Health & Medicine
Date : May, 2025
Source : MedScape
A growing body of research shows that complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) can help treat certain gastrointestinal disorders. Previously looked down upon by scientists, mind-body medicine was once categorized as alternative medicine. But interventions such as cognitive-behavioral therapy and mindfulness-based approaches are gaining traction in conventional circles and amassing evidence of its efficacy.
In acupuncture, there are meridians that govern the GI system,” Shi-Hong Loh, MD, of Dao Sheng Acupuncture, Hoboken and Hackensack, New Jersey, told Medscape Medical News. “Meridians are typically not tied to Western concepts of anatomy or neurology.
The points we use are often related to the parasympathetic nervous system, with nerve distribution from areas in the thoracic and lumbar spine. That type of nerve innervation is from the spinal area and controls abdominal and intestinal function.”
Other evidence-based mind-body approaches include gut-directed hypnotherapy, meditation, mindfulness-based therapies, guided imagery, and yoga. A systematic review of six randomized controlled trials found evidence that in patients with IBS, yoga can decrease bowel symptoms, disease severity, and anxiety, as well as improve physical functioning and quality of life.
Like CBT, hypnotherapy and mindfulness-based stress reduction “aim to reduce overactivity to stressors and to improve maladaptive coping behaviors,” said Hass, who has been trained in hypnotherapy. “Particularly for anxiety-provoked symptoms due to catastrophizing, CBT would be the modality of choice.”
Hypnotherapy and mindfulness meditation have been found effective in several GI cancers, as well as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.