The relationship between religion and health care has cycled between cooperation
and antagonism throughout history. Some of the most advanced
civilizations of ancient times (Assyrian, Chinese, Egyptian, Mesopotamian,
and Persian) equated physical illnesses with evil spirits and demonic possessions,
and treatment was aimed at banishing these spirits. Since then,
physicians and other health-care providers have been viewed by religious
groups as everything from evil sorcerers to conduits of God’s healing powers.
Similarly, physicians’, scientists’, and health-care providers’ views of
religion have ranged from interest to disinterest to disdain.
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In recent years, interest in understanding the effects of religion on health
has grown in the medical and scientific communities (Levin 1996). Popular
news magazines such as Time and Newsweek and television shows have
devoted ample coverage to the interplay of religion and health (Begley
2001a, b; Greenwald 2001; Woodward 2001). Spiritual activities aimed
at improving or maintaining health, such as yoga, have become very popular
(Corliss 2001; Ulick 2002). Moreover, studies have clearly shown that
many patients consider religion to be very important and would like their
physicians to discuss religious issues with them.
In this essay we review what is currently known about clinical effects of
religious and spiritual practices and the challenges that researchers and
health-care practitioners face in designing appropriate studies and translating
results to clinical practice. We also discuss future directions in the
roles of religion and spirituality in health care.
THE IMPORTANCE OF RELIGION AND SPIRITUALITY
TO PATIENTS AND PHYSICIANS
Studies have confirmed that religion and spirituality play significant roles
in many people’s lives. Over 90 percent of Americans believe in God or a
higher power, 90 percent pray, 67 to 75 percent pray on a daily basis, 69
percent are members of a church or synagogue, 40 percent attend a church
or synagogue regularly, 60 percent consider religion to be very important
in their lives, and 82 percent acknowledge a personal need for spiritual
growth (Bezilla 1993; Gallup 1994; Miller and Thoresen 2003; Poloma
and Pendleton 1991; Shuler, Gelberg, and Brown 1994). Studies also show
that patients are interested in integrating religion with their health care.
More than 75 percent of surveyed patients want physicians to include spiritual
issues in their medical care, approximately 40 percent want physicians
to discuss their religious faith with them, and nearly 50 percent would like
physicians to pray with them (Daaleman and Nease 1994; King and
Bushwick 1994; King, Hueston, and Rudy 1994; Matthews et al. 1998).
Many physicians seem to agree that spiritual well-being is an important
component of health and that it should be addressed with patients, but
only a minority (less than 20 percent) do so with any regularity (MacLean
et al. 2003; Monroe et al. 2003). Surveyed physicians blame lack of time,
inadequate training, discomfort in addressing the topics, and difficulty in
identifying patients who want to discuss spiritual issues for this discrepancy
(Armbruster, Chibnall, and Legett 2003; Chibnall and Brooks 2001;
Ellis, Vinson, and Ewigman 1999).
Educators have responded by offering courses, conferences, and curricula
in medical schools, postgraduate training, and continuing medical
education (Pettus 2002). However, some question the relevance and appropriateness
of discussing religion and spirituality in the health-care setting,
fearing that it gives health-care workers the opportunity to impose
Bruce Y. Lee and Andrew B. Newberg 445
personal religious beliefs on others and that necessary medical interventions
may be replaced by religious interventions. R. P. Sloan and colleagues
caution that patients may be forced to believe that their illnesses are solely
the result of poor faith (Sloan and Bagiella 2002; Sloan, Bagiella, and Powell
1999). Moreover, there is considerable debate over how religion should
be integrated with health care and who should be responsible, especially
when health-care providers are agnostic or atheist (Levin et al. 1997).
