Functional Medicine

 

Conventional medicine is in crisis as it fails to successfully address modern diseases. Our current healthcare isn’t truly healthcare—it’s disease management. 

This is where Functional Medicine emerges as a new model, one better suited to address the needs of patients in the 21st century. It focuses on restoring optimal function to the body by treating the underlying causes of chronic disease, rather than suppressing symptoms. Just as Chinese Medicine has always looked at the individual uniqueness of a patient, Functional Medicine is not a one-size-fits all approach. Genetics, diet, lifestyle, and environmental factors are considered when determining personalized treatment plans leading to improved patient outcomes.

Chinese Medicine alone can be used for patients experiencing almost any ailment; however, combining a Functional Medicine approach when needed can boost healing and clinical results. While all treatments at Root & Branch Medicine will be firmly rooted in traditional medicine, we find many of the following strategies of Functional Medicine to help aid diagnosis and create a comprehensive treatment plan:

  • Detailed evaluation of environmental factors (diet, nutrition, exercise, trauma) and internal factors (emotions, genetic predispositions, mindset, beliefs)
  • Thorough review of past medical history
  • Investigation of physiological processes (assimilation, biotransformation and elimination, defense and repair, structural integrity, cellular communication, transportation, and circulation)
  • Identification of core critical imbalances
  • Diagnostic testing (comprehensive blood analysis, urine and saliva chemistries, stool tests)

Determining and addressing imbalances before signs and symptoms arise is a hallmark of Functional Medicine. This emphasis on modifying internal and external factors not only improves complex chronic conditions but contributes to long-term health and is essential to the prevention of disease. 

Functional Medicine is not a separate stand-alone form of medicine, as Chinese Medicine is, but rather a collection of scientifically grounded knowledge bases. It uses a systems-biology approach and research from various disciplines to inform clinical management. Functional Medicine integrates multiple approaches resulting in a truly individualized care plan that supports the unique expression of health for each individual.