Traditional medicine focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Once the diagnosis is established, the diagnosis is cross-checked with the list of medications used to treat that particular disorder. Often times, the medications chosen are merely treating symptoms, rather than the root cause of the problem. This is often referred to as the “disease-drug” model. 

The integrative or functional medicine approach focuses on prevention and, when problems present themselves, seeks to find the underlying cause. This approach is relatively simple and consists of identifying those things that might be making you sick and eliminating them, while at the same time replacing any identified deficiencies, be they hormonal or nutritional.  

In the majority of cases it is not one recommendation that we make but, rather, a combination of suggestions that lead to wellness. A patient-centered, individualized treatment plan is developed. This is the medicine of “why” rather than “what”. In other words why do you have a particular disease or set of symptoms rather than simply-what do you have?

The plan should address the needs of the whole person not merely a specific set of symptoms. It should address the dynamic interplay between mind, body and spirit. It explores how our genetics, environment and lifestyle all interact with each other.  Rather than simply making a diagnosis and suppressing symptoms, an attempt is made to restore underlying imbalances.  Traditional medicine is often compartmentalized with each specialist focusing on their particular area of specialty.  Functional medicine combines the best of Eastern medicine, Western medicine and the latest scientific research.

 
 At The Care Group
 
In our practice we always begin to help patients achieve optimal health by focusing first on digestive health.  There are many factors which are leading to ourpresent-day epidemic of gut inflammation or “leaky gut,” whereby the lining of the small intestine becomes disrupte d, allowing larger bacterial and food particles to enter the bloodstream which in turn can activate the immune system causing a range of digestive and non-digestive symptoms.

 
Immune mediated responses to foods like the protein gluten found in wheat, chronic use of gastrointestinal irritating medications such as ibuprofen, or various pathogenic microorganisms such as yeast, bacteria or parasites can all lead to a myriad of troublesome symptoms.
 
Recently the Cleveland Clinic, under the direction of Dr. Mark Hyman, has developed a center for functional/integrative medicine. The Mayo Clinic, George Washington University, Johns Hopkins, and  CU Medical Center have recently developed such departments.  Functional/integrative medicine is the medicine of the future.
 
Let me give you a real patient example of how this works. A 47-year-old accountant comes to me for evaluation of palpitations (irregular heartbeat). I learned that her palpitations began when she had been a given a drug called Mirapex for restless leg syndrome.  As it turns out Mirapex can cause palpitations as a side effect.  Restless leg syndrome is often caused by a low ferritin or low iron level.  Her low iron level was the result of poor iron absorption from taking the medication omeprazole for stomach acid reflux causing indigestion.  Her indigestion was the result of a gluten sensitivity.  At the end of the day by peeling back the layers of the onion we were able to get her off of gluten and her acid reflux resolved.  There was no need for the medication omeprazole and by stopping this and replacing her iron, her restless leg symptoms went away. After the restless leg symptom resolved, she no longer needed the Mirapex which was causing her palpitations. At the end of the day, it was her sensitivity to the gluten protein found in wheat that was at the root cause of her problem.