Holistic Health Boom

About 62 percent of Americans use some form of complementary and alternative healthcare, much of which is holistic medicine, according to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. With so many people opting to try out holistic medicine, the alternative and healthcare industry is booming.

The holistic health boom can be attributed to the majority of these people who report trying alternative healthcare because they hope the combination with conventional methods will prove most efficacious (54 percent). The boom also owes much to those who say they thought an alternative approach would be interesting (50 percent). For a surprising number of unfortunate people, traditional health care simply will not work to resolve their medical problems (27.7 percent). More than a fourth of patients have had their doctors suggest a complementary therapy (25.8). More than 1 in 10 people who go an alternative route do so because they simply cannot afford more conventional medicine (13.2).
 

The Holistic Revolution

Most people are complementing traditional methods with alternative therapies to create a holistic approach to their care. The ten most common alternative therapies are:
• Prayer/self
• Prayer/others
• Natural products
• Deep breathing
• Meditation
• Prayer group
• Chiropractic
• Yoga
• Massage
• Diets

The five most common diseases and ailments for which alternative medicine, including holistic approaches, are used include:
• Back pain
• Head cold
• Neck pain
• Joint pain
• Arthritis

Rather than acting as a passive recipient of health care advice, the patient in a holistic care situation actively engages in their therapy. Perhaps that sense of empowerment has its own healing properties.