Asthma : Alternative Therapies

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The stress caused by illness can often be helped by joining a support group, where members share common experiences and problems. See asthma and allergy - support group.
Source:ADAM
Date:October 30, 2006
Chinese medicine has traditionally used ma huang, or ephedra, for asthma attacks. It contains ephedrine, which is a bronchodilator used in many drugs. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a ban on the sale of ephedra that to...
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Alternative and complementary therapies include approaches considered to be outside the mainstream of traditional health care. Alternative treatments for asthma include yoga to control breathing and relieve stress and acupuncture to reduce asthma ...
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Children's Health
Acupuncture, one of the main forms of therapy in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has been practiced for at least 2,500 years. In acupuncture, certain points on the body associated with energy channels or meridians are stimulated by the insertion of fine needles.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders
Acupuncture is one of the main forms of treatment in traditional Chinese medicine . It involves the use of sharp, thin needles that are inserted in the body at very specific points.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine
Acupuncture is one of the main forms of treatment in traditional Chinese medicine. It involves the use of sharp, thin needles that are inserted in the body at very specific points.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Acupuncture, one of the main forms of therapy in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has been practiced for at least 2,500 years. In acupuncture, certain points on the body are stimulated by the insertion of fine needles.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Neurological Disorders
AcupunctureAcupuncture is an ancient form of Chinese medicine. Behind this treatment is the belief that energy (or "life force") flows throughout your body.
Source:StayWell
Date:August 14, 2003
Biofeedback is a technique that measures bodily functions, like breathing, heart rate , blood pressure , skin temperature, and muscle tension. By watching these measurements, you can learn how to alter these functions by relaxing or holding pleasant images in your mind. Your heart rate, blood pressure, or some other function is measured using electrodes. The results are displayed on a monitor that both you and the trained practitioner can see. While the practitioner describes stressful situations and guides you through relaxation techniques, you can see how your heart rate and blood pressure change in response to being stressed or relaxed. This teaches you how to control and change these bodily functions. By doing so, you feel more relaxed and may be able to help treat your own high blood pressure, tension and migraine headaches, chronic pain, or urinary incontinence (a few examples of conditions for which biofeedback is particularly helpful).
Source:ADAM
Date:November 7, 2007
Biofeedback is a technique that uses monitoring instruments to measure and feed back information about muscle tension, heart rate, sweat responses, skin temperature, or brain activity. Terms associated with biofeedback include applied psychophysiology or behavioral physiology.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders
Biofeedback, or applied psychophysiological feedback, is a patient-guided treatment that teaches an individual to control muscle tension, pain , body temperature, brain waves, and other bodily functions and processes through relaxation, visualization, and other cognitive control techniques. The name biofeedback refers to the biological signals that are fed back, or returned, to the patient in order for the patient to develop techniques of manipulating them.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine
Biofeedback, or applied psychophysiological feedback, is a patient-guided treatment that teaches an individual to control muscle tension, pain , body temperature, brain waves, and other bodily functions and processes through relaxation , visualization, and other cognitive control techniques. The name biofeedback refers to the biological signals that are fed back, or returned, to the patient in order for the patient to develop techniques of manipulating them.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Guided imagery is the use of relaxation and mental visualization to improve mood and/or physical wellbeing. Benefits The connection between the mind and physical health has been well documented and extensively studied.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Guided imagery is the use of relaxation and mental visualization to improve mood and/or physical well-being. Purpose The connection between the mind and physical health has been well documented and extensively studied.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine
Guided imagery therapy is a cognitive-behavioral technique in which a client is guided in imagining a relaxing scene or series of experiences. Purpose Numerous clinical observations suggest that an individual visualizing an imagined scene reacts as though it were actually occurring; therefore, "induced" images can have a profound effect on behavior.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders
Hypnotherapy is the treatment of a variety of health conditions by hypnotism or by inducing prolonged sleep. Pioneers in this field, such as James Braid and James Esdaile discovered that hypnosis could be used to successfully anesthetize patients for surgeries.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine
Hypnotherapy is the treatment of a variety of health conditions by hypnotism or by inducing prolonged sleep. Origins Hypnotherapy is thought to date back to the healing practices of ancient Greece and Egypt.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Massage therapy is the scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body for the purpose of normalizing those tissues and consists of manual techniques that include applying fixed or movable pressure, holding, and/or causing movement of or to the body. Origins Massage therapy is one of the oldest health care practices known to history.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Nursing and Allied Health
Massage therapy can be used to increase blood flow, relax muscles, relieve stress and revitalize the body.
