Functional Medicine is a biology-based approach to processes that focuses on finding the root cause of a disease and treating it. In order to understand who you are, functional medicine clinics take a holistic approach, recognizing that every person is special and should have a treatment plan that is tailored for their needs. Functional medicine help physicians to figure out why you have an ailment in the first place, instead of deciding which medication can cure an illness, and to repair what is no longer working. In other words, Instead of focusing on the treatment of individual illnesses, a Functional Medicine practitioner restores natural physiology, and normal body function. In general, we find that most disease processes clear up if we can restore normal body function. In a way, Functional Medicine is a field of specialization in itself. Most docs incorporate the Functional Medicine model with whatever their original training was.
The process of functional medicine is similar to any of the other fields of medicine. There is an initial patient appointment, normally an hour or more where they take a full history, not just a medical history but a history of pressures in your life, working to identify the original root cause of the health issues you are experiencing rather than relying exclusively on the present symptoms. Different types of laboratories would be ordered by all Functional Medicine physicians, some used in traditional medicine, but most special to our area. Specialized microbiome GI analyses, calculation of nutrient levels, levels of amino acids, organic brain health acids, pathways for liver detoxification. SNP testing or genetic testing is popular, along with a range of hormone assays, as is food allergy testing. Practitioners in functional medicine aim to determine first whether the body is not functioning properly. They do this by using the specific history of the patient as a reference, with the use of sophisticated laboratory research, and a deep dive into the general lifestyle of a patient. Treatment also requires improvements in diet and lifestyle, therapy (emotional and/or nutritional, if appropriate), a mixture of natural agents such as herbs, homeopathic, and vitamins, and, if appropriate, medication.
Doctors in the field of functional medicine help to enable their patients to play an active role in their own wellbeing. The patient would have a better chance of being effectively treated and leading a healthy life by informing a patient about their own body and its processes.
Functional Medicine Helps
