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1.6 million use alternative sleep therapies

Respiratory Care Weekly, September 20, 2006

RTs helping physicians administer sleep therapy have another variable to contend with: alternative medicine. More than 1.6 million U.S. adults use complementary and alternative therapies (CAM) to treat their insomnia, according to survey results reported in the September 20 Journal of the American Medical Association. Almost 40% of patients using CAM therapies don't report it to their sleep physician.

According to the survey, among those who use CAM therapies for their insomnia, 65% used biological methods, which include herbal medicines, diet interventions, and vitamin therapy. Mind-body therapies, such as meditation, were used by 39%. Fifty-six percent reported that the therapy was very important to their health and well-being.

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