Naturopaths push for greater acceptance

Kansas is the latest state to regulate naturopathy, as public acceptance of alternative practitioners grows.

By Myrle Croasdale, AMNews staff. Oct. 28, 2002.

Physicians who beat back scope-of-practice incursions in statehouses across the country are meeting a new foe as naturopaths take advantage of the public's increasing interest in alternative and complementary medicine.

Several states already license naturopaths, and naturopaths are actively seeking licensing in several more. But physicians remain firm in their opposition to using state legislatures to expand naturopathic scope, or any scope for that matter.

"We believe the way to become trained is by education not legislation," said John C. Nelson, MD, secretary-treasurer of the American Medical Association.

The issue isn't likely to go away anytime soon.

According to some studies, 43% of Americans have used some form of alternative or complementary medicine and are spending $40 billion a year on such treatments or remedies.

"The trends are clear," said Michael Traub, ND, president of the American Assn. of Naturopathic Physicians, a group aggressively lobbying state legislatures to expand naturopathic scope of practice. "The use of alternative medicine in the United States is well recognized. People are not getting what they need with conventional physicians. People are looking for forms of medicine that are less invasive, less harmful and have fewer side effects."

Dr. Nelson acknowledged that the pull of alternative medicine is stronger these days for a variety of reasons. He said that traditional medicine still has its limits and that people with terminal or chronic illnesses are now turning to unproven alternative therapies when they feel their traditional avenues of treatment have been exhausted. [...]