The Future of Medicine

Functional Medicine is a branch of medicine that was recently developed to address our nations 21st century healthcare needs. It offers many benefits that conventional medicine cannot address. Conventional western medicine often uses a "diagnosis and audios" motto where the physician spends 5-15 minutes with a patient on average and only treats the patients symptoms, not the underlying cause of the symptoms or disease. This type of care is great for traumatic events such a broken leg, heart attack, infectious disease, appendicitis, etc. However, conventional medicine is not equipped to care for patients with chronic conditions. According to the Center of Disease and Control (CDC), 6 in 10 American adults have one chronic conditions and 4 in 10 have two or more chronic conditions. Chronic conditions can include diabetes, cancer, stroke, Alzheimer's, heart disease, and many more. Chronic conditions often have more than one cause for example poor nutrition, smoking, toxic environment, sedentary life style, stress, and lack of sleep. Thus, chronic conditions require more investigating into their root causes, plural, and often require lifestyle modification which is not advocated for in conventional medicine all to often. Below are some of the characteristics of a doctor trained and certified in Functional Medicine:

1. They seek to identify and address the root cause of disease and symptoms. This often means spending more time with patients. We're talking an hour or two to really investigate a patients unique condition.

2. They view the body as one whole system, that is interrelated. For example, the gut affects the brain and vice versa called the mind-gut connection. Thus, they treat the whole person/system not just symptoms.

3. These practitioners focus on their patients environment, lifestyles, diet, genes, and exercise habits.

5. They value prevention of disease through nutrition, diet, lifestyle modifications, and exercise.

6. They focus on the body's innate power to heal itself.

7. They empower the patient to heal themselves through assistance and direction.

8. These doctors individualize and tailor treatments to patients since each patient is unique and will respond to treatment differently.

9. They integrate western medicine practices along with alternative or integrative medicine practices. They use meditation, stress management techniques, detox programs, supplements, botanicals, and therapeutic diets to heal patients mind, body and spirit.

10. They realize that true health is not just the absence of disease, but it is also having vitality, energy, and happiness.

How to find a Functional Medicine Practitioner near you:

-You can search for a practitioner near you on the Institute for Functional Medicine website linked below.

https://www.ifm.org/find-a-practitioner/