Abstract
Purpose: Interest in alternative/complementary therapies (A/CTs) is on the rise, yet little is known about adolescents' use of A/CTs. The study purpose was to examine A/CT utilization patterns among a clinic-based sample of adolescents. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 401 adolescents, aged 12-18 years, was conducted in one Midwest urban adolescent ambulatory clinic in 2002. Results: Overall, 68.1% of the adolescents reported using one or more A/CT; most commonly, herbal medicines (27.2%), massage therapy (26.7%), and megavitamins (21.7%). Use by friends and family was the primary influence for adolescent A/CT use; lack of familiarity was the greatest reason for nonuse (53.9%). Alleviation of physical pain (66.3%) was the most common desired health outcome. Few adolescents (13.8%) disclosed A/CT use to their health care providers. Insurance coverage was provided for 10.2% of the therapies and out-of-pocket costs averaged $67/month. Age, race/ethnicity, having a health condition, taking medications, health responsibility, and work status were associated with overall A/CT use in bivariate analyses. Of these, only associations between A/CT use and race/ethnicity and health responsibility remained statistically significant after adjusting for the other variables. Conclusions: Use of A/CTs was common among these adolescents, yet very few disclosed their use to health care providers. Providers must ask about A/CT use to gain a more complete understanding of health practices among adolescents in clinical settings. Future research is needed to better understand representative patterns of A/CT use.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Journal | Journal of Adolescent Health |
| Volume | 37 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 1 2005 |
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Keywords
- Adolescent health
- Alternative medicine
- Complementary therapies
Cite this
Adolescent use of complementary therapies. / Braun, Carie A.; Bearinger, Linda H; Halcón, Linda L.; Pettingell, Sandra L.
In: Journal of Adolescent Health, Vol. 37, No. 1, 01.01.2005.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Adolescent use of complementary therapies
AU - Braun, Carie A.
AU - Bearinger, Linda H
AU - Halcón, Linda L.
AU - Pettingell, Sandra L
PY - 2005/1/1
Y1 - 2005/1/1
N2 - Purpose: Interest in alternative/complementary therapies (A/CTs) is on the rise, yet little is known about adolescents' use of A/CTs. The study purpose was to examine A/CT utilization patterns among a clinic-based sample of adolescents. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 401 adolescents, aged 12-18 years, was conducted in one Midwest urban adolescent ambulatory clinic in 2002. Results: Overall, 68.1% of the adolescents reported using one or more A/CT; most commonly, herbal medicines (27.2%), massage therapy (26.7%), and megavitamins (21.7%). Use by friends and family was the primary influence for adolescent A/CT use; lack of familiarity was the greatest reason for nonuse (53.9%). Alleviation of physical pain (66.3%) was the most common desired health outcome. Few adolescents (13.8%) disclosed A/CT use to their health care providers. Insurance coverage was provided for 10.2% of the therapies and out-of-pocket costs averaged $67/month. Age, race/ethnicity, having a health condition, taking medications, health responsibility, and work status were associated with overall A/CT use in bivariate analyses. Of these, only associations between A/CT use and race/ethnicity and health responsibility remained statistically significant after adjusting for the other variables. Conclusions: Use of A/CTs was common among these adolescents, yet very few disclosed their use to health care providers. Providers must ask about A/CT use to gain a more complete understanding of health practices among adolescents in clinical settings. Future research is needed to better understand representative patterns of A/CT use.
AB - Purpose: Interest in alternative/complementary therapies (A/CTs) is on the rise, yet little is known about adolescents' use of A/CTs. The study purpose was to examine A/CT utilization patterns among a clinic-based sample of adolescents. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 401 adolescents, aged 12-18 years, was conducted in one Midwest urban adolescent ambulatory clinic in 2002. Results: Overall, 68.1% of the adolescents reported using one or more A/CT; most commonly, herbal medicines (27.2%), massage therapy (26.7%), and megavitamins (21.7%). Use by friends and family was the primary influence for adolescent A/CT use; lack of familiarity was the greatest reason for nonuse (53.9%). Alleviation of physical pain (66.3%) was the most common desired health outcome. Few adolescents (13.8%) disclosed A/CT use to their health care providers. Insurance coverage was provided for 10.2% of the therapies and out-of-pocket costs averaged $67/month. Age, race/ethnicity, having a health condition, taking medications, health responsibility, and work status were associated with overall A/CT use in bivariate analyses. Of these, only associations between A/CT use and race/ethnicity and health responsibility remained statistically significant after adjusting for the other variables. Conclusions: Use of A/CTs was common among these adolescents, yet very few disclosed their use to health care providers. Providers must ask about A/CT use to gain a more complete understanding of health practices among adolescents in clinical settings. Future research is needed to better understand representative patterns of A/CT use.
KW - Adolescent health
KW - Alternative medicine
KW - Complementary therapies
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=20444499284&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=20444499284&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2004.07.010
DO - 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2004.07.010
M3 - Article
C2 - 15963913
AN - SCOPUS:20444499284
VL - 37
JO - Journal of Adolescent Health
JF - Journal of Adolescent Health
SN - 1054-139X
IS - 1
ER -