Atherosclerosis : Alternative Therapies

Alternative therapies that focus on diet and lifestyle can help prevent, retard, or reverse atherosclerosis. Herbal therapies that may be helpful include: hawthorn( Crataegus laevigata), notoginseng root( Panax notoginseng), garlic( Allium sativum...

Various forms of meditation have been practiced for thousands of years throughout the world, with many techniques originating in Eastern religious practices. In modern times, numerous meditation types are in use, often outside of their original religious and cultural contexts. The definition of meditation is variable. A classic definition of meditation is the deliberate self-regulation of attention through which the stream of consciousness is temporarily suspended. A common goal is to attain a state of "thoughtless awareness" of sensations and mental activities occurring at the present moment. However, meditation is often popularly perceived as any activity through which a person's attention is focused on a repetitious thought or word. Meditation generally does not involve suggestion, autosuggestion, or trance. Techniques that make use of constant repetition of syllables, visualizations, or other thought forms, but do not achieve thoughtless awareness, are sometimes described as being "quasi-meditative." There are many forms and sub-types of meditation or "quasi meditation," and several techniques are described below. Mindfulness is an approach in which attention is focused on a physical sensation (such as the breath). When thoughts intrude, the individual returns to the focus. Attention is placed on the present moment, rather than on the future or past. This technique may involve a "body scan," in which one focuses on the body from head to feet, concentrating on areas of pain or illness. This is usually performed while lying down. Regular practice is suggested to enhance self-awareness. Analytical meditation differs from other forms in that the practitioner does not repeat a word over and over, but rather strives to comprehend the deeper meaning of the object of focus. Guided meditation or guided imagery is a technique that directs the imagination towards a conscious goal. Yoga nidra or yogic "sleep" is considered to be a form of guided meditation. Breath medita...

A labyrinth is a patterned path, often circular in form, used as a walking meditation or spiritual practice. A labyrinth''s walkway is arranged in such a way that the participant moves back and forth across the circular form through a series of cur...

Meditation is a practice of concentrated focus upon a sound, object, visualization, the breath, movement, or attention itself in order to increase awareness of the present moment, reduce stress, promote relaxation, and enhance personal and spiritu...

Meditation or contemplation involves focusing the mind upon a sound, phrase, prayer, object, visualized image, the breath, ritualized movements, or consciousness in order to increase awareness of the present moment, promote relaxation, reduce stre...

Meditation is a practice of concentrated focus upon a sound, object, visualization, the breath, movement, or attention itself in order to increase awareness of the present moment, reduce stress, promote relaxation, and enhance personal and spiritu...

Meditation is a practice of concentrated focus upon a sound, object, visualization, the breath, movement, or attention itself in order to increase awareness of the present moment, reduce stress, promote relaxation, and enhance personal and spiritu...

Yoga is an ancient system of relaxation, exercise, and healing with origins in Indian philosophy. Early descriptions of yoga are written in Sanskrit, the classical literary language of India. The first known work is "The Yoga Sutras," written more than 2,000 years ago, although yoga may have been practiced up to 5,000 years ago. The initial concepts have been adapted over time through translation and scholarly interpretation, but the fundamental principles describing the practice of yoga in the quest of the soul remain largely intact. Yoga has been described as "the union of mind, body, and spirit," which addresses physical, mental, intellectual, emotional and spiritual dimensions towards an overall harmonious state of being. The philosophy of yoga is sometimes pictured as a tree with eight branches. These eight limbs are: pranayama (breathing exercises), asana (physical postures), yama (moral behavior), niyama (healthy habit), dharana (concentration), prathyahara (sense withdrawal), dhyana (contemplation), and s amadhi (higher consciousness). There are several schools of yoga practice, such as hatha yoga, karma yoga, bhakti yoga, and raja yoga. These schools vary in the proportions of the exercises of the eight limbs. However, they are all similar in working towards the goal of self-realization and control of mental, physiological, and psychological parameters through yogic experiences. In the United States and Europe, hatha yoga is commonly practiced, including pranayama and asanas . Yoga is often practiced by healthy individuals with the aim to achieve relaxation, fitness, and a healthy lifestyle. Yoga has also been recommended and used for a variety of medical conditions. Yoga techniques can be learned in classes or through videotape instruction. Classes last from 30 to 90 minutes and are offered at various skill levels. There is no widely accepted credentialing for yoga instructors.

