In the modern world today, owing to rapid improvements of science and technology, there are various therapies available that may be more useful than conventional remedies. Due to the fact that many people today are no longer restricting themselves to conventions of adopting traditional medical treatments only, alternative healing methods are starting to gain popularity. As there are many evidences proving that people’s eating habits could possibly affect their health, the adoption of dietotherapy has become more popular recently. Therefore, there has been a wave of diet habits change sweeping across the planet, which has been branded as a "new-age diet revolution". This essay will firstly cite two instances to discuss the role of alternative diet style in the present age, namely dietotherapy for treatment of hypertension and utilizing diet to heal cancer. Finally, this will canvass the reasons behind why alternative therapy has received growing popularity and why it should be heeded.
In attempt to seek remedy for maladies including incurable diseases and chronic ailments, which cannot be cured by modern medicines, mankind has investigated other methods such as alternative treatments for therapeutics of illnesses. For the reason that most alternative therapies are supported by science and have higher actual example of cure rate, alternative treatments are now playing an ever-increasingly significant role. Two particular examples will be referred to in the following discussion to illustrate the theory of dietotherapy and its practicality.
First of all, high blood pressure (or hypertension) has been commonly recognized as a serious problem for people, and the main causes of high blood pressure include obesity, excessive consumption of alcohol, lack of physical activities and stress, and some of the uncontrollable factors include race, genetics and age. According to researches, herbal medication can lower blood pressure naturally. (http://
www.az wellness.info/symptoms/highbloodpressure.htm). For instance, diuretic herbs such as Fennel, Dandelion are Parsley can multiply the amount of blood that circulates to the kidneys, which therefore in general increase urination and lower the overall blood pressure. As the rise in blood pressure is generally caused by the additional force necessary to push the thickened blood through the capillaries. Diet-therapy engaging drinking apple cider vinegar or consuming more vinegar in everyday meals will decrease. For this reason, the alkalinity in blood and making it less thick and in turn lowers the blood pressure. The acid in the vinegar also helps to dilute the blood and consequently making it easier for the heart to circulate the blood throughout the body. It is also worth to mention that fruit vinegar contains potassium which can help the body to metabolize out sodium and prevent high blood pressure, ref: (http://
www.earthclinic.co m/Remedies/acvinegar.html ).
Secondly, for most cancer treatments, the orthodox method directly attacks tumors; that is like a battlefield in the body, and normal practices such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy and operation generally have side effects. On the other hand, alternative therapies value and improve people’s health status by increasing the patients’ natural immune systems to resist cancer cells. Owing to the fact that protein and fat can promote cancer developments, therefore the adoption of vegetarian diet can greatly reduce the body’s assimilation of animal fats, which in turn may inhibit undesirable hormone metamorphosis and further growth of the cancer cells. (Virginia Messina, Reed Mangels, Mark Messina 2004, 35-36). A vegetarian diet can be an extremely effective way to remedy various types of cancer as vegetables and fruits contain large quantities of vitamin C and fibers, which are vital for excretion and diminishing of carcinogen in the body. ( Richards 1991, 20-27). Otherwise, antioxidants, such as the phenol and flavones found in fruits and vegetables have been as potential cancer fighters due to the fact that their ability to destroy free radicals which eliminate body cells (Karen Bellenir 2002, 393-395). Another diet-therapeutic treatment of cancer is through organic diet; consumption of vegetables or fruits which have been grown without the use of pesticides, artificial fertilizer or sewage, animals farmed without the use of antibiotics and growth hormones, and processed food without the use a large number of food additives. Besides, organic diet does not advocate cooked food instead; freshness is the main focus as raw foods contain more nutrition than after boiled. Therefore, it is claimed that an organic raw-food diet that is suitable for the metabolic type of the cancer patient. (
http://www.gojuvo.com/). Consequently, more people are choosing alternative therapies when they are diagnosed with cancers.
Intuitively, implications of alternative therapy such as diet-therapy are most certainly enormous and promising. Many patients choose alternative treatment not only due to social and cultural reasons, but ultimately their desires for relief and instincts to survive. Diet-therapy places great emphasis on food consumption habits, which could potentially lead to or help the patient’s general well being, however one must be precautious of the nutrition imbalance and the possible allergic reaction. This is of particular importance especially in developing countries where factors such as ignorance, socioeconomics, and inadequate access to mainstream medical facilities prohibit sufferers from receiving proper treatments.
There are some acknowledged risks and uncertainties with obsolescing the conventional healing method. Firstly, it could continue tumor growth or symptom worsening, which could result in additional and possibly irreversible damages. Secondly, damage or complications could raise from alternative treatment. Finally, allergy to food still remains as a major area of research focus. ( Diane Wiesner 1989, 39-40 )
Notwithstanding the above-mentioned, it should be realized that diet-therapy like other alternative healing methods offers a mean of treatment outside the majority accepted medicine today. Although patients other than those suffering from cancer and hypertension throughout the world are adopting diet-therapy in conjunction or in replacement of the mainstream treatment in attempt to relieve their symptoms, care and attention must be taken to prevent undesirable effects, which could be hidden in the potentially unreliable methods.
In conclusion, the use of alternative therapy is multiplying because patients and doctors both believe and hold thoughts of positivism, which give invalids a glean hope of survival. Hypertension and cancer are grave illnesses particularly for middle-aged people. They could not endure chronic suffering and side effects; accordingly alternative therapy occupies an important position, not only as a treatment but also acts to reduce anguish and affliction of sick people. Otherwise, even though alternative treatment is getting popular in modern world and is extensively used by many people, it still has some perils such as worsening patients’ condition, danger of complexity, and loss of financial resources and allergic reactions. As a result, for use of alternative therapy, one must be careful and query the adviser’s professional knowledge.
