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Other common
name(s): Native American medicine, Indian medicine
Scientific/medical
name(s): none
Description
Native American healing is a broad term that includes healing
beliefs and practices of hundreds of indigenous tribes of North
America. It combines religion, spirituality, herbal medicine, and
rituals that are used to treat people with medical and emotional
conditions.
Overview
Available scientific evidence does not support claims that
Native American healing can cure cancer or any other disease. However,
the communal support provided by this approach to health care can have
some worthwhile physical, emotional, and spiritual benefits.
How is it promoted for use?
From the Native American perspective, medicine is more about
healing the person than curing a disease. Traditional healers aim to
"make whole" by restoring well-being and harmonious relationships with
the community and the spirit of nature, which is sometimes called God
or the Great Mystery. Native American healing is based on the belief
that everyone and everything on earth is interconnected, and every
person, animal, and plant has a spirit or essence. Even an object, such
as a river or rock, and even the earth itself, may be considered to
have this kind of spirit.
Native Americans traditionally believe that illness stems from
spiritual problems. They also say that diseases are more likely to
invade the body of a person who is imbalanced, has negative thinking,
or lives an unhealthy lifestyle. Some Native American healers believe
that inherited conditions, such as birth defects, are caused by the
parents' immoral lifestyles and are not easily treated. Others believe
that such conditions reflect a touch from the Creator and may consider
them a kind of gift. Native American healing practices aim to find and
restore balance and wholeness in a person to restore one to a healthy
and spiritually pure state.
Some people believe Native American medicine can help cure
physical diseases, injuries, and emotional problems. Some healers claim
to have cured conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, thyroid
problems, skin rashes, asthma, and cancer. Available scientific studies
do not support these claims.
There are many types of Native American healing practices, and
they are promoted to help with a variety of ills. Some of the most
common aspects of Native American healing include the use of herbal
remedies, purifying rituals, shamanism, and symbolic healing rituals to
treat illnesses of both the body and spirit. Herbal remedies are used
to treat many physical conditions. Practitioners use purifying rituals
to cleanse the body and prepare the person for healing. Shamanism is
based on the idea that spirits cause illness, and a Native American
healer called a shaman focuses on using spiritual healing powers to
treat people. Symbolic healing rituals, which can involve family and
friends of the sick person, are used to invoke the spirits to help heal
the sick person.
Healers may include shamans, herbalists, spiritual healers,
and medicine men or women. Many Native Americans see their healers for
spiritual reasons, such as to seek guidance, truth, balance,
reassurance, and spiritual well-being, while still using conventional
medicine to deal with "white man's illness." However, they believe that
the spirit is an inseparable element of healing.
What does it involve?
Native American healing practices vary greatly because there
are more than five hundred Native American Nations (commonly called
tribes). There are many tribal differences, so it is not surprising
that healing rituals and beliefs vary a great deal. The most sacred
traditions are still kept secret, passed along from one healer to the
next. Because of these factors, information on healing practices is
general and somewhat limited.
However, the many types of Native American medicine do have
some basic rituals and healing practices in common. Because of Native
American tribes' extensive knowledge of herbs, one of the most common
forms of Native American healing involves the use of herbal remedies,
which can include teas, tinctures, and salves. For example, one remedy
for pain uses bark from a willow tree, which contains acetylsalicylic
acid, also known as aspirin.
Purifying and cleansing the body is also an important
technique used in Native American healing. Sweat lodges (special,
darkened enclosures heated with stones from a fire) or special teas
that induce vomiting may be used by the healer for this purpose. A
practice called smudging, which involves cleansing a place or person
with the smoke of sacred plants, can be used to bring about an altered
state of consciousness and sensitivity, making a person more open to
the healing techniques. Because some illnesses are believed to come
from angry spirits, healers may also invoke the healing powers of
spirits. They may also use special rituals to try to appease the
angered spirits.
Another practice of Native American healing, symbolic healing
rituals, can involve whole communities. These rituals use ceremonies
that can include chanting, singing, painting bodies, dancing,
exorcisms, sand paintings, and even limited use of mind-altering
substances to persuade the spirits to heal the sick person. Rituals can
last hours or even weeks. These ceremonies are a way of asking for help
from the spiritual dimension. Prayer is also an essential part of all
Native American healing techniques.
Native American treatment is usually a slow process, spread
over a period of days or weeks. It may involve taking time from one's
daily activities for reflection, emotional awareness, and meditation.
The healer may spend a great deal of time with the person seeking help.
Healing is said to take place within the context of the relationship
with the healer.
What is the history behind it?
Native American healing has been practiced in North America
for up to 40,000 years. It appears to have roots in common with
different cultures, such as ancient Ayurvedic and Chinese traditions,
but it has also been influenced by the environments in which Native
Americans settled, and the nature, plants, and animals around them.
Other healing practices were influenced over time by the migration of
tribes and contact with other tribes along trade routes. The tribes
gathered many herbs from the surrounding environment and sometimes
traded over long distances.
