News Briefs
March 1, 2007
News Briefs
Many Older Americans Not Discussing CAM With Their Physicians
Sixty-nine percent of people age 50 or older who use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) do not talk to their doctors about it, according to a new survey conducted by AARP and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health. The survey examined conversations between patients and their physicians regarding CAM use.
Differences in communication practices across demographic groups were also found. Women were more likely than men to have discussed CAM use (26% vs. 16%) and what types of therapies to use (70% vs. 51%). In addition, people with incomes of $75,000 or more (31%) or $25,000-$49,999 (25%) frequently discussed CAM use with doctors.
This telephone survey, administered to a nationally representative group of 1,559 people age 50 or older, revealed some reasons why patients did not discuss CAM use with their physicians. Respondents most often did not discuss it because the physicians never asked (42%), they did not know that they should (30%), or there was not enough time during the office visit (19%). Interestingly, men who had seen a doctor were more likely than women not to have discussed CAM because their doctors never asked (46% vs. 38%).
Other highlights from the survey report include:
- The topics most often discussed with doctors were the effectiveness of a CAM therapy (67%), what to use (64%), how a CAM therapy might interact with other medications or treatments received (60%), advice on whether to pursue a CAM therapy (60%), and safety of a CAM therapy (57%).
- Nearly three-fourths of respondents said they take one or more prescription medications; in addition, 59% of respondents said they take one or more over-the-counter medications. Twenty percent of respondents reported taking more than five prescription medications.
To see the full survey report, visit: www.aarp.org/research/health/prevention/cam_2007.html.
Asian-Americans More Likely to Use CAM, Study Says
Nearly three-quarters of Asian-Americans used at least one type of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in the past 12 months, says a study published in the December 2006 issue of the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine.
This was significantly higher than the national prevalence rate, according to the researchers, who did a cross-sectional survey of a sample of 9,187 adults representative of the California population. The researchers hypothesized that because of differences in health and cultural beliefs, patterns and predictors of CAM use would vary among Asian-American subgroups. They found that Chinese-Americans had the highest prevalence of any CAM use, whereas South Asians had the lowest prevalence (86% vs. 67%, respectively).
Acculturation and access to conventional medical care was unrelated to any CAM use for most Asian-American subgroups. Spirituality was the strongest predictor of any CAM use for most Asian-American subgroups.
FDA Updates Health Claim for Calcium and Osteoporosis
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is proposing to allow new claims on foods and dietary supplements containing calcium and vitamin D to show their potential to reduce the risk of osteoporosis. This action responds to a health claim petition submitted by the Beverage Institute for Health and Wellness, The Coca-Cola Co.
The proposed rule would amend one of the first health claims authorized in 1993 through the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 for the relationship between calcium intake and osteoporosis. The proposal would amend this existing health claim by allowing for claims of a reduced risk of osteoporosis with the consumption of both calcium and vitamin D.
The proposed rule also would eliminate certain requirements that were a part of the required claim language in the existing calcium and osteoporosis health claim. However, FDA is not changing its conclusion that there is still significant scientific agreement to support claims for calcium intake and reduced risk of osteoporosis.
FDA's decision to amend the existing health claim is based on the agency's review of the publicly available scientific evidence, which included the 2004 Surgeon General's report on Bone Health and Osteoporosis and the 2000 NIH Consensus Statement on Osteoporosis, Prevention, Diagnosis, and Therapy.
Specifically, FDA is proposing to change the calcium and osteoporosis health claim to:
- Add a claim for calcium and vitamin D together and a reduced risk of osteoporosis.
Shorten the claim language by:
- Dropping the reference to sex, race, and age since the benefits apply to both sexes at all ages and race categories.
- Dropping the need to identify the mechanism by which calcium reduces the risk of osteoporosis.
- Dropping the requirement that the claim state that there are limits to benefit of calcium intakes above 200% of the Daily Value.
Comments may be submitted electronically to www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/oc/dockets/comments/commentdocket.cfm?AGENCY=FDA (click on the Docket Search link on the left side and put in the docket number 2004P-0464) or in writing to the Division of Dockets Management, 5630 Fishers Lane, room 1061, Rockville, MD 20852. Please reference the docket number when submitting comments.
Sixty-nine percent of people age 50 or older who use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) do not talk to their doctors about it, according to a new survey conducted by AARP and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health.You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
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