Complementary and Alternative Therapies

Alternative Therapies Sometimes Used in LGS

Complementary and Alternative Therapy

Complementary and alternative therapies are products or practices together with standard medical care. These include practices such as massage, acupuncture, chiropractic, homeopathy, naturopathy, and others.

Complementary approaches or treatments mean that treatments are used together with traditional Western medicine.

Alternative approaches or treatments are used instead of traditional Western medicine.

Traditional Western medicine develops treatments using a scientific approach to answer questions such as: why treatments work, how well they work, whom they work for, what side effects may occur, and how the benefits compare to the risks. The results of testing are published in scientific journals. Most treatments need to receive approval from the Food and Drug Administration or a relevant federal advisory group before they can be marketed and used by the general public.

The list of alternative therapies changes over time as new approaches emerge. Others are proven safe and effective and become part of conventional health care. In epilepsy, for instance, the ketogenic diet began as an alternative therapy but has been scientifically tested and is now considered a conventional therapy for some people with epilepsy.

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