WebMD Health News/Dec. 10, 2008 — Thirty-eight percent of adults and 12% of children 17 and under used some form of complementary and alternative medicine in 2007, new data from a nationwide government survey show.
The survey marks the first time information on the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) by children has been collected at the national level.
Researchers with the National Institutes of Health and the CDC asked more than 23,000 adults about their use and 9,400 adults about their children’s use of 36 non-vitamin or mineral CAM therapies, including herbal supplements, acupuncture, visits to chiropractors, massage therapy, mediation, and even yoga.
“I think this study highlights the growing acceptance of many of these therapies,” pediatrician Kathi Kemper, MD, MPH, of Wake Forest University School of Medicine, tells WebMD.
Author of the book, The Holistic Pediatrician, Kemper says many treatments considered alternative just a few years ago, including probiotics for gastrointestinal complaints, are now widely recommended for children.
12% of Kids Use CAM
According to the survey findings:
Echinacea, often used for colds, topped the list of oral supplements most often given to children, followed by fish oil, omega-3, or DHA; combination herb pills; and flaxseed oil or pills.
Children’s use of CAM increased as their parents’ education level increased.
Regionally, children living in Western states were more likely to use CAM than those living in the South.
“Children are generally much healthier than adults, so 12% usage can be seen as quite high,” says study co-author Richard L. Nahin, PhD, MPH, acting director of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine’s (NCCAM’s) Division of Extramural Research.
CAM Usage Among Adults
The latest survey suggests that use of most complementary and alternative medicine has neither increased nor declined significantly among adults over the past six years, Nahin tells WebMD.
An exception was mind-body therapies like acupuncture, deep breathing, meditation, massage therapy, and yoga, which were used by more adults in 2007 than in 2002.
As seen in earlier surveys, women were more likely than men to use CAM therapies, and higher education and higher income was associated with higher CAM usage among adults.
The survey also revealed that:
CAM usage increased with the number of chronic health issues. Fish oil, omega-3, or DHA topped the list of oral supplements used most often by adults, followed by glucosamine (used for joint pain), echinacea, flaxseed oil/pills, ginseng, combination herbal products, and ginkgo biloba.
About 13% of adults said they practiced deep breathing, 9% practiced meditation, and 6% practiced yoga. About 8% reported having therapeutic massages or seeing a chiropractor during the previous year.
Adults were more likely to use CAM when they could not afford conventional treatments.
Back pain was the most frequently cited reason for using CAM among adults, followed by neck pain, joint pain, and arthritis.
“People use CAM for many different reasons — philosophy of wellness, cost, or to treat chronic conditions that are not helped by conventional treatments,” Nahin says. “As we study these therapies it is important to keep this in mind.”
By Salynn Boyles
SOURCES:
Barnes, P.M., ‘CAM Use Among Adults and Children: United States, 2007, NIH National Health Statistics Report, Dec. 10, 2008.
Richard L. Nahin, PhD, MPH, acting director, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine’s Division of Extramural Research.
Kathi J. Kemper, MD, pediatrician, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, N.C.
© 2008 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved