The year 2010 means the end of the Millennium's "Noughties". The past decade has brought about many changes to the lifestyles of people throughout.

The world, including how they view medical treatment.So it's no wonder the Millennium has become.

An era of alternative medicine, where holistic treatment has gained the upper hand over conventional treatment.

In 2000, there was a study comparing alternative treatment and conventional treatment.

The researcher asked people which they chose first when they got sick and how much they paid for their treatment. It was revealed people opted for alternative medicine three times more than conventional medicine, while the expense of conventional medicines was 10 times higher than that of alternatives.

Why do people choose alternative medicine? The answer lies in its nature.

We can compare the characteristics of both medicines as follows:

1. Alternative medicines originated from people, for people, aimed at people helping each other. Conventional medicines are mostly business orientated.

2. The principal idea of alternative medicines is self-healing. What an alternative doctor does is helping patients correct internal and external factors for self-healing. Conventional doctors, however, have never realised the power of self-healing and believe in human intervention. Therefore, drugs are the powerful weapons of conventional medicines.

3. Alternative medicines stress self-reliance. Therefore, along the way to healing, people should change their lifestyle and eating habits. It is the medicine of independence, whereas the conventional medicines are those of dependence. With conventional medicine, people rely totally on hospitals and drugs all their lives.

4. Because alternative medicines stress change, doctors work on guiding people towards their health "destination". Doctor-patient relationships are like a brotherhood. Conventional medicine, however, is some

thing indoctrinated by research, mostly backed by drug companies. Therefore conventional doctors are commanders on the war against diseases. A conventional doctor acts like God in a white gown. He is the one who determines life or death for patients.

5. Because we are composed of body and mind, self-healing needs the adjustment of both, the mind is the master who controls the body. Therefore, alternative medicines consider that mind power plays the major role. It makes up more than 50% in the healing process. If we enhance the patient's mind power, spontaneous healing may occur occasionally. Conventional medicines put a very low value on mind power. The highest role of the mind in conventional medicines is just a supportive factor in the area of psychiatry.