I would like to better counsel my patients about non-conventional treatments. I am concerned that my patients taking dietary supplements and herbs may experience side effects and drug-drug interactions.
Alternative medicine is medicine which is practiced instead of conventional medicine.
Depending on the condition and the therapy, alternative medicine may delay appropriate diagnosis and treatment. Complementary medicine, in contrast, is used in conjunction with conventional medicine. Integrative medicine combines the use of both conventional and non-conventional therapies, based on evidence of efficacy and safety. Skeptics often say that there is no data to support the use of CAM, and will dismiss it altogether. Proponents may support its use despite the lack of creditable research.