Health at the crossroads: Exploring the conflict between natural healing and conventional medicine

This short, well-researched book takes a look at the problems of traditional medical treatment that fight the body's natural healing efforts versus natural medicinal protocols such as herbal remedies and homeopathy that work with the body to overcome illness. A lengthy historical background precedes easily understood discussions of health-related topics of interest to the general population. Coverage includes the controversial Vitamin C experiments, chemotherapy treatments for cancer, the fallacy in using double-blind testing for new medications. Dr. Black raises interesting points with regard to the scientific method as it relates to medical treatment. He explains how the healing principle does not require scientific explanation. For exarnple, many Chinese herbal remedies have been known to be successful for thousands of years although never "proven" via classical scientific experiments; thus, Western medical authorities ignore them. Dr. Black warns of the dangers of overly restrictive health laws that limit products and treatments outside the medical model and maintains that laws should not take sides in scientific issues. He purports that "natural healing is neither more nor less fraudulent than medicine" and advises on how to deal with fraud in either system. The most important feature of the book is Black's championship for merging the two system instead of wasting so much effort in fighting. He maintains that "natural healing and medicine together form a more complete system than either forms alone." An appendix of natural healing lists resources ranging from Alcoholics Anonymous and the La Leche League to the Center for Chinese Medicine. Black's promotion for support, coordination, and synchronization of natural healing and traditional medicine make this book an excellent choice for public and medical libraries as well as for bookstores serving alternative-lifestyle clientele. Highly recommended.