New Frontiers in Functional Medicine

JEFFREY S. BLAND, PhD, FACN, CNS, is an internationally recognized leader in the nutritional medicine field. He co-founded of the Institute for Functional Medicine in 1991 and is known to many as the “father of functional medicine.” Over the past 35 years, Dr. Bland has traveled more than six million miles teaching more than 100,000 health care practitioners in the USA, Canada, and 50 other countries about functional medicine.

Imagine: You’re a busy FxMed clinician, working overtime treating, educating and supporting your patients as they transition to a new state of health. It’s exciting, and you’re inspired to be practicing medicine in a way you never thought possible. But (to put it mildly) you’re struggling with time management: FxMed is a lot of work! And then into your life comes an individual just as passionate as you are about functional medicine, who happens to be a trained, certified Functional Medicine Coach! They’ve learned the “ins and outs” of Positive Psychology, so they understand the change process and can guide your patients supportively and effectively. They’re also familiar with the Functional Medicine model, having been taught by many IFM faculty, so they can assist you with educating and “translating” the FxMed processes. Would this individual be a Godsend to your practice? YES! Learn about functional medicine’s newest team member in this podcast with the Founder and CEO of the Functional Medicine Coaching Academy, Dr. Sandy Scheinbaum. This podcast is perfect for clinicians, folks interested in a FxMed Coaching career, and anyone interested in the process of FxMed.

According to Dr. Bob Hedaya, it’s malpractice NOT to use functional medicine when practicing psychiatry. ALL of the nodes on the Functional Medicine Matrix [gastrointestinal, endocrine, immune, toxicity, nutritional status and especially psychological, social and spiritual] influence mental health, mental function and brain function. The bottom line is, a good functional approach yields better health, less medicine. In this case-focused inspiring podcast, hear about Dr. Hedaya’s years of clinical experience in using functional medicine to address tough psychiatric conditions.

From Cell to Soul: A Functional Approach to Women’s Hormone Management with Sara Gottfried, MD. Dr. Sara Gottfried has elegantly distilled her years of clinical experience and thousands of patient contacts into a user-friendly body of knowledge for physician and layperson alike. She’s truly a functional/systems medicine pioneer, combining the best of scientific data with the art (and heart) of medicine. An expert in the area of women's hormones, Dr. Gottfried candidly shares her own personal experience with hormone imbalances. Sara was pivotal on my own journey toward better self-care, as you’ll hear in this podcast.

One of the cornerstone tools of functional medicine is the elimination diet, be it a straightforward gluten/dairy free plan, or an involved, customized removal of many different foods. On top of this, we want our patients to choose clean, organic sources of foods. This dietary prescription is a tall order for many of our patients. Many years ago, Jen Fugo (author of The Savvy Gluten-Free Shopper: How to Eat Healthy Without Breaking the Bank) was prescribed just such a diet. With very limited funds, she figured out how to navigate the myriad pitfalls and change her life. Today, she’s dedicated her career to assisting individuals on therapeutic diets make the transition healthfully, affordably and successfully.

As a former Olympian and current Iron Man triathlete, (he qualified for the world championship in Hawaii this year!) Dr. Keith McCormick was diagnosed with severe osteoporosis at 45 years old. His own healing journey lead him to become a world expert on treating osteoporosis from a functional and integrative perspective. His 2008 book, The Whole Body Approach to Treating Osteoporosis, is useful for patient and clinician alike. This podcast is a goldmine of pearls for clinicians treating individuals with bone loss. Topics covered include underlying pathogenic mechanisms, laboratory evaluations and treatments-pharmaceutical and natural. Health savvy patients will find Dr. McCormick’s content useful.

Just released April, 2015, Natural Cures for Dummies is a superb survey of all things Natural Medicine. In this podcast, Dr. Banks and I cover a ton of content: The book, appropriate diets, including the elimination diet and the perils of gluten, we cover his approach to detox, appropriate supplements, genomics and systems medicine, Functional Medicine and so much more.

The oral microbiome is an important part of the gut microbiome and tending to its balance should a routine part of any good “gut protocol.” Indeed, dysbiosis of the oral microbiome (and a leaky oral mucosa) might be key underlying imbalances in pathogenesis of systemic diseases, including autoimmune (IBD, rheumatoid arthritis, Sjogren) as well as cardiovascular disease. As clinicians, addressing our patient’s oral health may be the missing link in treating many systemic diseases. This podcast is great for clinicians as well as anyone interested in gut health, the oral microbiome, autoimmunity, leaky gut and cardiovascular disease.

Dr. Winston Cardwell’s podcast: best home mold testing, laboratory testing for toxin exposures, best air filtration systems, home cleaning products, “green” building materials, “green” flooring sources and much more!

Chronic pelvic pain (CPP), including interstitial cystitis, chronic UTI, myofascial pain, pelvic floor pain, dyspareunia is a common, underappreciated problem in women. Indeed, one study looking at primary care practices found pelvic pain an issue in almost 40% of all reproductive-aged women. CPP is also identified in men, most commonly caused by prostadynia or prostatitis. What can we do as functional medicine clinicians to assist this population? Turns out, quite a bit. Listen to this very interesting and inspiring conversation I had with Jessica Drummond, MPT, CCN, CHC, founder and CEO of the Integrative Pelvic Health Institute. Jessica has made it her mission to train clinicians and treat women using a functional approach to chronic pelvic pain. As a physical therapist who later trained in nutrition (and is currently working on her PhD), Jessica discusses the multifactorial influences on CPP including: gut/microbiome health, hormone imbalances, nutrient deficiencies, stealth infections, diet, mind/body and toxins and what to do about them for our patients.