THE ROLE OF RELIGION IN HEALTH CARE
Despite this controversy, there are many signs that the role of religion in
health care is increasing. For instance, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual
of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, recognizes religion and spirituality
as relevant sources of either emotional distress or support (Kutz 2002;
Lukoff, Lu, and Turner 1992; Turner et al. 1995). Also, the guidelines of
the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations require
hospitals to meet the spiritual needs of patients (La Pierre 2003;
Spiritual assessment 2003). The literature reflects this trend as well. The
frequency of studies on religion and spirituality and health has increased
over the past decade (Levin, Larson, and Puchalski 1997). M. Stefanek
and colleagues tallied a 600 percent increase in spirituality-and-health publications
and a 27 percent increase in religion-and-health publications from
1993 to 2002 (Stefanek, McDonald, and Hess in press).
Some have recommended that physicians and other health-care providers
routinely take religious and spiritual histories of their patients to better
understand the patients’ religious backgrounds, determine how they may
be using religion to cope with illness, open the door for future discussions
about spiritual or religious issues, and help detect potentially deleterious
side effects from religious and spiritual activities (Kuhn 1988; Lo, Quill,
and Tulsky 1999; Lo et al. 2002; Matthews and Clark 1998). It may also
be a way of detecting spiritual distress (Abrahm 2001). There also has
been greater emphasis in integrating various religious resources and professionals
into patient care, especially when the patient is near the end of
life (Lo et al. 2002). Some effort has been made to train health-care providers
to listen appropriately to patients’ religious concerns, perform clergylike
duties when religious professionals are not available, and better
understand spiritual practices (Morse and Proctor 1998; Proctor, Morse,
and Khonsari 1996).
METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES WITH CLINICAL STUDIES
The study of religion and health has faced the same challenges that most
nascent research areas have had to confront: lack of adequate funding,
institutional support, and training for investigators. This is part of the
reason why a large percentage of the literature consists of anecdotes and
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editorials, which are helpful in generating discussions, formulating ideas,
and fueling future studies but do not establish causality or scientific support
of specific interventions. Of the scientific studies, many are correlational,
which demonstrates interesting associations but does not always
adjust for all possible confounding variables such as socioeconomic status,
ethnicity, and different lifestyles or diets and as a result does not clearly
establish causality. In some cases, religious variables are included in a larger
study that does not focus on the effects of religion. Because these studies
were not necessarily designed to primarily study the religious variables,
results must be considered cautiously. There have been a limited number
of randomized controlled trials (RCTs). In a systematic review of studies
from 1966 to 1999, M. Townsend and colleagues (2002) counted nine
RCTs. As the study of religion and health progresses, the number and
sophistication of scientific studies should continue to grow.
There also are challenges inherent in the clinical study of religion, ten of
which are listed below. Understanding these challenges is crucial in designing
appropriate studies and interpreting the results. Otherwise, inappropriate
conclusions may be drawn, unnecessary and even dangerous
interventions may be initiated, and further necessary research may be curtailed.
These challenges may help guide investigators in choosing areas
that need further study.
1. Defining religion and spirituality has been difficult. Investigators have
struggled to agree on formal definitions of these two distinct and difficultto-define
terms, which often are mistakenly used synonymously (Powell,
Shahabi, and Thoresen 2003; Tanyi 2002). Even if universal definitions
were established, which specific practices would be classified as either or
neither? For example, where does one draw the line between religions and
cults? The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines cult as “a religion regarded
as unorthodox or spurious.” But what is the criterion for being unorthodox
and spurious? As history demonstrates, what formerly was considered
a cult and spurious can eventually become a major religion, and vice versa.
2. Designing studies with sufficient numbers of subjects and adequate
controls can be problematic. It is difficult to control for the multiple possible
confounders as well as recruit and randomize subjects, because they
may not be willing or able to alter their religious beliefs and practices for
the study. Prayer and other religious activities are often private, silent, or
disguised as social interactions, so investigators may have trouble monitoring
and ensuring that subjects comply with study requirements. Inadvertent
noncompliance can easily occur, as patients are influenced by visitors
or their environment.
3. There are many possible measures of religiousness. Religiousness can
be measured in many different dimensions, and patients who score high in
one dimension may not necessarily score high in others. For example, just
because an individual feels that he or she is very religious (high subjective
Bruce Y. Lee and Andrew B. Newberg 447
religiosity) does not mean he or she would score high on more objective
measures (low religious commitment/motivation). An individual m