Alternative medicine is a healing practice that falls outside the realm of conventional medical practices. This type of complementary medicine has been the most popular prevalent method of treatment followed for ages. There are still practitioners devoting their time in practising this branch of medicine.

Principal of alternative medicine

The basic principal on which the treatments are based in alternative medicine is the belief that the body has the capacity to heal itself. This healing process of the body needs to be supplemented with naturally occurring holistic approaches.

Different types of alternative medicine

Mind and Body techniques- This branch of alternate medicine is based on the philosophy that the mind has healing powers. Emotional and mental factors affect a person’s well being and healthy living. Depression, headache, insomnia are some of the health problems that can get treated by mind body techniques. The common techniques used in this kind of alternative medicine are laughter therapy, yoga, exercise and medication.
Biologically based therapies- This type of therapy uses the different naturally occurring substances to cure diseases. The different substances used are-

·  Herbs – The nature is rich in medicinal plants. The therapeutic value of these plants is used to cure diseases. The leaves of Ocimum plant, for example, are used to cure chronic cold and cough conditions.

·  Food- This branch of alternative medicine emphasises on the intake of balanced food and the importance of the various nutrients like Vitamins and minerals to maintain good health.

·  Acupuncture and acupressure- Both the types of therapy involve putting pressures at designated areas of the body to relieve the body of pain. In acupuncture pins are poked at the designate places.

  3. Chiropractic medicine- In this alternative therapy, the muscular tissues and the  skeleton bones are rearranged in to a comfortable position for relief from pain.

  4. Massage therapy – This is a combination of acupuncture and chiropractic medicine to relieve the patient of stress and pain.

  5. Energy therapy – This involves the use of magnetic fields to restore the energy of the body cells.

With the increase in the severe side effects associated with main stream medicine, more and more people are bending towards alternative medicine for better treatment without any side effects and better results.

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