Whole Foods, whole medicine.

The fact that the Whole Foods chain and holistic medicine have been growing in parallel isn't a coincidence. Foods became less whole as they became more processed, and medicine became less about caring for people than about specialists treating specific problems and diseases. So-called alternative medicine has been growing faster than traditional medicine for some years. It's no wonder that "whole" foods approaches to food marketing are growing while traditional supermarkets are having trouble holding their own. Today's integration of nutrition and alternative medicine reflects consumers' wishes to benefit from all kinds of healing knowledge, eastern as well as western, ancient as well as modern, and to focus on the whole in ways that benefits the parts. Holistic approaches to food are about feeling good about the food you are eating, the environment you are living in, balancing priorities, and feeling acknowledged as a whole person.