Alternative Medicine Research Yearbook 2011

Life is complex and human life is even more so. Holistic derives from the Greek word ueio, holos, holos, meaning whole or complete. Looking at the whole organism minimizes loss of meaning, when the chaos of the detail is examined. Holistic medicine aims to restore health to all levels of the human being, including body, mind, spirit and the environmental system in which the patient lives. We aim to understand the patient in their system and avoid imposing an alien system that detracts from being able to understand the fully functioning person. This year book 2011 brings together the work the authors did over the past year with a broad research agenda on a global basis, addressing questions ranging from pain, food additives, quality of life, integrative medicine to discussion of randomized clinical trial. The authors hope this book will provide the reader with new knowledge, link research to practice and policy, and help build networks of research collaborations and move science forward in this field.