Naturopathic medicine
Has anyone here received alternative, natural/herbal medicine. Does it work, what sort of tests do they perform. Just curious.
Forum Discussion
- Thank you
- I know a couple of family friends who were extremely alternative and it’s not proven but is suspected that supporting their bodies with complimentary therapies through chemo and gave them a longer time and better quality of life (they all were told expected life left and lived at least 1-2yrs beyond that), but given the type and stage of cancer they were diagnosed with it wasn’t curative.
whilst I lean alternative and worked as a general nurse, with mum mostly we’ve agreed go through chemo the medical way, then use complimentary therapies to help the system rebuild. One thing a couple of family friends did and it really helped their blood counts was bone broth, I know there’s recipes online and I’m not sure which method they used but one was vegan and her bloods after starting the broth were so improved the Drs asked what she was doing as they were pleasantly shocked.I guess it depends on your situation and beliefs. Some complementary/alternative therapies haven’t been researched in a scientific method and others have, cancer has probably been around for as long as humans but unless someone can show me evidence of that it appears to have arisen along with industry over the last couple of centuries, though mutations for bad or good do spontaneously occur, so remedies like Chinese Herbs and naturopathic medicine that have been around for centuries or longer may not be as helpful.Bottom line, depends on your beliefs and situation. Mum has a chance at cure so she’s decided western medicine approach through chemo, and complimentary therapies after to rebuild, so doesn’t want to risk the effectiveness of the chemo as horrible as the experience is, but also knows she avoided thyroid surgery using complementary therapies with monitoring from a specialist so there’s a place for integrative approaches. Lengthy but hopefully gives you some ideas to consider. - Always check with your specialist medical team before trying anything alternative.
I did do some acupuncture at the Kinghorn Wellness Centre in Sydney which was actually recommended by my radiation oncologist to help with pain - they also had exercise physiologists, physiotherapists massage therapists and nutritionists as part of a wholistic treatment programme.
I never actually took any supplements but I know that others have benefitted from such things - but it’s important to check with your medical team that such things done interfere with the mainstream therapy.
And there is nothing wrong with doing more exercise ( within the boundaries of what you are capable of and under supervision if necessary) and eating more healthily . - Thank you, very interesting read. Appreciate your response
- There has been a great deal of discussion about this over the years. Much of it centers on a supposed reluctance by 'big pharma' and western medicine to embrace remedies that don't rake in millions of dollars. That is bunkum and can sometimes descend to conspiracy based charlatan behaviour that is cruel and exploitative.
I've worked with cancer researchers since 2008, reviewing grant applications for significant funding streams. Those researchers are not all purely motivated by financial gain. They genuinely want to find a cure for the disease.
The rigor applied to research that leads to development of concept, testing and eventually clinical trials is extraordinary. I've yet to see an approved trial of natural medicines gauging their effectiveness against what we view as 'chemical' remedies as a frontline. They don't pass the pub test and no ethical organisation will participate in research that is likely to encourage participants to forgo proven treatments. Brutal and unpleasant as they may be.
If there was a proven natural remedy, it would have become mainstream by now.
Do I believe that there are lessons to be learned from traditional medicines and practices? Certainly. Many of our modern medicines are based on traditional remedies. But there is a big difference between chewing on slippery elm bark and taking an Asprin tablet. That's science and drug development in action.
Sorry, I don't mean to lecture, but I have seen some truly tragic outcomes where people have decided that an unqualified enterprise delivering an unproven remedy (never acting without re-imbursement) knows best. Maybe those people would have died anyway. Maybe they started their 'treatment' too late or stopped paying too soon. I don't know. But please, take care. - Some people take herbal remedies along with western medicine. It is important however to check compatibility, as some natural remedies inhibit or react with prescribed medication. There are a number of reliable (associated with medical or research bodies) drug/remedy interaction checkers online.
To my knowledge, there is no scientifically proven evidence of long term cure or significant remission of cancer due to natural remedies alone. It may happen - remission may happen for all sorts of reasons - but it’s not been proven. Someone else may be able to advise on testing.
