Why is Alternative Medicine better than Traditional Medicine?

I have a science project, that I have to debate whether Traditional Medicine is better or Alternative Medicine.
I am on the Alternative Medicine side, I've only got a few points, but I couldn't think of anything else!!!
Help me out!!!!!

In my opinion...........

Alternative Medicine can also be called " Preventative" medicine...

Why do you go to the doctor? not to prevent something- normally you already have it!! And that is all western medicine is good for. If your healthy- or seem to be they can't help you. They only treat illnesses. If your vomitting- they give you anti-nausea medication, if you aren't dialating fast enough (or to were they think you should be) they give you patocine.

Now in an Alternative medicine stand point they start by using everyday natural, techniques to keep you healthy. Lots of herbs, practicies etc that keep your immune system up and help fight infections.

Alternative medicine works more towards working with and helping what your body is already capable of. Your body will fight disease on its own- alternative medicine makes sure it has what it needs readily available to fight that infection. Where a western medical professional would wait till your body had trouble fighting the infection then would prescribe a chemically inhanced product to help fight the infection for your body. Doesn't help inhance your bodies immune system at all.

for me,all alternative medicine comes from traditional medicine.
quinine come from rainforest,and other than that.
and Reader's Digest agree that traditional medicine are better and doesn't have any negative results. Report It

the chinese have used alternative medicine and they seem to be able to help most of the common problems

I think that traditional medician should use alterative medician as a part of the healing process. They are discovering many uses for plants and herb of the rainforests.

It's not better than, it's different.
Traditional medicine comes handy in an emergency.
If you have a ruptured appendix, there is no other other option other than surgery but it igives a shock to the body system.
Alternative medicine acts in subtle, non invasive ways and best of all it does not make your hair fall out (like chemotherapy) or
attack you with side effects.

Well alternative medicine has been around since the bilical era. As a matter of fact the bible mentions honey as being healing to the body. When we study history we find that before Merck, Glaxo Smith-Kline and other pharmicutical companies existedpeopel healed themselves with herbs/foods. When Colubus sailed the sea to find america he had barrels of Raw Apple Cidar Vingar on board to protect him from the plauge. In studies about herbs, the findings are that they make a larger improvement with typically less side effects then traditional medicine, and although the FDA regulates Percription medicine, usually somewhere down the road, we find we were the real "clinical trial" because it (the medicine) ends up being recalled, or needs modification to make it more effictive and safe. Another benefit of alternative medicine is we usually are giving our bodies something that is reconsiable to our systom, not something forign. The body reacts to lets say, garlic well, it rids the body of bad bacteria, while maintaing the good, it fights funguses, and helps the heart, and cholestrol. But taking an antibiotic (which is nessary sometimes, but far fewer then what they are perscribed) will destroy ALL the bacteria in your body and allow fungus to breed. Thats why sometimes we get yeast infections after being put on one. It also ironically enough, weakens our immune system making us more succeptable to viruses and colds, and other aligments. Someone posted a similar question, you can view it here, those answes may spark ideas too, http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?... I didnt even get into the harm that some "safe" traditional medicine causes, but thats another area too look into. A site that may help is www.mercola.com you can type in almost any word in the serach bar ofd the site and find a lot of health articles.

In the long run alternative medicine is better because u dont get side effects like with prescription medicines.
Sometimes alternative is quicker because u dont have to go wait at doctors and all the time involved to get meds.

to sum it up i think alternative medicine is better cuz your not just feeding yourself drugs.... Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that your body revolves around the 5 Elements, fire, earth, metal, water, and wood... when all of them are in balance your body is in harmony....TCM uses Acupressure and Reiki to make that happen as well as other forms of "treatments" i would look in to it online.... its my belief that its better but i dont really like hospitals and i really dont like taking medicine.... so look up TCM and see what you can find online.... ull be surprized what all you can find!!!

Simple... alternative seeks to cure, traditional seeks to make obscene amounts of money for doctors, hospitals, insurance companies, big pharmaceuticals, and more. Here's an example... name one antidepressant that has ever cured anything. Yet doctors continue to prescribe them despite the fact that they don't cure anything. I could go on and on, but I think you know where I'm coming from.

Everyone had good answers to your question. I believe in alternative medicine, it works for me.
Traditional medicine basically takes care of symptoms but very rarely the cure.
So many people take drugs for high blood pressure. Yes, it lowers the bp, but why not find the cause?? Plus the side effects of prescription drugs are too risky.
Seems everyone wants a quick fix.

Alternative medicine treats the source, traditional medicine treats the symptoms.

The line is fine between the two. The question is over simplistic. Many trad. meds and therapies are derived from alternative treatment, but it's not a case of one verses the other.

vance

Alternative medicine is better in some respects but not all. Alternative medicine can't repair missing broken bones. Alternative medicine can't remove brain tumors. On the other hand alternative medicine can release the stress caused by daily life. It can heal all dis-eases created by a person. Its based on how much faith a person has in the treatment by the alternative healer. There are cures using sound to heal. There are cures using energy to heal. There are cures using oils to heal. There are cures using hypnosis to heal. They all work for the person who beleives in them. Unfortunately most people don't have enough faith in self healing to use alternative medicine. Even prayer works, but again you have to have faith. Alternative medicine is the connection between, mind, body and spirit. Traditional medicine leaves two of the three out of their practice.
So one isn't better then the other. Its more of what do you beleive.