The anthropology of alternative medicine / Anamaria Iosif Ross.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ross, Anamaria Iosif.

Contributor:

George Clapp Vaillant Book Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Medical anthropology.

Alternative medicine.

Alternative medicine--Social aspects.

Anthropology, Medical.

Complementary Therapies.

Medical Subjects:

Anthropology, Medical.

Complementary Therapies.

Physical Description:

x, 185 pages ; 24 cm

Edition:

English edition.

Place of Publication:

London ; New York : Berg, 2012.

Summary:

Alternative medicine is not a fashionable new trend, but an established cultural strategy as well as a dynamic feature of mainstream contemporary medicine, in which elements of folk traditions are often blended with Western scientific approaches. This is a concise yet wide-ranging exploration of non-biomedical healing. The book addresses a broad range of practices including: substance, energy and information flows (such as helminthic therapy); spirit, consciousness and trance (shamanism, for example); body, movement and the senses (reiki and aromtherapy); as well as classical medical traditions as complements or alternatives to Western biomedicine (such as Ayurveda). The book explores the cultural underpinnings of contemporary healing methods, while assessing current ideas, topics and resources for further study.

Contents:

Alternative medicine in the twenty-first century

Substance, energy, and information flows

Spirit, consciousness, and trance

Body, movement, and the senses

Looking into the future of alternative medicine.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 159-173) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the George Clapp Vaillant Book Fund.

ISBN:

9781845208028

9781845208011

1845208013

1845208021

OCLC:

777343630

Publisher Number:

99969090317