The advances of modern biomedicine have provided a sophisticated but somewhat mechanistic approach to health. It is an approach which is able to function well in emergencies, but which has fallen down in the more basic areas of maintaining and creating health. Dazzled by the progress of science, we have lost touch with the simple remedies and body wisdom that were once a part of every household. This Briefing suggests that Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) has a central part to play in the future of health care. Both by looking into the past and reclaiming some of the more traditional views of disease, and by looking into the future and encouraging the application of appropriate research.