Oils for Life Australia | Why do they call it Alternative Medicine?

"Alternative Medicine" as it is referred to these days has gone through a change in public opinion over the years and it is only in the last 100 years or so that using natural therapies has been looked down on by the medical industry.

Before Western Medicine became seen as the "saviour" to human health, doctors were more like naturopaths we see today. They would spend time understanding their patient's medical history and focusing on lifestyle. They would suggest ways to improve diet, their environment and would also prescribe herbal remedies.

Many "alternative remedies" have been around for thousands of years and from many different backgrounds. This highlights an innate understanding of using plant based therapies for healing and wellness.

The ancient Chinese based their healing on keeping the body and spirit in balance and that a person and their environment are linked in regards to health.
Indian Ayurvedic medicine has history from 6000 years ago and is based on keeping the body, mind and spirit in tune with nature in order to maintain good health.
Hydrotherapy treatments were popular with the Romans and Greeks and Ancient Greeks brought herbalism into the West.
Hippocrates, commonly referred to as the Father of Medicine, practiced herbal medicine.
Monks in Europe during the Middle Ages grew and studied medicinal plants and translated many works on the subject from Arabic.
Native Australians and Native Americans had a huge knowledge of the power of herbs and plants found in their native environment.

Throughout history, understanding of natural healing would pass down through the generations by word of mouth and experiences and this has allowed us to thrive in sometimes challenging environments and situations.

Alternative medicine started to decrease about 80 years ago and treatment became more focused on the use of hospitals. As we started to learn more about modern medicine, pharmaceutical drugs were used to treat disease.

With the discovery of Penicillin and the understanding of how it could treat bacterial infections, this lead to it becoming a well used drug. This totally transformed the health care industry and alternative medicine was shunned by most medical practitioners. In fact the term "alternative medicine" was created in the 1970's for any form of medicine that was not in line with biomedicine.

Labelling natural therapies as alternative reinforced the public's opinion that modern medicine was morally the best practice. Other terms like "quackery" "unconventional" "popular" and "complimentary" to name a few, were often used which portrayed natural options as a lower option than the standard of conventional medicine. You can see a similar story when you look at the cleaning and personal care industry where chemicals and synthetic products are seen to be superior to the natural option.

Sadly many practitioners have turned their back on what is now seen to be outdated treatments such as homeopathy, aromatherapy, herbalism and traditional Chinese medicine. However many people still want them in their lives, especially when conventional medicine does not appear to be working for them. There is a change coming with more doctors becoming open to natural therapies and incorporating them into their treatments.

We are extremely grateful for the life saving advances we have had in modern medicine. The knowledge we have on how the body works is amazing. We appreciated having the skills of a neuro surgeon when our 5 year old son fell out of his bunk bed and received a skull fracture!
What saddens us is the exclusivity this form of medicine is given. There is a lot to be said about using both forms of medicine alongside each other.

We truly believe that we can take control of our own health and well being and have many proven natural therapies to help keep us well. Learning to look at the whole body and provide what it needs to be healthy will go a long way to thriving and living a whole life, compared to managing symptoms that show up due to the body not getting what it needs which ends in dis-ease. Learning how to use plants as medicine and incorporating natural practices yourself will help you to feel extremely empowered.

Both forms of medicine have merit and should never be dismissed purely because one seems to think they are better than the other. Research your options and make the informed decision that is right for you.

Why do they call it Alternative Medicine?

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