Source:StayWell
Date:August 14, 2003
Massage therapy is the scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body, consisting primarily of manual (hands-on) techniques such as applying fixed or movable pressure, holding, and moving muscles and body tissues. Purpose Generally, massage is delivered to improve the flow of blood and lymph (fluid in lymph glands, part of immune system), to reduce muscular tension or flaccidity, to affect the nervous system through stimulation or sedation, and to enhance tissue healing.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Children's Health
Pregnancy massage is the prenatal use of massage therapy to support the physiologic, structural, and emotional well-being of both mother and fetus. Various forms of massage therapy, including Swedish, deep tissue, neuromuscular, movement, and Oriental-based therapies, may be applied throughout pregnancy as well as during labor and the postpartum period.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Pregnancy massage is the prenatal use of massage therapy to support the physiologic, structural, and emotional well-being of both mother and fetus. Various forms of massage therapy, including Swedish, deep tissue, neuromuscular, movement, and Oriental-based therapies, may be applied throughout pregnancy as well as during labor and the postpartum period.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Nursing and Allied Health
Massage therapy is the scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body for the purpose of normalizing those tissues and consists of manual techniques that include applying fixed or movable pressure, holding, and/or causing movement of or to the body. Purpose Generally, massage is known to affect the circulation of blood and the flow of blood and lymph, reduce muscular tension or flaccidity, affect the nervous system through stimulation or sedation , and enhance tissue healing.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine
Stone massage is a form of bodywork that involves the application of heated or cooled stones (thermotherapy) to the body during deep tissue massage. Origins The use of materials of different temperatures on the body to bring about healing is an ancient technique.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Sports massage is a form of bodywork geared toward participants in athletics. It is used to help prevent injuries, to prepare the body for athletic activity and maintain it in optimal condition, and to help athletes recover from workouts and injuries.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Russian massage is a system of therapeutic and sports massage developed in the former Soviet Union. It uses a variety of manipulations of the body ' s soft tissues to achieve benefits, including stress reduction and relief from muscle aches.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
A labyrinth is a patterned path, often circular in form, used as a walking meditation or spiritual practice. A labyrinth ' s walkway is arranged in such a way that the participant moves back and forth across the circular form through a series of curves, ending at the labyrinths ' s heart or center.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Meditation is a practice of concentrated focus upon a sound, object, visualization, the breath, movement, or attention itself in order to increase awareness of the present moment, reduce stress , promote relaxation , and enhance personal and spiritual growth. Origins Meditation techniques have been practiced for millennia.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Meditation is a practice of concentrated focus upon a sound, object, visualization, the breath, movement, or attention itself in order to increase awareness of the present moment, reduce stress , promote relaxation, and enhance personal and spiritual growth. Purpose Meditation benefits people with or without acute medical illness or stress.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine
Meditation or contemplation involves focusing the mind upon a sound, phrase, prayer, object, visualized image, the breath, ritualized movements, or consciousness in order to increase awareness of the present moment, promote relaxation, reduce stress , and enhance personal or spiritual growth. Purpose Meditation can benefit people who are ill or overwhelmed by stress.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders
Meditation is a practice of concentrated focus upon a sound, object, visualization, the breath, movement, or attention itself in order to increase awareness of the present moment, reduce stress , promote relaxation , and enhance personal and spiritual growth. Origins Meditation techniques have been practiced for millennia.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Nursing and Allied Health
Relaxation therapy is a broad term used to describe a number of techniques that promote stress reduction, the elimination of tension throughout the body, and a calm and peaceful state of mind. Origins Relaxation therapy has been around for thousands of years in the forms of transcendental meditation (TM), yoga, t ' ai chi, qigong , and vipassana (a Buddhist form of meditation meaning insight and also known as mindfulness meditation).
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Relaxation therapy is a broad term used to describe a number of techniques that promote stress reduction, the elimination of tension throughout the body, and a calm and peaceful state of mind. Origins Relaxation therapy has been around for thousands of years in the forms of transcendental meditation (TM), yoga , t'ai chi , qigong , and vipassana (a Buddhist form of meditation meaning insight and also known as mindfulness meditation).
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Nursing and Allied Health
Shiatsu is a manipulative therapy developed in Japan and incorporating techniques of anma (Japanese traditional massage), acupressure , stretching, and Western massage. Shiatsu involves applying pressure to special points or areas on the body in order to maintain physical and mental well being, treat disease, or alleviate discomfort.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Shiatsu is a manipulative therapy developed in Japan and incorporating techniques of anma (Japanese traditional massage), acupressure , stretching, and Western massage. Shiatsu involves applying pressure to special points or areas on the body in order to maintain physical and mental well being, treat disease, or alleviate discomfort.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine
Shiatsu is a manipulative therapy developed in Japan and incorporating techniques of anma (Japanese traditional massage), acupressure , stretching, and Western massage. Shiatsu involves applying pressure to special points or areas on the body in order to maintain physical and mental well being, treat disease, or alleviate discom-fort.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Nursing and Allied Health
Source:ADAM
Date:February 5, 2008
Spinal manipulative therapies are those that are used on the human skeleton, particularly the spinal area, to relieve muscular or skeletal pain , relieve tension, improve the mobility of joints and, in the case of the oriental therapies, to " unblock energy channels. " The idea behind spinal manipulation is that when the vertebrae are subluxated (misaligned), the resulting pressure on nerves can have negative effects on organ system function and general health, in addition to impeding proper joint motion.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Joint mobilization is a treatment technique used to manage musculoskeletal dysfunction. Most manipulative and mobilization techniques are performed by physical therapists, and fall under the category of manual therapy.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Nursing and Allied Health
Chiropractic is from Greek words meaning done by hand. It is grounded in the principal that the body can heal itself when the skeletal system is correctly aligned and the nervous system is functioning properly.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
The term yoga comes from a Sanskrit word that means yoke or union. Traditionally, yoga is a method joining the individual self with the Divine, Universal Spirit, or Cosmic Consciousness.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
Yoga is an ancient system of breathing practices, physical exercises and postures, and meditation intended to integrate the practitioner ' s body, mind, and spirit. It originated in India several thousand years ago, and its principles were first written down by a scholar named Patanjali in the second century B.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders
The term " yoga " comes from a Sanskrit word meaning " union. " Yoga combines physical exercises, mental meditation, and breathing techniques to strengthen the muscles and relieve stress.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Children's Health
The term yoga comes from a Sanskrit word which means yoke or union. Traditionally, yoga is a method joining the individual self with the Divine, Universal Spirit, or Cosmic Consciousness.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine
Bhakti yoga is one of six major branches of yoga, representing the path of self-transcending love or complete devotion to God or the divine. A practitioner of bhakti yoga regards God as present in every person or sentient being.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
The term yoga comes from a Sanskrit word which means yoke or union. Traditionally, yoga is a method joining the individual self with the Divine, Universal Spirit, or Cosmic Consciousness.
Source:Gale Encyclopedia of Nursing and Allied Health
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