Annotated Bibliography

Lisangel Tineo

Prof. Nargiza Matyakubova

English 21003

09/11/23

Annotated Bibliography

Alternative Medicine vs Conventional Medicine

“2. Americans’ Health Care Behaviors and Use of Conventional and Alternative Medicine.” Pew

Research Center Science & Society, Pew Research Center, 2 Feb. 2017,

www.pewresearch.org/science/2017/02/02/americans-health-care-behaviors-and-use-of-conven

tional-and-alternative-medicine/.

    This article mainly talks about the use of conventional medicine in American society and

how healthcare providers and patients alike interact with alternative medicine. It states

that the majority of Americans often do their own research when making decisions about

treatment, either to learn more about the provider's recommendations or to check for

other treatment options or potential side effects. It talks about specific alternative

medicines like herbal dietary supplements, acupuncture, chiropractic, and energy

therapies and explains that around one-third of U.S. adults have heard about alternative

medicine, with half of them trying it either instead of or in conjunction with conventional

treatments. People with chronic conditions are often inclined to use complementary and

alternative medical treatments and, those who never take over-the-counter medications

are more likely to have tried alternative medicine.

    This article provides a lot of insight into a patient's relationship with alternative medicine,

specifically, it delves into the reasons why someone would opt for alternative medicine

instead of conventional medicine which is often because of chronic illnesses or pains, I

plan on using this information as evidence as well as a way to support my claims.

Additionally, I could use the several graphs and statistics it presents to further explain my

point and provide fact-based evidence.

JA, Astin. “Why Patients Use Alternative Medicine: Results of a National Study.” JAMA, U.S.

National Library of Medicine, 20AD, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9605899/.

    The basic idea of this paper is to look at potential indicators of the usage of alternative

healthcare, and three main hypotheses were examined. Individuals look for these

alternatives for three reasons: (1) they are unhappy in some way with traditional

treatment; (2) they believe that alternative therapies give them more autonomy and

control over their healthcare decisions; and (3) they believe that these alternatives are

more in line with their values, worldviews, or beliefs about the nature of health and

illness. The study also examined health status and demography as predictive factors and

explored the motivation behind the use of contemporary and alternative medicine.To

verify their theory and gather data, a written survey that looked at health state, attitudes

toward conventional treatment, values, and the usage of alternative health care Using a

total of 1035 participants, multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to find

predictors of the usage of alternative health care.

    The information above provides insights into why individuals choose to use alternative

therapies instead of conventional medicine. By understanding the potential indicators of

alternative healthcare usage, I can gain a deeper understanding of patients' motivations

and behaviors, and ultimately integrate thus into my paper and support any claims or

evidence I may provide.

Magi, Tatjana, et al. “Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Children With Cancer:

A Study at a Swiss University Hospital.” PLOS ONE, vol. e0145787, no. 12, Public Library of

Science, 22 Dec. 2015, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0145787.

    This study examines the prevalence and methods of complementary and alternative

medicine (CAM) used by children and adolescents with cancer. It found that 53% of

patients had used CAM, mostly classical homeopathy, and 25% received information

from medical staff. Parents believed CAM would improve the patient's condition, while

lack of information was the most common reason for not using CAM. 87% of those who

used CAM perceived positive effects. Open communication between families,

oncologists, and CAM therapists is crucial for informed choices.

    Although this article specifically talks about how alternative medicine affects patients with

cancer I think it is a relevant case to mention, it can mostly be used to provide evidence

since it directly states the pros and cons of using such treatments instead of the typical

contemporary medicine. It is a real-world example of the use of alternative medicine and

can prove to be helpful in the making of my research paper.

Tabish, Syed Amin. “Complementary and Alternative Healthcare: Is It Evidence-Based?”

International Journal of Health Sciences, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Jan. 2008,

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3068720/.

    This article delves into the five major domains of alternative/ complementary medicine

which include: alternative medical systems, mind-body interventions, biologically-based

treatments, manipulative and body-based methods, and energy therapies it focuses on

the history and different uses of alternative medicine. It talks about CAM

(Complementary and alternative healthcare and medical practices) and specific topics

such as Ayurveda, Homeopathy, and Naturopathy. CAM systems share common

elements, such as the belief that the body has the power to heal itself. Additionally, CAM

use in the USA has increased significantly, with a 1998 study showing a rise from 33.8%

in 1990 to 42.1% in 1997. Common CAM therapies include prayer, herbalism, breathing

meditation, chiropractic medicine, yoga, bodywork, diet-based therapy, progressive

relaxation, mega-vitamin therapy, and visualization.

    This source provides a lot of essential background information and definitions that can

be proved useful for my research paper, it introduces a variety of different topics involved

with alternative/complementary medicine and contemporary medicine. I would most

likely include information from this source in the introduction and body segment of my

paper, ultimately creating a more cohesive and supported text. I prefer this article to my

other sources simply because it is much more vast and detailed, it has a lot of

information that couldn't find in others which is why i will most likely be using the source

the most.