Naturopathic Medicine’s Approach to HealthCare
My goal for the reader of this blog is that it stimulates you to think beyond traditional medicine and know there are other options available to resolve your health issues. We’ve all been trained to know that if you have an ailment, you visit your doctor, receive a diagnosis and then leave with a pharmaceutical product to relieve the ailment you are experiencing. Traditional medicine looks at the “symptom” that is occurring in the body. Naturopathic Medicine looks at the entire system of the body in which we live. This includes the internal environment along with the external environment.
With that, let’s look at a brief historical overview and then dive into the guiding principles of Naturopathic Medicine and their approach to care.
History
Naturopathy was founded in 1901 by Benedict Lust. Shortly after being founded, it declined due to many forms of pressure (internal debate, external political pressure, etc.) but rose again in the 1970’s and grew from Naturopathy to Naturopathic Medicine. Upon its re-emergence in the 1970’s it became more grounded in the medical sciences. The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) was formed in 1985 and began the task of developing a unified professional organization under the leadership of James Sensenig, ND, and Cathy Rogers, ND. These two, along with numerous other individuals (note to the reader, I left out a chunk of details, but you can refer to my reference material) formed a selective committee that agreed the first step was to define the profession of Naturopathic Medicine by its principles and not by its modalities.
Principles of Naturopathic Medicine
The Healing Power of Nature (Vis Medicatrix Naturae)
Naturopathic physicians look to support, facilitate, and augment the healing process by removing obstacles to an individual’s recovery process by supporting the creation of a healthy internal and external environment. The definition of this principle is:
“The healing power of nature is the inherent self-organizing and healing process of living systems which establishes, maintains, and restores health. Naturopathic medicine recognizes this health process to be ordered and intelligent”.
Identify and Treat the Causes (Tolle Causum)
Naturopathic physicians treat the cause of the disease versus the symptoms. The definition of this principle is:
“Illness does not occur without cause. Causes may originate in many areas. Underlying causes of illness and disease must be identified and removed before complete recovery can occur. Symptoms can be expressions of the body’s attempt to defend itself, to adapt and recover, to heal itself, or maybe results of the causes of disease”.
First Do no Harm (Primum Non Nocere)
There are three precepts that naturopathic physicians follow to avoid harming the patient. The definition of these three precepts are:
“Naturopathic physicians utilize methods and medicinal substances which minimize the risk of harmful effects and apply the least possible force or intervention necessary to diagnose illness and restore health”.
“Whenever possible the suppression of symptoms is avoided as suppression generally interferes with the healing process”.
“Naturopathic physicians respect and work with the vis medicatrix naturae in diagnosis, treatment, and counseling, for if this self-healing process is not respected the patient may be harmed”.Doctor as Teacher (Docere)
Naturopathic physicians employ a therapeutic relationship between the doctor and patient through teaching. The definition of this principle is:
“The original meaning of the word “doctor” is teacher. A principal objective of naturopathic medicine is to educate the patient and emphasize self-responsibility for health”.Treat the Whole Person (Tolle Totum)
Naturopathic physicians treat the WHOLE person. The definition of this principle is:
“Health and disease result from a complex of physical, mental, emotional, genetic, environmental, social and other factors. Since total health also includes spiritual health, naturopathic physicians encourage individuals to pursue their personal spiritual development. Naturopathic medicine recognizes the harmonious functioning of all aspects of the individual as being essential to health. The multifactorial nature of health and disease requires a personalized and comprehensive approach to diagnosis and treatment”.
Prevention (Preventare)
Naturopathic medicine maintains that if one’s environment is unhealthy, then one cannot be healthy. It is committed to helping create an environment in which humanity thrives in the world. The definition of this principle is:
“Naturopathic medical colleges emphasize the study of health as well as disease. The prevention of disease and the attainment of optimal health in patients are the primary objectives of naturopathic medicine. In practice, these objectives are accomplished through education and the promotion of healthy ways of living. Naturopathic physicians assess risk factors, heredity, and susceptibility to disease, and make appropriate interventions in partnership with their patients to prevent illness”.
The Therapeutic Order of Naturopathic Medicine
Summary
After reading this post you may be thinking, do I leave my traditional medicine doctor? By no means am I trying to deter you away from traditional medicine or stating to leave your medical doctor. I wanted to provide a different lens on how to approach chronic disease. The definition of insanity is “doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”. If what you are doing is currently not resolving your issues, then it’s time to look at other approaches. As I continue to work in my practice as a Certified Functional Nutrition Counselor, I may refer you to a Naturopathic Physician and it may be the first time you hear of it. Now you are armed with more information about what they do in their approach to health care.
In dealing with my chronic health conditions, once I learned about naturopathic medicine and how they looked at the whole-body system, this was a game changer for me. These principles made so much sense. I have worked in the technology industry for 24+ years now and enterprise software is, to me, like the human body. It’s configurable, but we have to make the right choices.
The chronic disease that you are experiencing may be caused by inflammation, genetics, or digestive problems.
If you are frustrated as it relates to your health, book a consult with me and let’s do a deep dive to see what your body is telling you.
Reference:
Snider, Pamela, ND; Zeff, Jared, ND; (2019 August). Unifying Principles of Naturopathic Medicine Origins and Definitions. Integrative Medicine, Vol. 18, No. 4