Integrative medicine is a holistic, “whole-person” approach to
health care that integrates complementary, evidence-based therapies with
conventional medical care. Evidence-based means clinically proven and
backed up by objective, non-biased evidence.
A holistic
practitioner: 1) views the patient as being ultimately responsible for
his/her well being; 2) fosters and maintains a partnership with the
patient, using therapies with which both feel comfortable; 3) evaluates and
recommends treatment options that address the cause of an illness, as
well as the symptoms.
With
a focus on treating not only the body, but also the mind and spirit,
integrative medicine draws on a wide range of different healing
modalities to maximize each person’s ability to return to full health.
The idea is that the body has its own innate healing ability, which
simply needs to be awakened in order to promote optimal health and
well-being.
In conjunction with
conventional medicine, a number of complementary therapies and
treatments may be used or recommended which may include:
Dietary changes
Nutritional or herbal supplements
Acupuncture
Yoga
Chiropractic
Reiki
Massage
Rolfing/Structural Integration
Counseling
Biofeedback
Guided imagery/hypnosis
Music or Dance therapy
Many other possible options
What is Functional Medicine?
Functional Medicine focuses on the goal of restoring optimal
function and balance to the body. It is a science based approach that
examines each individual's biochemistry and lifestyle to find the best,
individualized therapy for each patient. Instead of
just suppressing symptoms, it deals with the root causes of disease.
It is less concerned with making a diagnosis and more concerned with
the
underlying imbalances, which are the mechanisms of the disease process.
Functional medicine treats the
patient and not the disease. In addition, it provides a framework for
the practice of medicine that uses all the tools of healing, both
conventional and alternative, to address the whole person rather than
an isolated set of symptoms.
Functional medicine is grounded upon the following principles:
The approach is patient centered rather than disease centered
Health is a positive vitality, not merely the absence of disease.
The human body functions as an orchestrated network of interconnected
systems, rather than individual systems functioning autonomously and
without effect on each other (much like the function of our entire world).
Core clinical imbalances are examined to look for the underlying causes of chronic disease.
These core clinical imbalances involve malfunctions in the complex systems of the body and the balance between them. These systems include:
Hormones
Neurotransmitters
The immune system
Cellular membrane and mitochondrial dysfunction
Detoxification and biotransformation
Digestion and absorption
Inflammation
Structural problems
Functional medicine is dedicated to improving the management of
complex, chronic disease by intervening at multiple levels to address
these core clinical imbalances and to restore each patient’s
optimal functionality and health.
The idea is that the body has its own innate healing ability, which
simply needs to be awakened in order to promote optimal health and
well-being.
In conjunction with
conventional medicine, a number of complementary therapies and
treatments may be used or recommended which may include: