5 Key Principles Of Functional Medicine For Optimal Health

Many patients arrive on the doorstep of Functional Medicine after seeing numerous doctors and health care specialists. Unfortunately, most come away frustrated because they have not experienced lasting relief from their symptoms.

Functional medicine at wellness centers like Integrated Health Systems seeks to shift the focus of treatment from symptom suppression to identifying and addressing root causes. This is accomplished through a collaborative approach that includes standard lab testing, diagnostic techniques, and non-traditional practices such as nutritional counseling, botanicals, therapeutic diets, and detoxification programs.

Functional Medicine Treats the Whole Person

In Functional Medicine, the practitioner takes a holistic approach to wellness by looking at how different systems of your body work together. This approach emphasizes healthy lifestyle practices to promote ongoing wellness.

This approach is based on the principle that your body is an intelligent system that always strives to stay in a healthy balance. When this balance is disrupted, health issues begin to bubble up to the surface.

Conventional medical testing and treatments focus solely on an organ or body part associated with symptoms. Functional Medicine goes beyond that to look at the whole person, which can help to connect the dots of your unique health concerns.

This is achieved through more in-depth lab testing and analysis beyond measuring whether something falls within a normal range. Functional medicine tests reveal optimal levels to aim for, which can help you achieve a balanced state of health.

Identify the Root Cause

The biology-based approach of functional medicine ventures beneath the surface to determine the root cause of a patient’s condition. This is accomplished using a thorough body assessment, including comprehensive blood testing and lifestyle behaviors.

Our bodies are intricate ecosystems where countless processes harmoniously interact to maintain health. However, if one or more of these systems become out of balance, it can trigger the onset of disease and health issues.

Root cause medicine identifies and addresses the imbalances resulting from genetic, biochemical, and lifestyle factors. This enables the body to return to a state of balance and homeostasis, eliminating the need for unnecessary medications or other medical interventions. This also allows the practitioner to promote optimal function for a longer, healthier lifespan.

Restore Homeostasis

Your body seeks homeostasis to create a balance that can withstand the many changes within and without. It’s a complex process that involves both feedback and feedforward systems.

Functional Medicine focuses on finding and correcting the core imbalances contributing to your health issues. This includes optimizing the function of organs and hormones, restoring normal blood sugar and hormone levels, identifying food sensitivities (not allergies), eliminating harmful environmental chemicals, and more.

By focusing on the root cause, this approach aims to heal your body and prevent future disease. It’s an exciting new way to achieve optimal health, healing, and wellness. By removing the barriers that have kept you from living your best life, your body can naturally return to balance and homeostasis.

Optimize Function

Unlike conventional medicine, which treats symptoms and uses a disease-centered focus, functional Medicine identifies the root cause of illness. This individualized approach considers the many genetic, biochemical, and environmental factors that affect a person’s health.

Functional doctors use an operating strategy that promotes optimal health to identify and correct early imbalances before they become chronic. They take a holistic and individualized approach to treating each patient and use the latest research in their practice.

When you have a functional doctor on your team, you can rely on them to help you achieve your health goals this year. In a world full of fad diets and quick fixes, embracing functional Medicine is the key to a sustainable journey toward health.

Optimize the Environment

Whether it’s the food you eat, your level of physical exercise, or stress management strategies, functional medicine practitioners look at each patient individually and assess how their lifestyles impact their health. This helps them create a personalized preventive care plan that addresses core imbalances and promotes optimal health.

Unlike traditional medicine, functional medicine is focused on treating the root causes of diseases and improving long-term wellness.

We are not doctors and this is in no way intended to be used as medical advice and we cannot be held responsible for your results. As with any product, service or supplement, use at your own risk. Always do your own research before using.