Integrative Medicine

Lifestyle, diet, and mental well-being are all equally important aspects of health. Recently, I learned about integrative medicine.

The use of integrative medicine has increased greatly over the past decade. Also called holistic or complementary medicine, it "addresses the full range of physical, emotional, mental... and environmental influences that affect... health." This approach includes natural products as well as mind and body practices. It also takes into account how to limit the side effects of treatments, and non-medicinal therapies are used to reduce the side effects of medicinal treatments. It doesn't simply "take care" of the problem, but promotes the maintenance of well being. Ultimately, it addresses the root of the illness, encourages a holistic approach, and addresses chronic problems.

Integrative medicine utilizes natural products and emphasizes a healthy lifestyle for both mind and body. Natural products include herbs, vitamins, minerals, and probiotics, while the emphasis on mind and body includes yoga, exercise, and meditation.

Western medicine can fix illnesses through the use of drugs, radiation, and surgery. On the other hand, integrative medicine attempts to prevent the causes of these illnesses, so that they will never occur in the first place. This is not to say Western medicine doesn't have its value; it can be a powerful form of treatment if it is too late for preventative measures of illness. However, nearly all forms of medicinal treatment come with side effects in some shape or form. Often, the more adverse the illness, the more powerful the treatment, the more negative the side effects. This is where the two practices— "Eastern" and "Western" —come together, as they are integrated with one another to ensure that patients are getting the best of both worlds.

The path of a healthy lifestyle is not always as clear cut as one would expect. The field of health has changed drastically over the past century with the help of scientific discoveries and technology. Despite this, a lot less than what one would expect is known about health, and it is constantly evolving. Socrates once said that "the part can never be well unless the whole is well." While many trends have taken over the health world recently—intermittent fasting, gut health, ketogenic diet, activated charcoal, etc. —integrative ideology is the amalgamation of all aspects of wellness.

A key takeaway from this health philosophy is that to solve a problem doesn't simply require just "solving the problem" itself; the cause of the problem must be addressed before long-term change is established. Looking beyond the topic of health, this reasoning often applies to life issue in general. It's equally important to understand that to solve the cause of a problem demands an extremely comprehensive understanding of the problem itself. Just like integrative health, if some aspects of an issue are not fully addressed or understood, a flawed diagnosis could be the result.