The functional medicine approach
Functional Medicine combines traditional medicine with integrative medicine, creating a focus on nutrition, exercise, use of the latest laboratory testing and other diagnostic techniques and / or botanical medicines, supplements, therapeutic diets, and stress-management techniques.
Imagine your symptoms and conditions as leaves and branches on a tree. Just as the roots of a tree need continuous access to quality soil, nutrients, water, and space, so that the leaves may flourish, so do we need continuous awareness of our own roots, environment, nutrition, hydration, movement, connection, and rest.
The essence of the functional medicine approach is to dig deeper and ask ‘why’? It goes beyond simply assessing your state of health today and your current symptoms. It means learning about the real you – your history and your story. It also means looking more closely at how the systems of your body are working in harmony, at a cellular level, and how your genes are influenced by your environment and experiences.
What is functional medicine?
An integrative, science-based healthcare approach to chronic disease
Addresses the whole person, not just an isolated set of symptoms
Designed to optimise physiological functional & wellness
Considers epigenetics, lifestyle, nutrition, and environment
Focused on patient empowerment and health promotion
Most of my treatment programmes make use of the 5R protocol, developed by the Institute of Functional Medicine
Remove
Replace
Replace the micronutrients and phytonutrients needed for health
Re-innoculate
Encourage the production and survival of good bacteria in the gut
Repair
Provide nutritional support for healing and regeneration of the gut mucosa
Rebalance
Focus on lifestyle medicine measures to restore wellness and harmony
5R
Protocol
Functional Medicine practitioners spend time with their patients, listening to their histories and looking at interactions between 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.
Lifestyle factors such as diet, sleep, and stress management, are all paramount to maintaining health, yet are often neglected in modern day life.
With attention to nutrition, genetics, toxins, and environment, alongside in-depth functional testing, the root causes of many chronic conditions can be identified and addressed.
Each case is individualised, and every plan personalised. The aim is to understand your own unique history and apply tailored treatment strategies, empowering you on your journey to reclaiming health, hope, wellness, and vitality.
The Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM)
The IFM believes health and vitality are essential to the human spirit. They work to advance the highest expression of individual health by advocating Functional Medicine as the standard of care.
Our society is suffering from a sharp increase in people with complex, chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and autoimmune disorders. Functional medicine encourages focus on addressing the underlying causes of complex, chronic disease, and application of strategies to both treat and prevent these illnesses.
To learn more about Functional medicine, click on the video to hear IFM Certified Tom Suit MD and his colleagues at the IFM explaining the functional medicine approach.
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