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     Understanding Functional Medicine
 

     Functional Medicine - Medicine of the Future
 

     What is Functional Illness?
 

     Functional Diagnostic Illness

Understanding Functional Medicine

Functional Medicine combines the ancient traditional health beliefs of primitive peoples with the benefits of modern science. It is an emerging field which focuses upon improvement of physical, mental, (spiritual?) and emotional function. Functional Medicine sees disease, not as an enemy, but as an opportunity for change and growth. In older systems of medicine it was believed that the body was self-regulating and that disease occurred when this self-regulation became disrupted. In more contemporary terms we speak of feedback loops. When these feedback mechanisms get stuck or disrupted, imbalances and disharmony occur. We call this being “sick”. The aim of functional medicine is to help your body to come back into dynamic alignment.

Functional medicine focuses not on endpoint or pathological state, but on the dynamic processes which underlie and precede it. While acknowledging the existence of pathology as well as a need to understand it, functional medicine focuses on the underlying processes and seeks a path of therapy which engages these underlying events. Functional Medicine is used in combination with contemporary medicine for the best possible approach.

Functional Medicine is holistic rather than specialized. It approaches the body as web-like and holographic. Contemporary Medicine compartmentalizes the body into specialties: liver doctors, heart doctors, mind doctors, etc. In Functional Medicine, all systems are known to be linked and patterns between organ systems are explored. Some of the many diverse fields which contribute to Functional Medicine are: genetics, herbal medicine, nutrition, environmental toxicology, endocrinology, natural medicine of all types, gastroenterology, psychology, and immunology.

Patient Centered Care

Today people want to seek medical care that compliments with their own lifestyle and values. Many people are turning to complimentary medicine because they feel listened to, cared for, and are treated as a whole person.

Functional Medicine looks at how you are “doing” and “feeling”. You won’t be told “It’s all in your head.” Functional Medicine is interested in you—your life, your well-being, what you eat, your work environment, your relationships and communication with others, how you relax and play, your hobbies, what medications you’ve taken, how well your digestive system functions, and what chemicals you’ve been exposed to. Your total lifestyle helps create a picture of By understanding who you really are and hearing about your life, significant clues and information can be found to really help you feel better. You can change the way you feel!

Rather than naming a specific disease, Functional Medicine looks to find the underlying causes. The Functional approach takes you and your lifestyle in to the practice of medicine. It looks at you in context of your life and choices. Your treatment program will reflect your needs.

Who Can Benefit from this approach?

Many people today have health problems that don’t fit into simple categories. Often people have complex health problems involving inflammatory responses, immune, nervous, digestive, energy, and/or cardiovascular systems. These people are best helped by a functional approach. Typical patients include people with: Chronic fatigue syndrome, auto-immune illness, fibromyalgia, fatigue of unknown origin, and digestive complaints. Often these people have been to many physicians without results.

FM is also for people who are interested in true preventive health care. They want to take an active role in their own well-being and that of their family. These people seek out FM practitioners to act as guides for their continued good health.

How does Functional Medicine differ from Conventional Medicine?

In a Functional Medicine approach the absence of disease is NOT health. FM is concerned with finding out how you function—on a physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual level. Optimal wellness is the ultimate goal.

In conventional medicine making a diagnosis is often the endpoint of therapy. Just treat the symptoms and send the patient home. FM looks deeper to find the cause. When we have pain, discomfort, or reoccurring health complaints, it is our body’s way of trying to get us to pay attention. Rather than taking a pain medication each time we get a headache, or backache perhaps we ought to ask why we are experiencing the pain.