The term yoga comes from a Sanskrit word that means yoke or union. Traditionally, yoga is a method joining the individual self with the Divine, Universal Spirit, or Cosmic Consciousness.

Yoga is an ancient system of breathing practices, physical exercises and postures, and meditation intended to integrate the practitioner''s body, mind, and spirit. It originated in India several thousand years ago, and its principles were first wri...

The term"yoga" comes from a Sanskrit word meaning"union." Yoga combines physical exercises, mental meditation, and breathing techniques to strengthen the muscles and relieve stress.Yoga has been practiced for thousands of years as a life philosoph...

The term yoga comes from a Sanskrit word which means yoke or union. Traditionally, yoga is a method joining the individual self with the Divine, Universal Spirit, or Cosmic Consciousness.

Bhakti yoga is one of six major branches of yoga, representing the path of self-transcending love or complete devotion to God or the divine. A practitioner of bhakti yoga regards God as present in every person or sentient being.

The term yoga comes from a Sanskrit word which means yoke or union. Traditionally, yoga is a method joining the individual self with the Divine, Universal Spirit, or Cosmic Consciousness.

Relaxation techniques include behavioral therapeutic approaches that differ widely in philosophy, methodology, and practice. The primary goal is usually non-directed relaxation. Most techniques share the components of repetitive focus (on a word, sound, prayer phrase, body sensation, or muscular activity), adoption of a passive attitude towards intruding thoughts, and return to the focus. Deep and brief methods exist. Deep methods include autogenic training, progressive muscle relaxation (PMR), and meditation (although meditation is sometimes distinguished from relaxation based on the state of "thoughtless awareness" that is said to occur during meditation). Brief methods include self-control relaxation, paced respiration, and deep breathing. Brief methods generally require less time and often represent an abbreviated form of a deep method. Other relaxation techniques include guided imagery, deep breathing/breathing control, passive muscle relaxation, and refocusing. Applied relaxation involves imagination of relaxing situations, with the intention of inducing muscular and mental relaxation. Another popular technique is progressive relaxation, in which the individual is taught what it feels like to relax by comparing relaxation with muscle tension. Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) is said to require several months of practice at least three times per week in order to be able to evoke the relaxation response within seconds. Relaxation technique instruction is available in many hospitals, in the community, in books, or in audiotapes/videotapes. The term "relaxation response" was coined by Harvard professor and cardiologist Herbert Benson, MD in the early 1970s to describe the physiologic reaction that is the opposite of the stress response. The relaxation response is proposed to involve decreased arousal of the autonomic nervous system and central nervous system, and increased parasympathetic activity, characterized by lowered musculoskeletal and cardiovascular ...

Relaxation therapy is a broad term used to describe a number of techniques that promote stress reduction, the elimination of tension throughout the body, and a calm and peaceful state of mind.Relaxation therapy has been around for thousands of yea...

Relaxation therapy is a broad term used to describe a number of techniques that promote stress reduction, the elimination of tension throughout the body, and a calm and peaceful state of mind.Relaxation therapy has been around for thousands of yea...

