they use natural plants and herbs. Another reason why the Chinese practice their traditional medicine is because modern treatments are much more expensive than their old ones. The Chinese doctor's main goal is to promote overall health and well being of the patient. (Nigel Boss, 2001, p92) 3- Chinese Medicine Integration The Chinese believed that disease could be cured by the restoration of harmony and balance between the five basic elements of earth, water, fire, wood and metal. They also believed that all human beings were made up of two sorts of energy, Yin and Yang, which together with blood constituted the vital substance which circulated the body. Yin is dark, moist and female while Yang is masculine, light and dry. Illness was caused by an imbalance between Yin and Yang. Balance could be achieved by methods such as acupuncture which were used to control the flow of energy within the body. Another method used in Chinese medicine was moxibustion. This involved placing a cone of Moxa (the powdered leaves of the Mugwort plant) on particular acupuncture points letting them think of other things and forget their addictions. This was believed to increase the amount of Yang in the body which was needed for health. Western medical treatment is tremendously different from Chinese medical treatment in several ways. First of all, the Chinese use inductive and synthetic methods, while western medicine uses reductive and analytical methods. This can be seen in how the Chinese understand and learn medicine. Instead of solving everything with evidence and scientific reason like western doctors, the Chinese use experience and cures that seem to work for them in the past. They use treatments that will work for the patients, which allows for a more individual experience with the doctor rather than a formal meeting with a western doctor. The Chinese have used their own treatments for centuries. (Fraser, 2001, 21-30) 4- Chemotherapy: Improving Treatment Techniques Being diagnosed with cancer is a very serious issue. Over 1.3 million people are going to be diagnosed with cancer this year alone. About 563,700 people will die this year from cancer-related illnesses. Technically the figures are declining but there are still treatments which need improvement and more studies conducted showing their progression. Although the purpose of chemotherapy is to attack tumor cells and stop tumor progression, it turns out to be very challenging to protect normal. In chemotherapy, an intravenous injection (an injection through the vein) is generally used to administer anti-cancer drugs. As a result, the drugs spread throughout the body in blood circulation. Once a drug is in the blood circulation, it reaches any part of the body, from the head to the feet. Therefore, the accumulation of the drugs is at the cancer site only, thus preventing the drugs' distribution throughout the body as required. To solve the side effects and low effectiveness problems of chemotherapy, various approaches have been performed with the goal of "localization of chemotherapy." The approaches are currently categorized under two different titles: local injection method and targeting of anti-cancer drugs. 5-Chinese Model Medicine and Acupuncture Western doctors mostly try to just cure the patient's current disease. This difference allows the Chinese to live happier and healthier lives, even though it seems as if they have a less advanced medical knowledge. Tai-Ch'i is a symbolic meditative dance that the Chinese use to help cure diseases, fight old age, and relieve stress. The process is extremely slow and includes the performer slowly stepping, symbolically holding the world, and pushing the evil forces away from him with a quick thrust of the fist. The health benefits of this can be especially seen in the video "Mind and Body." The video depicted an old man who had performed Tai-Ch'i for a very long time. Even though he was old, the man looked extremely healthy, strong, and happy. He could still perform Tai-Ch'i in his old age, a feat that several old men in western society can't perform. These are just some of the many ways in which Chinese medicine is different from western medicine. The main hazard or caution associated with acupuncture relates to the sterile nature of the needles themselves. As described above, most cotemporary acupuncturists are required by law to use single-use, disposal needles taken from a sealed package. Again, the FDA approved acupuncture needles for use by licensed practitioners in 1996. Considering the number of people treated each year through acupuncture and the number of needles still used, there have been relatively few problems reported to the FDA. Again, most complications are related to inadequate sterilization of needles and from improper delivery of treatments. In addition, when not practiced properly, acupuncture can have such adverse effects as infections and punctured organs. (Garrison, 1979, 45-48) Acupuncture practitioners are licensed independently in most states while some states require you to be a medical doctor to practice acupuncture. No license or certification is required if acupuncture is being self-performed. Chinese medicine is a healing art, while western medicine is strictly a science. Chinese medicine emphasizes the role of the body in healing, while western medicine mainly relies on medication and procedures. Chinese medicine also uses herbs and natural agents, while western medicine uses pure chemical compounds. The medicine that the Chinese use works just as well as several western medicines in scientific studies because they use natural plants and herbs. Another reason why the Chinese practice their traditional medicine is because modern treatments are much more expensive than their old ones. The Chinese doctor's main goal is to promote overall health and well being. Acupuncturists can use as many as many as nine different types of acupuncture needles, though most contemporary practitioners use only six. Most acupuncture needles used today are disposable, and can vary in length, shaft width, and shape of the head. There are a few different methods that acupuncturists use to insert needles. Points can be needled anywhere in the range of 15 degrees to 90 degrees relative to the skin surface, depending on the treatment (Singer, 2006). The desired sensation felt by the patient is called "deqi" (pronounced dah-chee). Deqi occurs when the acupuncturist reaches the level of Qi. The sensation may feel like throbbing or like an electrical impulse in the general area of the disorder being treated. Once the sensation is felt, the acupuncturist leaves the needle in place and the feeling fades. Depending on the acupuncturist and the treatment, there may be further manipulations of the needle based on the ailment. (Chan, 2004; 98-101) Conclusion Treatment methods such as homeopathy, acupuncture, aromatherapy, and herbal medicine are highly valuable, they are of secondary importance, because their full effectiveness is dependent upon the extent to which the fundamental elements of life are provided or denied. Acute diseases such as influenza and colds, especially in children, may recede despite improper management if the patient's powers of recuperation are still intact. However, chronic diseases such as arthritis and cancer can never be fully remedied by therapeutic fragments but only through restoration of the proper relationship of all the elements of life in organic unity. Sickness is a state the body adopts because the state of normality can no longer be sustained. It is a valiant attempt by the innate healing power of the body to restore normality; the symptoms produced are evidence of this healing power's efforts toward restoration. As a result of poor diet, lack of exercise and other lifestyle errors, the cells of a person's joints begin to starve for nutrients and oxygen and cannot throw-off wastes. Those cells will now begin to deteriorate. In reaction, the body produces inflammation, a normal part of the immune response, to fight infection and increase circulation. And perhaps the body will deposit calcium in the joints to help stabilize them. References Boss, Nigel. The Introduction to Chinese Medicine: Brookline, Massachusetts: Paradigm Publications, 2001. p. 92-95 Chan, John J. Conditions Successfully Treated with Oriental Medicine. Chicago, Illinois: Lynne Reiner Publishers, 2004; 98-101 Conrad, P. (Ed) (2006) The sociology of health and illness: critical perspectives. New York: Worth: 210-17 Fraser J. L. The Medicine Men. A Guide to Natural Medicine. London: Thames, 2001. 21-30 Garrison F. H. An Introduction to the History of Medicine. 4th ed., rev. and enl. 1913. Reprint. Philadelphia: Saunders, 1979. 45-48 Thomas R. The Grosset Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine. New York: Grosset and Dunlap, 2000. 77-80 Tonkin R. D. "Role of Research in the Rapprochement between Conventional Medicine and Complementary Therapies: Discussion Paper." J. Royal Soc. Med. 80 (2005): 362-64. Read More