• Title/Summary/Keyword: holistic medicine

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The art of diabetes care: guidelines for a holistic approach to human and social factors

  • Muhammad Jawad Hashim
    • Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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    • v.40 no.2
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    • pp.218-222
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    • 2023
  • A holistic approach to diabetes considers patient preferences, emotional health, living conditions, and other contextual factors, in addition to medication selection. Human and social factors influence treatment adherence and clinical outcomes. Social issues, cost of care, out-of-pocket expenses, pill burden (number and frequency), and injectable drugs such as insulin, can affect adherence. Clinicians can ask about these contextual factors when discussing treatment options with patients. Patients' emotional health can also affect diabetes self-care. Social stressors such as family issues may impair self-care behaviors. Diabetes can also lead to emotional stress. Diabetes distress correlates with worse glycemic control and lower overall well-being. Patient-centered communication can build the foundation of a trusting relationship with the clinician. Respect for patient preferences and fears can build trust. Relevant communication skills include asking open-ended questions, expressing empathy, active listening, and exploring the patient's perspective. Glycemic goals must be personalized based on frailty, the risk of hypoglycemia, and healthy life expectancy. Lifestyle counseling requires a nonjudgmental approach and tactfulness. The art of diabetes care rests on clinicians perceiving a patient's emotional state. Tailoring the level of advice and diabetes targets based on a patient's personal and contextual factors requires mindfulness by clinicians.

Challenges and opportunities in integrating complementary and alternative medicine into mainstream of the Malaysian healthcare system

  • Tahir, Nurul Ain Mohd;Thomas, Paraidathathu;Li, Shu Chuen
    • CELLMED
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    • v.5 no.4
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    • pp.23.1-23.6
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    • 2015
  • Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) practice is still popular among the Malaysian population nowadays although western or allopathic medicine is the first line of treatment. Dissatisfaction with health services and therapeutic effects of western medicine or preference for holistic, integrative approach in treatment are common reasons favouring the increasing popularity of CAM practices. The efforts toward integration of CAM and western medicine in Malaysia were rather slow and in a piece-meal fashion. Strategic efforts in strengthening government and self-regulation among practitioners, formalizing education, promoting research, and cultivating national and international networks are necessary to achieve an integrative system. Regulations to restrict the practice and sale of CAM products to licensed practitioners, strict and mandatory registration of the practitioners, inclusion of CAM in essential medicines list, and pricing regulations must be comprehensively discussed. Development of curriculum, offers of scholarship and incentives, promotion of courses and seminars for professionals is necessary to increase the numbers of CAM experts. Malaysia should follow the efforts of other countries on the production and documentation of local CAM data, allocation of funding, and establishment of research centres to assess the efficacy of potentially useful local products. Local and international collaboration in research and continuous education is important for exchange of knowledge and skills. In conclusion more coordinated efforts in regulation of CAM practice and products, formalizing CAM training and education would significantly move the process forward and allow the public to enjoy more health benefits from CAM practice in Malaysia.

Study on the Perception of the Human Body in "Huangdineijing" Viewed from the Perspective of the Correspondence between Nature and Human (천인상응(天人相應)의 관점에서 바라본 "황제내경(黃帝內經)"의 인체관 연구)

  • Im, Chae Kwang
    • Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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    • v.26 no.6
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    • pp.855-863
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    • 2012
  • The organic and holistic recognition method about nature in east asian philosophy is also applied to the study of the human body in Korean medicine. In Korean medicine, the human body is being understood from a holistic point of view rather than a mechanical or reductive one. The main east asian philosophies are the heavens thought and the Yin-yang/Five Phase Theory. This study will explore the influence the general flow of heavens thought has on explaining the human body in Korean medicine and the formation of how the human body is perceived in "Huangdineijing"(黃帝內經). First, the primitive meaning of heaven was developed to include the natural heaven of Xia (夏), the lord heaven of Shang(商) and the moral heaven of Zhou(周) dynasties. Among these, the natural heaven notion of the Xia(夏) dynasty which recognized heaven as the one with the power to create everything. This was followed by Taoism which established the contrasting system of heaven and earth. Based on this, "Huangdineijing"(黃帝 內經) developed the perception of the human body, taking into account, heaven as the original substance to generate the human body through the mutual sympathy between heavenly energy and earthly form. The perspective of the correspondence between nature and human in "Huainantzu"(淮南子) and "L$\breve{u}$shichunqiu"(呂氏春秋) was succeeded by Tung Chung-Shu(董仲舒). Based on this development, the perception of the human body in "Huangdineijing"(黃帝內經) is related to the seasonal cycle and the notion of night and day to balance the physiology of the human body. It recognizes that its structure, shape, emotional state and physiological actions are correlated with heaven.

