Holistic medicine takes a whole-person approach to healing - not only is the chemistry of the body considered, so is the workings of the patient's mind and spiritual health.

At one time this approach was considered out of the realm of conventional medicine, but today many physicians are adopting certain tenants of the holistic approach in their practice.

"Spirituality is a huge piece of how we address the stress in our lives," said Dr. Thomas Golemon, chairman and professor for the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria. "What's the most important thing to you and who's on your side when the chips are down?"

Golemon said he always has quietly addressed spirituality with his patients as an important piece in the puzzle of good health. Having a spiritual and social framework that helps patients deal positively with the difficulties of life is important.

"Certainly we know that mood, and how people address their lives does make a difference in how people get well," he said. "Your environment is important - do you belong to a church or a synagogue or do you have someone who can support you? All this stuff plays into what your blood pressure is doing."

But a good support system and a positive attitude is not the only thing - it's much more complicated than that. "Optimistic people still die of cancer," Golemon said. It's important for people to be selective in their use of alternative medical treatments - some things are good, but some can have negative consequences, Golemon said.

"Sometimes when I look at people's medicine lists, there are five, six, eight diet supplements there - a lot of time those supplements interact with the other medicines they are taking," Golemon said. "Is it good for them to be taking all these trace metals? I don't see the data for that."

Conventional medicine is research-based - in other words, doctors don't recommend treatments that have not been proven effective through scientific study. A few years ago studies pointed to fish oil as being good for the heart, and doctors began recommending that their patients take fish oil supplement. But while pills are convenient, it's not the same as consuming the real thing.

"Eating a fatty fish is much better than taking a pill of the oil from a fish," said Dr. Jeff Leman, family practice doctor and associate program director of the family medicine residency program.

Diet has become one tenant of holistic medicine wholeheartedly adopted by conventional medicine. Many studies have proven that patients can greatly improve their health - and in some cases cure disease - by consuming the right foods. Thirty years ago, this was a pretty radical idea.

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Holistic approach blends spirituality, nutrition, conventional treatments