Patterns of Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use in African Americans

By Carolyn M. Brown, PhD, Jamie C. Barner, PhD, Kristin M. Richards, PhD, & Thomas M. Bohman, PhD
Published in J Altern Complemen Med 2007, 13;7: 751–758

Introduction

Research shows that the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is widespread among the US population. Several convenience studies have shown that African-Americans (AAs) are substantial users of certain CAM therapies. In general, compared to other ethnic and racial groups, AAs have a higher likelihood of using home remedies and mind-body and spiritual healing practices.

Although CAM is being used rather extensively by AAs, little is known about the patterns and correlates of CAM use in this population on a national level. Using national representative data, the objectives of this study are to determine the following:

(1) characteristics of CAM users in the AA population;

(2) the prevalence of CAM use; and

(3) CAM use for treatment and prevention of disease.

Methods

The study authors analyzed data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). The population of the 2002 NHIS included all civilian, non-institutionalized persons who resided in the 50 states and the District of Columbia in 2002. The sample for this study included AA adult participants, an over-sampled group in this survey, which included 4,256 adults representing 23,828,2678 AA adults nationwide.

The 2002 NHIS participants were asked questions concerning 17 modalities of CAM that were included in the study. These 17 CAM modalities were grouped into four broad categories: (1) Alternative medical systems; (2) Biologically-based therapies; (3) Manipulative/body-based methods; and (4) Mind-body therapies.

The study authors examined characteristics of AA CAM users (ever and past 12 months) and compared these to AA CAM non-users (ever and past 12 months). Characteristics such as age, marital status, income, employment status, and insurance coverage were included.

Results

A total of 23,828,268 (weighted) AAs were identified in the NHIS data set. Of those, 67.6% used CAM in the past 12 months, when prayer for health reasons was included. When prayer for health reasons was not included, only 27.0% of AAs reported using CAM in the past 12 months.

Of the 67.6% of AAs who reported using specific CAM modalities in the past 12 months, the majority of CAMs were used for treatment. The majority of medical conditions for which CAM was used involved pain, followed by chronic conditions related to cardiovascular disease.

Discussion

This study showed that a majority of AAs used a variety of CAM therapies in a typical year, which is consistent with previous findings. Prayer for health reasons is the most common CAM used by AAs, followed by herbals and relaxation. In fact, the use of prayer was at least twice as high as any other CAM.

The current study showed that those with prevalent disease states found in AAs were more likely to be CAM users than nonusers, consistent with findings of general CAM use in the adult population. The study also shows that the demographic profile of the AA CAM user generally reflects that of CAM users overall.

A majority of CAM modalities were used for treatment of a specific condition, whereas the small remainder presumably was used for prevention purposes. Among therapies used for treatment of a specific condition, herbals, relaxation, and chiropractic care were the most common CAM treatment modalities in AAs.

Conclusions

The results of this study show that a substantial number of AAs use CAM and use of CAM varied across sociodemographic characteristics. The most common therapies used included prayer, herbals, and relaxation therapies. Among CAM users, a majority used CAM for treatment of specific conditions as opposed to the prevention of illness or health promotion. The extent of which CAM served as a complement or an alternative to conventional medical treatment among AAs was unknown and the study authors suggest that this should be the subject of further investigation.

Reprint requests to: Carolyn M. Brown, Ph.D., Pharmacy Administration Division, College of Pharmacy, The University of Texas at Austin, 1 University Station A1930, Austin, TX 78712.