Many physicians are attracted to theholistic approach to medicine but may be confused by the expanse of the field. In his latest volumes of The Principles and Practice of Integrative Medicine, Majid Ali, MD, gives us two unifying principles of medicine that can serve as a point of reference for anyone wishing to explore this new field. The author used the work of Charles Darwin to come up with the idea of the Darwin Principle. The principle states: No part can be understood except through an understanding of its relationship with the whole. All of the body’s stressors are the whole in this case. Ali calls upon the physician to consider the many contributors to ill health, naming our polluted environment and persistent anger and stress as the primary threats to wellbeing. Oxygen is front and center in most processes in the human body and it plays a role in the development of disease. It can give life and it can also destroy it. Oxygen is important for a healthy life. There are many ways in which Oxygen Homeostasis becomes disturbed, leading to what the author calls dysoxygenosis, and what is needed to restore health. There are three mechanisms that are regulated by oxygen. The others are affected when any of these are disrupted. The result will be acidosis and disequilibrium. He finished this volume with a discussion of oxystatic therapies that include hydrogen peroxide, ozone, and direct oxygen. The shortened term for dysoxygenosis is called dysox in the title. Oxygen plays a number of roles in either maintaining health or causing chronic illness. When the cell is not able to utilize oxygen properly, it retains acids and causes disease. Several common chronic illnesses, such as inflammation, asthma, and osteoporosis, are examined by the author and discussed how disturbed oxygen metabolism is at the root of these ailments. The last book in the Darwin trilogy is Darwin, Dysox, and Integrative Protocols, and he asks us to examine the many environmental stressors that could be responsible, for they must be mitigated for the damage to cease and make a return to health possible. There are additional illnesses and processes that are affected by oxygen metabolism. If you are looking for a cookbook approach to medicine, you will not find that in these volumes, because this author offers more. He talks about why the move to integrative medicine is necessary. The traditional medical model doesn’t meet our needs. The treatment of the many Gulf War soldiers who returned from that 1991 war with a variety of serious illnesses is an example of this. The soldiers were said to be imagining their illnesses when the one disease/one cause/one drug model failed to account for the syndrome. The total body burden of stressors the soldiers experienced exceeded the comprehension of medical professionals who are not trained to examine the cumulative effect of those stressors on the human body. Climate change is one of the reasons why the soldiers were left to cope on their own. As the problem gets worse, the atmospheric oxygen levels are expected to decrease. An impressive case can be made for learning about the importance of oxygen in the human body. He points to the many species that are already suffering mass illnesses and death as an indicator of our future. For those who wish to embrace theholistic approach to medicine, these volumes may prove to be a valuable entry.