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Nature's Path: A History of Naturopathic Healing in America
An alternative medical system emphasizing prevention through healthy living, positive mind-body-spirit strength, and therapeutics to enhance the body's innate healing processes, naturopathy has gained legitimacy in recent years. In Nature's Path--the first comprehensive book to examine the complex history and culture of American naturopathy--Susan E. Cayleff tells the fascinating story of the movement's nineteenth-century roots.
While early naturopaths were sometimes divided by infighting, they all believed in the healing properties of water, nutrition, exercise, the sun, and clean, fresh air. Their political activism was vital to their professional formation: they loathed the invasive, depletive practices of traditional medicine and protested against medical procedures that addressed symptoms rather than disease causes while resisting processed foods, pharmaceuticals, environmental toxins, and atomic energy. Cayleff describes the development of naturopathy's philosophies and therapeutics and details the efforts of its proponents to institutionalize the field. She recognizes notable naturopathic leaders, explores why women doctors, organizers, teachers, and authors played such a strong role in the movement, and identifies countercultural views--such as antivivisection, antivaccination, and vegetarianism--held by idealistic naturopaths from 1896 to the present.
Nature's Path tracks a radical cultural critique, medical system, and way of life that links body, soul, mind, and daily purpose. It is a must-read for historians of medicine and scholars in women's studies and political history, as well as for naturopaths and all readers interested in alternative medicine.
While early naturopaths were sometimes divided by infighting, they all believed in the healing properties of water, nutrition, exercise, the sun, and clean, fresh air. Their political activism was vital to their professional formation: they loathed the invasive, depletive practices of traditional medicine and protested against medical procedures that addressed symptoms rather than disease causes while resisting processed foods, pharmaceuticals, environmental toxins, and atomic energy. Cayleff describes the development of naturopathy's philosophies and therapeutics and details the efforts of its proponents to institutionalize the field. She recognizes notable naturopathic leaders, explores why women doctors, organizers, teachers, and authors played such a strong role in the movement, and identifies countercultural views--such as antivivisection, antivaccination, and vegetarianism--held by idealistic naturopaths from 1896 to the present.
Nature's Path tracks a radical cultural critique, medical system, and way of life that links body, soul, mind, and daily purpose. It is a must-read for historians of medicine and scholars in women's studies and political history, as well as for naturopaths and all readers interested in alternative medicine.
- GenresHistory
408 pages, Hardcover
Published March 30, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 26, 2023
The book covers the conflict in America between naturopathic & allopathic medicine in addition to naturopathic medicine’s “fight” to become a legitimate & legally recognized form of treatment.
Naturopathic approaches did not have broad institutional & governmental backing with practitioners in some stones getting fined or arrested for continuing on with their practice. Despite this, naturopathic medicine was able to gain increasing legitimacy in the 90s as allopathic medicine’s treatment options failed in some areas.
Eventually, allopathic & naturopathic medicine will converge to some degree with a systems biology & long term disease accumulation approach. As herbal treatment & other alternative forms of treatment undergo scientific refinement & tinkering, their legitimacy will continue to increase. What held naturopathy back was its ideological & emotional disposition as an aggrieved & resentful outsider with communistic ties in addition to its contrarian nature of reflexively opposing almost every production of allopathic medicine (whether right or wrong).
Book could have been a bit more shorter & interesting
Naturopathic approaches did not have broad institutional & governmental backing with practitioners in some stones getting fined or arrested for continuing on with their practice. Despite this, naturopathic medicine was able to gain increasing legitimacy in the 90s as allopathic medicine’s treatment options failed in some areas.
Eventually, allopathic & naturopathic medicine will converge to some degree with a systems biology & long term disease accumulation approach. As herbal treatment & other alternative forms of treatment undergo scientific refinement & tinkering, their legitimacy will continue to increase. What held naturopathy back was its ideological & emotional disposition as an aggrieved & resentful outsider with communistic ties in addition to its contrarian nature of reflexively opposing almost every production of allopathic medicine (whether right or wrong).
Book could have been a bit more shorter & interesting
September 16, 2016
The research is thorough and well connected. There was a nice flow, and focused on certain key players. However I found it was convoluted at time and I became bored by time.
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October 28, 2016615.53509 C385 2016
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews