Alternative Medicine in Denmark 2003

Use of Alternative medicine

• 20.1 percent have used alternative medicine within the previous year.
• 40.2 percent have used alternative medicine at some point in life.

The Typical User

• Woman 
• 30-66 years of age
• 13-14 years of schooling

Most popular types of therapies within the previous year

• Massage/osteopathy (9.5 percent)
• Reflexology (7.6 percent)
• Acupuncture (5.1 percent)

Most frequent reasons for seeking alternative medicine

• Alternative medicine is a supplement to the treatment offered by the public health care system (39 percent)
• Family and friends have recommended use of alternative medicine (32 percent)
• Positive personal experiences with alternative medicine (29 percent)

• 40.2 percent of the interviewees have used alternative medicine at some point in life.
• 20.1 percent of the interviewees have used alternative medicine within the previous year.

Development in the use of alternative medicine

Figures from previous surveys show that the share of Danes above the age of 16, who at some point in life have used alternative medicine, has increased from 23.6 percent in 1987 to 43.7 percent in 2000 (Health and Morbidity Surveys, National Institute of Public Health, 1987-2000).

The three earliest surveys are made up differently from the 2003 survey. Among other things the figures from the earlier surveys include the use of herbal medicine. The figures from 2003 do not.

• More women than men have used alternative medicine within the previous year.
• People between the ages of 30-44 and 45-66 account for the most extended use.
• It makes no appreciable difference if they are married, cohabiting or single. 
• The share of users is largest among people with 13-14 years of schooling.

Odds ration

From the figures in the table below you can for example see that for each man seeking alternative therapy, 2.6 women seek alternative therapy. In other words, women have 2.6 greater odds of having used alternative medicine than men.

As for the age of the users, the figures show that a 30-44 year old has 1.69 greater odds of having used alternative medicine than a person above 67 years of age.

A person with 13-14 years of schooling has 1.86 greater odds of having used alternative medicine than a person with 10 years of schooling or less.

Share of people who have used alternative medicine within the previous year

Within the previous year (2003) the most popular types of alternative therapy were:

• Massage/osteopathy (9.5 percent)
• Reflexology (7.6 percent)
• Acupuncture (5.1 percent)

Development in the popularity of alternative therapies

Reflexology is the most popular alternative therapy. The number of Danes who state that they have used reflexology at some point in life has increased from 9.2 percent in 1987 to 22.7 percent in 2003.

Acupuncture is the therapy, which has experienced the greatest rise in popularity. The number of Danes who state that they have used acupuncture at some point in life has increased from 2.9 percent in 1987 to 16.2 percent in 2003.

The number of Danes who have used massage/osteopathy at some point in life has also increased drastically from 5.3 percent in 1987 to 16.5 percent in 2003.

Use of alternative medicien among Danes above 18 years old, 1987-2003 (percent)

• 39 percent of the Danes, who have used alternative medicine at some point in life, state that they use alternative medicine as a supplement to the treatment offered by the public health care system.
• Significantly more women (30 percent) than men (14 percent) state that they wish to take an active part in their recovery and that they feel that they can achieve this by using alternative medicine.
• More women (16 percent) than men (7 percent) state that they use alternative medicine because of undesirable adverse effects related to drugs or other treatment in the public health care system.

Reason for using alternative medicine

This question has been asked to those people who at some point in life have used alternative medicine (percent).

The purpose of seeking alternative treatment

The purpose of seeking alternative treatment is most often:

• Treatment of mild symptoms/conditions (39 percent)
• Prevention/increase in wellbeing (22 percent)
• Relief from a chronic disorder

The purpose of using alternative medicine

This question has been asked to those people who at some point in life have used alternative medicine (percent).

In this context the term 'alternative medicine' is used for therapies, which are not carried out within or subsidized by the public health care system.

A few of the alternative therapies mentioned here are also employed in the public health care system. This especially applies to acupuncture, but also for example reflexology and massage. Whenever the survey refers to these types of therapies, it only includes treatments, which are performed by practitioners outside the public health care system and without public subsidy.

Treatments which are performed by neighbours or friends are included, whether the client has paid for the treatment or not.