Introduction
Holism and Vitalism are regarded as the core of most systems of complementary and alternative medicine. The combination of medicine and philosophy began when the connection between diseases, health, and nature was incorporated into scientific thoughts. Consequently, mythical explanations were not issued when referring to health and diseases. The various traditional forms of medicine practiced by Indians, Egyptians, Chinese, and Greek have a similar understanding in that healing is an innate ability of the body; this concept is known as Vitalism . They also share the concept of Holism which recognizes that particular logical principles and laws are followed by diseases, health, and life, and that health is only achieved when all aspects of the individual are appropriately treated. The acceptance of Vitalism and Holism in the practice of both traditional and modern medicine vary widely since they have been shown to contrast with scientific concepts.
The History of Applications of Vitalism and Holism Concept
Reference to the concept of Vitalism was recorded in the writings of Corpus Hippocraticum and this took place between 460 BC and 377 BC. It was mentioned in the writings that human beings possess an instinctive force with a responsibility of maintaining health. The concepts of tolle causam and vis medicatrix were also introduced by Corpus (Willis & Rayner, 2013). Aristotle and Socrates who were Greek philosophers described the vital principle using the term “logo” around 300 BC (Willis & Rayner, 2013). Aristotole was of the opinion that the body of an individual was animated and directed by a “soul” and it contributed to the person’s state of health. Hideard von Bingen between 1098 and 1179 mentioned in her book, Causae et Curae that viridatas is a vital concept that which designate the active principle that provides energy and life to plants and animals including the human beings.
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Moses Maimonides between 1135 and 1204 emphasized on attaining health by the use of positive mental outlook, exercise, and diet, and strongly supported the concept of vitalism . Many traditional and naturopathic practitioners have greatly contributed to the philosophy of vitalism, including Christoph Wilhelm Hufeland, Samuel Hahnemann, Isaac Jennings, Adolf Just, Juan Esteve Dulin and Robert Walter (McKenzie, 2012). The origin of the concept of holism can be traced back to 428 BC when Plato, a Greek philosopher incorporated the idea of a soul to the body of a human. This was regarded as the beginning of holism and the concept was further expanded through the contributions of a number of scientists, philosophers and practitioners including Aristotle, Galen of Pergamon, Corpus Hippocraticum, and Hildegard von Bingen
Philosophy of Vitalism and its Application in Complementary Medicine
The philosophy of vitalism state that a single vital force governs the existence of living beings. Living organisms are not regarded as machines that operate in accordance with strict cause. The vital force is called Qi or Chi as is an “innate intelligence” existing in all the living beings including the herbs (Willis & Rayner, 2013). The innate intelligence present in humans can be influenced by the innate intelligence in plants. The concept of vitalism differ from the mechanistic view that governs the practice of conventional medicine, that is founded on the principle that the body can be subdivided into components whose functions can be analyzed independently of the other parts.
The common assumption of the orthodox medicine is that a real-life patient is represented by the models they have just formed. According to the vitalist concept, the mechanistic perspective of the modern medicine may not be correct since it is limiting in many instances (Ernst, 2013). The body molecules, cells, organs and tissues do not make up the vital force but rather by components including the early childhood environment, heredity, relationships in the family, social environment, past psychological and physical traumas, previous medical interventions, transitions in life considered stressful and food intake (Keshet, Ben-Arye & Schiff, 2012).. Also included is temperament which are strengths or weaknesses, physical activity and exposure to toxins in the environment. Whereas the non-physical self is embraced by the vitalists , it is not acceptable to the mainstream scientists.
According to the vitalists , the health of the body is determined by the vital force or the spirit. They are of the opinion that the feeling of a person, whether better or worse, is dictated by the extent in which he or she can be masters of his or her life (Jonas et al., 2013). Disease simply is a manifestation of an advanced form of stress which occurs when a person fails to attain spiritual and physical goals (Ernst, 2013). The vitalistic approach translates into methods of treatment in herbal or naturopathic medicine that aims to change the current form of the organism to that of improved overall health(Coulter, 2017). The symptoms, however, are not targeted directly by the vitalistic perspectives. As a matter of fact, methods which target symptoms and do not tackle the underlying patterns are considered “suppressive” or non-ideal and are only applied on a temporary basis.
The modern vitalism is regarded as part of biomedical medicine and system theory since they focus on circularity as connected to causality (feedback loop). The vitality of any given organism is complexity. This is shown by the ability of the organism to repair itself, reproduce, respond to stimuli and undergo growth and development (Willis & Rayner, 2013). All these processes require some level of coordination and organization that may not be explained clearly by the mechanistic thinking.
The Concept of Holism
Application of holism concept in herbal medicine practice aims at developing a treatment method for an individual while taking into consideration the physical, spiritual, psychological and emotional aspects. The person also performs a vital function in the maintenance as well as the restoration of health. The inherent healing properties of the body are respected by the holistic practitioners and therefore they do not apply medicines that can impede the vital force or the ability of the body (McKenzie, 2012). The strategies that are applied in the western herbal medicine include the enhancement of the physiological state (Keshet, Ben-Arye & Schiff, 2012). Physiological enhancement aims at improving nutrition and increases detoxification of the body systems. There is also the aspect of physiological compensation that aims at controlling the over-stimulated functions to the same extent as compensating for the deficiencies. Lastly, the underlying cause can be treated and this can be achieved by making use of a system oriented approach.
This approach places emphasis on the patient as opposed to the disease. Therefore it does not just address particular symptoms but the whole individual (Keshet, Ben-Arye & Schiff, 2012). The present literature identifies Holism as an important component to health both of the individuals and the environment (Willis & Rayner, 2013). The concept of Holism can in many cases, for instance, naturopathic practitioners can treat hypertensive patients by addressing the lifestyle and physiological factors and environmental factors that contribute to the condition. They can also offer supportive treatments for the heart of the patient.
The concept of Holism and Vitalism has however been rejected in scientific circles because scientists argue that the laws of physics and chemistry can fully explain the biological processes in the body. Majority of biologists currently associate vitalism with superstition and anti-scientific attitudes.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the concept of vitalism and holism have been shown to have a rich history and their interpretations have been based on many perspectives. While the idea of fully utilizing the concepts may prove to be a challenge, especially among the herbalists with a more scientific perspective, the consequences of their application should strongly be considered since they can bring about positive changes in the treatment protocols, in addition to improving our alertness when using natural processes in clinical practice.
References
Coulter, I. (2017). Integration and paradigm clash: The practical difficulties of integrative medicine. In Mainstreaming Complementary and Alternative Medicine (pp. 103-122). Routledge.
Ernst, E. (2013). Healing, Hype Or Harm?: A Critical Analysis of Complementary Or Alternative Medicine (Vol. 8). Andrews UK Limited.
Jonas, W. B., Eisenberg, D., Hufford, D., & Crawford, C. (2013). The evolution of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in the USA over the last 20 years. Complementary Medicine Research , 20 (1), 65-72.
Keshet, Y., Ben-Arye, E., & Schiff, E. (2012). Can holism be practiced in a biomedical setting? A qualitative study of the integration of complementary medicine to a surgical department. Health: , 16 (6), 585-601.
McKenzie, B. A. (2012). Is complementary and alternative medicine compatible with evidence-based medicine?. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association , 241 (4), 421-426.
Willis, K. F., & Rayner, J. A. (2013). Integrative medical doctors—Public health practitioner or lifestyle coach?. European Journal of Integrative Medicine , 5 (1), 8-14.
Willis, K. F., & Rayner, J. A. (2013). Integrative medical practitioners and the use of evidence. European Journal of Integrative Medicine , 5 (5), 410-417.
