Overview of complementary and alternative medicine and diabetes

Abstract People with diabetes frequently use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and other non‐medicine CAM therapies, often combine various CAMs, and combine CAMs with conventional care. They use CAM for a range of reasons, not necessarily to manage blood glucose. The evidence base for CAM is improving, but there is still a lack of quality evidence for many CAMs, and the combination of CAMs and conventional care. CAMs have both risks and benefits: some CAMs, like some conventional treatments, are higher risk than others. Conventional practitioners should ask about CAM use in a non‐judgemental way, document it and monitor the outcomes according to the individual's reason for using it. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Source: Practical Diabetes - Category: Endocrinology Authors: Tags: Review Source Type: research