While this type of health care definitely has a considerable following, is it appropriate for treating hepatitis? Here are four areas you should consider before choosing alternative treatment.
Simple Is Not Always Better
Sometimes people prefer an alternative treatment because it might seem simpler. Remember, chronic hepatitis is challenging to treat. Whether from a virus or some other cause, hepatitis is hard on the liver. Unfortunately, the liver is crucial to the entire body, so an injured liver can cause problems in the skin, the kidneys, the brain and many other places. This creates problems for the treating physician. There is not one magic drug. Currently the best treatment for chronic viral hepatitis is a combination of drugs -- and that is just to control the virus. Different drugs may be needed for other complications caused by chronic hepatitis.Natural Is Not Always Safer
Many people prefer alternative medicine because they believe it to be "natural" and then reason that it must be safer than the drugs developed by the pharmaceutical companies. People often think that since drugs can be dangerous and have difficult side-effects, natural products must be in complete harmony with the human body. Remember, though, that all drugs are chemicals -- whether natural or man-made -- and all have side-effects.Prescription drugs are regulated in the United States by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA requires standards of safety and effectiveness for these drugs, and every one must have significant scientific research showing its effectiveness before the FDA will grant approval. Alternative medicines are not held to the same standards and, unfortunately, companies can legally promote that their medicines have health benefits, even though they do not have research to justify the claims. These alternative remedies can be legally sold as long as they are not proven to be hazardous.
Grandmother Is Not Always Right
Much of alternative medicine is based on stories passed along from one person to another and from generation to generation. Doctors call this type of evidence anecdotal. Unfortunately, anecdotal evidence is not very rigorous and does not allow researchers to make strong conclusions. A common criticism of alternative treatments is their heavy reliance on anecdotal evidence. By contrast, conventional drugs and therapies often have a stronger foundation of evidence. This does not mean they always work in every patient, but that doctors have reliable information about the drug and can better predict how the treatment will progress.Alternative Is Not Always Alternative
Some people think that conventional medicine is completely separate from alternative medicine. While this is true in some areas, for example with energy healing using magnets or crystals, many "alternative" ideas are fully accepted by conventional practitioners. Most doctors emphasize the importance of nutrition and diet in maintaining health. Doctors accept the need for manual medicine when they refer patients to physical medicine specialists, osteopathic physicians or physical therapists. When doctors refer their patients to a psychologist, psychiatrist, or psychoanalyst, they recognize the need to integrate mind and body. This means that if an alternative treatment actually works, it will eventually make its way into conventional medicine.Source:
Stephen E. Straus. Complementary and Alternative Medicine. In: As Fauci, E Braunwald, DL Kasper, SL Hauser, DL Longo, JL Jameson, J Loscaizo, eds. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine.
