Mind Body Medicine

Alternative medicine has been described as "any of various systems of healing or treating disease (as chiropractic, homeopathy, or faith healing) not included in the traditional medical curricula taught in the United States and Britain".
Alternative medicine practices are often based in belief systems that are at odds with the findings of science. Alternative medicines may therefore incorporate spiritual, metaphysical, or religious underpinnings, untested practices, non-Western medical traditions, or newly developed approaches to healing.

If an alternative medical approach, initially regarded as untested, is subsequently shown to be safe and effective, it may then be adopted by conventional practitioners and no longer considered "alternative".