| Americans spend about 16% of GDP on | | | | As of today, American people are increasingly |
| healthcare, which is the highest rate throughout | | | | aware of the importance of CAM. Thirty-eight |
| the world. However, Americans live shorter lives | | | | percent of American adults and 12% children use |
| than many other industrial countries in the world. | | | | CAM including chiropractic, acupuncture, Yoga, |
| Large amounts of money (about 75%) were | | | | Chinese herbal medicine, TaiChi, Qigong, |
| spent on heart disease, diabetes, prostate cancer, | | | | meditation, massage, or food supplements to |
| breast cancer, lung cancer, hypertension, stroke, | | | | beat stress, relieve fatigue, kill pain, solve |
| and obesity. Although the top health killers (heart | | | | insomnia, and control body weight. CAM is easy, |
| disease, cancer and stroke) have dropped in the | | | | convenient, cost effective, and has little or no side |
| past several decades, Americans are still at a high | | | | effects. Ancient art and skills of healing, with a |
| risk especially for those who do not have | | | | history of a thousand years, now have modern |
| insurance or easy access to medical care. | | | | significance. |
| American health care is a 'disease care' with little | | | | Keeping individuals healthy mentally and physically |
| focus on prevention. It is a cycle of more | | | | requires prevention, medication, and procedures. |
| expense and less delivery, as end stage of | | | | Integrative medicine, blending both conventional |
| diseases usually used most of the resources. | | | | medicine and complementary alternative medicine |
| Conventional medicine is focused on special part | | | | equally, will be the future of medicine. Conventional |
| of human body. Prescription and procedure are | | | | medicine, supported by advanced scientific |
| straightforward and effective at the cost of side | | | | research and technique, is good at management |
| effects and a high expense. At some points, | | | | of acute and severe diseases. CAM, a holistic |
| People are treated as 'statistics' or 'machines' | | | | medicine, handles chronic or preventable diseases |
| instead of humans. The treatment based upon | | | | very well. Integrative medicine system is the |
| the data pool may not be applied to an individual. | | | | most appropriate model that can deliver high |
| Most of these diseases, such as heart disease, | | | | quality and affordable health care to American |
| hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, or obesity, | | | | people. |
| are preventable if we watch our diet, stop | | | | The journal of the American Association of |
| smoking, manage stress appropriately, and | | | | Integrative Medicine is a forum for anyone with |
| exercise regularly. Life style change is more | | | | the same beliefs about integrative medicine, which |
| important especially when dealing with these | | | | will be mainstream in the near future. We |
| preventable chronic diseases. Complementary | | | | welcome articles, studies, letters/correspondence, |
| alternative medicine (CAM) pays more attention | | | | advertisement, and news. Authors and readers |
| to whole body, with the belief that each part of | | | | can network and exchange opinions each other. |
| body is communicative and influences the others. | | | | |