Integrative Medicine & Childhood Obesity

Intregrative Medicine

Many Americans have never heard of integrative medicine, but this holistic movement has left its imprint on many of the nation's hospitals, universities, and medical schools.

So take less than two minutes to understand the concept as presented by Dr. Tracy Gaudet of Duke University

Intergrative Medicine

Treating the Whole Person

Both doctors and patients alike are bonding with the philosophy of integrative medicine and its whole-person approach -- designed to treat the person, not just the disease.

IM, as it's often called, depends on a partnership between the patient and the doctor, where the goal is to treat the mind, body, and spirit, all at the same time.

While some of the therapies used may be nonconventional, a guiding principle within integrative medicine is to use therapies that have some high-quality evidence to support them.

Conventional and Alternative Approaches

The Duke Center for Integrative Medicine is a classic model of integrative care. It combines conventional Western medicine with alternative or complementary treatments, such as herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage, biofeedback, yoga, and stress reduction techniques -- all in the effort to treat the whole person. Proponents prefer the term "complementary" to emphasize that such treatments are used with mainstream medicine, not as replacements or alternatives.

Integrative medicine got a boost of greater public awareness -- and funding -- after a landmark 1993 study. That study showed that one in three Americans had used an alternative therapy, often under the medical radar.

In the past decade, integrative medicine centers have opened across the country. According to the American Hospital Association, the percentage of U.S. hospitals that offer complementary therapies has more than doubled in less than a decade, Patients usually pay out of pocket, although some services -- such as nutritional counseling, chiropractic treatments, and biofeedback -- are more likely to be reimbursed by insurance.

The Appeal of Integrative Medicine

What makes integrative medicine appealing? Advocates point to deep dissatisfaction with a health care system that often leaves doctors feeling rushed and overwhelmed and patients feeling as if they're nothing more than diseased livers or damaged joints. Integrative medicine seems to promise more time, more attention, and a broader approach to healing -- one that is not based solely on the Western biomedical model, but also draws from other cultures.

"Patients want to be considered whole human beings in the context of their world," says Esther Sternberg, MD, a National Institutes of Health senior scientist and author of The Balance Within: The Science Connecting Health and Emotions.

Are up-and-coming young doctors going to practice the same kind of mainstream medicine as their predecessors? Will the next generation of docs turn up their noses at alternative therapies such as acupuncture, yoga, herbs and vitamins -- just like the majority of the current crop of docs? In what may come as a surprise to many mainstream physicians, the answer to those questions may be a resounding "NO".

According to research published in the online edition of the peer-reviewed journal Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine (eCAM), 75 percent of medical students surveyed think it would be beneficial for conventional Western medicine to integrate with complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). CAM places emphasis on natural therapies and using the body's own healing powers instead of relying on drugs, vaccines and other standard Western treatments.

A University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) and University of California, San Diego, research team comprised of experts in the fields of CAM, integrative medicine, Western medicine, medical education and survey development created a first of its kind 30 question survey that was distributed to 126 U.S. medical schools. Some 1,770 medical students completed the survey. The researchers say it provided valuable insights into current medical students' perceptions of CAM.

For example, the findings revealed that 77 percent of the medical student participants agreed patients whose doctors are knowledgeable about complementary and alternative medicine in addition to conventional medicine benefit more than those whose doctors are only familiar with Western medicine. In fact, 74 percent agreed that a medical system which integrated conventional medicine with CAM could be more effective than either type of medicine used independently.

A whopping 84 percent of the participants surveyed said CAM contains beliefs, ideas and therapies that could benefit conventional medicine. Some of this attitudinal shift in medical students could be the result of personal experiences -- almost half of the participants said they had used complementary and alternative treatments themselves.

"Complementary and alternative medicine, or CAM, is receiving increased attention in light of the global health crisis and the significant role of traditional medicine in meeting public health needs in developing countries," study author Ryan Abbott, a researcher at the UCLA Center for East-West Medicine, said in a statement to the media. "Integrating CAM into mainstream health care is now a global phenomenon, with policymakers at the highest levels endorsing the importance of a historically marginalized form of health care."

The study also found that more than 60 percent of the medical student participants want more education related to CAM during their time in medical school. In a press statement, the researchers noted that although more than 50 percent of U.S. medical schools currently offer some type of CAM courses, these studies could be streamlined into more formal curricula as part of standardized medical school education.

"Medical schools across the country are moving forward with ambitious new programs to teach the next generation of health care leaders," concluded Dr. Ka-Kit Hui, the Wallis Annenberg Professor of Integrative East-West Medicine at UCLA, founder and director of the UCLA Center for East-West Medicine, and chair of UCLA's Collaborative Centers for Integrative Medicine.

Child Obesity and the Future of Healthcare

Video: Michelle Obama Leads the Fight Against Child Obesity

First Lady, Michelle Obama informed mayors in her speech at the United States Department of Health and Human Services that childhood obesity has tripled in the past 30 years. She asked the nation's mayors to help her battle an epidemic that might see today's kids lead shorter lives than their parents, if left to chance.

According to first lady Michelle Obama, the problem of childhood obesity will be one of her key initiatives this year. Is it too late to reverse the trend? Can the Federal Government, mayors of cities, or community outreach teams teach parents what to feed their children and how to exercise or reduce the stress? How far reaching will Obama's initiative be?

Or can parents change their eating habits in front of their children in time to offer children possible longer lifespans? Can healthier food, lifestyles, and exercise lengthen those telomeres atop DNA? Can childhood obesity be reversed? Is diet or DNA destiny?

Michelle Obama is continuing her campaign for healthy eating habits to fight rising obesity rates passed from parents to children along with similar eating, playing, and exercising habits. It's about food and lifestyle.

The best way to combat the childhood obesity epidemic is to teach parents and children how to substitute healthier, but tasty ingredients for traditional foods eaten out of habit because of the taste familiarity learned in early childhood.

Consumers read in the news how this could be the first generation where the lifespan of children might be shorter than their parents if their eating habits continue on the road to obesity and the risks associated with it. But again, there are overweight people with healthy scores on physical exams.

And there are very thin people with genetic variations leading to hypertension, kidney issues, or early hardening of the arteries. But how does food, exercise, lifestyle, stress, and eating habits weigh in with the First Lady.