1. “Alternative medicine” is called alternative because the technique/ drug/ herb has not been or cannot be adequately tested, or has been found ineffective or dangerous. If it were a safe, tested treatment, it would not be in the alternative category. Many cited studies to support these methods are flawed, short-term, based on anecdotal evidence, conducted by believers in the techniques, & often are not published in a peer-reviewed medical journal. The terms complementary, blended, and integrated are now being used as well since alternative treatments are being combined with traditional medicine. There is a new category of “functional medicine” which refers to the use of conventional and alternative methods but leans toward the alternatives. All of this makes it more difficult to test the alternative methods or to know what is really working when the patient improves. It should be remembered that the placebo effect accounts for 30% or more for a person feeling better.
2. The term “functional medicine” has made alternatives appear to be credible. Functional practitioners may or may not be medically licensed. But whether they are medical doctors or not, functionial practitioners include untested, unscientific “alternative” treatments. This is partly due to the popularity of such treatments, and so being able to offer them adds to what the doctor can charge for. The other reason is that many medical doctors have themselves fallen for the deception of what is called “alternative healing.” Intellect and degrees do not make one immune to deception.
The founder of functional medicine is not a medical doctor, but a biochemist, Jeffrey Bland. Functional medicine is characterized by practices that lack scientific merit; often recommend unnecessary and expensive tests; use unregulated supplements; focus on imaginary conditions (such as “adrenal fatigue,” or “heavy metal poisoning”); and may use scare tactics to convince patients they have conditions needing expensive treatment.
While some nutritional advice might be helpful, it is taking a risk to see a functional doctor (or dentist). In the United States, functional medicine practices have been ruled ineligible for course credits by the American Academy of Family Physicians because it considers they may be “harmful” and “dangerous”.
3. Proponents of alternative medicine are often hostile to the medical establishment and/or what is called “western thinking,” that is, rational thinking. There is often a bias against science or belief in a conspiracy amongst physicians. This prejudice prevents them from objectively viewing the evidence against alternative healing. More doctors are now allowing or advocating these treatments because of patient demand so they can stay in business. But remember, doctors can be deceived, too.
4. Many of the new healing techniques are being called energy medicine since there is an assumption that one is dealing with channeling, transferring or altering energy. This energy is not measurable or biological; it is believed to be the energy of a universal force/life force pervading all. The belief in this type of energy is foundational for sorcery, pantheism, monism, some Eastern religions, many New Age-related beliefs, and most of the occult. Sometimes this energy is seen as being an impersonal God, a god-force, or an innate divine intelligence which infuses all parts of the universe and our bodies. These are spiritual, not medical, views.
5. Techniques such as acupuncture, acupressure, tai chi (not a medicine but often prescribed for people recovering from illness), and Tapping are based on the belief that a universal force called chi (also spelled as qi, ki or ji) which pervades everything and everyone must be flowing to achieve good health. There is also the belief in two universal energies, yin and yang, which must be balanced. If anything is blocking the chi or unbalancing the yin and yang, then illness results. The chi is believed to flow through invisible channels in the body called meridians. In this case, treatment is based on a spiritual belief system, not on medicine or scientific fact. So far, no clear medical or biological basis as been discovered for acupuncture. There are theories that the needles trigger the release of endorphins or affect a neural pathway, causing a temporary relief of pain. If indeed this is what is happening, then it is no longer actually acupuncture, since acupuncture is not based on the physiology of neural pathways or endorphins. For a more detailed Christian view of acupuncture, see “Evaluating Acupuncture” by Steve Godwin.
6. Homeopathy is based on the belief that a vital force in the body has been disrupted. Treatments which would produce the symptoms of the illness in a healthy person are used to treat the sick person. However, since these treatments often contain poisonous substances, they are diluted until nothing of the original compound is left. It is believed that when the mixture is shaken, some of its “energy” transfers to the water in diluted form in an occult process called “the memory of water.” Homeopathic practitioners do not apologize for being unable to explain how these remedies work. Treatments vary from person to person.
7. Therapeutic touch is not touching at all, but holding the hands several inches above the patient to feel for “warm” or “cold” spots which indicate a problem. The healer is working with “energy” and removes the bad energy and transmits “healing energy” through their hands. This technique comes directly from the occult and the New Age, and is similar to both psychic and witchcraft techniques for healing.
8. Other New Age/ occult healing techniques include: Reiki (transferring a healing energy), polarity therapy, touch for health, acupressure, ayurvedic remedies, iridology, reflexology, applied Kinesiology, muscle testing, magnetic therapy, shiatsu, most massage therapy, and rolfing. The magnets in jewelry and belts worn for healing are similar in size & strength to refrigerator magnets which cannot penetrate beyond 10 sheets of paper, much less the skin and tissue of a person’s body. (Washington Post, 9-8-99, p. H3, by Robert L. Park, professor of physics at the U. of MD, author of Voodoo Science). Massage therapy, as practiced in the United States, is more than massage, as it is based on the belief that certain parts of the body relate to areas of the person’s past and life, and massage supposedly releases old hurts, rejections, anger, etc. This is determined arbitrarily and is based on magical thinking. Massage therapy schools are notoriously New Age in their thinking and training. For further information, please see this informative article on Massage Therapy by Steve Godwin.
