The Principles of Functional Medicine
The functional medicine model is all about turning traditional healthcare on its head. The current healthcare landscape is centered on treating diseases and illnesses with medicine. Far too often, the question of how you got the affliction in the first place is glossed over. Functional medicine looks to change that and focus on how to prevent disease and illness. Here are the 5 principles upon which the functional medicine model is built.
Everyone is Different
Healthcare should not be one size fits all. It should be personalized, as we are all genetically different. The focus is on treating the individual, and not treating the disease. If the individual is treated right, and the body's natural healing system is supported, then we can prevent disease and illness.
It is Supported by Science
The body functions as an extremely complicated network of connections between systems. Functional medicine is built on an understanding of those systems and their relationships to each other to make the best health decisions possible.
Your Body Can Regulate Itself
Your body is able to regulate itself and balance those systems. Proper balance is vital to health and wellness, so avoiding things that will affect that balance is essential.
Your Body Can Heal Itself
Functional medicine is based on the premise that the body is able to prevent and heal all diseases related to aging. What it needs is proper support through nutrition and exercise, and also the avoidance of things that will hurt those healing functions.
Health is a State of Vitality
Health is not just about preventing diseases and the absence of them. It is about being the more vibrant and vital individual possible. This means not just being healthy, but feeling healthy too.
Functional medicine aims to answer the question: "Why are you affected by this illness in the first place?" As the old saying goes, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Under the functional medicine model, you are encouraged to support your body's natural healing processes to prevent and destroy the root causes of diseases, so you can be the healthiest possible person you can be.