Complementary and alternative medicine use among adults: United States, 2002
Section snippets
Data source
The statistics shown in this report are based on data from the Alternative Health/Complementary and Alternative Medicine supplement, the Sample Adult Core component, and the Family Core component of the 2002 NHIS. 24 The NHIS, one of the major data collection systems of CDC’s NCHS, is a survey of a nationally representative sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized household population of the United States. Basic health and demographic information were collected on all household members.
Use of complementary and alternative medicine (Table 1)
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Seventy-five percent of adults age 18 and over have ever used CAM when prayer specifically for health reasons was included in the definition (Figure 1).
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Sixty-two percent of adults have used CAM during the past 12 months when prayer specifically for health reasons was included in the definition (Figure 1).
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The 10 CAM therapies most commonly used within the past 12 months measured in terms of the percentage of U.S. adults were prayer specifically for one’s own health (43.0%), prayer by others for
Discussion
Overall, in 2002, about 62% of U.S. adults used some form of CAM in the past 12 months. Subgroup differences were noted in the use of CAM: women were more likely than men to use CAM; black adults were more likely than white adults or Asian adults to use CAM when megavitamin therapy and prayer specifically for health reasons were included in the definition; persons with higher educational attainment were more likely than persons with lower attainment levels to use CAM; and those who had been
Conclusion
The NHIS survey provides the most comprehensive and reliable current data describing CAM use by the U.S. adult population. This report adds to the increasing body of evidence about CAM use in the United States. The descriptive statistics and highlights presented in this report are a foundation for future studies of CAM use as it relates to health and disease among various population subgroups. Ongoing analysis of the NHIS dataset by NCHS and NCCAM staff will further explore the relationship of
Sample design
The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) is a cross-sectional household interview survey of the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population. Data are collected continuously throughout the year in all 50 States and the District of Columbia. The NHIS uses a multistage, clustered sample design to produce national estimates for a variety of health indicators. Information on basic health topics is collected for all household members by proxy from one family member, if necessary. Additional
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This article originally appeared as U.S. Department of Health and Human Services DHHS Publication No. (PHS) 2004-1250, Advance Data From Vital and Health Statistics No. 343, May 27, 2004.