Looking to improve your overall health and learn more about preventing illness and disease? May 2–10, 2009 is Naturopathic Medicine Week! Although the information is available to you at all times, this is a great opportunity to learn about what a naturopathic doctor can do to help you reach optimal health.

As we already mention on this site, naturopathic doctors are highly trained to be health care providers in the prevention and treatment of illness and disease. A minimum of 8 years of schooling backs their experience in the field. They are trained in areas including pharmacology, evidence-based medicine, nutrition, IV therapies, botanical and herbal uses, Chinese medicine, homeopathy, anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, etc. For more information on what a naturopath’s qualifications are, visit the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine’s website.

Naturopathic medicine is the prevention of disease and the promotion of proper health through the practice of non-invasive, safe, and effective administration of natural treatments. This approach aims to reinstate and facilitate our body’s normal functioning, its operation as it was initially meant to be.

Contrary to popular reports, naturopathic medicine has indeed proven very effective in treating disease and illness. For example, kidney and gallbladder stones have been dissolved, negating the need for surgery. Those suffering from long-time infertility have become pregnant. Cysts, fibroids, and tumours have been dissolved or significantly shrunk, and associated symptoms have been reduced or negated. Food and environmental allergies, nutritional deficiences, behavioural issues, and developmental issues have all been successfully treated. Chronic conditions such as sinusitis, candida and candida-related issues, Crohn’s and colitis, IBS, and pancreatitis, and infections have been successfully treated so that the patient is no longer aggravated by symptoms. Metabolism issues can be fixed. NDs can also requisition bloodwork and other tests as well as conduct in-house urinalysis. Pain, inflammation, and mobility have also been successfully treated. And you don’t have to see your naturopath for serious or chronic challenges only. Colds, flu, low energy levels, and other minor ailments can also be addressed.

In general, the result of seeing a naturopath and properly following his or her recommendations is optimal health and well-being with a very low chance of ailment recurrence. This is mainly because the aim of naturopathic medicine is to ferret out and remedy the root cause(s) of symptoms, rather than simply treat the symptoms. It is because naturopaths treat a person holistically, examining their mental, emotional, physical, and even spiritual aspects and seeing how they affect each other. It is also because alternative medicine has been around for centuries, developing, improving, and discovering more ways to most effectively bring about health.

For more information on naturopathic medicine, have a look around this website. Also visit the Association of Accredited Naturopathic Medical Colleges, the Ontario Association of Naturopathic Doctors, and Wikipedia.