Patients use prayer as part of healing process

Most Doctors Don’t Follow Colon Cancer Screening Guidelines
November 19, 2010
FDA approves Botox as treatment for chronic migraines
November 22, 2010
Show all

Patients use prayer as part of healing process

The Chicago Tribune reports, “The relationship between prayer and physical healing has long been the subject of conflicting studies. Some indicate prayer can help, but at least one study concluded that in some cases it can be harmful.”
Researchers “found that coronary bypass patients who were told strangers were praying for them did worse than those who got no prayers.” But, “increasingly … prayers are being offered by chaplains, doctors, nurses, and social workers. They are recited in hospitals before and after surgery, during treatments, upon admission and discharge, and on the anniversary of a diagnosis.”
Despite this one negative study, there are not “some” studies showing prayer can help, but hundreds of studies showing a positive association between a wide variety of spiritual interventions (spiritual assessment, prayer, spiritual counseling, etc.) and physical and emotional health outcomes.

You can read more on this topic in my book, Alternative Medicine: The Christian Handbook. You can order a signed copy here. You can also read some of my blogs on Faith-Based Health and Healing:

You can read more on this topic in my book, Alternative Medicine: The Christian Handbook. You can find it here.
Also, citations to all of the studies quoted in this blog are found in the book.
==================
Additional Blogs on Faith-Based Health and Healing:
Part 1 – What does the Bible say about health?
Part 2 – What Value Should We Place on Our Health?
Part 3 – Devout Faith Helps but Does Not Guarantee Good Health
Part 4 – Can Faith be Unhealthy?
Part 5 – What Causes Sickness?
Part 6 – Why God’s Response Isn’t Always to Heal
Part 7 – Not All Healing is From God
Part 8 – Illegitimate Spiritual Practices
Part 9 – Life Energy and Medical Magic
Part 10 – Medical Characters Condemned for Pursuing Certain Forms of Healing
Part 11 – Look to the Bible, Not Inner Voices, for Guidance
Part 12 – Biblical Principles on Which to Base Medical Decisions and The Power of Faith

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.