9. The basis for “natural” remedies comes mostly from New Age thinking which views nature as pure and/or sacred. This includes Naturopathy, which is not based on science, biology, or objective data but instead comes from vitalistic views about a life force in the body. There are “natural” remedies which are ineffective and which are dangerous. Most herbs and potions are unregulated, untested and inconsistent in quality and potency. There is no way for the buyer to determine how much of an active ingredient is present (which varies from bottle to bottle), and there is no way to know if the label is even accurate.
In addition, one does not know how the herb or potion will interact with other medications that are being taken. Long term effects of many herbal products and large doses of vitamins remain unknown. A California Dept. of Health Sciences study tested 243 Asian patent medicines, finding that four contained lead, 35 mercury and 36 arsenic, “in levels exceeding those allowed in drugs.” About one-third of the supplements contained “heavy metals” and other “‘adulterants'” ( The Washington Post, 9/17/98, p. A3). Scripture tells us that nature is fallen just as man is (Gen. 3:17; Rom. 8: 19-22). Although traditional medicine can be misused or overused, there is nothing inherently better about “natural” remedies as opposed to regular medication. Buy and take at your own risk.
10. Yoga (see CANA articles on Yoga) is a part of Hinduism and comes from a Sanskrit term which means to unite with. Hatha yoga, as one of many yogas, was devised to aid the practitioner in transcending his body, identity and mind in order to unite with the Hindu godhead. The yoga positions, asanas, combined with breathing techniques, are designed to induce a meditative trance state. Hatha yoga is based on the principle that putting the body in various unnatural positions will help the person, once he/she has perfected it, to become aware that his/her body is not reality so that he/she will no longer identify with it. Then one works on the breath, pranayama, to develop mental discipline; then come concentration, meditation/contemplation, and absorption, called samadhi, which is the realization that there is no distinction between self and others or self and God. Yoga originated in ancient India where yogis developed it as a technique to prepare for death. The purpose of yoga was never relaxation, flexibility or exercise. There are other methods available to achieve flexibility and toning.
11. Terms and phrases which usually indicate a New Age or occult belief:
life force, universal force, energy, vital force, cosmic force, creative force, divine force, chi (qi, ki, ji), aura, energy field, biofield, bioenergy, auric field, meridians, chakras, energy points, channels of energy, psychic energy, psychic centers, cleansing of toxins, balancing, polarity, prana, divine breath, yin-yang, energy healing, healing powers, intelligence/wisdom of the body, Spirit (as opposed to Holy Spirit), the God within, consciousness, Christ consciousness.
Teachers/writers in the health and psychology fields who endorse alternative/New Age healing, in whole or in part: Dr. Mehmet Oz, Dr. Bernie Siegel, Deepak Chopra, Dr. Andrew Weil, Carolyn Myss, Dr. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, John Bradshaw, Dr. Brian Weiss, John Kabat-Zinn, Dr. Christine Northrup, Dr. Daniel Amen, and functional doctors like Dr. Mark Hyman. This list does not even tough on the number of people who fit this category.
12. The words “holistic,” “natural,” “non-invasive,” and “wellness” are often used by practitioners using New Age/vitalistic/chi-based practices. These words are general and have no specific meaning (except for “wellness” which has a New Age meaning); they also come from and/or used commonly by New Age healers. “Natural” has no clear or consistent meaning in terms of food or medicine since everything has chemicals. “Wellness” means that one is responsible for every pain or health issue and so one must try to figure that out using New Age methods. Sometimes it involves the “invisible body” which is comprised of the esoteric self: energy fields, auras, and inner components such as chi and meridians. I consider these words to be red flag words and they are usually enough for me to consider warning about such a practitioner (although “wellness” has been increasingly used in the medical world, unfortunately, but without the New Age meaning).
13. What is Pilates? This form of exercise was started by Joseph Pilates in the early 20th century. Pilates, who traveled to Asian, was influenced by Eastern spiritual beliefs. There is no scientific basis to Pilates; it is simply Joseph Pilates’ ideas about health. Today, there are variations of Pilates, often with an admixture of yoga or Tai Chi about which the Christian should be cautious.
Due to the fact we are in a post-truth age where the idea of absolutes and checking out facts is vanishing, too many things like functional medicine are flourishing. This is one reason there is a profliteration of New Age ideas and practices.
OTHER RESOURCES:
(Links often change, so if these links do not work, please do a search via a search engine)
Want more information on energy concepts? Read article, “The Christian, Energetic Medicine, New Age Paranoia,” by Elliott Miller
See CANA article on beliefs and practices based on concepts of Life Force Energy and other energy concepts
Video “Cracked Science” critiquing functional medicine
See the website for CINAM, Current Issues in Alternative Medicine, operated by Christian nurse Janice Lyons
A book, Examining Alternative Medicine: An Inside Look at the Benefits and Risks, by Paul C. Reisser, M.D., Dale Mabe, D.O., Robert Velarde [InterVarsity Press, 2001]. Available from Amazon. A free download of this book can be found here.
This site allows you to choose a vitamin or mineral supplement, an herbal or other supplement, or a nutritional food or beverage on the market and see what it is supposed to be and do, as well as seeing the results from tests done on these various products. For example, you can click on Vitamin C, Echinacea, ginseng, etc., discover where it comes from and what it does, then see how these have held up in having what they claim to. The site also reports warnings on contaminants, such as pesticide, found in some supplements.
Excellent and thorough article on Applied Kinesiology (Muscle Testing):
“Evaluating Applied Kinesiology”
“Applied Kinesiology and Nutritional Muscle Response Testing: A Christian Perspective,” by Janice Lyons
Short link: https://shorturl.at/11HiQ