Health is not just the absence of disease but an optimal state of being: physically, mentally, and spiritually. We believe that in order to reach our ultimate personal health goals we need to understand the appropriate lifestyle changes and interventions that get us there. Complementary and alternative therapies, diet, nutrition, fitness, and health behavior modification offer tremendous promise. However, research into these areas for optimizing our health is in its infancy. Our purpose is to understand the biological, physiological, psychosocial, and spiritual effects of existing and potential therapies, and disseminate key research findings into clinical practice.

The DCIHR is driven by four core areas of research: 

1. Diet, Nutrition, and Supplements
2. Physical Activity, Manual Therapies, and Recovery
3. Environment
4. Mind-Body