Study Shows Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use on the Rise in Military

Military personnel use CAM significantly more than civilians.

Alexandria, Va. (PRWEB). Active-duty military members' overall use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is higher than that in comparable civilian surveys, according to a recent study in the January issue of The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. 

The study, titled "Military Report More Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use than Civilians," was written by researchers at Samueli Institute in Alexandria, Virginia.; along with Palmer College of Chiropractic, Davenport, Iowa; Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina; Finch & King, Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota; Research Triangle Institute, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina; TRICARE Management Activities, Falls Church, Virginia.; and Abt Associates Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The global survey asked more than 16,000 active duty participants about CAM use in the past year. The sample included service members in military bases across the country. Participants were sorted by gender, service, region and pay grade. 

The analysis included prevalence of CAM use of a variety of types as well as demographic and lifestyle characteristics. The survey asked about use of 13 different CAM modalities including acupuncture, biofeedback, chiropractic, diet therapy, energy healing, folk remedies, guided imagery, massage therapy, herbal medicine, high-dose megavitamins, homeopathy, hypnosis, relaxation techniques and spiritual healing by others.

Approximately 45 percent of respondents reported using at least one type of CAM therapy in the previous year. The most commonly used therapies were massage (14.1 percent) and relaxation techniques (10.8 percent). After adjusting to the 2000 U.S. census, overall CAM use in the military (44.5 percent) was higher than that in comparable civilian surveys (36 percent and 38.3 percent).

"Studies continue to find that conventional medicine alone is not considered sufficient by many to address both the visible and invisible wounds in our warfighters," said Samueli Institute President and CEO, LTC (Ret) Wayne B. Jonas, M.D. "Increasingly, research shows that integrative medicine—a coordinated combination of conventional and alternative approaches—is working to enhance healing for these service members. The general public and the military have already moved in that direction and it is time the medical profession begins to catch up." 

Military personnel used nine CAM types significantly more than civilians. Civilians used only chiropractic, diet therapy and herbal medicine more than the military. Only 2 percent of civilians used guided imagery therapy, 3 percent used relaxation techniques and 5 to 8 percent reported using massage therapy. In contrast, these CAM therapies are estimated to be three of the most commonly used therapies by military personnel. These three therapies are often used to help with stress and pain management, two condition of high prevalence in the military.

The study found participants who were older and more educated were more likely to use CAM. Researchers said this may reflect a more mature desire to resolve persistent health problems, and the income level to do so.

The study in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine was authored by Christine Goertz, D.C., Ph.D.; Bernadette P. Marriott, Ph.D.; Michael D. Finch, Ph.D.; Robert M. Bray, Ph.D.; Thomas V. Williams, Ph.D.; Laurel L. Hourani, Ph.D.; Louise S. Hadden; Heather L. Colleran, Ph.D.; and Wayne B. Jonas, M.D.

source: http://www.massagemag.com/News/massage-news.php?id=13618&catid=25&title=study-shows-complementary-and-alternative-medicine-use-on-the-rise-in-military

Oh well, it is only words... really?

by Costa Alecrim

A bruised body will often heal faster than a bruised mind. The next time you’re tempted to say something hurtful to someone just because you’re angry, you may want to consider the saying: “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me"

Well, let’s consider for a moment the following…

“Once upon a time, there was a boy who had a very bad temper. His father noted it and gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence.

The first day the boy drove 40 nails into the fence. As time went by, he learned to control his temper so the number of nails hammered gradually reduced too, as he found out it was easier to keep his temper than to hammer those nails to the fence...

However, there was one day when the boy didn’t lose his temper at all, so he told his father about it. The father was pleased, and to further teach his son a lesson he suggested that the boy should pull out one nail for each day. That way he would be able to keep his temper. The days passed and the kid was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone.

The father took his son by the hand and showed him the fence and said “you have done very well son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar… just like this one.

The kid then understood how powerful his words were. He looked up at his father and said “I hope you can forgive me, Father, for the holes I have put in you”.

Okay, okay, we don’t know the full circumstances that led the boy to behave that way… As I used to say, there are always two sides to every story: the boy might have learned those behaviours at home by watching his parents… or he might have been a victim of bullying, so he was in pain… and potentially frustrated… or maybe he might have been scared... or threatened...  loads of 'maybes', I know…

All these elements put together, might have resulted in the kid's aggressive behaviour towards his father…maybe ...

Every day, when we watch the news, most of the stories are based on incidents which might have been, to a certain extent, fueled by anger, frustration and aggression. How do we recognise them? They come in many shape and forms. I just could name a few of them:

-         Assaults (verbal and physical)...

-         Gossips...

-         Rebellious (anti social behaviour, refusal to talk)

-         Bullying…

I think that our worst enemies, are always the ones we cannot see... the invisible ones... the ones we cannot prove, such as gossips and bullying, for instance. The latter has always had its place in society and like my parents and I, there are thousands and thousands of people who have also been bullied somewhere, somehow… by somebody, of course! It can take place anywhere: school, home, club, work.

Bullying causes harm, alarm and distress... not to mention fear! It affects our conditions of worth, our self-esteem and confidence, and so on. Some people can just easily ‘brush it off’ the comments and simply get on with life… but others not so easily. As our story says “The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar” . 

Bullying leaves deep marks on us: some victims may develop anxiety… others PTSD… but others might not be so lucky: they may take their own lives!  It deeply saddens me to see in the news cases such as the 15-year old Jadin Bell, who was in hospital in Portland, Oregon, as he tried to take his own life for being bullied…

So please remember: a bruised body will often heal faster than a bruised mind. The next time you’re tempted to say something hurtful to someone just because you’re angry, you may want to consider the saying: “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me"

 Costa is Hypnotherapist, Psychotherapist and writer
 www.hypnotherapyinbuxton.co.uk www.hypnotherapyinnewmills.co.uk


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