What is Functional Nutrition?
What is functional nutrition? This is the most common question I get as a clinician. Simply put, functional nutrition addresses imbalances in the body by restoring function through food, lifestyle and if necessary, supplement interventions. It transforms dysfunctioning body systems into optimal, functional health.
Every person is bio-individual, which means an intervention that works for one person may not work for another. Each person has unique needs. We are genetically and biochemically unique. We each require a customized strategy to achieve and sustain optimal health. That’s where functional nutrition comes in. It supports the normal healing mechanisms of the body, naturally.
Functional Nutrition is deeply science-based. The latest research shows us to see deep into the functioning of the body.
Your body has the ability to heal and prevent nearly all the diseases of aging.
Health is not just the absence of disease, but a state of immense vitality!
Each time I consult with a client, I ask the questions:
“Why do you have this problem in the first place?”
“Why has function been lost?”
“What can we do to restore function?”
Symptoms are clues to the ways in which your body is not functioning the way it should be. Rather than suppress those symptoms with pharmaceutical means, I am trained to interpret those symptoms to understand which system of your body needs support.
For example, if a woman consistently wakes in the middle of the night and has trouble falling back asleep, what is her ideal solution? She can 1) to go her physician and get a prescription for a sleep aid that may or may not have other side effects, 2) go to the drug store and get an over the counter sleep aid, or 3) find the root cause of her sleep issue. She could have a blood sugar imbalance causing her blood sugar to spike in the middle of the night and waking her up. It could be a hormonal imbalance, adrenal fatigue or liver congestion. She may have a genetic variant or SNP that is affecting the way her body detoxifies, which can contribute to her sleep quality.
By using functional nutrition, I look at the whole picture – symptoms, diet, illness history, medications, lifestyle, toxic exposure, history of antibiotic use, stress, lab work, etc., to determine the most appropriate interventions to achieve optimal health.
Learn about your health! Do not wait for a disease to teach you.