FM looks to see if you are missing something you may need—perhaps you have special needs for vitamins, minerals, probiotics or amino acids. It also looks to see if you have something you don’t need such as environmental contaminants, heavy metals, bacteria, fungus, and/or parasites. The answer may be simple or complex. For example, if you are depressed, perhaps an anti-depressant would help you to feel better. But wouldn’t you really like to explore why you are depressed? Could it be a neurotransmitter problem? Or a relationship problem? Could you be reacting negatively to food you are eating? Or could it be the load of heavy metals or toxic chemicals you’ve accumulated? This approach obviously takes more work than just writing a prescription for an antidepressant, but it gives a much more satisfying answer.

Contemporary medicine talks about “prevention”. But pap smears, cholesterol and blood pressure screening, and cancer testing are all tests for early detection of disease, not prevention of disease. Functional medicine is concerned with real prevention of disease. By paying attention to small problems, you can often prevent large ones. We seek to help you be able to do more of the things you want to for longer in life and to increase your “healthspan”.

How Functional and Conventional Therapeutics Differ

Biochemical individuality

Earlier this century Roger Williams, MD coined the term “biochemical individuality”. Just as each of us have a unique face, fingerprint and personality, our biochemistry is also unique. There is a wide variety of “normal” values found. For example, research has found that some babies require four times the vitamin B6 as others, and ranges of serum amino acids in healthy young men varied fourfold on average. Looking for your unique biochemical needs provides a foundation for Functional Medicine.

4-R approach

One of the underlying bases of Functional Medicine is the 4-R approach. This approach provides the basic functional treatment philosophy. Although simple in concept, it provides an effective approach for resolving difficult and undefined illness. The 4 R’s:

• Remove refers to the elimination of anything that may be in our body or diet which contributes to poor health. This can include foods, pesticides, food additives, unwanted bacteria, fungi, and parasites.
• Reinnoculation involves the use of probiotic supplements containing lactobacillus acidophilus, bifidobacteria, and other friendly flora. These bacteria manufacture vitamins, repel harmful microbes, and have anti-tumor effects. They are easily disrupted by use of antibiotics and the stress of contemporary living.
• Replace refers to the addition of supplements to support digestive function and may include: digestive enzymes, bile salts, and/or HCl.
• Repair refers to the nutritional support that helps quickly regenerate and heal the body. (Kara: In the 4-R materials this refers only to GI mucosa? Seems better to me to broaden the concept to the whole body, what do you think?)

Your Relationship with your Physician

Your relationship with your doctor is different. It is an equal partnership, teamwork. It makes for a rewarding partnership for both parties. Functional Medicine asks us to pay attention to our bodies and our biology, rather than our sociology. It asks us to be in partnership with our physician, to use our doctors as advisors and explorers on our journey of life.

Functional medicine takes you and your lifestyle into the practice of medicine. It looks at you in context of your life and choices. Your relationship with your doctor will be one of a partnership. Your physician and medical staff will be your advisors in your life journey. You may find that they spend more time with you. You may fill out extensive questionnaires, about your medical history, work history, diet, exercise patterns, stress level, hobbies, use of supplements and medication, and home and work environment. A program will be developed which will be specific to you and your individual needs and lifestyle.

What is Expected of You?

You will be expected to make changes in the way you eat, think, feel, and experience life. You are an important part of this process and your role is primary. You are asked to participate in the process fully. The benefits are tremendous and you will see effects ripple out into your relationships with yourself and others.

You may be asked to: make changes in food choices, eating patterns, take nutritional, homeopathic or herbal supplements, exercise, go through a detoxification program, meditate, see a counselor about life issues, join a support group, have massages or other body-work, sit under colored lights, or any one of many other modalities. You probably will be asked to participate in testing, some of which you will do at home. Some may involve laboratory testing, while others may involve testing the pH of your urine or taking your basal body temperature.

What are the benefits of a Holistic approach?

By looking at each person as an entire being, whole person patterns can be seen. Often people go to see a variety of specialists—one for heart problems, another for gynecological problems, an internist for their general needs, and so on. For example, there was a man who went to see a cardiologist because he experienced heart palpitations. The cardiologist put him on heart medication. He saw his internist because he had a tremendous amount of leg cramping, and was put on a muscle relaxant. And his psychiatrist put him on an anti-depressant for anxiety. The same man saw a functional medicine physician who immediately noticed that all of these symptoms could be due to a lack of magnesium. Magnesium and other supportive nutrients were given and the man was able to discontinue all other medications.

