Introduction
As the de facto norm in healthcare today, modern medicine relies on pharmaceuticals and surgical procedures to alleviate illness and promote wellness. Holotropic medicine, hypnosis, Ayurveda, Reiki, chiropractic, meditation, herbal medicine, massage, and aromatherapy are all-natural cures. However, this list is partial (Pizzorno & Murray, 2020). Alternative or complementary medicine, sometimes called “natural medicine,” encompasses many practices beyond the standard medical prescription. CAM has grown in popularity over the years for several reasons, including its perceived lack of side effects, its less intrusive approach to treating chronic illness, and its lower cost compared to mainstream care.
Furthermore, it gives us a greater say in our healthcare decisions and aligns more with our beliefs. An overwhelming majority of adults are open to using CAM. In the past, author Vannoy Gentles Fite believed there was a plant out here that could cure every known illness or ailment (Vannoy et al., 2018). The characteristics of natural healing need to be further discovered. Understanding the parallels and dissimilarities between conventional medicine and alternative therapies is the goal of this paper. Despite their differences, natural and modern medicine are beneficial when compared relatively.
Background
The term “medicine” refers to any artificial material that has the potential to stimulate or alter the body’s natural functioning. In medical treatment, “natural remedies” are compounds derived from nature that have undergone little processing to initiate or manipulate physiological processes. Thus, there are many distinctions between pharmaceuticals and natural cures, even though they have comparable purposes. Despite their similarities, these papers will further detail how conventional medicine and natural remedies differ in their effects on living organisms. First, compared to medications, which emerged later in human civilization, natural treatments have a much longer history at the dawn of humanity. As an example, therapeutic herbs have been around since the beginning of time, yet it was not until 1928 that medications like penicillin were found.
Additionally, prescribed medications target a particular physical problem or malfunction, whereas natural therapies concentrate on the user’s observable symptoms. People used a wide variety of natural cures for many kinds of ailments in the past.
On the other hand, in contemporary medicine, the doctor considers a patient’s symptoms while making a diagnosis and then recommends medication to alleviate the condition. Natural cures are more affordable than conventional medical treatments. Natural treatments, such as those made from plant parts, can be found in nature. The development and manufacturing of medications also contribute to their rising market prices.
Comparing
One similarity between traditional remedies and medicines is that they are used in treatment. It is possible to combine the use of modern medicine with natural therapies. Treatment practices in conventional medicine typically make use of modern medicine. Natural remedies are a part of alternative medicine’s procedural care. However, there are situations where more than these therapeutic options are needed. It highlights the importance of complementary care, which combines conventional treatment with alternative therapies to improve health. For instance, some patients adopt complementary therapies in addition to conventional cancer treatment (Armstrong et al., 2020). To lessen the impact of chemotherapy and improve the likelihood of a successful recovery, patients may choose to make changes to their eating habits and way of life while they are still receiving treatment. Nutrition, acupuncture, and mind-body practices are among the most commonly employed natural therapies in conjunction with conventional medicine (Armstrong et al., 2020). Chemotherapy’s side effects include nausea, vomiting, dry mouth, and hot flashes, which can be alleviated with acupuncture (Ibid). According to Armstrong et al. (2020), mind-body techniques like yoga and meditation can lower stress hormones and alleviate medical-induced nausea. Patients can often use natural remedies to either mitigate the side effects or increase the effectiveness of conventional medical therapies.
Another similarity is that they both require specialists to perform treatment in many traditional societies; knowledge of natural remedies is passed from one generation to the next in specific families that specialize in the care of the society. Medicine, on the other hand, is handled by various specialists who have undergone the necessary training, including medical officers, pharmacists, and nurses; some practices, such as acupuncture and Reiki, require specialists to perform as it depends on a universal force such as Qi that an ordinary person cannot just perform.
