The importance of talking to your doctor about alternative medicines
Complementary medicines have that name just because they can be used as an adjunct to conventional medicine. Alternative medicines (such as treatments for certain plants or herbs, for example) may involve a risk when used in combination with traditional treatments.
It is for these reasons that communication between doctor and patient is crucial to know whether the patient is following complementary treatments (or possibly alternative) they can get to interact adversely with conventional treatments that the patient is doing.
However, many times that communication is not between patient and physician, and thus attests to a survey in the United States by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, which states that two thirds of the 1559 people surveyed do not talk with doctor about it.
This can have serious consequences if your alternative or complementary treatment does not fit with conventional medicine. So, whether you practice Yoga, Tai Chi, eating any kind of herb or perform acupuncture, it is essential that you talk to your doctor to see if this can affect your medical treatment.