To this end, advertising for food supplements has usurped some of medicine's authority. Companies like Rexall, KAL, and GNC have become the New-Age tribal Shaman. With self-administered vitamin concoctions, prayer groups and aura tune ups, alternative medicine has become the largest social movement in the United States. According to the Journal of American Medicine , about 50-percent of all Americans choose alternative medicine over conventional treatments. But when people turn to supplements, not their doctor, to attempt cures for serious illness, the results are often tragic.
Many medical treatments are effective in the early stages of a disease.
Postponing a consultation with a doctor until all the alternatives have been tested, can result in a lost opportunity for an effective medical cure. That's why some medical experts now urge doctors to take advantage of placebos, at least in certain cases. Administered with medical oversight, placebos are safe. They could present the ideal mix of science and natural healing that many people are yearning for. And placebos can be as effective as powerful pharmaceuticals.