Abstract
Women are over-represented within alternative medicine, both as consumers and as service providers. In this paper, I show that the appeal of alternative medicine to women relates to the neglect of women’s health needs within scientific medicine. This is concerning because alternative medicine is severely limited in its therapeutic effects; therefore, those who choose alternative therapies are liable to experience inadequate healthcare. I argue that while many patients seek greater autonomy in alternative medicine, the absence of an evidence base and plausible mechanisms of action leaves patients unable to realize meaningful autonomy. This seems morally troubling, especially given that the neglect of women’s needs within scientific medicine seems to contribute to preferences for alternative medicine. I conclude that the liberatory credentials of alternative medicine should be questioned and make recommendations to render scientific medicine better able to meet the needs of typical alternative medicine consumers.
Highlights
Women dominate alternative medicine (AM), both as consumers (Sharma 1992, 19–20; Ernst and White 2000; Cherkin et al 2002; Tindle et al 2005; Verhoef et al 2005; Eardley et al 2012) and as service providers (Cant and Sharma 2004; Nissen 2010; Nissen 2011; Keshet and Simchai 2014)
It is likely that women use AM because it promises to offer greater autonomy and personalization than scientific medicine (SM)
This segues into a second argument: autonomy in healthcare requires informed consent; informed consent is not possible for AM therapies since mechanisms are either not known or not plausible, and there is no evidence base
Summary
Women dominate alternative medicine (AM), both as consumers (Sharma 1992, 19–20; Ernst and White 2000; Cherkin et al 2002; Tindle et al 2005; Verhoef et al 2005; Eardley et al 2012) and as service providers (Cant and Sharma 2004; Nissen 2010; Nissen 2011; Keshet and Simchai 2014). I argue that we should combine these facts and take seriously the idea that women’s attraction to AM is related to the fact that SM neglects women’s needs. This has moral consequences, since AM therapies have a weak or absent evidence base and do not have plausible, verifiable mechanisms, which leaves AM patients under-served, vulnerable to exploitation, and unable to realize meaningful patient autonomy.
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