[Homeopathy, alternative medicine: between counterculture, the New Era, and formalization (Brazil, 1970s)]. / Homeopatia, medicina alternativa: entre contracultura, Nova Era e oficialização (Brasil, década de 1970).

The objective of this text is to analyze how homeopathy was conveyed to the lay public in Brazil during the 1970s, an important period in the process of legitimizing this practice as a medical specialty, which occurred in 1980. The sources analyzed (composed of articles that circulated in the Jornal do Brasil and books intended for the lay public) allow the reader to distinguish different interlocutors with various expectations of homeopathy, revealing a heterogeneous universe of understandings and uses for this medical system. At the same time, the sources establish a universe of representations present in the construction of homeopathy as alternative medicine, which is noticeable in its relationship with the counterculture movements and New Era in forming a "consuming public" for homeopathy.

O artigo analisa como a homeopatia foi veiculada ao público leigo no Brasil da década de 1970, período importante no processo de legitimação desse conhecimento como especialidade médica, o que ocorre em 1980. As fontes analisadas ­ compostas de artigos que circulavam no Jornal do Brasil e de livros destinados ao público leigo ­ permitem distinguir diferentes interlocutores que possuíam expectativas diversas diante da homeopatia, revelando um universo heterogêneo de compreensões e utilizações dessa medicina. Ao mesmo tempo, as fontes estabelecem um universo de representações envolvidas na construção da homeopatia como medicina alternativa, em que é perceptível sua relação com os movimentos de contracultura e Nova Era na formação de um "público consumidor de homeopatia".

Homeopatia, medicina alternativa: entre contracultura, Nova Era e oficialização (Brasil, década de 1970) / Homeopathy, alternative medicine: between counterculture, the New Era, and formalization (Brazil, 1970s)

Resumo O artigo analisa como a homeopatia foi veiculada ao público leigo no Brasil da década de 1970, período importante no processo de legitimação desse conhecimento como especialidade médica, o que ocorre em 1980. As fontes analisadas - compostas de artigos que circulavam no Jornal do Brasil e de livros destinados ao público leigo - permitem distinguir diferentes interlocutores que possuíam expectativas diversas diante da homeopatia, revelando um universo heterogêneo de compreensões e utilizações dessa medicina. Ao mesmo tempo, as fontes estabelecem um universo de representações envolvidas na construção da homeopatia como medicina alternativa, em que é perceptível sua relação com os movimentos de contracultura e Nova Era na formação de um "público consumidor de homeopatia".

Abstract The objective of this text is to analyze how homeopathy was conveyed to the lay public in Brazil during the 1970s, an important period in the process of legitimizing this practice as a medical specialty, which occurred in 1980. The sources analyzed (composed of articles that circulated in the Jornal do Brasil and books intended for the lay public) allow the reader to distinguish different interlocutors with various expectations of homeopathy, revealing a heterogeneous universe of understandings and uses for this medical system. At the same time, the sources establish a universe of representations present in the construction of homeopathy as alternative medicine, which is noticeable in its relationship with the counterculture movements and New Era in forming a "consuming public" for homeopathy.

Nature Rx: Reemergence of Pediatric Nature-Based Therapeutic Programs From the Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries.

Across the United States, physicians are prescribing patients nature. These "Nature Rx" programs promote outdoor activity as a measure to combat health epidemics stemming from sedentary lifestyles. Despite the apparent novelty of nature prescription programs, they are not new. Rather, they are a reemergence of nature-based therapeutics that characterized children's health programs in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These historic programs were popular among working-class urban families, physicians, and public health officials. By contrast, adherence is a challenge for contemporary programs, especially in socially disadvantaged areas. Although there are differences in nature prescription programs and social context, historical antecedents provide important lessons about the need to provide accessible resources and build on existing social networks. They also show that nature-and its related health benefits-does not easily yield itself to precise scientific measurements or outcomes. Recognizing these constraints may be critical to nature prescription programs' continued success and support from the medical profession.

The Gonzalez Best Case Series Presentation to the NCI: 25 Cases, 25 Years Later.

No Abstract Available.

Petr Skrabanek: the abominable no-man.

Petr Skrabanek (1940-94) was a Czech-born doctor, polemicist and literary scholar. He qualified in medicine in Ireland, and spent most of his career at the Medical School of Trinity College Dublin. He was an outspoken critic of modern medicine, particularly of what he called 'coercive healthism'. Skrabanek's sceptical and iconoclastic ideas are more relevant today than ever. This essay aims to rekindle interest in his life and work.

Alternative and complementary approaches in psychiatry: beliefs versus evidence.

While the legitimacy of medical treatments is more and more questioned, one sees a paradoxical increase in nonconventional approaches, notably so in psychiatry. Over time, approaches that were considered valuable by the scientific community were found to be inefficacious, while other approaches, labelled as alternative or complementary, were finally discovered to be useful in a few indications. From this observation, we propose to classify therapies as orthodox (scientifically validated) or heterodox (scientifically not validated). To illustrate these two categories, we discuss the place, the role, the interest, and also the potential risks of nonconventional approaches in the present practice of psychiatry.

