FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE

A Functional Medicine Health Coach takes a 'whole-person' approach to evaluating all the issues going on with a person's health, and develops a personalized approach to address the root cause of disease through diet and lifestyle interventions.

Functional medicine stands for one thing: supporting the expression of health and vitality of every individual. Coaches lay emphasis on spending time with their patients and fully understanding their medical history. 

EIGHT PRINCIPLES OF FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE 

Health is not merely the absence of disease, but is a state of physiological, psychological emotional and social well-being.

All individuals are unique in terms of their genetic and biochemical makeup. Hence, personalized healthcare must be provided to treat each individual appropriately rather than focus on the disease.

Functional medicine believes in supporting and exploiting the natural healing mechanisms of the body instead of attacking the disease head-on.
It is a science-based approach – what happens within our body is the result of a complicated network of physiological mechanisms. Studying the latter will allow us to develop an understanding of how our body functions.

It states that our body is capable of self-regulation, which enables it to maintain a homeostatic (balanced) internal environment.

It suggests that our body can heal itself naturally and prevent the onset of diseases as we age.

Functional medicine aims to bridge the gap between new research in science and current medical practices, particularly for complex and chronic diseases.

It combines traditional western medicine with alternative modern medicine to develop an approach that focuses on healing via dietary, nutritive, and physical interventions. Here are a few reasons why practitioners need to adopt this form of preventive medicine:The sharp increase in the incidence of complex, chronic diseases requires a novel set of treatment and preventive measures.

The normally practiced ‘acute-care medical approach’ does not account for genetic differences, environmental factors or lifestyle choices, hence is an incomplete form of diagnosis and treatment.

It uses latest medical and technological advances to deliver a holistic approach – diagnostic tools, prescription combinations of drugs, botanical medicines, therapeutic diets and supplements, stress-management techniques, etc.

The integration of functional medicine into traditional prevention and treatment practices represents a holistic approach that engages with any immediate illness while also working to provide long-term support and prevention of future illness.