Holistic vs. Homeopathic: What's the Difference?

There are quite a few people who use the words Holistic and Homeopathic interchangeably but they are two different things.

Holistic

Holistic is term used to describe a particular approach to health care or life which takes into account all parts of a something.  As a philosophy it is defined as “characterized by comprehension of the parts of something as intimately interconnected and explicable only by reference to the whole.”  It’s the idea that you can’t address one part of something only; you must look at its relationship to the whole and treat it accordingly.

In natural medicine it’s defined as “characterized by the treatment of the whole person, taking into account mental and social factors, rather than just the physical symptoms of a disease.” A person or practitioner who uses a Holistic approach will look at all factors in your life including diet, stress levels, physical activity, home life etc. before addressing your individual symptoms. They see your body as interconnected systems and won’t just treat the one area that seems to have a symptom. They see your body as part of the whole of your life and look at all the factors that affect it. When a Holistic practitioner prescribes something to help you regain your physical balance it may be an herbal supplement, a vitamin, a diet change, stress relief or a homeopathic remedy.

Homeopathic

That brings us to the definition of Homeopathic. Homeopathy is a very specialized system of treatment. Webster’s defines it as “ a system of medical practice that treats a disease especially by the administration of minute doses of a remedy that would in larger amounts produce in healthy persons symptoms similar to those of the disease. “ It’s similar to the idea behind vaccines but it’s been around since the 1700’s and it is widely used in Europe as well as in America and other countries. A Homeopathic practitioner will look at a person in a “Holistic” way to find the exact remedy to help with their issues. Homeopathic remedies can come in a liquid, pellet, or topical and some supplements have homeopathic remedies incorporated into them.

So it’s possible for a Holistic approach to use a Homeopathic remedy and for a Homeopathic remedy to be prescribed in a Holistic manner but they are different things entirely.

Benefits of using Homeopathic Medicine include:

• It does not interfere with other medications used
• It can be used by children and infants
• It can be used by pregnant and nursing women
• It can be used for acute or chronic conditions
• It is non-invasive