Si bien la legitimidad de los tratamientos médicos se cuestiona cada vez más, se observa un aumento paradójico en las aproximaciones no convencionales, especialmente en la psiquiatría. Con el tiempo, se descubrió que las aproximaciones que la comunidad científica consideraba valiosas eran ineficaces, mientras que otros enfoques, etiquetados como alternativos o complementarios, se descubrieron finalmente como útiles en algunas indicaciones. A partir de esta observación, se propone clasificar las terapias como ortodoxas (validadas científicamente) o heterodoxas (no validadas científicamente). Para ilustrar estas dos categorías, se discute el lugar, el papel, el interés y también los riesgos potenciales de las aproximaciones no convencionales en la práctica actual de la psiquiatría.

Tandis que la légitimité des traitements médicaux est de plus en plus mise en question, on constate une augmentation paradoxale des approches non conventionnelles, notamment en psychiatrie. Avec le temps, des approches qui étaient considérées de valeur par la communauté scientifique se sont révélées inefficaces, tandis que d'autres, étiquetées comme alternatives ou complémentaires, ont été décrites comme efficaces dans quelques indications. À partir de cette observation, nous proposons de classer les traitements soit comme orthodoxes (validés scientifiquement) soit comme hétérodoxes (non validés scientifiquement). Pour illustrer ces deux catégories, nous commentons la place, le rôle, l'intérêt et aussi les risques potentiels des approches non conventionnelles dans la pratique actuelle de la psychiatrie.

Ads and Labels From Early 20th-Century Health Fraud Promotions.

Ten advertisements and labels from the American Medical Association (AMA) Historical Health Fraud and Alternative Medicine Collection illustrate false health beliefs perpetuated in 20th-century medical quackery promotions. This article canvasses some of the claims made and responses to these ads and labels.

[Advice and treatment from the clairvoyant Croiset]. / Adviezen en behandeling van de paragnost Croiset.

Around 1960, the Dutch clairvoyant Gerard Croiset (1909-1980) was consulted by 'people with symptoms - considered to be unexplained - such as paralysis or neurological disorders'. I searched the archive of the Johan Borgman Fund Foundation for the effect of Croiset's advice and treatment in patients with these symptoms who might have had the diagnosis of conversion disorder. Contrary to my expectations, Croiset treated no patients with conversion disorder. His advice and treatment were successful in patients with poliomyelitis, epilepsy, lumbar disc prolapse and infantile encephalopathy. Four of his patients had been insufficiently stimulated by the first person who treated them to improve their remaining muscular strength through exercise; symptoms of anxiety had not been investigated sufficiently in two patients; and in one patient the treating professional had adhered too rigidly to the set treatment. Alternative healers are apparently not only successful with patients with unexplained symptoms, and their success is not always the result of a placebo effect.

Pearls of Neonatal Intertrigo in Ancient Greek and Byzantine Medicine.

OBJECTIVE: Confirmation of knowledge of neonatal intertrigo in ancient Greek and Byzantine medicine. METHOD: A search of Thesaurus Linguae Graecae was conducted with the following terms as key words, "syggama", "xyggauma", "paratrimma" and "ektrimma". RESULTS: Ancient Greek medico-philosophers introduced therapeutic measures based upon herbs and minerals, while a similar therapeutic approach was also used by the Byzantines. Hippocrates of Kos (460-377) was among the first to introduce written instructions, also proposing preventive treatment with palliative and aromatic herbs. Cataplasms, thalassotherapy, and fumigation were used, combined with hygienic measures in the affected area. Chalk powder was also prescribed to absorb moisture. CONCLUSION: The main principles in the treatment of intertrigo remain the same, celebrating the ancient Greeks' methodology and rationalism.

The schism in chiropractic through the eyes of a 1st year chiropractic student.

Since its inception, the chiropractic profession has been divided along ideological fault lines. These divisions have led to a profession wide schism, which has limited mainstream acceptance, utilisation, social authority and integration. The authors explore the historical origins of this schism, taking time to consider historical context, religiosity, perpetuating factors, logical fallacies and siege mentality. Evidence is then provided for a way forward, based on the positioning of chiropractors as mainstream partners in health care.

