Understanding the 6 Fundamental Principles of Functional Medicine

Functional medicine is quite different from conventional or traditional medicine. There is a standard model of medication wherein the medical doctor provides drugs to every disease or dysfunction.

Whether it is diabetics, high blood pressure, thyroid or even cholesterol; the specialist treats you with the same basic tool ‘medication’. It may work for acute diseases, trauma, and emergencies but fails in providing proper treatment for chronic diseases that have trapped over 125 million Americans.

Functional medicine specialists are able to treat chronic diseases like allergies, metabolic, digestive, hormonal, neurologic problems, etc. Then, the next and obvious question is:

What is Functional Medicine?

The term is quite ambiguous. This type of medication aims to address the source of the disease and curing by using a systematic approach keeping in loop both the patient and practitioner by a brief conversation about the patient’s history, genetic issues, lifestyle factors, etc.

This third generation medication has shifted from the traditional disease-centered approach to a patient-centered approach. Let’s understand the principles.

6 Core Principles of Functional Medicine

Functional medicine targets the whole person instead of the disease.

1. Functional Medicine treats the person, not the disease. Functional Medicine believes that every man is different, both genetically and biochemically. The healing is done by supporting the normal healing mechanism of the body and understanding the root cause of the pain.

Unlike the conventional medicines that directly attack the disease through drugs, functional medicine, giving the least preference to the person.

2. It has its roots deeply in science. Functional medicines are totally science-based. Science says that all that when a person experiences physical pain, it is connected in a complicated network that stays with the person.

This medication tries to understand those complications webs of relationships by interacting about the genetic history, lifestyle factors and likewise.

3. The human body is very intelligent and has the capability for self-regulation, which is expressed through a dynamic balance of your body.

4. The body is able to heal and prevent all the diseases of aging.

5. A healthy mind and body are not just about the absence of disease, rather it is a state of immense vitality.

6. It focuses on enhancing the health space and not the life span.

The Need For Functional Medicine Specialists

Millions of people are suffering from complex chronic diseases like cancer, heart disease, mental illness, autoimmune disorders. The harsh truth is that conventional medicine has no effective cure for these drastically increasing diseases.

• The medicinal system followed by most of the physicians is towards curing acute conditions that take a short duration of time and needs immediate attention. The best alternative is to treat the problem through surgery or drugs.

• It lacks the proper methodology and tools required to treat chronic diseases. Also, the unique genetic condition of the individual is also not considered which may bring back the pain.

• Functional Medicine is a potential operating system and clinical model that incorporates the latest genetic science that focuses on understanding the lifestyle and environmental factors of the disease and providing the necessary treatment to remove the pain forever.

A functional medicine doctor would ask you “Why do you have this problem?” and “How to bring back normalcy ?” If you wish to find these answers then, meet our functional medicine specialists at ProHealth Center.