In severe pancreatitis, however, activated enzymes may travel back into the pancreas and digest it. We will talk more about pancreatitis in a little bit, but for now, consider alcohol. Regular consumption of alcohol inflames the pancreas. When the inflammation is severe, the smaller ducts of the pancreas are squeezed shut.
Any therapy that is typically excluded by conventional medicine, and that patients use instead of conventional medicine, is known as âalternative medicine.â Itâs a catch-all term that includes hundreds of old and new practices ranging from acupuncture to homeopathy to iridology.
Practitioners of alternative medicine have used the term allopathic medicine to refer to the practice of conventional medicine in both Europe and the United States since the 19th century. In the U.S., this was also referred to as regular medicine â that is, medicine that was practiced by the regulars.