What’s the alternative?

Curiosity, stellar marketing and mistrust of mainstream medicine are leading more women to try complementary ‘cures’. So do they work? Meghan Rabbitt investigates.

More women are trying complementary cures. So do they work or not?

Not so long ago, most people fell into one of two camps when it came to health care: conventional or alternative. You either rolled your eyes at friends who claimed that energy healing cured their problem, or you were game to ‘guinea-pig’ anything from Rolfing to reiki.

The wellness landscape doesn’t look so one-side-or-the-other anymore. There’s a solid chance you dabble in a homeopathic cold remedy, and still head to your GP if your sore throat isn’t gone in a week. Or maybe you go to physio to take care of muscle twinges, but also appreciate the hurts-so-good sensation of cupping. The truth is, in the last year, around 68 per cent of Australian adults used some form of complementary medicine – any treatment method that isn’t generally considered part of mainstream care – according to the Australian Traditional Medicine Society. And you may have noticed a noticeable boom in the number of medical centres where GPs consult cheek-by-jowl with complementary therapies.

So enter into the modern thinking: integrative and standard options can coexist. In fact, the term ‘alternative medicine’ isn’t used anymore, says Dr Adam Perlman, who specialises in integrative health. “We call it integrative medicine now because these treatments are meant to be used in tandem with conventional medicine,” he says. “It’s about blending multiple treatments to improve health and quality of life.”

The reason so many of us are exploring holistic healing is multifaceted. For some, an integrative health practitioner took their worries seriously after they were let down by doctors practising Western medicine. For patients undergoing intense conventional treatments, supplementing with more natural therapies may just feel good. Also, we’re a bunch of Internet sleuths these days, for better or worse. Some 54 per cent of Australian adults say they do their own research about medical symptoms and information, on top of getting a health provider’s advice.

But with so much variety, pairing the right mains and appetisers, so to speak, can feel as tricky as ordering off a café menu. Will needling feel nice for achy muscles, in addition to ibuprofen? Is an IV vitamin drip post ‘happy hour’ safe if you’re on medication?

We asked experts to shed truth on the buzziest, yet often puzzling, complementary cures, so you can determine when it makes sense to dabble in both worlds – and when you should just keep your feet in one camp.