Alternative Medicine

Systems of medical care that are based on methods of treatment or theories of disease that differ from those taught in recognized western-oriented medical schools.

Sub-headings:

Acupuncture

Chiropractic

Resources in this category:

American Association for Health Freedom
http://www.apma.net/

"Political voice for health care practitioners who use nutritional and other complementary therapies in patient care. Members approach health from a comprehensive perspective, utilizing preventive medical techniques and less­invasive, more natural methods of patient management." The organization focuses specifically on federal legislation and regulations that affect the practitioner's ability to use alternative and complementary therapies and the patient's right to make choices in their healthcare. The AAHF Web site has free full text access to news, legislative alerts, position papers, and back issues of the association newsletter, Director's Reports. There is also a link to a searchable database of practioners.

American Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine
http://www.aaaomonline.org/

"The American Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (AAAOM), was formed in 1981 to be the unifying force for American acupuncturists who are committed to ethical, high educational standards, and well regulated profession to ensure the safety of the public." You can find an overview here of oriental medicine and acupuncture.

American Botanical Council Online
http://www.herbalgram.org/

"The American Botanical Council (ABC) was incorporated in November 1988 as a nonprofit education organization. ABC's goals are to educate the public about beneficial herbs and plants and to promote the safe and effective use of medicinal plants." This site provides a nice Herbal FAQ section, as well as links to related sites.

American Herbalists Guild Home Page
http://www.americanherbalistsguild.com/

"The American Herbalists Guild was founded in 1989 as a non-profit, educational organization to represent the goals and voices of herbalists. It is the only peer-review organization for professional herbalists specializing in the medicinal use of plants. AHG membership consists of professionals, general members (including students) and benefactors." The Guild is the co-producer of the magazine, HerbalGram (along with The Herb Research Foundation). This site includes complete membership information as well as a list of useful herbalism websites.

American Holistic Nurses' Association
http://ahna.org/

"AHNA is a 501(c)3 non-profit educational organization whose membership is open to nurses and others interested in holistically oriented health care practices. Among its objectives, AHNA supports the education of nurses, allied health practitioners, and the general public on health-related issues." Provides information on certification and continuing education in holistic nursing.

American Massage Therapy Association
http://www.amtamassage.org/

"The American Massage Therapy Association represents more than 37,000 massage therapists in 30 countries.. AMTA works to establish massage therapy as integral to the maintenance of good health and complementary to other therapeutic processes; to advance the profession through ethics and standards, certification, school accreditation, continuing education, professional publications, legislative efforts, public education, and fostering the development of members." Besides information for massage therapists and association members, the site has information for consumers about massage therapy and tips on how to find a massage therapist.

American Natural Hygiene Society
http://www.healthscience.org/

"Founded in 1948, ANHS is the oldest and largest Natural Hygiene organization in the world, with over 10,000 members in 50 countries. ANHS is also the oldest vegetarian organization in the United States." The organization's motto, "Health Care is Self-Care," is based on their belief that "Health is the normal state; healing is a biological process and is not something you can buy; health and disease are a continuum--the same physiological laws govern the body in sickness and in health; nothing that makes a well person sick can make a sick person well; physical, mental, and emotional health are inseparably linked; personal health, environmental health, and community health are parts of a whole."

European Herbal Practitioners Association
http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~ehpa/

"We represent professional herbal practitioners throughout the European Union. Our aims (as set out below) are to ensure the continuation of professional herbal practice as a modality in its own right into the 21st century: - We are working to protect the rights of the practitioners and consumers of herbal medicine within the EU. - To this end, the EHPA is taking the initiative in setting standards of training, practice and quality of herbal medicine. - We welcome any suggestions or comments which will help us achieve these objectives" This website includes many news articles on the state of herbalism in Europe, as well as a useful page of links

The Herb Research Foundation
http://www.herbs.org/

"The Herb Research Foundation (HRF) is a nonprofit research and educational organization focusing on herbs and medicinal plants." This well-respected organization is dedicated to supporting the serious study and use of herbs in medicine. Their website provides abundant information about the world of medicinal plants.

Herb Society (UK) Online
http://www.henriettesherbal.com/

This United Kingdom herbalist society has world wide membership, and they say, "Growers and gardeners, botanists and medical herbalists, researchers and historians, cooks, crafters, aromatherapists, beauticians, and garden designers all can find something of interest in the Herb Society." This web site has a wide variety of quality articles about herbs.

Marijuana Policy Project
http://www.mpp.org/

"The Marijuana Policy Project works to minimize the harm associated with marijuana -- both the consumption of marijuana, and the laws that are intended to prohibit such use. MPP believes that the greatest harm associated with marijuana is prison. To this end, MPP focuses on removing criminal penalties for marijuana use, with a particular emphasis on making marijuana medically available to seriously ill people who have the approval of their doctors." The website features new articles on the latest efforts with legislation to get medical marijuana legalized. It also features informative facts on the health benefits of marijuana as well as the number of individuals who have been incarcerated in marijuan-related charges.

Meditation Society of America
http://www.meditationsociety.com/

³The Meditation Society of America is dedicated to sharing the joys and benefits of meditation with all seekers everywhere. One of the chief tenets of the Society is that all techniques of all traditions should be available to whoever wishes to know and use them."

This site has "What is Meditation", "The Total Meditation System", "108 Meditation Techniques", "This Week's Technique Archive", etc.

National Center for the Preservation of Medicinal Herbs
http://www.ncpmh.org/

The Center's objectives are to protect and expand populations of medicinal herbs, especially those deemed to be at risk by United Plant Savers. In addition, the Center will research growing methods, encourage organic farming of these herbs and educate the public about the at-risk status of medicinal herbs.

Ontario College of Reflexology
http://www.ocr.edu/

A non-profit society of Ontario reflexologists. Objectives include accreditation, promoting professional ethics, promoting reflexology, education, and referral. Website includes an introduction to reflexology, history of the discipline, and organization information.

United Plant Savers
http://www.plantsavers.org/

"United Plant Savers' mission is to protect native medicinal plants of the United States and Canada and their native habitat while ensuring an abundant renewable supply of medicinal plants for generations to come." This site has a great variety of educational material about sustainable use and harvesting of medicinal plants. The organization does research on which native medicinal plants are "at risk" and works to raise the awareness of medical herbalists in order to inspire action to help preserve "at risk" plants.