Contrasting
In contrast to contemporary medicine’s hallmark of ongoing study based on evidence-based practice and patient safety, some natural therapies still need to be adequately studied. Pharmacological research is essential to find new therapies and ensure the ones we have work. Research in the pharmaceutical field often seeks to improve patient safety, increase survival rates, identify and treat new health problems, and reduce the likelihood of illness recurrence. New medical items are also regularly introduced in modern medicine due to increased research. Knowledge of the possible harm some medications can cause their patients is an advantage of frequent research in modern medicine. Natural medicine, on the other hand, needs more attention. Natural does not necessarily imply risk-free. For example, according to Ciocan et al., in 2021, many Ayurvedic items may include lead and other harmful elements, but they must still be well-examined. Natural remedies have yet to be widely used since there is a shortage of clinical data on the chemical makeup of certain herbs and the effectiveness of procedure-based treatments. Investigating synthetic pharmaceuticals continuously on medicines, unlike natural remedies, offers preference for this option.
In contrast to conventional medicine, the government does not oversee natural cures. In the past, dietary supplements could not be regulated as pharmaceuticals since they were categorized as foods under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) (Li & Wertheimer, 2023). Yadurvedic therapies and other natural medicines are also not subject to the same stringent safety and effectiveness regulations as conventional medicine. The DSHEA’s regulatory gaps have contributed to the widespread belief that natural treatments are not adequately controlled. Furthermore, certain natural medicines may not require immediate regulation or prescription. Some natural cures, like mind-body therapies, can be challenging to regulate, even though government regulation of pharmaceuticals and medical devices is critical for the public’s safety and health. The government regulates all drugs to make sure they are safe and of high quality. On the other hand, the quality of one’s yoga or meditation practice depends on the practitioner. The complexities of regulation stem from the fact that anyone can practice yoga by watching a recorded lesson without an instructor.
Creating pharmaceuticals from natural treatments is feasible, but not vice versa. For example, although medications are typically prepared for human consumption and not for other people’s manufacture, natural plant treatments can be used to create pharmaceuticals. On top of that, natural medicines are easier to come by than synthetic alternatives. Plants are the basis for natural therapies, but pharmaceuticals must be developed, procured, and prescribed before patients can use them. Natural treatments last less time than medicines. The use of preservatives to prolong the shelf life of medicines is one example of this. On the other hand, natural remedies are susceptible to the effects of time and are best utilized soon after preparation (e.g., when utilizing plant cures).
Conclusion
The efficacy of conventional and natural therapies can be justified by a fair comparison, notwithstanding their apparent dissimilarities. These products’ history, beliefs, cost, effectiveness, user training, efficiency, manufacture, and shelf life length demonstrate these disparities. As a means of maintaining and improving human health, medicines and natural treatments have existed for quite some time. Natural treatments are not as quickly regulated as contemporary medicine, characterized by ongoing study and more regulation. Additionally, by preventing the recurrence of diseases and undesirable health outcomes, government control makes modern medicine safer to use.
On the contrary, mind-body treatments and other natural remedies may only sometimes require regulation. Despite this, the risks and dangers of the two treatments are comparable. Natural medicines and contemporary medicine work hand in hand, making complementary therapy the optimal option.
References
Armstrong, M., Kupeli, N., Flemming, K., Stone, P., Wilkinson, S., & Candy, B. (2020). Complementary therapy in palliative care: A synthesis of qualitative and quantitative systematic reviews. Palliative medicine, 34(10), 1332–1339. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0269216320942450
Ciocan, C., Mansour, I., Beneduce, A., Loia, R. C., Milanesio, N., Declementi, M., … & Pira, E. (2021). Lead poisoning from Ayurvedic treatment: a further case. La Medicina del Lavoro, 112(2), 162. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8095331/
Li, W., & Wertheimer, A. (2023). Narrative Review: The FDA’s Perfunctory Approach of Dietary Supplement Regulations Giving Rise to Copious Reports of Adverse Events. INNOVATIONS in pharmacy, 14(1), 7-7. https://pubs.lib.umn.edu/index.php/innovations/article/view/4989
Pizzorno, J. E., & Murray, M. T. (2020). Textbook of Natural Medicine-E-Book: Textbook of Natural Medicine-E-Book. Elsevier Health Sciences. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=fortDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=Natural+medicines&ots=CX7MWIEWvi&sig=yCjGcBimeyLLuHtoIUzgWW8u-KM
Vannoy Gentles Fite. (1407, June). Goodreads | Meet your next favorite book. https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14220718.Vannoy_Gentles_Fite
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