Medical treatment of all aspects of the person: physically and psychologically. This term is also used as a camouflage used by pseudoscientists to promote their unscientific treatment methods.
A term originally applied to the principle that the whole person should be treated, rather than just the person’s disease, disturbance of function, or injury. This principle has always guided the provision of health care of good quality, which stresses the importance of personal responsibility, prevention, exercise, nutrition, rest, moderation, personal habits, and so on. Holistic medicine became the focus of a movement in the 1960s with the formation of the International Association of Holistic Health Practitioners (IAHHP) in 1970. The term has come under criticism by the medical profession and others in recent years because it has come to include a variety of treatment methods, some of which are incompatible with others, and some of which have scientific proof while others do not. For example, such a mixed bag of concepts as astrology, nutrition, faith healing, graphology, macrobiotics, naturopathy, numerology, acupuncture, psychocalisthenics, self-massage, psychotherapy, and touch encounter have at various times been listed as among the tools of holistic medicine.
System of medical care based on the concept that a person is an integrated entity, more than the sum of his/her physiological, mental, psychological, and social parts.
Medical system, based on the idea that like cures like, which uses drugs or other substances that would produce in healthy persons the symptoms shown by the sick person (e.g., treating a fever by giving small doses of a drug that raises body temperature) (compare allopathy).
Any approach to healing that addresses the whole person, including the mind, body, and spirit. Holistic medicine integrates both traditional and alternative therapies to prevent and treat disease, but its hallmark is its emphasis on promoting health and wellness. Health, to holistic medicine, is the free and unobstructed flow of life-force energy through mind, body, and spirit. One example of holistic medicine is anthroposophical medicine.
A patient-centered approach to healing that strives to meet the cognitive, emotional, physical, social, and spiritual needs of patients.
Holistic therapy is a type of treatment that focuses on the individual as a whole rather than simply addressing specific disease symptoms. This comprehensive approach is highly advocated by many practitioners in the field of complementary medicine.