What is Functional Medicine?

What is Functional Medicine?

Functional medicine doctors have years of training and experience at their disposal. They use this experience and specialized training to find the root cause of complex illnesses. Once they discover the source of your ailment, they work to create a holistic treatment plan in an effort to resolve the issue once and for all. 

Many functional medicine doctors have attended schools and received medical training specifically for functional medicine. These doctors then apply their functional medicine teachings to their field of practice. Therefore, you know you’re getting treatment and medical advice from somebody you can trust. 

Benefits of Functional Medicine

What makes functional medicine a viable option? It can be challenging to convince somebody that this is a preferable method to more traditional treatment options. Here are some of the benefits of functional medicine and why you should consider it:

A Holistic Approach

When you seek functional medicine treatment options, a functional medicine doctor will work with you every step of the way to get the treatment options that best fit you. This means treatments built around your lifestyle, history, diet, and more. Before anything else, a functional medicine doctor will sit down with you to discover the best treatment option for your specific needs. 

By looking at your full history, they’re able to build a treatment plan that attacks the medical issues you’re dealing with at the source. That’s why functional medicine doctors spend more time with you than conventional doctors. They also track the progress of the treatment and make changes where necessary. 

Multiple Different Approaches

One of the biggest strengths of functional medicine is that it recognizes its weaknesses. More specifically, functional medicine doctors understand the benefit of conventional medicine when it comes to severe illnesses. However, they also recognize that conventional medicine doesn’t have the tools to manage chronic conditions. 

Functional medicine treatments combine the good parts from several different treatment options to provide the holistic care necessary when dealing with chronic conditions. Combining different medical treatment options while focusing on what makes you, you, provides patients the long-term treatment options necessary when dealing with chronic conditions. 

Long-Term Treatment Options

Conventional medicine aims to treat your symptoms, not the root cause. How many times have you gone to your doctor with high blood pressure, only to be prescribed a couple of pills? These pills aim to lower your blood pressure, but they don’t address the reason why you may be dealing with high blood pressure. 

Functional medicine doctors work with you to address lifestyle choices that contribute to high blood pressure. This could include formulating a nutritious diet plan to improve your diet. It could also include stress-relieving treatment methods to lower high blood pressure caused by anxiety and stress. 

Conditions Treated By Functional Medicine

There are many reasons why patients visit Today’s Integrative Health for functional medicine treatment options. Some of these reasons include:

  • Adrenal disorders
  • Diabetes
  • Asthma
  • Arthritis
  • Thyroid disorders
  • Cancer prevention 
  • Alzheimer’s disease and dementia

We will work with you every step of the way to ensure you get the best treatment options possible. 

What to Expect

As we mentioned before, functional medicine aims at taking a holistic approach to treatment. This means dissecting the things going on in your life and even around your life. Some of the things your functional medicine doctor will ask you will include questions regarding your:

  • Lifestyle – What is your diet like, how often you work out, your work life, hobbies, and stressors
  • Genetics – Do you have a family history of chronic illnesses, your family’s history of physical and mental conditions
  • Environment – How often are you exposed to toxins and allergens? This is a more significant factor to overall well-being than people may realize

By better understanding your health profile, we better understand what’s going on with you and your body. This allows us to formulate treatment options that provide lasting and life-changing results. 

Services We Offer

At Today’s Integrative Health, we understand that no two patients are the same. That’s why we offer a wide range of treatment options. Some of those treatment options include:

We’re Ready to Help

If you’re looking for a functional medicine doctor in the Rockville, Maryland area, the team here at Today’s Integrative Health is ready to help. We offer a wide range of functional medicine treatment options. Give us a call today to find out how we can help you and your health needs. 

Picture of Dr. L. J. Leo

Dr. L. J. Leo

Dr. Leo began his education at the Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine in Blacksburg, Virginia, where he earned his doctorate in osteopathy. He completed his internal medicine residency through the U.S. Army and had the honor of serving multiple overseas tours before retirement.

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