"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" This quote attributed to Benjamin Franklin, was not in the context of medicine, but it surely reflects the 6th principle applied in the practice of naturopathic medicine: Prevention.
This principle has many layers of meaning similar to to our 1st principle, First, do no harm! It permeates through all of the first 5 principles and therefore, is automatically incorporated in practice, if the first 5 principles are sustained.
The three most important aspects of this principle include:
- Preventing disease onset and progression
- As in the case of most lifestyle and chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, hypertension, obesity
- Thorough testing: looking for signs of sub-optimally functioning of organ systems, correcting deficiencies and addressing anomalies early can stop the disease process from setting in
- Ongoing research in epigenetics indicates that the genetic predisposition to diseases, with some exceptions, is greatly influenced by interaction with the environment
- Preventing the worsening of an established disease
- Includes the lifestyle diseases mentioned above plus, atopic conditions like eczema, asthma, allergies and auto-immune diseases such as psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, alopecia, colitis, Crohn’s disease. Chronic inflammatory conditions such as fibromyalgia, gastritis, osteoarthritis and conditions associated with aging such as osteoporosis and weakening eyesight
- Requires choosing the treatment that will halt the progression of disease and create conditions in the body to begin healing
- Also, requires a thorough review of costs vs. benefits of the chosen treatment. Here again, the clinical acuity of the ND will help determine whether the need for more invasive treatments would be more beneficial than using a lesser invasive alternative
- Following and teaching the principles of preventative medicine
- Preventing damage to our immediate and extended environment has a huge impact on our health. The health of our planet depends on the health of its beings and how well we take care of it.
- Learning to be connected with nature and it’s tremendous healing force within and outside is critical for disease prevention
Throughout this week, my goal has been to provide an insight into the mind of a naturopathic doctor and the various intricacies that I try to address why creating a detailed treatment plan for our patients. NDs are trained as all doctors, to follow an evidence-based approach to treatment and continually update their knowledge about the latest research in nutrition, pharmacology, pharmacognosy and environmental medicine. What I enjoy most is the challenge of figuring out how evidenced-based information can be applied individually to each patient, while still keeping in line with naturopathic principles.
I hope that I have at least partially achieved my goal this past week. Thanks for reading and please be sure to leave comments and feedback.
Wrapping up #NatMedWeek2018!