A Personal Perspective and Our Role in Korean Oriental Medicine (한의학(韓醫學)의 전망(展望)과 우리의 역할(役割))

  • Kang Shun-Su
    • Herbal Formula Science
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    • v.10 no.2
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    • pp.1-4
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    • 2002
  • The development of Korean Oriental medicine is based upon the accumulation of experience and knowledge gathered over the centuries. The approaches taken are holistic and empirical. There is a need to understand their actions at molecular levels with more rational, objective and scientific studies. Today it appears that Chronic and age-associated diceases may be multifactorial and hence more complex. A different approach may be required. One claimed usage of Korean Oriental medicine is for the treatment and prevention of chronic and age-associated illnesses. Some of the botanical formulas used for this purpose were discovered thousands of years ago and continue to be used today. There are indications that these formulas may indeed be helpful in the treatment or prevention of chronic diseases. This multi-component medicine could not only be very useful meeting the unmet clinical needs but for defining a more synergistic therapy that supports and maintains the bodies natural curative abilities. The potential usefulness of Korean Oriental medicine embodies the belief of maintaining healthy homeostasis of the body through the proper balance of a mixture of chemical at different organs or tissues. This concept is different from western medicine and implies that multiple compounds may act on multiple mechanisms of action to maintain the balance of the complex web of biology. This is very important in view of sciences current direction to integrate fragmented information to develop future medicines. The western and eastern approaches to human health and disease are complementary to each other. The best approach in developing future medicines is to integrate both approaches.

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Holistic Concept of the Medical Beauty in "Hwangjenaegyeong(黃帝內經)" ("황제내경(黃帝內經)" 의학미용적정체관념(醫學美容的整體觀念))

  • Ju, Bao-Zhao;Kim, Hyo-Chul
    • Journal of Korean Medical classics
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    • v.23 no.4
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    • pp.35-37
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    • 2010
  • The Medical Beauty in "Hwangjenaegyeong(黃帝內經)" is characterized by the establishment of the unity of man and nature, human and social unity, the unity of human body organs and meridians, Gi-Blood[氣血] human essence unity, the unity of body and spirit. The harmony of Jang(臟) and Bu(腑), blood and Gi(氣), Eum and Yang and mental and physical health are essential to the beauty, and the harmony of internal and external environment must not be overlooked. In a word, the Medical Beauty in "Hwangjenaegyeong(黃帝內經)" is the thought of strong and handsome which based on cultivating health to prevent disease and aging.

What Is Integrative Medicine?

  • Jung, Seungpil
    • Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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    • v.30 no.2
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    • pp.79-82
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    • 2013
  • The demand for complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is increasing worldwide. High-technology medicine is not always effective and is often accompanied by neglected self-care and high cost. Also, conventional medicine has become dependent on expensive technological solutions to health problems. Integrated medicine is not simply a synonym for complementary medicine. It involves the understanding of the interaction of the mind, body, and spirit and how to interpret this relationship in the dynamics of health and disease. Integrative medicine shifts the orientation of the medical practice from a disease-based approach to a healing-based approach. In South Korea, CAM education was first provided 20 years ago, and integrative medicine is becoming part of the current mainstream medicine. Increasing numbers of fellowships in integrative medicine are being offered in many academic health centers in the U.S. Also, it has emerged as a potential solution to the American healthcare crisis and chronic diseases, which are bankrupting the economy. It provides care that is patient-centered, healing-oriented, emphasizes the therapeutic relationship, and uses therapeutic approaches originating from conventional and alternative medicine.

A mixture of Salacia oblonga extract and IP-PA1 reduces fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels

  • Nakata, Kazue;Taniguchi, Yoshie;Yoshioka, Noriko;Yoshida, Aya;Inagawa, Hiroyuki;Nakamoto, Takeru;Yoshimura, Hiroshi;Miyake, Shin-Ichiro;Kohchi, Chie;Kuroki, Masahide;Soma, Gen-Ichiro
    • Nutrition Research and Practice
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    • v.5 no.5
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    • pp.435-442
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    • 2011
  • At present, lifestyle-related diseases are one of the most critical health issues worldwide. It has been reported that lipopolysaccharide derived from a Gram-negative bacteria (IP-PA1) symbiotic with wheat exhibited several advantageous biological effects, such as the reduction of plasma glucose levels in NOD mice and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels in WHHL rabbits. In this study, the beneficial effects on plasma glucose and lipids of a tea (SI tea) consisting of IP-PA1 and Salacia (which contains an inhibitor of ${\alpha}$-glucosidase) were investigated in the KK-Ay/TaJcl type 2 diabetic model mice and in human subjects with premetabolic syndrome in a double-blind, randomized study. S1 tea significantly decreased plasma glucose levels in KK-Ay/TaJcl mice. A clinical trial of SI tea was performed with 41 subjects between the ages of 40 and 69, who belonged either to a high plasma glucose group (HG: FPG 100-125 mg/dl) or to a hyperlipidemia group (HL: TG ${\geq}$ 150 mg/dl, or LDL ${\geq}$ 120 mg/dl, or HDL <40 mg/dl). These subjects ingested either Salacia without IP-PA1 (the control) or SI tea. Blood samples were collected at 0, 30, and 60 days after initiating SI tea treatment, and were measured for FPG, HbA1c, TG, LDL, and HDL. These results showed that SI tea reduced FPG and HbA1c more rapidly than the control in the HL group, and also significantly improved LDL and HDL levels in the HG group. Thus, SI tea may be helpful in preventing lifestyle-related diseases.

