Philosophy

I Believe In True Health Care

I believe that health is more than merely the absence of disease. It is a total state of physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and social well-being. Western medicine is excellent for crisis care; for instance, when you break a bone, cannot breathe or are having a heart attack. But Western medicine is poor at preventing and treating chronic diseases like heart disease, arthritis or auto-immune diseases. We have the knowledge now to go beyond the current crisis care model and incorporate lifestyle medicine, nutrition, supplements and exercise to improve the functioning of organs as a means of preventing disease and creating vibrant, sustainable health.

I believe that the Body has the Innate Capacity to heal itself.

In addition to using different therapeutic techniques, I always take into account the patient’s belief systems, attitudes, feelings, social relationships and environment. I also look at their patterns of eating, working, resting, sleeping and exercising and never lose sight of the body’s ability to heal itself. And finally, my role as a practitioner also includes teaching patients how to get healthy and inspire them to stay healthy.

I believe that we need to be proactive about our health.

It’s essential but difficult because there are so many powerful social, economic, and political forces that work to undermine our ability to be truly healthy. From the processed food industries to the pharmaceutical companies, our culture has become susceptible to large scale, well-funded interests that make money by perpetuating an unhealthy system. This has created conditions in our society that support rather than prevent disease. As consumers, we cannot be passive anymore. We need to take responsibility for our own health, the health of our families, our society, and the world at large. The small choices we make on a daily basis affect our resilience, our health, and our quality of life.

I believe that Genetics loads the gun and lifestyle pulls the trigger.

We now know, thanks to the science of Epigenetics, how your genes are expressed is determined by what information you feed them. This means that what you eat, how you think, what supplements, you take, how much toxicity, you have been exposed to in your life, etc, have an enormous effect on your genes, and consequently your health. They can influence whether certain genes get turned on or off and ultimately whether you develop certain diseases or not. For example, you may have a genetic predisposition for heart disease; whether or not you actually develop that disease is influenced by lifestyle.

I Look For The Root Causes Of Disease Rather Than Suppress Symptoms.

Although treating symptoms can make patients feel better temporarily, looking for the underlying cause is preferable. When you’re driving your car and the oil light goes on, you don’t put a Band-Aid over the oil light and drive on. You go to the mechanic to see why the oil light went on or when a plant is sick or not doing well, you don’t paint it green; you look at the soil, sun, water and nutrients. Symptoms should be seen the same way. When there is an imbalance in the system, your body sends you signals. Looking for the root cause, treating the underlying disturbance, and restoring balance are more important than simply treating the symptoms.