Lifestyle Medicine

Promoting good health through lifestyle changes has been at the core of naturopathic medicine since its founding in the 19^th century. Today, medical research underscores the importance and mechanisms of establishing a healthy routine, and how it can improve your health in the present and future.

A distinct area of conventional medicine has now been named ‘lifestyle medicine’, which mirrors some of the principles in which naturopathic physicians are thoroughly trained. From the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians:

“By using protocols that minimize the risk of harm, naturopathic physicians help facilitate the body’s inherent ability to restore and maintain optimal health. It is the naturopathic physician’s role to identify and remove barriers to good health by helping to create a healing internal and external environment.”¹

Recognizing the importance of our daily routines on health and treatment of illness, many conventional medical schools (including UCLA, Stanford, and Harvard) now have programs devoted to focusing on the use of lifestyle medicine.

The naturopathic physicians at the Vermont Naturopathic Clinic advocate many ways to achieve healthy lifestyle changes to treat and prevent many conditions, often incorporating the following in many of their treatment plans:

• Therapeutic nutrition
• Physical activity plans
• Sleep cycle balance
• Relaxation and stress management
• Hydration recommendations

Using counseling skills such as motivational interviewing, the physicians at Vermont Naturopathic Clinic can help you decipher what changes to make within the context of your current daily routine, how to set goals for your lifestyle changes, and how to move forward in achieving those goals. Our naturopathic physicians customize the recommendations to your specific health needs and current schedule, helping you create a sustainable plan to improve your health.

If you want to optimize your health by living the best life you can, call us at (802) 448-3388 to schedule.

Source:

“What is a Naturopathic Doctor?” American Association of Naturopathic Physicians, http://www.naturopathic.org/content.asp?contentid=60, accessed July 22, 2014.