A summary of National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommendations relating to complementary and alternative medicines is shown in the following table.
Guidance topic Publication date Recommendation Antenatal care March 2008 Few complementary therapies have been established as being safe and effective during pregnancy. The following interventions appear to be effective in reducing morning sickness: Ginger P6 acupressure Multiple Sclerosis November 2003 There is some evidence to suggest that the following items might be of benefit, although there is insufficient evidence to give more flexible recommendations: Reflexology and massage Fish oils Magnetic field therapy Neural therapy Massage plus body work T'ai chi Multi-modal therapy Dementia November 2006 For comorbid agitation, interventions tailored to the person's preferences, skills and abilities should be considered. Options to consider include: Aromatherapy Multisensory stimulation Therapeutic use of music and/or dancing Animal-assisted therapy Massage Parkinson's disease June 2006 The Alexander Technique may be offered to benefit people with Parkinson’s disease (PD) by helping them to make lifestyle adjustments that affect both the physical nature of the condition and the person’s attitude to having PD. Supportive and palliative care March 2004 When organising supportive and palliative care services for people with cancer, commissioners and the NHS and voluntary sector providers should work in partnership across a Cancer Network to decide how to best meet the needs of patients for complementary therapies where there is evidence to support their use. As a minimum, high quality information should be made available to patients about complementary therapies and services. Provider organisations should ensure that any practitioner delivering complementary therapies in NHS settings conforms to policies designed to ensure best practice agreed by the Cancer Network. Hypertension June 2006 Informing people with hypertension that relaxation therapies can reduce blood pressure and individual patients may wish to pursue these as part of their treatment. However, routine provision by primary care teams is not currently recommended. Examples include: stress management, meditation, cognitive therapies, muscle relaxation and biofeedback. Depression October 2009 Although there is evidence that St. John’s wort may be of benefit in mild or moderate depression, health care professionals should not prescribe or advise its use by patients because of uncertainty about appropriate doses, variation in the nature of preparations and potential serious interactions with other drugs (including oral contraceptives, anticoagulants and anticonvulsants). Low back pain May 2009 Consider offering a course of manual therapy, including spinal manipulation, spinal mobilisation and massage. Treatment may be provided by a range of health professionals including chiropractors, osteopaths, manipulative physiotherapists or doctors who have had specialist training Consider offering a course of acupuncture needling, up to a maximum of 10 sessions over a period of up to 12 weeks Injections of therapeutic substances into the back for non-specific low back pain are not recommended.