Many Native medicine practices were driven underground or lost
because they were banned or illegal in parts of the United States until
1978, when the American Indian Religious Freedom Act was passed. Even
now, there are difficulties with ceremonies and rituals on sacred
sites. These activities are sometimes forbidden because the land now
serves other purposes. Today, Native American and American Indian
community-based medical systems still practice some Native American
healing practices and rituals.
What is the evidence?
One clinical trial examined 116 people with a variety of
ailments (such as infertility, chest and back pain, asthma, depression,
diabetes, and cancer) who were treated with traditional Native American
healing. More than 80% showed some benefit after a 7 to 28 day
intensive healing experience. Five years later, 50 of the original
participants said they were cured of their diseases, while another 41
said they felt better. Another 9 reported no change, 5 were worse, and
2 had died. However, the comparison group who received different
treatments also showed benefits, and the patients' reports were not
verified by doctors. Because of the limitations in this study, it is
impossible to draw conclusions about the effectiveness of Native
American healing. More clinical studies are needed to confirm the
benefits of the specific healing methods.
Although Native American healing has not been proven to cure
disease, individual reports suggest that it can reduce pain and stress
and improve quality of life. The communal and spiritual support
provided by this type of healing could have helpful effects. Prayers,
introspection, and meditation can be calming and can help to reduce
stress.
Because Native American healing is based on spirituality,
there are very few scientific studies to support the validity of the
practices. It is hard to study Native American healing in a scientific
way because practices differ between various Nations, healers, and
illnesses. Many Native Americans do not want their practices studied
because they believe sharing such information exploits their culture
and weakens their power to heal. Historically, outside society has
sometimes misinterpreted Native American culture and beliefs, which may
increase this reluctance.
Are there any possible problems or
complications?
These
substances may have not been thoroughly tested to find out how they
interact with medicines, foods, or dietary supplements. Even though
some reports of interactions and harmful effects may be published, full
studies of interactions and effects are not often available. Because of
these limitations, any information on ill effects and interactions
below should be considered incomplete.
Like other complementary therapies, Native American healing
practices may be used in relieving certain symptoms of cancer and side
effects of cancer treatment. People with cancer and other chronic
conditions should talk to their doctors before using purification
rituals or herbal remedies. Cleansing rituals may be particularly
harmful to people who are already dehydrated or in a weakened state.
Relying on this type of treatment alone and avoiding or delaying
conventional medical care for cancer may have serious health
consequences.
Additional Resources
More information from your American Cancer
Society
The following information on complementary and alternative
therapies may also be helpful to you. These materials may be found on
our Web site (www.cancer.org)
or ordered from our toll-free number (1-800-ACS-2345).
References
American Indian Religious Freedom Act, Title 42, Chapter 21,
Subchapter 1, USC §1996 (1978). National Park Service Web
site. Accessed at
http://www.nps.gov/history/local-law/FHPL_IndianRelFreAct.pdf on June
5, 2008.
Amor A. Special rapporteur report: religious intolerance in
the United States. United Nations Commission on Human Rights Report,
1999. Accessed at
http://daccessdds.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G98/148/96/PDF/G9814896.pdf on
April 19, 2005. Content no longer available.
Atwood MD. Spirit
Healing: Native American Magic & Medicine. New
York, NY: Sterling Publishing Co; 1991.
Borchers AT, Keen CL, Stern JS, Gershwin ME. Inflammation and
Native American medicine: the role of botanicals. Am J Clin Nutr.
2000;72:339-347.
Cohen K. Native American medicine. Altern Ther Health Med.
1998;4:45-57.
Cohen K. What is Native American medicine? Sacred Earth Circle
Web site. Accessed at
http://www.qigonghealing.com/sacred_earth/what.html. Excerpted and
adapted from Honoring
the Medicine: The Essential Guide to Native American Healing.
New York, NY: Ballantine Books; 2003 on June 3, 2008.
Johnston L. Native-American medicine. Alternative &
Innovative Therapies for Physical Disability Web site. Accessed at
http://www.healingtherapies.info/Native-American%20Medicine.htm on May
26, 2008.
Marbella AM, Harris MC, Diehr S, Ignace G, Ignace G. Use of
Native American healers among Native American patients in an urban
Native American health center. Arch
Fam Med.1998;7:182-185.
Mehl-Medrona LE. Native American medicine in the treatment of
chronic illness: developing an integrated program and evaluating its
effectiveness. Altern
Ther Health Med. 1999;5:36-44.
National Institutes of Health. Alternative Medicine: Expanding
Medical Horizons: A Report to the National Institutes of Health on
Alternative Medical Systems and Practices in the United States.
Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office; 1994. NIH publication
94-066.
Note:
This
information may not cover all possible claims, uses, actions,
precautions, side effects or interactions. It is not intended as
medical advice, and should not be relied upon as a substitute for
consultation with your doctor, who is familiar with your medical
situation.
Last Medical Review: 11/01/2008
Last Revised: 11/01/2008
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