What is Functional Medicine?
Functional medicine is an operating system for health promotion, disease prevention, and chronic disease management. It is looking at the body as a system and interpreting how those systems relate to one another, resulting in one’s health status. Functional medicine focuses primarily on food as medicine, but also integrates how one’s genetics interact with their environment, lifestyle, environmental toxins, and many other factors.
Functional medicine allows the clinician to expand their toolbox to treat patients. Patients walk away from an encounter with a lifestyle prescription that will address their sleep, stress, nutrition, and exercise. Treatment may also incorporate prescription medications as well as targeted nutraceutical supplementation. All recommendations are personalized, as no two people are alike.
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What are ATMs?
Antecedents, Triggers, and Mediators (ATMs). Theses are all aspects of a patient’s story that are identified when looking into a patient’s medical history. These can have a significant impact on health. Addressing the ATM’s can be a key factor in optimizing and/or restoring health.
T: Triggers
These are “activators.” This is something that happened during one’s life, such as a car accident, a death, birth, etc. One might notice that after a significant trigger in their life, their health declined.
M: Mediators
These are things that contribute toward the perpetuation of a health problem. For instance, if you are having breathing problems because you are exposed to a substance in your home or work environment, and nothing is done to change the environment, the breathing problem is likely to persist.
The Matrix
The Matrix is a clinical tool that is utilized in functional medicine to look at the body as a system. There are seven systems on the matrix. A patient’s symptoms are mapped onto the matrix and put into the appropriate system. The systems include: Assimilation (digestion), Defense and Repair (immune/infection), Energy (the body’s ability to make and utilize energy), Biotransformation and Elimination (toxicity), Transport (cardiovascular), Communication (Endocrine), Structural Integrity (structure of membranes, musculoskeletal structure). At the center of these seven systems is Mental, Emotional, and Spiritual health. Imbalances in these systems produce patient symptoms. The Matrix helps the clinician to clearly see where a patient’s physiology is imbalanced and needs support.
Free Living Matrix Assessment
Take the first step to your individualized treatment by taking the free living matrix assessment!