Better health Now

Most of us have a reoccurring health problem that can be alleviated or corrected through functional medicine. Many of us just learn to live with a variety of small to large health problems and to limit our lives accordingly. Often people with irritable bowel syndrome stay home because they are unsure of their bowels. Many women with migraines, don’t schedule anything during certain parts of their menstrual cycle. And people with arthritis just give up moving in certain ways or doing certain things because they can’t. We have been told to just accept our limitations. Physicians working with functional medicine are realistic about the possible limitations, but optimistic about helping you get feel really well again.

Increased Healthspan!

Our goal isn’t necessarily for you to live longer, although you just might. Many people experience a decline in health for the last several decades. Yet we all know people who lived happily and healthily until the last few months or year of life and the quietly passed of “old age.” The goal of functional medicine is to improve overall health throughout life and especially in old age. A recent study from the University of California at Stanford showed that people who began paying attention to preventive health care in mid-life—stopped smoking, exercised, and made dietary changes—had fewer hospitalizations, surgeries, took fewer medications, and lived longer than people who didn’t.

What Types of Lab Tests may be Used?

Evaluating organ "function" versus organ "pathology" is one of the principles of functional medicine. Many labs have developed a number of assessment tools that allow practitioners to understand a patient's functional status. Because these tests are fairly new, many physicans are unfamiliar with their use. These tests compliment the usual testing that physicians use and can detect problems long before more traditional tests find anything amiss. Tests may examine blood, hair, stool, urine, breath, and/or saliva. Common tests check for your nutritional status, digestive function, food and environmental allergies, amino acid balance, energy metabolism function, hormones balance, and more. With this approach no specific disease is being looked for, rather your doctor is looking to determine why your body is out of balance.

For example, food allergy testing can be used in a wide variety of instances. Some common ones include: children with learning or behavior problems, people with migraines, skin problems, depression, digestive complaints, and fuzzy thinking. Hair analysis would be used if exposure to heavy metals was suspected or if malabsorption of minerals was suspected. Innovative saliva testing can measure your levels of hormones such as DHEA, progesterone, testosterone, and estrogens. Stool testing is used to measure overall digestive function, whether you’ve got enough good bacteria in your gut, and if you have bacteria, fungus, or parasites which interfere with good health.

These tests are well-researched and most of them are reimbursed by insurance companies. It is wise to ask your physician and/or staff about reimbursement before you proceed with testing. Some tests may need to be paid for out-of pocket.

Functional Medicine - Medicine of the Future

"The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease." Thomas A. Edison

·         Why is Functional Medicine called the Medicine of the Future

• Allopathic Medicine
• Chronic Illness
• Healthy aging eludes many of us
• The Problem with Drugs
• Names Don't Explain Anything
• There are No Magic Pills
• The Only Question
• Illness and Premature Aging- a Call for Change!

Why is Functional Medicine called the “Future of Medicine?”

Functional Medicine approach is designed to significantly improve health. While the specific disease a person may have is not ignored, the focus of therapy is to improve health through optimizing biological, biochemistry and psychological function.

This is a highly individualized process. Two people with the same diagnosis may require different diagnostic tests and therapeutic interventions to promote health and well-being.

When successful, many of the symptoms that are the primary concern of the individual will diminish in severity and the individual will begin to experience a renewed sense of well being and a significant increase in health and vitality.

The goal of Functional Medicine is to optimize health by improving the balance of energetic, biomechanical (structural), biochemical and emotional / psychological function of the individual through changes in lifestyle, environment and nutrition.