The practice of acupuncture originated in China 5,000 years ago. Today it is widely used throughout the world and is one of the main pillars of Chinese medicine. There are many different varieties of the practice of acupuncture, both in the Orient and in the West. The most common forms available to westerners are as follows: traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) usually combines acupuncture with Chinese herbs. Classical acupuncture (also known as five element acupuncture) uses a different needling technique and relies on acupuncture independent of the use of herbs. Japanese acupuncture uses smaller needles than the other varieties. Medical acupuncture refers to acupuncture practiced by a conventional medical doctor. Auricular acupuncture treats the entire body through acupuncture points in the ears only. Electroacupuncture uses electrical currents attached to acupuncture needles. Aside from needles, other methods of stimulation are also considered forms of "acupuncture." These include use of heat from the burning of herbs placed on the points ("moxibustion"), and the placement of herbal pastes on specific points. Research into the effectiveness of acupuncture has special challenges. These include the diversity of approaches, the practice of individualizing treatment for each patient, differing skill levels between practitioners, and difficulty separating out the effects of acupuncture from placebo effects (i.e., how the patient's beliefs and expectations affect their perception of symptoms). Based on acupuncture's long history of use as well as the limited research available, both the World Health Organization and the National Institutes of Health have identified many conditions for which it may be recommended. However, many common uses do not yet have formal scientific evidence to support them.

Acupuncture, one of the main forms of therapy in traditional Chinese medicine(TCM), has been practiced for at least 2,500 years. In acupuncture, certain points on the body associated with energy channels or meridians are stimulated by the insertio...

Acupuncture is one of the main forms of treatment in traditional Chinese medicine. It involves the use of sharp, thin needles that are inserted in the body at very specific points.

Acupuncture is one of the main forms of treatment in traditional Chinese medicine. It involves the use of sharp, thin needles that are inserted in the body at very specific points.

Acupuncture, one of the main forms of therapy in traditional Chinese medicine(TCM), has been practiced for at least 2,500 years. In acupuncture, certain points on the body are stimulated by the insertion of fine needles.

Various forms of therapeutic superficial tissue manipulation have been practiced for thousands of years across cultures. Chinese use of massage dates to 1600 BC, and Hippocrates made reference to the importance of physicians being experienced with "rubbing" as early as 400 BC. There are references to massage in ancient records of the Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, Egyptian, Indian, Greek, and Roman nations. References to massage are also found in the Bible and the Vedas. Terms for massage include the French word masser , the Greek word for "knead," a Hindu word for "press," and an Aramaic word that means "to press softly." Massage spread throughout Europe during the Renaissance. The technique that is currently called Swedish massage was developed in the 19th Century by Per Henrik Ling (1776-1839) as a combined form of massage and gymnastic exercises. George and Charles Taylor, two physicians who had studied in Sweden, introduced massage therapy to the United States in the 1850s. In 1873, the term massage entered the Anglo-American medical lexicon. By the early 1930s, massage became a less prominent part of American medicine, and was displaced by a focus on the biological sciences. Interest resurged in the 1970s, particularly in athletes and as a complementary therapy to promote well-being, relaxation, pain-reduction, stress-relief, musculoskeletal injury healing, sleep enhancement, and quality of life. A common goal of therapy is to "help the body heal itself." Touch is fundamental to massage therapy and is used by therapists to locate painful or tense areas, to determine how much pressure to apply, and to establish a therapeutic relationship with clients. The term "toxic touch" refers to techniques with detrimental effects. Many different therapeutic techniques can be classified as massage therapy. Most involve the application of fixed or moving pressure or manipulation of the muscles/connective tissues of clients. Practitioners may use their hands or other areas su...

Massage therapy is the scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body for the purpose of normalizing those tissues and consists of manual techniques that include applying fixed or movable pressure, holding, and/or causing movement of or t...

Pregnancy massage is the prenatal use of massage therapy to support the physiologic, structural, and emotional well-being of both mother and fetus. Various forms of massage therapy, including Swedish, deep tissue, neuromuscular, movement, and Orie...

Massage therapy is the scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body, consisting primarily of manual(hands-on) techniques such as applying fixed or movable pressure, holding, and moving muscles and body tissues.Generally, massage is deli...

Pregnancy massage is the prenatal use of massage therapy to support the physiologic, structural, and emotional well-being of both mother and fetus. Various forms of massage therapy, including Swedish, deep tissue, neuromuscular, movement, and Orie...

Massage therapy is the scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body for the purpose of normalizing those tissues and consists of manual techniques that include applying fixed or movable pressure, holding, and/or causing movement of or t...

