Kaplan

Savannah Kaplan
Professor Padgett
ENGL 102
February 27, 2016
Annotated Bibliography
Inquiry: How has the practice of complementary and alternative medicine benefited peoples
health opposed to just pursuing conventional medicine?
Proposed Thesis: It is important for patients to recognize and or seek out the options of

Comment [AH1]: Good inquiry question! After reading your

entire paper and the research you have constructed, maybe
you should add something about the corruption in
pharmaceutical companies.

complementary and alternative approaches as well as traditional medicine to find which option
leads to a cleaner and healthier lifestyle in their life.
Barnes, Patricia M., Barbra Bloom, Division of Health Interview Statistics, National Center for
Health Statistics, Richard L. Nahin, National Center for Complementary and Alternative
Medicine, and National Institutes of Health. "National Center for Health Statistics."
Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use Among Adults and Children:United State
43.12 (2008): n. pag. DHHS, 10 Dec. 2008. Web. 5 Feb. 2016.
The terms complementary and alternative medicine are not well known terms in most
peoples vocabulary. It is important that within this research paper, the terms complementary and
alternative medicine are defined, addressed, and understood. Therefore, in this article, Lamb
goes into great depth describing what complementary and alternative medicine is, the medicines
strengths and limitations, the different conditions treated in adults and children, and the uses of
these medicines. Barnes describes complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) as, a
heterogeneous spectrum of ancient to new-age approaches that purport to prevent or treat
disease. By definition, CAM practices are not part of conventional medicine because there is

Comment [AH2]: This is good! I think you might need to

state more that you are for alternative medicine opposed to
traditional according to your inquiry.

Kaplan 2

insufficient proof that they are safe and effective. Individually described, complementary
medicine is, used together with conventional treatments, whereas alternative interventions are
used instead of conventional medicine (Barnes). The research projects and statistics these
doctors and scientists report in this article will be very beneficial in my paper to present the
importance of CAM. I will use these reports to back up views and opinions of CAM, and to
expose the audience to proven examples of ways CAM has benefited peoples lives.

Comment [AH3]: This is a great paragraph and a great

source. Make sure you add why this article is credible!

Healthy Living - Integris Products and Online Health Forum Where Lives Are Changed
Powerfully for the Better." Healthy Living - Integris Products and Online Health Forum
Where Lives Are Changed Powerfully for the Better. Healthy-Living.org, n.d. Web. 13
Nov. 2013.
In this article, the category of Biologically based therapies of CAM is presented. This is
the use of substances found in nature such as herbs, foods, and vitamins. For example, because
many vitamins become deficient under certain conditions they are needed at elevated
concentrations when the body is stressed. There is a great deal of scientific evidence
documenting the essential health roles of Vitamin D, showing that ill health corresponds to low
levels of Vitamin D: Medical scientists and researchers have found that serum Vitamin D levels
are low in 90% of people with degenerative disease such as heart disease, cancer and
autoimmune disease (Healthy Living). Vitamin D is very inexpensive, if not free, and
promotes maximal health in biologically based therapies.
Lamb, Robyn. "Ivy League Medical School Seeks Help in Md. for Alternative Medicine."
LexisNexis Academics. Copyright 2016 LexisNexis., 1 Apr. 2005. Web. 08 Feb.
2016.

Comment [AH4]: Really good, I like that you used an

example of these alternative therapies/medicines. However,
make sure you add why this is credible and how you are
going to use this in your research.

