What kind of doctor do you see for your Autoimmune disease? Like most people, you probably see someone who specialises in the organ in which your disease occurs. An endocrinologist, a dermatologist, a gastrorenterologist etc. What would happen though if you could find a  doctor that treats your whole body and not just looks at one organ?

What is Functional Medicine?

Dr Datis Kharrazian, author of “Why is my Brain Not Working”, helps us understand Functional Medicine. He states that conventional medicine’s approach to Autoimmune disease is not to treat it in the early warning stage but to wait until the immune system is attacking and destroying the organ involved and only then can you be diagnosed with a specific AI disease.

What are the Early Warning Symptoms for Autoimmune Disease?

◆ fatigue,
◆ headaches,
◆ digestive issues,
◆ acid reflex,
◆ weight gain or loss,
◆ skin rashes,
◆ depression and anxiety,
◆ trouble with memory and
◆ concentration and psychiatric symptoms.
Unfortunately, a lot of people who have these symptoms are dismissed with these being non-specific stress induced symptoms, or told they just need to lose weight or exercise more.
If we know that all AI disease begins in the gut, then step number one for these people, should in fact be
▪ treating any gut infections or parasites,
▪ checking for food sensitivities,
▪ introducing probiotics and
▪ an anti-inflammatory diet. (Paleo style diet)

What should we do?

We should be focusing on prevention as as well treatment and or cure. This also doesn’t just apply to Autoimmune disease but to cancer prevention and any other disease with an inflammatory and immune system involvement. Dr Mark Hyman, director of the Cleveland Centre for Functional Medicine, states that instead of treating cancer per the organ it affects and treating it by trying to destroy it, we should also be looking at what allowed that cancer to grow in the first place?

He says: “Modern medicine is like trying to diagnose what’s wrong with your car by listening to the noises it makes without ever looking inside to see what’s going on. Functional medicine allows us to look under the hood. It gives us a method for identifying the conditions in which disease arises and shows us how to begin changing those conditions.”

The Institute for Functional Medicine explains it best:
Functional Medicine addresses the underlying causes of disease, using a systems-oriented approach and engaging both patient and practitioner in a therapeutic partnership. It is an evolution in the practice of medicine that better addresses the healthcare needs of the 21st century. By shifting the traditional disease-centred focus of medical practice to a more patient-centred approach, Functional Medicine addresses the whole person, not just an isolated set of symptoms. Functional Medicine practitioners spend time with their patients, listening to their histories and looking at the interactions among genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors that can influence long-term health and complex, chronic disease. In this way, Functional Medicine supports the unique expression of health and vitality for each individual.
Source: https://www.functionalmedicine.org/What_is_Functional_Medicine/AboutFM/#sthash.PIERNzFS.dpuf

If you want to try and find a Functional Medicine Practitioner in your area, here is a way of searching for one. I personally have found someone that has really helped me try search of the root causes for my autoimmune diseases and my symptoms.

https://www.functionalmedicine.org/practitioner_search.aspx?id=117#results

If you want to know more about me and my story, you can check out MY BOOK!

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save