Functional Medicine
There is only one YOU
People are like snowflakes; no two are alike. In our practice, we recognize that YOU are an individual who is genetically and biochemically unique. Functional Medicine is patient-centered. It’s all about treating YOU as a WHOLE person, not simply your disease.
This treatment approach is based on scientific data and considers the environment, genetics, and lifestyle factors. It encourages close collaboration between the patient and practitioner with a combined goal of creating ultimate wellness. Functional Medicine requires a detailed understanding of each patient’s genetic and biochemical makeup, lifestyle factors, and a detailed patient history to formulate a personalized treatment plan with the best possible outcomes.
HOW IS FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE DIFFERENT FROM CONVENTIONAL MEDICINE?
Functional medicine is often illustrated as a tree with a complex root system. This depicts conventional medicine as treating what is above the surface, namely symptoms and disease, versus functional medicine, which seeks to understand and treat the root cause of the disease – namely lifestyle and environmental factors, including diet, activity, nutrition, stress, etc.
The standard model of care is to diagnose a disease and match that disease with a corresponding drug or intervention. While conventional medicine is unsurpassed in treating acute illnesses such as trauma and other emergencies, sadly, it fails miserably in the care of the chronic diseases that affect over 125 million Americans.
Chronic conditions such as allergies, GI issues, hormonal dysfunction, metabolic, and some neurological problems are not always managed well within the conventional approach. Functional medicine strives to understand the unique makeup of each patient, address the underlying causes of disease, and engage both patient and practitioner in a therapeutic partnership.
Many of these chronic conditions are finding solutions in the field of Functional Medicine, which treats the WHOLE person using evidence-based care.