Review day! Today's review is a bit different, though. It's not a book review; it's a review of a person, more specifically, a review of his work.
I'm kind of obsessed lately with the work of Dr. Mark Hyman. He's a leader in the area of functional medicine. Functional medicine differs from traditional medicine in that it treats the body as a whole integrated entity rather than as separate systems. This concept really speaks to me.
(See all those tabs in the cookbook? They're all recipes I want to try. I've never owned a cookbook with so many enticing recipes; usually there are so few recipes I want from a book it's hardly worth buying - not this one!)
Functional medicine looks at what may be going on in your gut or elsewhere that may be impacting your brain, for example, as opposed to simply treating the headaches, or brain fog or whatever may be bothering you, on its own.
Traditional medicine generally approaches issues with what some call the Name it – Blame it – Tame it practice. For example, you go to your doctor and give them a list of your symptoms, let's say a loss of appetite, lack of motivation, an ongoing feeling of sadness, a feeling of disconnection or lack of feeling about things that normally engage you. You know you should care about things; you just don't. After a bit of questioning and maybe some testing, it's determined that you're suffering from depression (name it). The depression is what's causing your symptoms (blame it). You're given a prescription for an antidepressant to alleviate your symptoms (tame it).
The question which often remains unanswered is why. Why did these symptoms develop? A chemical imbalance, perhaps. But then, what caused the imbalance? And is there a way balance can be restored naturally, without the use of prescription drugs? Is there something going on somewhere else in the body causing the symptoms, which, if set to rights, would alleviate the depression?
I've long since thought our American culture and medical practices are far too quick to view drugs as the answer to too many issues. Don't get me wrong; I'm not against prescription drugs. I believe they have their place but almost always as a second, third, or fourth (or more) option, rarely as the first choice for treatment. It's far too easy to descend into the rabbit hole of taking a pill for one diagnosis, then being given another prescription to deal with the side effects of the first drug, then maybe a third prescription to deal with a different set of symptoms, and so on. Before you know it, there's a whole constant, delicate cocktail of drugs coursing through your veins.
Not too long ago, my husband and I were talking to our financial adviser about possibly switching our life insurance policies over to a product his company offered. Both my spouse and I are over fifty. When in the course of asking us a few health questions our adviser learned that neither of us regularly take any prescription drugs, he was shocked. He looked up from his list of questions, stunned, and asked, "Really? Nothing? No cholesterol or heart medication? Nothing at all?" We assured him the only things we take regularly are multivitamins and dietary supplements, he stared at us for a second then shook his head and said, "Wow." Since when have we accepted the need for drugs, especially as we age, as the norm? The prescription drug problem in America is real.
There's a better way. I believe the study and practice of functional medicine are at least a part of that better way.
Recently, Dr. Hyman created video series called The Broken Brain in which he and many other experts in the field, including some from Harvard, examined the effects of diet, environmental toxins, social connection, movement, and other items on ailments like Alzheimer's, ADD/ADHD, depression, anxiety, brain injuries, and more. You can learn more about it at brokenbrain.com. While the series may be unavailable at present, you can watch a short video about it and sign up to receive emails that will inform you on the topic and will let you know when the series will be shown again. An Amazon search of Dr. Hyman will get you to his many books, and a broader internet search of him and functional medicine will lead you to massive amounts of information for your consideration.
If you're not already familiar with the field of functional medicine, I urge you do some research. Our body is miraculous and is intricately tied to our soul. Don't we owe it to ourselves to learn about it and care for it the best we can?