Holistic Healthcare

Holistic Healthcare, Possibilities and Challenges, by George, Oluwafemi, and Joseph, Editors, CRC Press 2017

Yoga, medicinal plants, audio visual therapies, all of them are becoming increasingly important to Western health systems.  In fact, Massachusetts General recently ran an all-day cancer conference dealing only with the psychological issues around all types of cancer - breast, prostate, bone, brain, the works.  And it was so refreshing!  Chemo and radiation were of course represented, but the "alternative therapies" gathered fresh interest.

Many of Holistic Healthcare's contributors are non-Western health experts, and their approaches and history provide a wider look at big health challenges.  Chapter 1, for instance, offers comparisons in cures and costs moving from chemical medicine through physical therapy, psychotherapy, spiritual therapy, to social/environmental medicine.  By the time readers move on to the cumulative cost of one quality adjusted life year, they  begin to wonder if this spiritual stuff might just be something we should take more seriously.  The cost differences are of course tremendous.

And the sum total of cures per year using both chemical medicine, as well as spiritual approaches, mind-body, etc.  are important.  But we need the experts to sort this all out, and to help us decide how best to spend our healthcare dollars.  "For a society, the most important thing is to choose a medicine that is affordable, which in general benefits the patients, without harming them."

If you're interested in the nutrition side of cancer prevention, chapters 4, 6, and 7, covering natural antibiotics and green tea and black tea extract will surprise you.  Finally, Chapter 10 looks at insomnia and alternative treatments.  Although this chapter doesn't go far in enough in recommending solutions for so many sleep deprived people of all ages and conditions, it is a great starting point for those sufferers wanting to get an idea of causes and possible solutions.

Overall, Holistic Healthcare is written at a high level for healthcare professionals, but those of us non-professionals looking for new solutions can pick and choose the helpful areas they want to pay attention to.  Mill Girl Verdict:  very useful book.