Kaplan 3
In this article, it tells a story of how even after presenting the new idea of alternative

medicine, and how it has been proven beneficial, a doctor claimed he couldn't afford to learn
about complimentary medicine. Knowing about it, the doctor said, would mean he would have to
understand it, and that would make him liable (Lamb). This is a perfect example of the
relationship some western doctors have with complementary medicine. I find it important to
incorporate a story into this research paper for the audience to relate to, to prove that
conventional medicine may be great in some ways, but there is a mixture of greed and corruption
in the medical and pharmaceutical industries that go on behind the scenes, therefore, posing the
argument that conventional medicine may not always be the healthiest choice when in comes to
health.
Mercola, Joseph. How Corrupted Drug Companies Deceive and Manipulate Your Doctor."
mercola.com. Copyright 1997-2013 Dr. Joseph Mercola, 18 May 2010. Web. 10 Sept.
2013.
In this article, the author describes corruption that goes on behind the scenes in the
pharmaceutical and medical industry. People are not as aware of this corruption that Mercola
exposes, for example, concerns have been repeatedly expressed about the tendency of
pharmaceutical companies to meddle with the interpretation of the clinical trials. According to Dr.
Golomb, an Associate Professor of Medicine, Big pharmaceutical companies now spend $18.5
billion per year promoting their drugs (qtd. in Mercola). These companies will spend billions of
dollars on promotion, so long as profits are possible. If a study does not have any findings that are
favorable to its product, it is unlikely the study will ever be published since most the time drug
companies only publish the funded studies that promote their drug (Mercola). When scientific
studies find results that would cast doubt on the effectiveness of the drug, company officials often

Comment [AH5]: Really like that you brought this up! It is

interesting and will be a good factor in proving that
alternative medicine is more beneficial than conventional
medicine.

Kaplan 4

will convert these negative findings into positive ones. Even if the companies funding the research
cannot make the results look good, they can often find a way to twist the conclusions so that their
drug appears favorable and more doctors and patients will buy it, and these are a couple examples
of the findings I would like to expose to my audience in my paper.
MP Challenges Corrupt Practices of Pharmaceutical Companies. fairwhistleblower.ca. N.p.,

Comment [AH6]: Again really good. You added a lot of

detail into the summary of your writing. I like the direction
of exposing the corruption in pharmaceutical industries.

n.d. Web. 10 Sept. 2013.

This article exposes the facts that every day billions of people consume prescription
medicines produced by pharmaceutical companies in which these companies are treated by
society with great respect due to the companies carefully crafted corporate image for creating
jobs, helping citizens, and investing in research dedicated to saving lives. When in reality, their
incentives are likely much less honorable. The article, MP Challenges Corrupt, states that, The
big pharmaceutical companies are, in fact, the most sophisticated marketing machines in history,
selling billions of dollars in products that often do not work to tens of millions of people who do
not need them, leading to millions of hospitalizations in North America every year and is the
fourth leading cause of death in North America. People are not as much aware of the corruption
and greed going on throughout the medical and pharmaceutical industries. The astonishing
growth of pharmaceutical advertising and its impact on consumers is quickly becoming a serious
consumer issue.
Lake, Stephanie. "Evidence- Based Medicine and the Growing Popularity of Complementary
and Alternative Treatments." UBC Medical Journal, 1 July 2015. Web. 27 Feb. 2016.
In this article, Stephanie Lake talks about the new and upcoming effects of
complimentary and alternative medicine (CAM). CAM has grown dramatically over the past
decades, slowly becoming the more popular route to take when in comes to medicine, but what is

Comment [AH7]: I would condense, break up this sentence.

It is confusing!

Kaplan 5

interesting that this article brings up is the major concern that, Despite the unconventional
nature of CAM interventions, their extensive promotion through mainstream outlets blurs the
lines between what is and is not scientifically accepted (Lake). This means that despite the
major positive results CAM shows, doctors have to be careful cause they might get in trouble
suggesting these alternatives due to the lack of scientific evidence CAM has behind it. Lake gave
the example of this situation posing a problem with Dr. Oz, and how he got in trouble with the
U.S. Senate for encouraging patients to use certain complementary and alternative medicines, but
he had a lack of scientific evidence supporting behind him. This is a fault in CAM, therefore, by
adding this knowledge in my research paper it will support my research question in the way that
CAM might not be the direct route to take. CAM works, but it is so new that there are little
logistics that still need to be worked out. Consequently, It is becoming increasingly important
for physicians to be aware of the evidence base surrounding different CAM options in order to
develop a safe and effective treatment plan for their CAMusing patients (Lake).