Health is not seen as merely the absence of disease, but rather as an expression of vitality and well being. An ever increasing number of healthcare professionals are becoming aware of the shortcomings and failures of allopathic medicine.

Functional Medicine is slowly coming of age and is the true Medicine of the Future.

Allopathic Medicine

Over the past decades traditional western allopathic medicine has come up with extraordinary number of pharmaceutical drugs in order to fight an extraordinary number of diseases. It seemed in the past, and it still appears that way today, that if we only could come up with the right chemical compound we could eventually conquer and eliminate any disease under the sun. This quest for the "Silver Bullet" continues.

Chronic Illness

Somehow, we seem to have missed the mark. With the amount of medication consumed in the United States, one would assume that we are the healthiest people on the planet. However, we have more chronic diseases than ever. Even though our life span has been increased, our quality of life has not.

Healthy aging eludes many of us

Diabetes, arthritis, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, cancer, autoimmune disorders, allergies, chronic fatigue, chronic pain, depression abound.

With the advent of antibiotics we were convinced that we finally had won our battle against the bacteria. Initially it seemed that way. Now we realize that by administering antibiotics freely and generously we have created "superbugs" that are antibiotic-resistant.

Other unfortunate side effects of antibiotic therapy have emerged: immune system suppression and destruction of the normal, "friendly" bacterial flora in our intestines, which is essential for our well-being.

As a consequence, we attempt to create ever more powerful and toxic drugs, that are quite dangerous

for human use.

The Problem with Drugs

We are made to believe that

• pain is due to Aspirin, Motrin or Vicodin deficiency
• high blood pressure due to a deficiency of blood pressure medication
• high cholesterol due to Lipitor deficiency
• depression is due to Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, etc. deficiency

Countless kids are on Ritalin and Prozac. Countless adults are on Prozac and all kinds of other anti-depressants. It is as if ADD is due to Ritalin deficiency in our diet, as if depression is due to Prozac deficiency in breakfast, lunch and dinner. If we just added some Ritalin and Prozac to our morning cereal, all our problems would eventually simply go away.

On TV, pharmaceutical companies spend megabucks to promote NEW prescription drugs to the general public. Possible dangerous side effects are mentioned briefly at the end of the commercials.

They are spoken so quickly that it is nearly impossible to understand anything.

Names Don't Explain Anything

We have fancy names for symptoms: Attention Deficit Disorders(ADD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Auto Immune Disorders, Immune Suppression Disorders, Acid Reflux Syndrome, Colitis, Arthritis, Crohn's Disease, hypertension ...

We are made to believe that giving a disease process a name explains everything. Many of these names only hide our ignorance as to the cause, and our helplessness.

The word arthritis simply means inflammation of one or several joints. It does not address the question of why you have this inflammation. Taking anti-inflammatory medications only covers up the symptoms temporarily. Often it does that only partially or not at all. Side effects are the norm with prolonged use.

High blood pressure (hypertension) is another example of this.

The name only describes the fact. Why do you have high blood pressure? What malfunction of the human body might be responsible to create that condition? We should ask that question, not simply cover up the symptom of hypertension with pharmaceutical medications.

Do you notice whenever you stop your medication your blood pressure goes up again.

Medication is not a cure. Side effects are the norm with prolonged use.

What about these potential side effects? Read the PDR (Physician's Desk Reference).

Some of these side effects are truly frightening.

Spend an hour in your local pharmacy or drugstore. Watch the line of human misery receive their prescription drugs. People look sick, are sick and hope that these pills will finally do the trick.

Somewhere we know that they won't.

Look at the weight loss carnival.

Americans are becoming more and more obese, increasingly so at a younger age. Countless drug and "health food" companies, and MLM's, want to make us believe that if we only took this pill or that dietary supplement our excess pounds would simply disappear, no lifestyle and dietary changes required!

If these weight loss medications, pills, supplements actually worked, we would be amongst the

skinniest nation in the world.

