The prevalence of alternative medicine use in a rural western county.

摘要

The prevalence of alternative medicine use in a rural western county was examined, using a cross-sectional design. Telephone interviews were conducted with 200 randomly selected Cache County adults (18 years and older), through the use of a 24 question survey. This questionnaire lasted about 15 minutes and the study took approximately three weeks to conduct.;Data analysis indicated that 66% of respondents had used alternative medicine within the past year. Vitamin therapy and herbal medicine were the most frequently tried therapies and were most often used to maintain health. In total, 65.2% of respondents said they had turned to alternative medicine because of recommendations from friends and family and not necessarily because of a dissatisfaction with traditional medicine.;In addition, 78% of alternative medicine users said they had never had a negative experience with these therapies. Use of alternative therapies was most prevalent among White middle-aged females, with higher education and incomes.