Americans Spent $34 Billion on Alternative Medicine in 2007

Americans spent $34 billion out-of-pocket dollars on natural approaches for health improvement in 2007. This represents 1.5% of the $2.2 trillion spent on health care each year in the U.S. However, it represents 11% of the out-of-pocket spending. Thirty-eight percent of Americans use some form of alternative therapy. About $14.8 billion was spent on non-vitamin, non-mineral natural products such as fish oil and glucosamine.

More and more Americans are using natural health options to augment their health, whether they are trying to solve a specific problem or simply trying to maintain better quality of health – especially as they grow older.

The more we learn about genetic science the more obvious it becomes that nutrients play a powerful role in not only maintaining health, but reducing the risk for serious health problems. In many cases, nutrients can fix problems that drugs only make worse (while suppressing symptoms).

When the drugs of Western Medicine seriously injure over 3 million Americans per year (requiring hospitalization), and routinely kill over 100,000 Americans each year, it is little wonder that more and more people are trying to be healthier so as not to “need” drugs and looking for better ways to manage their health.

Western Medicine has its value and place in our society, but it is grossly overused and ineffective for the majority of health-related problems people expect them to solve on a routine basis – especially in areas of preventive health.