What is Naturopathic Medicine?
Naturopathic medicine is a separate, complete system of healthcare, promoting the use of natural therapies to encourage health and prevent disease. Naturopathic doctors are practitioners who specialize in natural medicine and follow six important principles in caring for their patients: • First do no harm – Use the most natural, least forceful and least toxic therapies first. • Identify and treat the cause – Look beyond the symptoms to determine the underlying causes of illness. • Treat the whole person – View the body as an integrated whole in all its physical and spiritual dimensions. • Doctor as teacher – Educate and help clients in the steps to achieve and maintain optimal health. • Prevention – Intend on promoting health and wellness, and preventing disease. • Trust in the healing power of nature – The body’s natural wisdom to heal itself.
Naturopathy is a traditional approach to health that is holistic, meaning that it encompasses the whole being. It is based on natural and preventative care. Naturopathic medicine combines many methodologies, such as acupuncture, massage, chiropractic adjustment, homeopathy and herbal cures, along with sensible concepts such as good nutrition, exercise and relaxation techniques. Some refer to it as alternative care, which is ironic, since naturopathy and naturopathic medicine are rooted in many age-old remedies that predate whats known as modern medicine. A core concept is one of doing no harm, and complementing any necessary treatment. The terms naturopathy and naturopathic medicine are often interchangeable.
Naturopathic medicine is a distinct form of primary care that blends scientific knowledge with traditional and natural forms of medicine. A naturopathic doctor aims to restore balance to a person’s health by addressing the root cause of illness. Naturopathic doctors treat the whole person by exploring a patient’s symptoms, lifestyle, history and other elements that affect health. Treatments are individualized for each person using natural, gentle and safe therapies such as herbs, homeopathy, acupuncture, clinical nutrition and lifestyle counselling. Naturopathic medicine can complement conventional medical treatment. Naturopathic doctors work with other health care professional to ensure safe and effective patient care.
Naturopathic medicine (also known as naturopathy) is a school of medical philosophy and practice that seeks to improve health and treat disease chiefly by assisting the body’s innate capacity to recover from illness and injury. Naturopathic practice may include a broad array of different modalities, including manual therapy, hydrotherapy, herbalism, acupuncture, counseling, environmental medicine, aroma therapy, nutritional counseling, homeopathy, and so on. Practitioners tend to emphasis a holistic approach to patient care. Naturopathy has its origins in the United States, but is today practiced in many countries around the world in one form or another, where it is subject to different standards of regulation and levels of acceptance. Naturopathic practitioners prefer not to use invasive surgery, or most synthetic drugs, preferring “natural” remedies, i.e. relatively unprocessed or whole medications, such as herbs and foods. Licensed physicians from accredited schools are trained to u
Naturopathic Medicine is a unique type of health care that emphasizes the use of prevention and natural therapeutics. It is a branch of medicine that believes that the body has an innate ability to heal and focuses on the underlying cause of disease. Naturopathic medicine utilizes many different modalities, including botanical medicine, vitamins, minerals, dietary supplements, hydrotherapy, homeopathy, naturopathic physical medicine and nutritional counseling. Naturopathic doctors have a pharmaceutical formulary and you can check your state organization to get more details. The New Hampshire state law defines naturopathic medicine as “a system of primary health care practiced by doctors of naturopathic medicine for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of human health conditions, injuries, and diseases that uses education, natural medicines and therapies to support and stimulate the individual’s intrinsic self-healing processes.