Nós aqui cura com benzedura e raiz de pau: experiências de cura a partir da cultura popular brasileira e portuguesa / We here heal with healing and stick root: healing experiences from the Brazilian and Portuguese popular culture

Trata-se de apresentar uma documentação, proveniente dos estudos de folclore brasileiro e português, compreendida como um amplo arquivo de práticas de curas populares. O principal objetivo é, portanto, reconstituir a perspectiva dos curadores e suas experiências envolvendo principalmente as curas de males e doenças como a espinhela caída, o quebranto, as erisipelas e os reumatismos, além de outros males associados a estes, buscando reconhecer suas vozes e fazendo-os protagonistas de suas próprias histórias. Nesse sentido, essa pesquisa expõe uma “descrição densa”, conforme postulada por Clifford Geertz, da documentação que possibilitou a identificação dos curadores envolvidos nos processos de curas das doenças citadas acima assim como das suas performances. Buscou-se, portanto, valorizar as experiências que podem ser encontradas de modo fragmentado nos estudos de folclore e ser compreendidas, a partir do “paradigma indiciário” de Carlo Ginzburg, enquanto registros de crenças, práticas e performances em torno do confronto com o sofrimento. A pesquisa se inscreve na História Social da Cultura, principalmente nas leituras de E. P. Thompson, e dialoga com os estudos da Epistemologia do Sul a fim de problematizar a concepção de “medicina popular” reconhecendo os saberes contra-hegemônicos dos curadores.(AU)

Alternative Medicine: Contagion and Cure in Karel Capek's The White Plague.

Though written amid an atmosphere of unprecedented medical advance in both diagnosis and therapeutics, Karel Capek's The White Plague takes a starkly critical stance against overconfidence in medical science and its dubious ethical orbit. This article explores Capek's censure of those who would privilege scientific interest in disease over the holistic plight of the sufferer. Provocatively, Capek achieves this not only via the play's content, but also-prefiguring aspects of contemporary live art practice by several decades-by placing audience members in worrying proximity to abject ill bodies. Capek proposes a sort of theatrical homeopathy, suggesting that limited exposure to the threat of disease might spur spectators toward empathy for those who suffer and promote a healthier, more compassionate society.

[Alternative medicine, from North America to East Asia: between persistent exclusion and embodied pluralism]. / Médecines alternatives, du continent nord-américain à l'Asie orientale - Entre exclusion réitérée et pluralisme incorporé.

At a time of growing interest in integrative approaches to health and care, this article examines, from a historical perspective, the factors underlying the global popularity of so-called complementary and alternative medicines (CAM). Focusing on the multiple and changing meanings of the concepts used with reference to CAM since the nineteenth century, it emphasizes the agency of CAM practitioners' and calls into question a linear progression from outright exclusion to gradual inclusion into mainstream health care systems. This analysis concludes that biomedicine and "other" medical systems have mutually defined each other in a process of co-production that has had a significant impact on the medicalization of contemporary societies from North America to East Asia.

Use of acupuncture in the USA: changes over a decade (2002-2012).

BACKGROUND: The use of acupuncture has gained popularity in the USA. The number of acupuncture users and licensed acupuncturists increased by 50% and 100%, respectively, between 2002 and 2012, coinciding with increasing acknowledgement of the importance and efficacy of acupuncture over this time period. METHODS: This paper presents new findings from the complementary health approaches section of the 2012 National Health Interview Survey (n=33 373 respondents). In particular, data on the use of acupuncture and user characteristics were compared against data collected from an earlier survey in 2002. Statistical analyses included weighted distribution, logistical regression and Pearson's χ2 tests. RESULTS: The profile of the most common acupuncture users comprised the following sociodemographics age 41-65 years (47.4%); female gender (69.6%); and non-Hispanic (85.3%) and/or white (78.1%) ethnicity. Respondents also tended to be US citizens (92.1%) with some college education (57.1%) and in very good to excellent health (60.8%). The proportion of respondents using acupuncture for treatment of a specific health problem, as opposed to promotion of general wellness, was 84.7% in 2002 and 55.3% in 2012. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest a growing development of acupuncture in the USA. We anticipate that the findings of our analysis of the changes in acupuncture use over the 10-year period from 2002 to 2012 will provide information for users, acupuncturists, researchers and the general public to help better understand the status of acupuncture and reasons for its usage, and to anticipate future trends for acupuncture use in the USA.

Origem e desenvolvimento da Naturologia no Brasil: aspectos conceituais, históricos e políticos / Origin and development of Naturology in Brazil: conceptual, historical and political aspects

O primeiro bacharelado reconhecido pelo MEC de Naturologia completa 20 anos em 2018. A naturologia é uma profissão recente no Brasil, a qual busca entender o ser-humano multidimensionalmente e respeitar a singularidade humana na busca de bem-estar, qualidade de vida e saúde através da relação de interagência e das Práticas Integrativas e Complementares. Este texto aborda um breve histórico das Práticas Integrativas e Complementares e Naturologia no Brasil, o processo de reconhecimento da ocupação e regulamentação da profissão. O texto também explora os campos de atuação do naturólogo, órgãos de representação profissional, principais eventos científicos e publicações importantes da área.(AU)

The first course recognized bu the Ministry of Education of Naturology completes 20 years in 2018. Naturology is a new profession in Brazil, one which seeks to understand the human being in a multi-dimensional way, and respect human singularity in its search for well-being, quality of life and health trough a relationship of interagency and Complementary and Intrgrative Pratices. The present article addresses a brief history of Comlementary and Integrative Pratices and Naturology in Brazil, the process of recognizing the occupation and regulation of the profession. The paper also explores the fields in which the naturologist is active, the bodies of professional representation, the main scientific events and important publications in the field.(AU)