The Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine Therapies in Type 2 Diabetic Patients in Mexico

The growing utilization of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies represents one of the characteristic phenomena facing scientific medicine. Studies of the patient’s opinions and attitudes toward CAM therapies are scarce. Among doctors, it is widely considered that the use of CAM therapies is only linked to a particular social or cultural background. We undertook a cross-sectional study designed to evaluate the spontaneous use of CAM therapies among 573 type 2 diabetic patients (aged 51.9 ± 10 years) in nine family medicine clinics in Mexico City, using a questionnaire form. Almost 62% (353) of participants make use of CAM therapies, a higher percentage than that reported in the U.S. (8%) and Canada (37.3%). Our patients were younger, more likely …