Natural Alternatives: A growing phenomenon across this world which is a very diverse concept yet very divine and instrumental in healing health diseases. It might be thought as any health care which is not a part of the mainstream medical establishment. Despite the tremendous disparity in philosophy, organization, practice, and origins of the myriad types of alternative medicine, the growing acceptance and use of these therapies is part of a single cultural phenomenon. It is also an extremely dangerous and pretty costly too.

Firstly let me deal with the critical differences between mainstream medicine and alternative medicine. And why the latter is cause for concern. In short, prescription drugs are a scientific endeavor, and alternative medicine is not. We know that alternative medicine (Natural Alternative) was being used in ancient times long before conventional medicine came into the scene. Mainstream medicine is finally taking note of the herbal industry.

More and more people are taking note of herbal therapies to treat various kinds of ailments in place of mainstream medicine. Herbal supplements are a type of dietary supplement that contain herbs, either singly or in mixtures. An herb (also called a botanical) is a plant or plant part used for its scent, flavor, and/or therapeutic properties. It is interesting to note that there were not so many mortal pestilence diseases in those days. What has caused this never-ending increase of deadly diseases that is inflicting such havoc on the body today?

If conventional medicine was the answer to these diseases, why have they increased, and why are so many people dying from these devastating illnesses? And why do so many people seem to be convinced that alternative medicine made by God do not have healing virtues as the conventional medicine made by man?

Why is information about cures by alternative medicine often suppressed even though conventional medicine very often interferes with the natural process of healing?

People are so coerced to use conventional medicine that they refuse to even give alternative medicine a chance because advertisements have such great influence when heard often enough, that the public is convinced. Have you ever noticed the way conventional medicines are advertised? It seems apparent that every effort is made to highlight the possible negative effects.

Next what comes into the scene is complementary medicine, another treatment which is used along with conventional medicine to affect a cure. However, not all complementary medicine must be used with conventional medicine to be effective.

For example: When the word "cholesterol" comes to mind some of us may think of it as deadly. The truth about cholesterol is that it isn't deadly at all, it's a vital substance. Cholesterol is actually a very important part of our bodies because it's used to form cell membranes and is needed for other functions in our bodies.

However, it's when there are excessive levels of cholesterol in the blood that cholesterol can become dangerous.

There are different ways one can develop high cholesterol. Your body, mainly the liver, can produce too much cholesterol and a poor diet will almost always do it. You MUST follow a strict, permanent, and healthy lifestyle to take control of your cholesterol.

This includes:

1) Getting more active.

2) Eating foods that are low in cholesterol.

3) Maintaining a diet rich in soluble fiber.

There are also many natural alternatives that can be used to compliment a healthy lifestyle. Lecithin, which is a natural substance derived from the soybean, is one of the most effective supplements available to lower cholesterol.

What just hovers onto my mind is why most people don't try natural remedies. Very often a simple massage is the answer to a problem. I personally have not had a headache for many years. There was a time when I was headache-prone, and got into the habit of using synthetic medicines to ease the pain, but after I decided to try natural treatments and medicines, I changed my diet from eating 'junk' foods and tried to stop using those synthetic headache remedies. Now they are virtually no more a part of my life.

I have helped many, many persons to be rid of a headache by just simply giving them a massage as mentioned above. Many had headaches lingering for days, and after about 20 minutes of massage, they miraculously stopped.

Think of the thousands of persons who might have been alive today if only they had known, and had been encouraged, to use certain natural remedies to be healed.It is not the intention of this article to condemn the use of conventional medicine, like prescription drugs. There have been countless such cases where, without the administration of conventional medicine, many persons would not have survived.

However, it is my hope that conventional medicine in the field of drugs will one day give way to alternative medicine, and conventional medicine will retain its place in the field of surgery and other traumatic conditions where it cannot be replaced. Natural alternatives are not only much safer than using prescription drugs but also a lot cheaper.

Chris Read is an associated editor to the website http://www.hateweight.com, "The Weight Loss Portal". Hateweight is committed to provide visitors with complete information on weight loss, obesity, healthy recipes, obesity diseases, latest news, personal views, articles and online community board on weight loss related topics. Your feedback & comments will be highly appreciated at chrisread001@gmail.com