Use of Complementary Medicine in Older Americans: Results From the Health and Retirement Study

Abstract

The magnitude and patterns of CAM use among elders lend considerable importance to this field in public health policy making and suggest a need for further epidemiological research and ongoing awareness efforts for both patients and providers.

Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine Methods Among Elderly People Living in Nursing Homes

“…In these studies, the percentage of CAM usage varies between 35.3% and 86.3% [10][11][12][13][14][15] . In studies carried out on elderly individuals, the percentage of CAM usage varies between 27.7% and 88% 8,[16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] . These methods have been preferred mostly by elderly who are well-educated 3,16,19 have a high socio-economical status 19,20 , are female 17,19,27,28 , and are younger elderly 16 .…”

“…In this study, we have observed that the elderly have used non-herbal supplements such as honey, vitamins (vitamin B, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, and vitamin A; respectively), fish oil, royal jelly, magnesium, omega 3-6-9, and coenzyme Q10 at rates differing between 7% and 31.7%. Previous studies showed that elderly individuals mostly use vitamin E 18,20 , Ca 20,26 , magnesium 26 , iron 26 , vitamin C 18,20 , vitamin D 3 26 , B 12 26 , folic acid 26 , chondroitin sulphate 18 and minerals 18 . Our study results are in line with the literature.…”

Indigenous Healing Practices among Rural Elderly African Americans

“…They also argued that differences in CAM use by race must be considered when advising patients. Similarly, support for this position is offered by Ness, Cirillo, Weir, Nisly, and Wallace (2005) and Yoon, Horne, and Adams (2004).…”

“…Yoon et al concluded that indiscriminate use of herbal products, in combination with, or in place of, conventional medicines can be problematic and costly. In another study, Ness et al (2005) studied the use of complementary medicine in older Americans and found African Americans used fewer dietary supplements and fewer chiropractic services, but they reported more personal practices (e.g., breathing exercises, meditation) than Whites.…”

Attributes of Non-Hispanic Blacks That Use Chiropractic Health Care: A Survey of Patients in Texas and Louisiana

“…25 All existing survey research studies demonstrate that blacks use chiropractic health care services less often than whites. [2][3][4][5][6][7]9,15,16,[26][27][28][29] In many instances, whites used chiropractic at least twice as often as blacks. 2,4,6,7,9,15,16,26,29 Some have attributed this difference to the perception of discrepancies of health care treatment by blacks, lower average educational levels of blacks compared to whites, and the lack of accessibility to doctors of chiropractic (DCs) in black communities.…”