Except it does not really ever work that way. And, if it seems to work initially we find out later that

the cost to our health may be high.

There are No Magic Pills

Who we are is the sum total of out genetic strengths and weaknesses, our upbringing, our education, our environment, the quality of our food, the quality of our water, the quality of the air we breathe,

the quality of our thoughts, our emotions, our relationships to one another, our capacity to give and receive love and affection, the amount of bad impressions we take in, the amount of ever increasing violence we are exposed to, the functioning of our nervous system, our organs and our organ systems...

All this, and more, forms this interdependent web that makes for our existence. To look at one symptom such as hypertension and pretend that it can simply be remedied by some pharmaceutical intervention does not make sense. And of course, it does not work, in the true sense of the word. Hypertension is an expression of various internal and/or external stressors that cause a malfunction of the body as a whole.

The only Question

So the only relevant question to ask: What causes the symptom? What causes the body to malfunction? This is of course is the most difficult question to answer.

 

Functional Medicine is concerned with the functioning of the entire human being in the context of his or her life. Genetics and lifestyle are part of the equation. Illness and disease are not seen as independent realities that are explainable by being given a name and treated as such. Illness is rather viewed as an expression of some underlying imbalance and breakdown of normal function.

Illness and Premature Aging - a Call for Change!

Biological aging is related to a noticeable decline in normal function.

Function of the digestive system declines with age, so do many other glandular and hormonal functions.

Aging can be accelerated by various life style choices:

• Heavy smokers seem to age faster. They have a higher risk of age-related diseases such as

cancer and heart disease.

• People who consume excessive amounts of alcohol also seem to age faster. They have increased risk of liver and cardiovascular problems.
• Those who consume poor quality diets that are excessive in carbohydrates (calories) and low in protein and other essential nutrients tend to age faster. They tend to suffer from obesity, diabetes, digestive stress, heart problems and frequent illness in general.
• Drug addicts age faster. You see this in their complexion, their posture, the evidence of their mental decline.
• Lack of physical activity appears to accelerate aging
• Chronic stress accelerates aging
• Environmental toxins in air and water accelerate aging.

The opposite is true, as well. We can slow our biological aging through changes in lifestyle, environment, and nutrition.

It is estimated that more than 75 percent of our health and life expectancy after age 40 can be positively influenced by making the appropriate changes! 

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What is Functional Illness?

Many people don't feel good, but don't really know why. They complain of unexplained symptoms such as chronic fatigue, over-weight, depression, food cravings, head aches, muscle and joint pain, arthritis, intractable back pain, heartburn, bloating, constipation, diarrhea, mood swings, rashes, itching, allergies, ...the list goes on. Standard medical tests show little or nothing. Many of my patients have reported over the years that their MD's either ignore these symptoms or give vague explanations such as:

• It is because of your age
• You just have to live with it
• It's all in your head
• It is stress
• It is...

What this really means: nobody knows how to determine the cause for all these symptoms.

As the name implies, Functional Illness comprises symptoms caused by the abnormal function the body. An organ or groups of organs have begun to malfunction. The real problem arises when this abnormal function is ignored and/or remains undetected for prolonged periods of time. This may then lead to a state of actual disease. Disease implies pathological changes that can be evaluated by standard medical tests

So we could say that Functional Illness is this gray and vague area between optimal health and disease.

Here are some factors that may contribute to Functional Illness:

• structural stress: misalignments of the spine which can lead to stress on the nervous system
• emotional stress
• lack of sleep
• over-consumption of sugar and carbohydrates
• lack of proper nutrition
• junk food
• food additives
• sedentary life style
• "recreational" drugs
• pharmaceutical drugs
• antibiotic use (past or present) which destroys the healthy intestinal flora
• alcohol
• tobacco
• environmental toxins
• silver amalgam (mercury) fillings in your mouth
• with increasing age normal organ and glandular functions tend to decline

The question’s to ask yourself with any presenting health problem:

• What is the cause?
• What underlying imbalance and/or organ malfunction causes the symptoms?
• What stresses the body
• What keeps the body from healing?
• How can normal function be restored or at least be improved?

