An estimated 3,500 traditionally trained U.S. physicians have, like Taub and Hughes, taken courses to incorporate acupuncture into their practices. But not all doctors are excited about this trend. Fifty-five percent of Mecklenburg County physicians responding to the survey said they had never recommended alternatives. They are powerful drugs with profound effects on the body, Rich said. And what worries me more is they've never been evaluated for whether they are dangerous,'' he said.
Efforts are under way to encourage research.
In 1992, the National Institutes of Health established the Office of Alternative Medicine to study therapies for such problems as allergies, cancer and chronic pain. But private support for such research is scarce. Doctors usually don't read the research that supports vitamins, minerals and herbal approaches to treatment, he said. Some of the studies have been small and should spur further research, he said. For example, only two patients were involved in the breast cancer report, but their metastatic cancer disappeared.