Stone massage is a form of bodywork that involves the application of heated or cooled stones(thermotherapy) to the body during deep tissue massage.The use of materials of different temperatures on the body to bring about healing is an ancient tech...

Sports massage is a form of bodywork geared toward participants in athletics. It is used to help prevent injuries, to prepare the body for athletic activity and maintain it in optimal condition, and to help athletes recover from workouts and injur...

Russian massage is a system of therapeutic and sports massage developed in the former Soviet Union. It uses a variety of manipulations of the body''s soft tissues to achieve benefits, including stress reduction and relief from muscle aches.Many cul...

Biofeedback is a purported technique for helping an individual become conscious of otherwise unconscious body processes. Through conveying information about blood pressure, heart rate, skin temperature, galvanic skin response (sweating), and muscle tension in real-time, biofeedback aims to raise awareness and conscious control of the related physiological (natural biological processes) activities. In essence, biofeedback attempts to use the mind to control the body. Neal Miller, a psychologist and neuroscientist who worked and studied at Yale University, is generally considered to be the father of modern-day biofeedback. In the 1950s, he came across the basic principles of biofeedback when doing animal experimentation conditioning the behavior of rats. His team found that by stimulating the pleasure centers of the rats' brains with electricity, it was possible to train rats to control phenomena ranging from their heart rates to their brainwaves. Until that point, it was believed that bodily processes like heart rate were under the control of the autonomic nervous system and not responsive to conscious effort. Biofeedback has been shown to be helpful in treating a variety of medical conditions including asthma, Raynaud's disease, irritable bowel syndrome, hot flashes, nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy, incontinence, headaches, irregular heartbeats (cardiac arrhythmias), high blood pressure, and epilepsy. Other common uses may include the treatment of stress and stress-related conditions such as anxiety and insomnia. Interest in biofeedback has fluctuated since its development in the 1960s. Today, it is becoming popular once more, possibly because of the general increase of interest in complementary and alternative medicine modalities.

Biofeedback is a technique that uses monitoring instruments to measure and feed back information about muscle tension, heart rate, sweat responses, skin temperature, or brain activity.Terms associated with biofeedback include applied psychophysiol...

Biofeedback is a technique that measures bodily functions in order to help control them.Blood pressure Breathing Heart rate Muscle tension Skin temperature.By watching these measurements, you can learn how to alter these functions by relaxing or h...

Biofeedback, or applied psychophysiological feedback, is a patient-guided treatment that teaches an individual to control muscle tension, pain, body temperature, brain waves, and other bodily functions and processes through relaxation, visualizati...

Biofeedback, or applied psychophysiological feedback, is a patient-guided treatment that teaches an individual to control muscle tension, pain, body temperature, brain waves, and other bodily functions and processes through relaxation, visualizati...

Throughout history, many cultures have used imagery for therapeutic purposes, including the Navajo, ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Chinese. Religions such as Hinduism and Judaism have also practiced imagery. In modern times, the term "guided imagery" may be used to refer to a number of techniques, including metaphor, story telling, fantasy, game playing, dream interpretation, drawing, visualization, active imagination, or direct suggestion using imagery. Therapeutic guided imagery may be used to help patients relax and focus on images associated with personal issues they are confronting. Experienced guided imagery practitioners may use an interactive, objective guiding style to encourage patients to find solutions to problems by exploring their existing inner resources. Biofeedback is sometimes used with imagery to enhance meditative relaxation. Interactive guided imagery groups, classes, workshops and seminars are available, as well as books and audiotapes.

Guided imagery is the use of relaxation and mental visualization to improve mood and/or physical wellbeing.The connection between the mind and physical health has been well documented and extensively studied. Positive mental imagery can promote re...

Guided imagery is the use of relaxation and mental visualization to improve mood and/or physical well-being.The connection between the mind and physical health has been well documented and extensively studied. Positive mental imagery can promote r...

Guided imagery therapy is a cognitive-behavioral technique in which a client is guided in imagining a relaxing scene or series of experiences.Numerous clinical observations suggest that an individual visualizing an imagined scene reacts as though ...