These are of course the most difficult questions to answer.

We live in a symptom oriented society. Nobody wants headaches, pain, heartburn, high blood pressure, etc. It appears much easier to cover up symptoms with the available pharmaceutical drugs:

 

Drugs for pain, arthritis, blood pressure, cholesterol, heartburn...the list seems endless.

So we take these drugs. They appear to do the job, initially. Then we need to take them more often, for longer periods of time. We notice side effects. We develop new health problems. We need new medications for these problems. The vicious cycle continues.

• Headaches are not due to Aspirin, Motrin or Vicodin deficiency.
• Depression is not due to Prozac deficiency.
• We only pretend they are.
•  

Symptoms are useful. They indicate that something is wrong. They should be taken seriously.

Simply covering them up with medication is not useful. Symptoms’ are a call for change!

Imagine yourself driving your car. The oil warning lamp (symptom) comes on.

• You could cover up the warning lamp with tape, paint it black or unhook the wire to the lamp. This way you would not notice anything. The symptom is gone! Or you could simply ignore it. Sooner or later, however, your car might not run so well anymore, or not at all.

• The proper response would be to pull over as soon as possible to find the cause for this warning light (symptom). The cause could be a simple malfunction or a more serious problem.

Typically, the earlier you address the underlying malfunction the less extensive the damage and the less costly the repairs.

The same applies to our health. It is vital to pay attention to the symptoms of Functional Illness.

We do not feel well, but we do not really know why. Often typical medical tests do not show anything.

We may be tempted to simply ignore these symptoms or cover them up with medication.

• Early and proper response to symptoms is essential for optimum health
• Prevention is the key to success!
• Illness is a call for change

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Functional Diagnostic Medicine

The Missed Diagnosis

Traditionally trained health professionals typically interpret symptoms as indicators of a specific illness and use diagnostic assessments to identify or confirm that condition.

While perhaps validating a suspected disease process, this approach often fails to identify the real cause of the condition, especially in cases of chronic illness.

Most treatments based upon this approach tend to be heavily dependent upon pharmaceutical drugs.

Again, this approach does not address the underlying cause of the condition.

Further, many drugs have toxic side effects and cover up symptoms, making additional attempts at diagnosis even less reliable.

Many people do not feel good, but standard medical tests show little or nothing.

X-rays, MRI's, standard blood and urine tests only show pathological changes. They are static in nature.

Why is Functional Medicine called the “Future of Medicine?”

Functional Medicine approach is designed to significantly improve health. While the specific disease a person may have is not ignored, the focus of therapy is to improve health through optimizing biological, biochemistry and psychological function.

This is a highly individualized process. Two people with the same diagnosis may require different diagnostic tests and therapeutic interventions to promote health and well-being.

When successful, many of the symptoms that are the primary concern of the individual will diminish in severity and the individual will begin to experience a renewed sense of well being and a significant increase in health and vitality.

Functional Diagnostic Medicine is a growing field of modern medicine. It offers a giant step forward in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of many of society’s chronic diseases.

Doctors practicing functional diagnostic medicine are able to identify the real causes of many health conditions by combining the results of scientifically documented tests.

These are not your standard medical tests but go the next level investigating the biochemical and metabolic “glitches” likely to cause a specific disease process.

Based on the results of these tests, physicians are then able to develop personalized “patient specific” treatment protocols designed to reverse, stop or prevent the disease and it’s related symptoms.

Unlike the “disease specific” approach which is geared to suppress the expression of symptoms, physicians practicing functional diagnostic medicine are delighted to discover that many diseases have a real underlying cause which when found and corrected, can have a dramatic impact on the health of their patients.

Functional Medicine aims to determine what kinds of internal or external stressors cause the abnormal function which in turn causes the often very deceptive symptoms.

