Finding an Alternative Health Program That Brings Lasting Health
To treat symptoms rather than causes brings no lasting results. To give a person a pain pill for pain rather than treating the cause of the pain, only gives a person some temporary relief. To cut out the part of the body that is affected, only weakens the overall function of the body. To replace parts of the body with artificial parts, does not help the body heal itself. All these methods only assure the medical profession of return customers and a continual income.
There must be a better way! There must be an alternative method that treats causes rather than symptoms. Truth is, there are many methods of health care that use non-conventional approaches to health care. They range from totally ridiculous to well thought-out scientific systems leading to ultimate health. The following are some that are based on well thought-out rational approaches that treat causes rather than symptoms. These are based on prevention as well as treatment.
I. Naturopathic Medicine
Naturopathic doctors believe the human body has an innate ability to heal itself. Naturopathic doctors (NDs) instruct their patients to use diet, exercise, lifestyle changes and cutting-edge natural therapies to aid their bodies’ ability to ward off and combat disease. They view the patient as a complex, interrelated system. They craft comprehensive treatment plans that blend the best of modern medical science and traditional natural medical approaches to treat disease, and restore health. They base their practice on six timeless principles founded on medical tradition and scientific evidence.
1. Let nature heal. Our bodies have a powerful, innate instinct for self-healing. Finding and removing the barriers to their self-healing (such as poor diet or unhealthy habits) nurtures this process.
2. Identify and treat causes. Symptoms will only return unless the root illness is addressed. Do not cover up symptoms. Finding and treating the cause of these symptoms will bring lasting healing.
3. First, do no harm. Naturopathic doctors follow three precepts to guarantee their patients’ safety:
Use low-risk procedures and healing compounds, like dietary supplements, herbal extracts and homeopathy, with few or no side effects.
When possible, do not suppress symptoms, which are the body’s efforts to self-heal.
Customize each diagnosis and treatment plan to fit each patient. No two people are alike. Each person heals differently.
4. Educate patients. Naturopathic doctors believe they must be educators, as well as physicians. They teach their patients how to eat, exercise, relax and nurture themselves physically and emotionally. They also encourage self-responsibility and work closely with each patient.
5. Treat the whole person. We all have unique physical, mental, emotional, genetic, environmental, social, sexual and spiritual makeups. The Naturopathic doctor knows that all these factors affect our health. Because of this, he or she carefully tailors the treatment strategy to address the whole person.
6. Prevent illness. They understand, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” To them proactive medicine saves money, pain, misery and lives. With this in mind, the naturopathic physician evaluates risk factors, heredity and vulnerability to disease. By getting treatment for greater wellness, we’re less likely to need treatment for future illness.
II. A Master Herbalist
An Herbalist is one who uses herbs to promote health. This has been the world’s primary form of medicine since the beginning of time, with a written history of over 5000 years. Unfortunately, the use of herbs for health care in America has been overshadowed by dependence on modern medications for the last 100 years. Notwithstanding, 75% of the world’s population still relies primarily upon traditional healing practices, most of which is herbal medicine.