Evidence Based Approach of Wheel Balance Cancer Therapy: A Review (수레바퀴 암 치료법에 대한 근거중심적 연구)

  • Zheng, Hongmei;Yoon, Jeungwon;Yoo, Hwa-Seung;Cho, Chong-Kwan
    • Journal of Korean Traditional Oncology
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    • v.17 no.2
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    • pp.1-16
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    • 2012
  • Background : Integrative cancer treatment is a holistic approach embracing body, mind, and spirit incorporating conventional treatments of surgery, chemotherapy, radiation and personalized complementary treatments. Wheel Balance Therapy (WBT) of East-West Cancer Center(EWCC), Dunsan Oriental Hospital of Daejeon University was developed to balance out all factors involved in cancer care based on the traditional theories of oriental medicine. Objective : This work aims to analytically review literatures on WBT and its related components. Methods : Literatures published from January 1st, 1990 to April 30th, 2011 were reviewed focusing on 4 main components of WBT; herbal medicine, immune activation, anti-cancer diet, and breathing/meditation. Data were retrieved from medical search engines and electronic data bases including Pubmed, Research Information sharing Service (RISS), Korean-studies Information Service System (KISS), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and Korea's National Digital Library (KNDL). Results : In this review, EWCC's most commonly prescribed formulas are explored. The composition of the formulas, their use in clinical settings as well as the background studies and other therapeutic efficacies are explained. Information on incorporating anti-cancer dietary support and breathing and meditation techniques, other therapies practiced as part of the center's integrative cancer care are also covered. Conclusion : WBT based on holistic theories of oriental medicine embracing body, mind, and spirit is expected to further contribute in promotion of cancer patients' quality of life and prolonged survival time.

A Holistic Study of the Physiology of the Kidney and its Symptom (신장생리(腎臟生理)의 유기적 통일성과 그 병후(病候)에 관한 고찰)

  • Suh, Man-Wan;Kim, Gil-Whon
    • The Journal of Dong Guk Oriental Medicine
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    • v.7 no.2
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    • pp.1-8
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    • 1999
  • This paper documents a holistic study of the kidney and its symptom. To this end, the relationship between internal organs and its diseases have been studied from th e viewpoint of the connecting role of the kidney channel of foot-shaoyin. The results of this study are as follows; The function of the kidney has specific re lations with the liver, lung, heart, urinary bladder, throat, tongue, chest, sole of the foot, inside of the thigh and waist. These mutual relations reflect the pathological changes of the kidney. So physiological function and symptom of the kidney can be better understood throu gh the connecting role of the kidney channel of foot-shaoyin on the concept of the organism as a whole. This is the key of the clinical treatment based on the precept sof oriental medicine.

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Donguibogam as a Pioneer of Mind-Body Medicine - Forward-looking Value of Donguibogam as a Documentary Heritage (심신의학(Mind-Body Medicine)의 선구로서의 "동의보감(東醫寶鑑)" - "동의보감(東醫寶鑑)"의 의료철학이 지닌 미래적 가치)

  • Hwang, Gyeong-Sik
    • Korean Journal of Oriental Medicine
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    • v.15 no.1
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    • pp.23-29
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    • 2009
  • The value of Dongeuibogam has been officially acknowledged as a Memory of the World. However, we should not overlook the forward-looking value of Dongeuibogam in addition to its backward-looking value. For the past 200 years, Western medicine has attained great achievements in therapeutic medicine based on Descartes' mind-body dualism, which focuses on the body as a separate entity from the mind. Recently, Western medicine modified its previously one-sided track into a new orientation towards holistic mind-body medicine in recognition of the two as an organic whole. At this point in time, it is essential to draw attention to the forward-looking value of Dongeuibogam, which pioneered mind-body medicine based on the medicinal philosophy of Jing Qi Shen more than 400 years ago.

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