Functional Medicine
Have you ever wondered or were confused by your annual lab tests? Your doctor often will tell you either some values are a little “high” or a little “low” or they may tell you everything’s “normal”.
But what does that mean? And how do any of these lab values explain your often nonspecific but real symptoms?
I mean, you’re looking at all of these lab values, words you’ve never heard before and you’re wondering what does all this say about MY health? Well, your doctor may say there’s really nothing to worry about and will see you next year.
Where does the word “normal” come from on the lab test? How is normal decided? The truth is “normal” is derived by comparing with everyone’s recent test results in the population at large and coming up with a wide “normal range” within those tested values! This means all tested values minus the highest and lowest 3%!
But what if that population is unhealthy? What if that range includes many people with impending diabetes, cancer, autoimmune disease, food in tolerances, and so on?
What if that range is ever broadening because the population at large IS LESS WELL? The numbers on your lab tests simply might say that you fall into the range somewhere of many NOT SO WELL people!
Many conventional doctors simply won’t pay attention to any of your lab values unless it falls WAY OUT of the normal reference range and may reflect blatant pathology!
A doctor concerned with FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE, that is, a doctor concerned with HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY REFLECTING OPTIMAL HEALTH will look at those same numbers with a different lens! Through the FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE LENS your lab values will be studied to determine if there are any tendencies deviating from optimal physiology and wellness, making recommendations for your optimal wellness and health long BEFORE you will manifest an obvious abnormality! They will focus on your nonspecific symptoms, say, low-energy, decreased libido, weight gain, difficulty concentrating and find in those lab values many, if not all of the reasons for your symptoms! Dietary and lifestyle recommendations are made so that you can achieve optimal health and wellness and feel good!
This is the “medicine” that incorporates all of the biochemistry and physiology doctors were taught in medical school. It is more than just looking at your lab values, checking if there are any “abnormal” values, or if everything is “normal”, sending you on your way in five minutes. It requires TIME and ENERGY to focus on YOU and YOUR INDIVIDUAL NEEDS to make the appropriate recommendations for YOUR OPTIMAL HEALTH!
THIS IS WHAT I AM DEDICATED TO at KB HOLISTIC in Miami Florida. I am dedicated to helping each and every one of my patients achieve optimal health and wellness. I provide a DETAILED ANALYSIS of YOUR physiology, including a COMPREHENSIVE FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS of your lab values and how it relates to YOUR health and symptoms. Dietary and lifestyle recommendations are provided in an objective way that you can track and follow with subsequent lab testing. I would be happy to evaluate your prior lab tests with my functional medicine analysis!