| Vol.
I, No. 3 | Winter
Solstice & Holidays | Dec.
15th, 2000 |
Health
& Medicine Vital
Signs: Yoga & The National Institutes of Health [NIH] As
a corollary to this month's Focus
On: An Ancient Practice with Modern Results ..., we thought our readers
might be interested in some of the findings over the past several years from the
National
Center for Complementary & Alternative Medicine [NCCAM], part of the
National Institutes of Health [NIH]. ... Each citation
includes a link to the original NCCAM article or document. As
early as 1995, when the Center was still in its early stages, NCCAM noted
"findings ... from a study on yogic therapies for obsessive-compulsive
disorders ... [that] proved to be effective on two subgroups -- those
who had previously been on a medication regimen and those who had not."
[Complementary
and Alternative Medicine at the NIH, December 1995 NCCAM, Volume II, Number
5 & 6.]
. More
recently, in testimony before Congress, NCCAM's director pointed to the
"palliative benefits of hatha yoga on cognitive and behavioral changes
associated with aging and neurological disorders in multiple
sclerosis patients and in the healthy elderly, " as well as
"biofeedback and yoga to treat asthma." [Statement
by Stephen E. Straus, M.D., Director, NCCAM, before the Senate
Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, March 28, 2000.]
. In
1997, NCCAM has also noted one health plan that covered visits to
alternative health practitioners. "Oxford Health Plans ...
began offering members in Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York access to a
network of 550 practitioners of alternative medicine on January 1 of [1997].
That network consists of acupuncturists, massage therapists, chiropractors,
registered dieticians, clinical nutritionists, yoga instructors, and
naturopaths." Moreover, “The company does not require
members to obtain referrals from primary care physicians to visit
alternative medicine practitioners; however, it also does not allow
practitioners to replace primary care physicians." [Complementary
and Alternative Medicine at the NIH, January 1997, NIH, Office of
Alternative Medicine, Volume IV, Number 1.]
. NCCAM
is evidently also willing to put more than rhetoric behind their
efforts. For example, earlier this year, they awarded $30,000 to North
Charles Mental Health Research in Somerville, MA, to study "enhancing
methadone maintenance treatment through yoga," as well as another
$30,000 to the Khalsa Foundation for Medical Science for a follow-up study
on 'Yoga Therapy for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder'." [NCCAM
Grant Award & Research Data, March 2000.]
. In
July 1996, NCCAM reported that a "Blue-Ribbon Panel of experts in
medical and nursing education last month recommended incorporating
complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) courses into medical and
nursing curricula." The conference, which was held at
Bethesda, "included Deans, Associate Deans, faculty, and students from
medical and nursing schools in 33 states, the District of Columbia, and
related health care organizations. Representatives from national
organizations and foundations, as well as various international institutions
were also in attendance." The conference also "invited eight
practitioners to demonstrate their expertise in practices such as
therapeutic touch, chiropractic, massage therapy, acupuncture, medical tai
chi, meditation, reflexology, and yoga." [Complementary
and Alternative Medicine at the NIH, July 1996, NIH, Office of Alternative
Medicine, Volume III, Number 2.]
. In
the Fall of 1998, NCCAM reported on "a new Stanford University survey
[which] found that 69 percent of Americans used some form of CAM in the past
year." ... "Researchers randomly surveyed 1,000 Americans about
their use of 19 treatments and therapies ranging from acupuncture to yoga.
They found that of those surveyed, 73 percent of men and 87 percent of women
reported they have a conventional doctor they use for routine care.
Fifty-five percent of respondents who used alternative medicine said they
had reduced their use of conventional medical services." [Complementary
and Alternative Medicine at the NIH, Fall 1998, NIH, Office of Alternative
Medicine, Volume V, Number 3.]
.
NCCAM
has classified the various alternative and complementary medical
practices. In the original classification system, which was much more
detailed, yoga was classed as a full CAM under "mind-body
methods." Under the newer system, which is more inclusive but less
detailed, yoga is simply considered part of "Ayurvedic medicine,"
which NCCAM describes as "a comprehensive system of medicine that places
equal emphasis on body, mind, and spirit, and strives to restore the innate
harmony of the individual." In addition to yoga, in its 1998 call for
research, NCCAM also listed "transcendental meditation, herbal
preparations, and pulse diagnosis" as part of Ayurvedic medicine. Links:
The
complete NCCAM listing for practices under the old classification system.
The
most current NCCAM classification system. . *******
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