Effectiveness and Safety

In 1992, the Office of Alternative Medicine within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) was formed to research the effectiveness and safety of alternative therapies. This office became the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine in 1999.

The effectiveness of alternative medicine treatments is an important consideration. Some therapies have been shown to be effective for specific conditions, although these therapies are applied more broadly. Many forms of alternative medicine have not undergone thorough evaluation. However, a lack of proof does not mean that a therapy is ineffective, but rather, that its effectiveness has not been established. If an alternative therapy has been proved ineffective, its use cannot be further advocated scientifically. The greatest risk occurs when a person is treated by an alternative medicine approach in place of a proven conventional medicine approach, although data suggest this is rarely the case.

Safety is another important consideration. Some alternative medicine therapies can pose potential harm. Because herbal medicines are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), their manufacturers do not have to prove their safety (see Section 2, Chapter 19). Also, harm can be done by alternative therapies that involve manipulation of the body or other nonchemical interventions. In most cases of alternative medicine, harm has not been established or excluded, but in some cases potential harm has been demonstrated.