Alternative Medicine for the Elderly

1. Front Matter

   Pages I-XVII

   PDF

2. Epidemiology

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-2

      PDF

   2. Patterns and Predictors of CAM Use Among Older Adults

      • J. A. Astin

      Pages 3-8

   3. Why Do the Elderly Use Complementary and Alternative Medicine?

      • A. Furnham

      Pages 9-25

   4. The Use of Alternative Medicine by the Elderly and the Doctor-Patient Relationship

      • E. P. Cherniack

      Pages 27-46

   5. Alternative Medicines and the Elderly

      • J. C. McElnay, C. M. Hughes

      Pages 47-61

   6. Ethical Issues Associated with CAM Use Among the Elderly

      • P. Komesaroff

      Pages 63-72

   7. Future Trends in Use — Focus on Transcendental Meditation as a Traditional System of Natural Medicine

      • R. H. Schneider, J. W. Salerno, S. I. Nidich

      Pages 73-87

3. Types of CAM Used

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 89-89

      PDF

   2. Alternative Therapy: Vitamin Use in the Elderly

      • J. E. Thurman, A. D. Mooradian

      Pages 91-109

   3. Herbal Therapy and the Elderly

      • B. A. Bauer

      Pages 111-132

   4. The Use of Green Tea by the Elderly

      • F. Afaq, V. M. Adhami, H. Mukhtar

      Pages 133-143

   5. Chiropractic Spinal Manipulation for the Elderly?

      • E. Ernst

      Pages 145-152

   6. Unconventional Western Medicine

      • R. McCarney, P. Fisher

      Pages 153-172

   7. The Use of Traditional Japanese and Chinese Medicine for the Elderly

      • K. Miyamoto

      Pages 173-193

   8. Acupuncture in the Context of Traditional Chinese Medicine

      • N. S. Cherniack, E. P. Cherniack

      Pages 195-201

   9. Current Practice of Acupuncture — Use in Common Diseases of the Elderly

      • Xiao Chun Yu, Jiang Hong Ye, Wen Hsien Wu

      Pages 203-225

   10. Tai Chi Use and the Elderly

       • S. J. Farrell

       Pages 227-234

   11. Ayurveda — The Ancient Scientific Medicine with Natural Healing

       • I. Ramakrishna Krishna

       Pages 235-255

   12. Herbal Folk Medicine

       • E. P. Cherniack

       Pages 257-263

The explosion of information about complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has demanded the attention of health professionals and responsible consumers, in­ cluding the elderly. Increasingly, medical schools are providing education about CAM. This book brings together for academicians and interested mainstream practitio­ ners much of the current information on CAM and its role in the health of the elderly. The individual chapters are thoroughly researched and quite readable, even for patients and the lay public concerned with the state of the evidence and art supporting CAM's role in prevention and management of illness and well-being. This book provides edu­ cators with much necessary information needed to prepare coursework and learning activities. Although definitive data are lacking regarding efficacy and even safety of CAM methodologies, many chapters in this book summarize the existing evidence in a us­ able way. The topics analyzed range from well-accepted therapies, such as vitamin E for dementia and zinc tablets for the common cold, to far less conventional therapies such as transcendental meditation. The conclusions are often surprising, but well-presented and defended. Even the most highly controversial areas, such as the use of acupuncture to treat low back pain and osteoarthritis of the knee, are thoroughly and fairly re­ viewed. Finally, the chapters address some of the political issues that challenge CAM. These issues include who should be allowed to practice a CAM discipline whose efficacy is not based on the scientific method, and some of the state-to-state variations in prac­ tice standards and licensure.

• Alternative medicine
• Ayurveda
• Chinese Medicine
• Meditation
• cancer
• complementary alternative medicine (CAM)
• depression
• geriatrics
• therapy
• traditional Chinese medicine

From the reviews:

"... a well-written objective format...All practitioners caring for older persons will find this book of use...The range of topics here is wonderful, ranging from mediation to Ayurvedic medicine, Native American practices, popular Latino remedies and much more. Chapters on epidemiology and the ethical dimensions of care are excellent....This is the best book on complementary medicine around...The style of writing and editing is superb in its clarity. This is a wonderful addition to the literature...(4 stars)" (DOODY'S REVIEW)

"The book Alternative Medicine for the Elderly is an important completion for the well-accepted therapies in geriatrics. … All chapters of this book are clearly arranged and expanded by extensive references. The data are critically discussed. The book can be recommended to all geriatricians, specialists of internal medicine, psychiatry, neurology, and everybody interested in alternative medicine and geriatrics." (Dieter Platt, Gerontology, Vol. 50 (2), 2004)

• Division of Geriatrics, University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami VA, Medical Center (11A), Miami, USA

  E. Paul Cherniack

• School of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey at Newark University Hospital, University of New Jersey-Newark, Newark, USA

  Neil Cherniack

Policies and ethics