Predictive factors of complementary and alternative medicine use in the general population in Europe: A systematic review

Guillaud, Albin; Darbois, Nelly; Allenet, Benoît; Pinsault, Nicolas

doi:10.1016/j.ctim.2018.12.014

Cited by 17 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 67 publications

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“…The current study reported that women used CAM signi cantly more than men. These ndings are in line with previous studies on CAM use in Norway [11,22] and other studies in European countries unequivocally demonstrating that CAM use is more common in women [23][24][25][26][27].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Safety and Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Norway During the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic Using an Adapted Version of the I-CAM-Q: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Kristoffersen

Jong

Nordberg

et al. 2021

Preprint

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BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic lockdown has had a profound impact on physical and mental well-being throughout the world. Previous studies have revealed that complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is frequently used for, and can be potential beneficial for strengthening physical mental resilience. The aim of this study was therefore to determine the prevalence, associations and reasons for use of CAM during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic among a representative sample of the Norwegian population, and determine possible effects and adverse effects of the treatments. MethodsComputer assisted telephone interviews using a COVID-adapted I-CAM-Q questionnaire were conducted with 1008 randomly selected Norwegians aged 16 and above using multistage sampling during April and May 2020 applying age and sex quotas for each area. Descriptive statistics were carried out using Pearson’s Chi-square test, Fisher exact test, and Independent samples T-tests to identify group differences. ResultsThe study revealed that two thirds of the respondents (67%) had used CAM within the first three months of the COVID-19 pandemic, in particular CAM modalities that did not involve a provider. Most used were natural remedies and dietary supplement (57%, mainly vitamins and minerals), but self-help practices like yoga and meditation were also widely used (24%). Women used CAM modalities significantly more than men (77% vs. 58%). Most of the respondents found the modalities they used beneficial, and 5% reported adverse effects of the treatments.ConclusionsThe first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic has not profoundly changed the overall need of Norwegian citizens to seek care outside the conventional healthcare system, but rather caused a shift in the type of CAM modalities used. The risk profile of these modalities was generally low as only 5 % of the respondents reported adverse effects. Further studies are needed to confirm the change from provider based to self-administered CAM use.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Safety and Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Norway During the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic Using an Adapted Version of the I-CAM-Q: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Kristoffersen

Jong

Nordberg

et al. 2021

Preprint

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“…Sociodemographic determinants included female gender, being middle-aged, higher levels of education, and income, while health-related determinants included poor self-reported health, chronic disease, and serious illness [ 4 , 7 , 9 , 12 , 15 – 17 , 21 , 24 – 30 ]. However, many existing CM studies did not investigate CM use according to the different CM therapies, which makes interpretation of the results difficult [ 21 , 31 , 32 ]. Furthermore, the above-mentioned determinants do not appear to be clearly specific to CM use and might be also associated with consultation of conventional health practitioners [ 32 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, many existing CM studies did not investigate CM use according to the different CM therapies, which makes interpretation of the results difficult [ 21 , 31 , 32 ]. Furthermore, the above-mentioned determinants do not appear to be clearly specific to CM use and might be also associated with consultation of conventional health practitioners [ 32 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence, specific and non-specific determinants of complementary medicine use in Switzerland: Data from the 2017 Swiss Health Survey

et al. 2022

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Objectives To determine the prevalence of use of complementary medicine (CM) in Switzerland in 2017, its development since the 2012 Swiss Health Survey, and to examine specific and non-specific sociodemographic, lifestyle and health-related determinants of CM use as compared to determinants of conventional health care use. Materials and methods We used data of 18,832 participants from the cross-sectional Swiss Health Survey conducted by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office in 2017 and compared these data with those from 2012. We defined four CM categories: (1) traditional Chinese medicine, including acupuncture; (2) homeopathy; (3) herbal medicine; (4) other CM therapies (shiatsu, reflexology, osteopathy, Ayurveda, naturopathy, kinesiology, Feldenkrais, autogenic training, neural therapy, bioresonance therapy, anthroposophic medicine). Independent determinants of CM use and of conventional health care use were assessed using multivariate weighted logistic regression models. Results Prevalence of CM use significantly increased between 2012 and 2017 from 24.7% (95% CI: 23.9–25.4%) to 28.9% (95% CI: 28.1–29.7%), respectively, p<0.001). We identified the following independent specific determinants of CM use: gender, nationality, age, lifestyle and BMI. Female gender and nationality were the most specific determinants of CM use. Current smoking, being overweight and obesity were determinants of non-use of CM, while regular consumption of fruits and/or vegetables and regular physical activity were determinants of CM use. Conclusion Prevalence of CM use significantly increased in Switzerland from 2012 to 2017. Gender, nationality, age, lifestyle and BMI were independent specific determinants of CM use as compared to conventional health care use. Healthier lifestyle was associated with CM use, which may have potentially significant implications for public health and preventive medicine initiatives. The nationality of CM users underlines the role of culture in driving the choice to use CM but also raises the question of whether all populations have equal access to CM within a same country.

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“…Incidence estimates range between 40 and 62% for past year use and 63 and 76% for lifetime use [2]. As in many other Western countries, female gender, middle age and higher educational level have been shown to predict CAM use; some papers report general socioeconomic status instead of education, and some report income as an additional positive predictor [3][4][5][6][7]. Illness predicts the use of both conventional medicine and CAM, which might explain why the use of conventional medicine and the use of CAM are positively correlated [8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predictors of the use and approval of CAM: results from the German General Social Survey (ALLBUS)

Abheiden

Teut

Berghöfer

2020

BMC Complement Med Ther

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Background: Many studies have shown that sociodemographic variables significantly predict the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), although these predictions were not particularly strong. A multitude of predictors of the use or approval of CAM have been investigated in the field of personal values and worldviews, but the effects were small or doubtful due to non-representative samples. More recent psychological research has linked positive attitudes towards CAM with intuitive thinking, paranormal beliefs, ontological confusions and magical health beliefs, suggesting a common thinking style behind all these variables. The aim of this study is to identify the most important predictors of the use and approval of CAM. Methods: We performed a canonical correlation analysis on all 3480 records from the 2012 German General Social Survey (ALLBUS) with the lifetime use and opinion of CAM as the dependent variables. Results: Approval of paranormal practices such as fortune-telling, dowsing or spiritualism explained 32% of the variance in the dependent canonical variate "approval of CAM", while sociodemographic variables explained only 2%. Experience with paranormal practices explained 17% of the variance in the dependent canonical variate "experience with CAM", and sociodemographic variables explained 10% of the variance. Traditional religiosity, attitudes towards science and post-materialist values showed no relevant correlations with the dependent canonical variates. Conclusions: Paranormal beliefs and related measures are the most important known predictors of the use and approval of CAM. Experience with paranormal practices not only indicates paranormal beliefs but also explains experience with CAM that cannot be explained by approval of CAM. Female gender and higher socioeconomic status predict experience with CAM without predicting approval of CAM, but their influence should not be overstated.

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Predictive factors of complementary and alternative medicine use in the general population in Europe: A systematic review

Cited by 17 publications

References 67 publications

Safety and Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Norway During the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic Using an Adapted Version of the I-CAM-Q: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Safety and Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Norway During the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic Using an Adapted Version of the I-CAM-Q: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Prevalence, specific and non-specific determinants of complementary medicine use in Switzerland: Data from the 2017 Swiss Health Survey

Predictors of the use and approval of CAM: results from the German General Social Survey (ALLBUS)

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