Functional medicine is one of the most highly-debated medical fields among doctors and patients alike. People also tend to misunderstand the field, often exaggerating their pros or cons. Practitioners of functional medicine in Denver define it as treating chronic diseases like chronic back pain or neck pain by identifying their root causes and working with patients to fix them.
Conventional medicine works well for acute diseases but its cookie-cutter approach might not work for chronic problems. You can rest assured that the practitioner is a real doctor as long as they have a medical certificate and license. Here’s everything you need to know about this medical field.
What Is Functional Medicine?
Experts define it as an individualized, patient-centric, science-based approach to medicine where the practitioner and patient work together to identify and treat the underlying cause of the problem. In layman terms, it means that when you opt for functional medicine in Denver, you and the doctor discuss the main reason why you are suffering from a disease and work together to treat the cause and the disease.
The cause can include your medical history, genetics, family history, lifestyle choices, environment, etc. By identifying and fixing the cause, you can treat the disease and prevent it from recurring.
What Are Its Principles?
A doctor who practices functional medicine in Denver follows these principles:
- Every human needs care customized for them because they are different from other humans at the genetic and biochemical levels.
- Doctors must keep up with the latest research that supports the patient-centric approach over a disease-centric approach.
- The internal and external body must be balanced with the mind and the spirit.
- All internal body systems are connected.
- Being healthy doesn’t mean not having any disease but being energetic.
- Doctors must support the reserve organs to preserve the patient’s health span, not just lifespan.
How Is It Different From Conventional Medicine?
Functional medicine takes a patient-centric approach. A functional chiropractor in Denver looks at the main cause of the back pain and works with the patient to cure it. Other than performing spinal traction, they would recommend exercises and diet to improve the patient’s musculoskeletal strength.
According to functional doctors, conventional medicine has a very disease-centric approach. Conventional doctors look at the symptoms and prescribe medicines accordingly without considering the underlying cause. This may not work if the medicine doesn’t treat the underlying cause of the disease like lack of exercise.
How Does It Work?
Practitioners of alternative medicine in Denver ask you many questions during the first appointment and do many tests to find out why you are suffering from the disease you have. They look at different factors like your medical history, family history, genetics, environment, lifestyle, etc.
Once they find the root cause, they come up with the best option to treat your disease. They also suggest lifestyle changes to help you reduce the effects of the root cause and prevent the disease from happening again. Your cooperation is important for the treatment to work.
What Does It Treat?
It depends on the doctor’s specialization. Functional medicine is more of an approach to how you treat a disease rather than a field dealing with a particular disease. A practitioner of alternative medicine in Denver can theoretically apply it to whatever field they practice. They may specialize in back problems, heart diseases, nerve problems, etc.
This field is most effective against chronic ailments like chronic back pain, high blood pressure, posture problems, etc. You should check the doctor’s specialization before approaching them for treatment.
Are Holistic Doctors Real Doctors?
Yes, holistic doctors are real doctors as long as they have a medical degree from an accredited college and a state medical license to practice. So you might want to check if the functional chiropractor in Denver has them before scheduling an appointment with them.
Functional doctors usually have degrees like Doctor of Medicine (MD), Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO), Doctor of Chiropractic (DC), Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine (ND) and Nurse Practitioner (NP). They may hold other certificates based on their specialization.
Are Holistic Doctors Against Conventional Medicine?
No, holistic doctors are not anti-conventional medicine. Many doctors who practice alternative medicine in Denver also practice conventional medicine to give their patients the best of the two fields.
Alternative medicine doctors agree that conventional medicine is effective for illnesses that last for a short time but not for those that last for long. They believe that alternative medicine is more effective for chronic diseases. They believe that conventional medicine takes a cookie-cutter approach to treating ailments that doesn’t work for everyone. They believe that an alternative approach to identifying the cause of the ailment works better.