In conventional medicine, practitioners assess a patient’s symptoms and focus on treating them, instead of the underlying cause behind them. Functional medicine does the opposite: it aims to address the root causes of ailments for a holistic approach to health. Here’s a more detailed look at how functional medicine benefits patients.
A Focus on Prevention
With conventional medicine, doctors address symptoms as they develop. In functional medicine, getting to the root cause of illness and developing a comprehensive understanding of the patient’s lifestyle factors can help them lay the groundwork for better health in the future. In doing so, the patient gains more control over their wellness and learns about the measures they can take to better care for themselves.
Science-Based Healthcare
Functional medicine is grounded in science. Doctors rely on evidence-based approaches and stay on the cusp of emerging research to provide the best level of care for their patients. They also use their continuing education to understand how systems in the body are interrelated.
Consideration of Genetic Factors
Many conventional medicine providers fail to fully consider the complex role genetics may have on your health. Certain factors can lead to predispositions for certain conditions, but understanding these risks allows us to act early and take better control of the factors that are within our power to change. Sometimes, functional medicine physicians may recommend genetic testing as a means of pinpointing underlying medical factors that may need to be addressed.
Alternatives to Prescriptions
Healthcare shouldn’t consist exclusively of receiving a diagnosis and a prescription. Even if the condition you’re experiencing does warrant medication, functional medicine doctors will also help you understand your other treatment options, including any lifestyle changes which could benefit you — which brings us to our next point.
Care Centered on Your Lifestyle
Functional medicine physicians get to know their patients well so they can make recommendations based on their unique lifestyles. From your exercise and eating habits to your stress levels and sleep schedule, every aspect of your life contributes to your health. Having a “big picture” understanding of all these factors will allow a doctor to better understand what could be impacting your health.
More Time with Your Provider
Visits with conventional providers are typically very brief. Research indicates patients only talk to their doctors for five minutes on average during these appointments, which isn’t enough time to discuss their health concerns, lifestyle factors, and medical history in-depth. To allow for all of these talking points, functional medicine visits often last from 60 to 90 minutes, giving both the practitioner and patient ample time to ask questions.
Individualized Care
Your genetics and lifestyle are individual to you, so your treatment options should be individualized, too. Oftentimes, conventional medicine relies on the same prescription for all patients, which fails to take into consideration all the ways each person is different, and how the medication may therefore work differently from one person to the next. With functional medicine, you’ll receive the care that fits best with your needs and addresses your specific concerns.
If you have symptoms that you would like to explore and understand their root cause, functional medicine may be an alternative option. Stemedix offers comprehensive home test kits to help find the possible causes to your symptoms and then address with regenerative supplement options as well as diet regimen changes if needed. Contact us if you would like to learn more on the benefits of functional medicine home tests.
This post was written by Becky Palmer, a medical professional at Stemedix Inc. At Stemedix we provide access to Regenerative Medicine, also known as Stem Cell Therapy in Tampa. Regenerative medicine seeks to replace tissue or organs that have been damaged by disease, trauma, or congenital issues.