Everybody is different

Two individuals may have the same or similar underlying functional problems, but exhibit different symptoms. People with similar symptoms may have different underlying malfunctions.

What is good for me, may not be good for you.

What helps you may not be useful for me.

We change:

What is true today, is not necessarily true tomorrow, next week, next month or next year.

When was the last time you really felt healthy?

The reason you may not feel your best is because you’ve developed an unhealthy lifestyle. As we get older we tend to develop bad habits and take our health for granted.

Poor eating, stress, environmental and chemical toxins, lack of exercise, all take a toll on your natural defenses. For a while your body was able to cope.

But now, you may have noticed some changes: You probably don’t get enough sleep and when you do sleep you may catch yourself having to get up two, three or more times during the night. The food you eat simply does not satisfy you. Losing weight has never been more difficult.

You may exercise, but something still does not feel right inside. You can’t seem to put your finger on it. You simply don’t feel well, but you don’t have any obvious symptoms that would make you want to see your doctor.

On the bad side, these puzzling non-specific symptoms may be an early warning that one or more of your body’s systems are malfunctioning.

Symptoms are Signals

Just like the red warning light in your car that flashes when there is a problem with your engine, a physical symptom is a signal telling you that an underlying health problem needs to be corrected.

Treating a symptom without uncovering the real cause is like placing a piece of black tape over the blinking red warning light. The consequences of this action are obvious—an expensive engine overhaul.

Unfortunately our bodies can’t be “overhauled” and ignoring these chronic symptoms could eventually lead to a serious illness.

Through functional diagnostic medicine, physicians are able to help their patients restore normal body function, thereby relieving symptoms that may result in life-threatening diseases (such as arthritis, fibromyalgia, diabetes, auto-immune diseases, heart diseases, osteoporosis and many other chronic degenerative illnesses.

Unlike most well meaning physicians that tend to focus on what drug to use to treat a symptom, doctors who practice functional diagnostic medicine give serious thought to what is causing the symptom in the first place.

The Evolution of Diagnostic Assessments

Modern medicine has given humanity hope in the fight for the extension of life and the prevention of disease. However, until recently there have been few available tools with which to evaluate basic human physiology.

Traditional diagnoses have focused on pathology rather than an examination of the underlying reasons for the development of a particular health problem.

Today, specialized laboratories using advanced testing procedures offer functional diagnostic assessments that can evaluate an individual's physiology. By comparing the individual's assessments with normal physiological ranges, doctors practicing functional diagnostic medicine can pinpoint abnormalities and contributing factors to health problems, often exposing the real causes of chronic illness and degenerative disease.

Common Health Complaints

Functional Medicine practitioners are particularly good at addressing the needs of those suffering from incorrectly or partially diagnosed chronic health problems which, in many cases, have yet to manifest as a specific disease.

Promoting Wellness and Longevity

Many serious health conditions develop over years of undiagnosed and seemingly unrelated symptoms.

Therefore, the detection and treatment of health issues at their point of earliest inception has consequences reaching far beyond the alleviation of symptoms.

Functional assessments can identify risk factors for a wide variety of health problems long before they become symptomatic, enabling individuals to take preventive measures to reduce their risk for cancer, cardiovascular disease and other degenerative conditions.

The tests also provide important data for the development of scientifically based nutritional plans, immune-enhancing strategies and life-extension programs.

Dynamic Monitoring of Therapies

Functional diagnostic assessments provide the opportunity to monitor a wide array of therapies, including customized nutritional programs.

Testing is used initially to establish an individual's baseline physiological processes and subsequently to closely monitor the results of therapies in order to make necessary adjustments in therapeutic protocols.

Twenty-First Century Health Care

By identifying the underlying causes of chronic health conditions, reducing the risk of degenerative disease, and addressing an individual's unique bio-chemical composition, Functional Medicine has been considered the “Future of Medicine”.

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