Mind/Body Medicine. Guided imagery, meditation and other practices that harness the mind to promote health and healing have been adopted.............

Mind/Body Medicine. Guided imagery, meditation and other practices that harness the mind to promote health and healing have been adopted by conventional medicine as a means of managing stress and pain. While a recent analysis of 813 studies concluded that "no compelling evidence" exists yet to prove the theurapetic value of meditation, some studies have suggested that mind/body exercises, in conjunction with conventional methods, can help treat cardiovascular disease and even bolster the immune system. That these methods pose no physical or psychological risk to the patient and are inexpensive adds to their appeal. Among mind/body interventions, one of the hottest research topics is the placebo effect: Doctors want to know whether a patient's expectation that a treatment will work ultimately affects that patient's outcome.






Herbal Therapies. Herbal medicine is "easier to present to med students [because] it's a bit closer to pharmacology" than some other CAM treatments, says Rick Scott, of the University of Maryland's Center for Integrative Medicine in Baltimore. But he agrees with Mary Jo Kreitzer, a founding member of the medical school consortium, that herbal medicines remain controversial, with a lot of uncertainty about how safe they are and how well they work.

St. John's wort, for example, may be useful in treating mild (but not moderate to severe) depression; however, because the herb can alter the way the body processes drugs, it should be used with caution. Another example: In a recent study, black cohosh did not help ease menopausal hot flashes.

Among biologically based treatments that do not involve herbs, studies of dietary supplements such as glucosamine (to treat arthritis) and echinacea (for upper respiratory illness) have been inconclusive, while evidence supporting folic acid's utility in preventing certain birth defects has been convincing.


Manipulative and Body-Based Methods. The science behind chiropractic treatment, massage therapy and other practices in which the body is physically manipulated to promote good health is sketchy and inconclusive, according to a review of research by the NIH's National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. It's particularly hard to study methodically and to measure results. Still, Cirigliano says of chiropractic treatment, "The only issue I have with [chiropractors] is that they know their limitations. They're not going to cure lung cancer."


Energy Medicine. According to Scott, "The area that will take a little bit longer is frontier medicine, or energy medicine. It's more difficult to research" than conventional medicine because, like acupuncture, it's founded on a belief in energy fields. This category includes such approaches as therapeutic touch, distant healing, prayer, and the laying-on of hands. ·

Jennifer Huget is a regular contributor to the Health section.