An exciting new resource on complementary and alternative medicine research has arrived in the form of  NIH’s National Center on Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM). The resource serves as a source of trusted information to educate healthcare providers in CAM practices and aid them in discussing CAM medicine with their patients. The NCCAM resource is tailored for health care providers of any discipline including physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, and physician assistants.

As the NCCAM Press Release states, “It includes information on the safety and efficacy of a range of common health practices that lie outside of mainstream medicine—natural products, such as dietary supplements, herbs, and probiotics, as well as mind-body practices such as meditation, chiropractic, acupuncture, and massage.” This holistic approach to treatment is a growing demand that the NCCAM is striving to fulfill. This NCCAM and NIH resource also contains evidence-based research and literature reviews to support their CAM focus.  There is also a section on clinical practice guidelines for various providers including family medicine, gastroenterology, neurology, pediatrics, and oncology, to name a few.