A 1993 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine revealed that one in three Americans have used alternative medicine to treat sprains or strains, allergies, arthritis, digestive problems, and many other ailments. These Americans spend almost fourteen billion dollars each year on acupuncture, biofeedback, massage therapy, and homeopathic remedies, among other treatments. Some health experts, including many physicians, are concerned about the use of these unconventional treatments. They fear that if sick people turn to alternative treatments so readily for relatively minor illnesses, they will also shun more established medical treatments for serious—even life-threatening—medical conditions. Physics professor Robert L. Park of the University of Maryland and biology professor Ursula Goodenough of Washington University argue, "To the extent that reliance on alternative therapies leads people to forgo valid medical treatment, it is dangerous."

Proponents of alternative medicine, however, disagree...