What is Functional Medicine

Dr. Lenz practices a new model of medicine, sometimes referred to as “Functional” or “Systems” medicine. Functional Medicine is a science-based approach to assess, prevent and treat chronic disease. It is a new model of medicine that has evolved through the efforts of scientists and clinicians from the fields of clinical nutrition, molecular biology, biochemistry, physiology, conventional medicine, and a wide array of scientific disciplines. Functional medicine evaluates the body as a whole with special attention to the relationship of one body system to another and the nutrient imbalances and toxic overload that may adversely affect these relationships.

The vast majority of modern-day illness is not from acute illness that can be easily diagnosed and treated. Most illness is chronic and almost always preceded by a lengthy period of declining function in one or more of the body's systems. Functional medicine is a new clinical model that replaces outdated and ineffective acute-care models of health care and attempts to return patients to wellness. Illness is addressed by identifying specific dysfunctions that have contributed to the disease state. Those dysfunctions are, for each of us, the result of lifelong interactions among our environment, our lifestyle and our genetic predispositions.

FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE IS:

Investigative. Addresses symptoms by focusing on the underlying cause of the problem, which leads to more profound and longer lasting results.

Holistic. Envisions the body as an interconnected whole that is in dynamic relationship to its environment, and recognizes the importance of these connections in health and disease.

Safe. Treatments have mild or no side effects, and other unrelated complaints often improve spontaneously.

Patient-centered. Treats the patient, not the disease. Treatments are highly individualized based on patient needs.

Participatory. Patient is respected, empowered, educated and encouraged to play active role in healing process.

Integrative. Combines the best of both modern and traditional medicines and emphasizes importance of diet and lifestyle.

Restorative. Tests and treatments designed to promote optimal function, prevent and reverse disease, and improve quality of life.

Preventative. Guided by the ancient Chinese saying, “The superb physician treats disease before it occurs.”

Evidence-based. Based on the latest research from peer-reviewed medical journals, and uncorrupted by corporate and political interests.

In conventional medicine, there’s a doctor for every part of your body: cardiologists for the heart, gastroenterologists for the digestive system, neurologists for the brain and nervous system, podiatrists for your feet, and ophthalmologists for your eyes. But in functional medicine, we see the body as an interconnected whole, within a larger environment. We recognize that in order to treat one part of the body, all of the other parts must also be considered.

In working with you as a patient, Dr. Lenz will take a step back and try to see common features that might link all the health conditions that you might be experiencing. By looking for the commonalities and patterns, she can offer interventions that affect multiple pathways, helping you recover your health faster and more completely.

Deep and lasting healing are only possible when the root causes of illness are addressed. By understanding the core systems of the body, how they are related, and how their function can be restored, many chronic illnesses can be prevented and even reversed.