The article, "Demographic, behavioral, and health correlates of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and prayer use among midlife women: 2002," appearing in the Journal of Women's Health [2010 Jan;19(1):23-30] reviewed the data from the 2002 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), a
cross-sectional, household survey representative of the U.S. civilian
adult population.
Focusing on data for women aged 40-59 years showed that 46% of midlife women had used some type of complementary and alternative medicine in the past 12 months, while 54% reported using prayer for health reasons. The top five specific CAM therapies used were herbs and natural products; relaxation techniques; chiropractic care; yoga, tai chi, or qi gong; and massage. A higher percentage of women used chiropractic care than those using relaxation techniques, and few women used CAM specifically for menopausal symptoms.
The findings of the study "underscore the importance, particularly in the clinical setting, of asking women about their use of individual CAM therapies," because of the potential for interactions of CAM therapies with prescribed therapies. Abstract: PubMed.
