Functional Medicine

How Much Do You Know About Functional Medicine?

Many believe functional medicine is the way of the future, however, it still isn’t universally known. To really understand what functional medicine can do, it’s important to have a grasp on traditional medicine.

The Future of Medicine

Functional medicine is the future for better health care as it seeks answers for finding the root cause of disease and views the body as one integrated system.

How are Functional Medicine Practitioners Different?

Think for a moment about your last doctor’s visit… How much time did you spend with the doctor?

Chronic diseases (such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer, mental illness, and autoimmune disorders like rheumatoid arthritis) have become more and more common

There’s a gaping hole between what scientific research tells us versus the way medical doctors practice. Functional medicine can fill the gap!

Promoting health beyond the absence of disease involves patient-centered care. This is the core of functional medicine! Practitioners listen to patients’ stories to gain a deeper understanding of lifestyle factors in order to tailor treatments to individual needs.

Have you been searching for an integrative, science-based approach to better health?

Functional medicine takes into account each individual's genetic makeup in addition to a patient’s internal mind, body, spirit, and external physical and social environment for a new approach to healthcare.

Did you know that by integrating traditional medical practices with ‘alternative’ or ‘holistic’ practices, functional medicine offers the best of both worlds? This special integration promotes prevention by examining diet and exercise, laboratory testing and other diagnostic techniques, botanical medicines, supplements, therapeutic diets, detoxification programs, or stress-management techniques.

When it comes to symptoms of stomach pain, fatigue, migraine, etc., it’s a common misconception that symptoms are related to something we recently consumed. (It actually takes up to 72 hours for a symptom to manifest, which can make it incredibly difficult to pinpoint which food may be the culprit!)

Functional medicine has the tools to help.

The easy answer is they don’t! Weight loss isn’t an easy fix, so don’t believe claims such as:

-“Safely lose three pounds or more every week without dieting or exercise!”

Some of the foods you are consuming may have ingredients and or preservatives that may be affecting your genetics expressions in hurtful ways. If you've never had your comprehensive genetics test carried out, now is the time. With that information, you will learn exactly how foods, lifestyle choices and environmental factors are interacting with your genes and how you can improve.

Dr. Peter Osborne is often referred to as “The Gluten Free Warrior.” His focus is providing nutritional support to help those with painful chronic degenerative and autoimmune problems using natural methods.

Diet and nutrition form the foundation of health, however, the typical modern diet lacks several very important nutrients.

As more doctors begin offering complementary and alternative therapies, functional medicine is beginning to infiltrate the mainstream approach. Natural approaches are now preferred over conventional medicine alone. (Many doctors are realizing the benefits of combining therapies for better results!)

How many time have you gone to a doctor seeking answers just to leave with a new prescription but no explanation? This is all too common in the current healthcare arena.

The World Health Organization regards iodine deficiency to be the most prevalent and easily preventable cause of impaired cognitive development in children.

The importance of diet and physical activity cannot be overlooked when treating and preventing chronic disease. Dr. Mark Hyman is a practicing family physician, a ten-time #1 New York Times bestselling author, and an internationally recognized leader, speaker, educator, and advocate in his field. He’s not only an advocate for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, but he’s also a practicing functional medical physician, too!

Vitamin D deficiency is one of the most common vitamin deficiencies but symptoms are subtle.

Over 100 million Americans have digestive problems including irritable bowel, bloating, constipation, diarrhea, heartburn, reflux…

Did you know diseases such as eczema, psoriasis, or arthritis are caused by poor gut health?

It turns out that high-sugar and highly processed diets disrupt the number of healthy bacteria and can cause an overgrowth of yeast in the gut. Most doctors don’t treat diseases by improving gut function, which is why the disease is reoccurring.

Are you surprised?

Fact: Heart disease is the leading cause of death for people of most racial/ethnic groups in the United States.

Try this recipe for a refreshing, healthy dessert or treat.

INGREDIENTS:

-2¼ cups full-fat coconut milk

-1 ripe banana

-4 tablespoons monk fruit powder

-zest of 1 lemon

-½ teaspoon ground cardamom

-1 teaspoon alcohol-free, gluten-free pure vanilla extract

-1/8 teaspoon sea salt

-½ cup fresh or frozen raspberries

Blend together and pour into popsicle molds. Freeze overnight. Pop them out of the molds and wrap each one. Keep frozen and enjoy as desired.

Take a look at this powerful Ted Talks video on reforming an outdated medical system: https://www.ted.com/talks/eric_dishman_take_health_care_off_the_mainframe

This is what we’ve been told for years, we have to have a balance between energy intake and output. While this is true, the ‘Eat less + Exercise more = Weight loss’ is overly simplistic.

The real trick is tuning up your metabolism to use your body’s natural calorie-burning capabilities.

Functional medicine can help!

As many of you may have experienced, losing weight is not as simple as eating less. (In fact, eating less can set off a reaction in the body to store more energy!)

We’re told a calorie is a calorie, which is true in a lab. However, once calories are metabolized, they are absorbed at different rates.

Functional medicine understands the diverse differences and can help!

Several answers would be acceptable, but the one we’re talking about is high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).

You’ve probably heard advertising campaigns stating that HFCS is no different than cane sugar. Guess what, these campaigns are supported by the Corn Refiners Association!

The truth is research shows HFCS can trigger body-wide inflammation and obesity. Want to learn more? Ask a functional medicine practitioner.

Conventional medicine strategies assume that mind and body function separately. Yet current research shows just the opposite! There are multiple systems of the mind and body which interact in a complex holistic web of biochemical, hormonal, and metabolic relationships.

Functional medicine views the large interactive web of systems in the entire body and uses a number of lab tests to determine any vitamin deficiencies or metabolic disturbances to help treat stress-related disorders naturally with diet, physical activity, and supplementation.