Famous people in alternative medicine - Definition and Overview

Famous people in alternative medicine provides a master list of the articles included in this alternative medicine (CAM) series of articles.

A

B

• Edward Bach - founder of flower essence therapy and the Bach flower remedies.
• William Horatio Bates - founder of the Bates method alternative approach to eyesight improvement.
• Wooster Beech - founded Eclectic Medicine.
• Dan Bensky - American TCM and Craniosacral practitioner and author of a popular English language version of the Chinese herbal materia medica.
• Paul Bragg - known for the Bragg Health Crusades, the Bragg Healthy Lifestyle, deep breathing, water fasts, organic foods, drinking water, juicing, exercise and listening to one's body.
• Emanuel Bronner - aka "Dr. Bronner," master soap-maker known for eccentric messages on labels for natural soaps and other health products.

C

• Carlos Castaneda - author and philosopher. One of his ideas is that dreaming can be cultivated as a way to refine one's awareness to a point where extraordinary feats of perception can be achieved.
• Charaka - is one of the founders of Ayurveda.
• Cheng Man-ch'ing - traditional Chinese physician and the first well-known teacher to offer his own version of T'ai Chi Ch'uan in the West.
• Mantak Chia - claimed healer and author of books on Taoism, Taoist sexuality and Tai Chi Chuan
• Hulda Regehr Clark - wrote a series of books including The Cure for all Diseases, advocating extreme dietary practices and "zapping" of parasites.
• Benjamin Colby - wrote the book, A Guide to Health, which delineated the basic practices and philosophy of Thomsonian Medicine.

D

• Eugene V. Debs, Socialist leader and U.S. Presidential candidate, died as a result of "nature cure" treatments at Lindlahr Sanitarium outside Chicago, Illinois.

E

• Mary Baker Eddy - founder of Christian Science and its readvocacy of Christian healing, thereby also reawakening 20th-century interest in the subject in more mainstream denominations as well as in certain more unrestrictive New Age offshoots.
• George L. Engel - proposed the biopsychosocial model of health, illness and healing in 1977.

F

• Bob Flaws - modern American author of traditional Chinese medicine books
• Moshe Feldenkrais - founder of the Feldenkrais Method&reg.
• William Fitzgerald - introduced reflexology to the West.

G

• Sylvester Graham - was known for his graham crackers and founded Grahamism.
• George Goodheart - founded applied kinesiology in 1964.

H

• Theodor Hahn - a lay practitioner who advocated using the water cure along with a vegetarian diet.
• Samuel Hahnemann - founded homeopathic medicine.
• Michael Harner - synthesized shamanic beliefs and practices from all over the world into a system now known as neoshamanism.
• Joseph Heller - Student of Ida Rolf, first president of the Rolf Institute and founder of Hellerwork Structural Integration. (This JH is not, nor is he related to, the author to which his name here is erroneously linked.)

I

• Eunice Ingham - developed and refined the zone therapy into what is now known as reflexology.

J

• Isaac Jennings - cofounded a healing system called Orthopathy.

K

• Ted Kaptchuk - author of The Web That Has no Weaver, a popular introductory book on traditional Chinese medicine
• John Harvey Kellogg - promoter of colon therapy at the Battle Creek Sanitarium in Battle Creek Michigan.
• Will Keith Kellogg - inventor of corn flakes in 1894 and manger of the Battle Creek Sanitarium.
• Sebastian Kneipp - a priest who asked for a different life, not for better pills.
• Dolores Krieger developed Therapeutic Touch.

L

• Jack LaLanne - For over 30 years, Jack promoted exercise on television. He is also famous for a series of well-publicized feats of strength that always took place on his birthday.
• Benedict Lust - purchased the rights to the term "naturopathy" from John Scheel.

M

• Giovanni Maciocia - author of popular modern textbooks on traditional Chinese medicine.
• Maharishi Mahesh Yogi - the founder of Transcendental Meditation.
• Kiiko Matsumoto - modern charismatic teacher of Japanese acupuncture styles.
• Michael T. Murray - author of many modern books on naturopathic medicine.
• Caroline Myss - coined the term medical intuitive

N

• Devi Nambudripad - founder of NAET, controversial allergy treatment
• Paul Nogier - French founder of Auriculotherapy

O

• Leonard Orr - developed Rebirthing.

P

• Daniel Palmer - founded chiropractic medicine.
• Linus Pauling - established a new discipline called orthomolecular medicine and promoted the use of Vitamin C to cure cancer. Pauling was however not a general supporter of alternative medicine.
• Vincent Priessnitz - developed a system of water cures.

Q

R

• Theron Randolph - father of modern allergy medicine, founder of environmental medicine
• Doris Rapp - protege of Randolph, pediatric environmental medicine practitioner and author of books on pediatric allergies.
• Wilhelm Reich - founder of Orgonomy.
• Royal Rife
• Arnold Rikli - a lay practitioner who added the use of air and sunlight to the water cure. He is known for having said: "Water is good; air is better, but light is best of all."
• Ida Rolf - founder of Rolfing.

S

• John Scheel - coined the word "naturopathy" in 1895.
• Helmut W. Schimmel - founded functional medicine in Germany.
• Julian Scott - modern pediatric acupuncture expert from England
• Herbert Shelton - founded the Natural Hygiene movement.
• Joel Shew - introduced the European system of Hydrotherapy to the United States.
• Bernie Siegel - American MD and author who promotes cultivating one's attitude toward healing.
• Rudolf Steiner - founded anthroposophy
• Andrew Still - founded osteopathy.

T

• Richard Tan - modern popular charismatic acupuncture teacher
• Samuel Thompson - founded Thomsonianism.
• Russell Trall - founded the New York College of Hygieo-Therapy.

U

• John Upledger - principal proponent of craniosacral therapy.
• Mikao Usui - rediscovered Reiki during the latter half of the 19th century in Japan.

V

W

• Andrew Weil - founder of Integrative Medicine and author of many modern books on alternative medicine.
• J.R. Worsley - founder of Five Elements school of acupuncture.
• Frances Wright - was active in the American Popular Health Movement of the 1830's and '40s.
• Wu Chien-ch'üan - famous T'ai Chi Ch'uan teacher, one of the first to openly promote and teach T'ai Chi for the public health in early 20th century Beijing.

X

Y

• Yang Ch'eng-fu - perhaps the most famous T'ai Chi Ch'uan teacher ever, among the first to openly teach and promote T'ai Chi for public health.
• Yellow Emperor (Huang Di) - culture hero historically credited as the founder of traditional Chinese medicine.
• Maharishi Mahesh Yogi - the founder of Transcendental Meditation.

Z

• Elder Zhang Guo - Chinese alchemist.