Long gone are the days when medicine or surgery was the only solution to illness. Today, the story is different. Conventional methods are very much into practice, but they are modified by alternative practices to improve health.
Integrative medicine is different than conventional medicine. It not only focuses on mainstream approaches but also on other therapeutic approaches to getter better health results.
This article will explore all the aspects of integrative medicine and conventional medicine for a better approach.
What is Integrative Medicine?
Integrative medicine combines conventional medicine with alternative medicine. The question here is, what is alternative medicine?
Alternative medicine includes other treatment modalities, including acupressure, Chinese medicine, nutritional supplementation, and various others.
In integrative medicine, neither the effect of conventional medicine are ignored, nor the importance of alternative medicine succumb. On the flip side, this treatment system picks up the best scientifically proven treatment methods for patient’s care and safety.
The whole aim of this treatment method is to consider the patient’s entire body to treat them in a much better way.
Integrative medicine is, in short, a marriage of conventional and alternative medicine that is only focused on giving safe and effective treatment to the patient.
Combination of Integrative & Holistic Medicine for Effective Treatment
Integrative medicine itself is a holistic medical discipline. But why holistic?
Let’s understand it with an example.
Suppose you have a migraine, and you go to a doctor to get it treated. Usually, the doctor will run some tests on you, and after proper diagnosis, the doctor will prescribe you medicine to relieve your symptoms. It is a conventional method.
But, if you go to a holistic doctor – he will not only prescribe you alternative and conventional methods but will also consider your whole lifestyle. According to integrative medicine, a person with a poor lifestyle is likely to face many health-related challenges in his life.
The doctor will check into your eating and sleeping habits to get information on the other factors instigating the illness. When he finally understands it, he will then suggest some holistic approaches along with conventional medicine to get rid of the disease.
For instance, yoga, massage, or acupuncture might help some people to improve their lifestyle and completely get rid of a migraine.
Now you see, how integrative and holistic medicine complement one another to treat patients? The holes that conventional medicine leaves in a person’s treatment are filled by integrative medicine and holistic approaches.
Examples of Integrative Medicine and Practices
Integrative medicine can be of different kinds, ranging from patient to patient. Here are some of the integrative practices that a person can experience during their treatment. Each of them is different from what you consider conventional medicine.
- Natural Products
Herbal products or herbal medicine is immensely popularized at this time and is used by people of all ages. Most people use herbal medicine to treat small illnesses. Even though it is highly famous among a lot of people, but there is significant risk attached to it. Many people take natural products without any proper consultation – this could lead to harming the person as well.
Integrative medicine involves treatment with natural products to complement with conventional practice. These remedies aim to fulfill the other needs of the body, along with the treatment of the illness. Such therapies increase the healing process of the patient.
Herbal remedies include teas, extracts, powders, capsules, and other forms of products to maintain the health of the person. Not to forget, these herbs are not beneficial every time – instead of it – they can also cause serious harm.
You never know how these herbs interact with your prescription medicine in your body; therefore, it is not good to take them without any proper consultation. Herbal products or remedies are complementary medicine along with others that can help in drastically improving the health of the patient.
- Diet & Nutrition for Weight Loss
Often, the leading cause of the illness is attached to the fat of the body. Many people who are obese face more problems than others, why? Simply because an excess of anything is not fruitful for the body.
In most integrative practices, weight loss is considered a top method to bring the body back to its healthy state. It can take years, months, or weeks for a person to start losing weight. In integrative medicine, the patient and doctor work as a team to combat the illness.
There is nothing better to pair up than for weight loss. Integrative medicine physicians are qualified to deal with obesity and other nutritional deficiencies. The physicians used various tools like massage therapy, aromatherapy, nutritional counseling, to help individuals to reduce weight. A journey to weight loss can be long and can extend up to months, weeks, and even years.
Healthy lifestyle changes are impertinent in this holistic approach to treatment!
- Mind & Body Practices
Mind and body practices complement conventional practices to treat patients. Many wellness centers help patients to carry out breathing exercises, practice meditation, or yoga.
Like mentioned before, acupuncture also help patients to get rid of a lot of health problems. In functional medicine (in which finding the root cause of the problem is essential), doctors treat patients individually. That is, they consider them different from other people with the same disease.
In such cases, mind and body practices also vary according to the patient. Not every patient will be suitable for acupuncture or yoga might help someone, but it’s not the case with everyone.
In integrative medicine, the focus is on treating the patient as a whole, which includes his mind too. Meditation and other practices help the patient to be healthy and mindful in their life.
Thus, functional or integrative medicine, although a bit different from one another, share a lot of similarities. Mind and body practices can help in treating the patient in a much better manner.
How Splendor of Youth Combines Both Complementary and Alternative medicine.
We provide the best possible way to treat patients by combining the best of both medicine types. We usually recommend complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) to patients along with conventional ones. By doing so, we are not just treating the illness, but are aiming to eliminate the overall disease from its root.
For instance, research showed that pain and anxiety in patients with cardiovascular disease were significantly reduced by IM interventions. Similar to this, another study found amazing results of CAM therapies on patients with cardiovascular diseases.
It shows that doctors utilize bodywork, energy therapies, Chinese medicine, and more as alternative methods to help the patient. Both the doctor and patient work as a team to fight against the illness.
Many physicians also suggest that integrative medicine can have a positive impact on the patient’s health. By incorporating these therapies with conventional medicine, there is a bright chance that the patient might recover pretty quickly.
Should You Turn To Integrative Medicine going into 2020?
There might not be enough evidence on integrative medicine, but it can be found that integrative medicine is an excellent practice to improve health. By not only focusing on the illness but the person as a whole, integrative doctors are able to take all of the factors in a persons life in order to treat the disease or illness on a much deeper level.
Focusing on the root cause of an illness is much better than only relieving the symptoms. Integrative medicine is a better way to promote well-being and a patient’s health.
If you have been considering a integrative and holistic medical practitioner, Splendor of Youth Medical in the clinic for you. Contact us today to schedule a meeting with our doctor Francisco Quiroz who is one of the best holistic doctors in dallas and get started improving your wellness today!
