Complementary health approaches, sometimes referred to as alternative health or medicine, are very popular right now, but not everyone is fully convinced that they are beneficial. In fact, there are competing claims out there that say that many of these things are actually very dangerous and should be avoided. So what’s right for you? Which side should we be listening to? Unfortunately, there’s not a clear answer in most instances. While we can’t answer the question definitively, we can help shed some light on how you should proceed here.
First, let’s start by looking at what this is. Complementary health approaches cover a huge number of different treatments, ranging from herbal supplements, to chiropractic doctors, to acupuncture, and more, just to name a few. There are too many different approaches to list in a single article. Some of them are more widely accepted than others in American culture. Furthermore, the term “complementary” means that these treatments are used in conjunction with traditional medical treatments. Alternative medicine without any sort of traditional input is very rare.
The big issue with many complementary health approaches is that there isn’t enough scientific evidence out there to fully support them. This is why some doctors do not utilize these methods. But, this doesn’t mean that they don’t work. There just isn’t a lot of information out there regarding them. Some things might work, and some might not. And what works for one person might not work for others. What we recommend is speaking with a medical professional to ensure that what you have in mind as far as complementary health care goes will not have a negative impact upon your health. For example, some supplements might interfere with medications that you might be taking. If there are no perceived deleterious effects, then proceed cautiously forward from there.
If, for some reason, these approaches don’t have scientific backing (and many do not!) does not mean that they can’t help. However, this needs to be approached on an individual basis. For example, some people have claimed that acupuncture has helped relieve chronic pain, while others have not benefitted from this. Again, talk to a doctor if you have questions on how these things can help you or an elderly loved one.
Things like pain, disability, and dementia are all major issues within the elderly population. Senior care revolves around improving the quality of life of those individuals that suffer from these issues. If you have an older loved one that is receiving in-home care or another type of senior care, then you already know that this can go a long way toward helping them. But it is only one part of a larger goal. Getting the right medical treatment for an older loved one, whether it be getting them to their general practitioner for scheduled appointments or another doctor, is another part of this. Focusing on the needs of the individual is the bigger issue, and helping the people that we love to get the best care possible and have the best lives possible should be the guiding principle for our loved one’s care.
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