The doctor, that is the allopathic physician. He practices conventional medicine as practiced by a graduate of a medical college, something that is usually referred to as allopathy, or allopathic medicine. Allopathy is defined as a system of medicine that focuses primarily on treating disease rather than promoting health. The naturopathic doctor, on the other hand, acts more like a friend, or should we say your advisor in matters of health. According to the ENCYCLOPEDIA OF NATURAL MEDICINE, as much as in my own view, “The biggest difference between naturopathy and allopathy is that the allopathic physician tends to view good health as a physical state in which there is no obvious disease present. In contrast, naturopathic physicians recognize true health as a optimal state of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being.“
Myself, I am both. I am an allopathic physician by training and by virtue of some of the medicines and treatments that I prescribe. After all, the agents used in chelation therapy are, albeit harmless, synthetic chemical compounds, and according to Professor Bocci at least, even ozone should be regarded as a “proto-drug” (even though I have certain reservations with regard to that view). However, by inclination and by virtue of my approach I am a full-blooded naturopath. The Seven Principals of Naturopathy serve as my guidelines, when I am treating a patient, any patient. Even in cases when I feel I have to prescribe an allopathic medication, I still follow these same guidelines. Incidentally, the guidelines match in spirit and words with the traditional Hippocratic Oath [also see blog The Hippocratic Oath, January 15th, 2011] that graduates of medical colleges previously needed to take before they were permitted to practice medicine. Unfortunately the oath has been done away with, and when I graduated from my medical collage, I had not even heard it mentioned once, let alone its underlying principals.
What, then, are the Seven Principals of Naturopathy? Which as I believe, are simply the principals at the root of any good and honest form of medicine.
- First, do no harm. The idea is to employ methods that are above all both safe and effective; which automatically infers to abstain from therapies or medications that produce more numerous and pernicious side effects than they do good. But why would not to cause harm, be the # 1 principal? Because to not jeopardize principal # 2.
- Nature has healing powers. Harmless methods do not compromise the self-healing powers inherent in the body, whereas harmful methods do. Because humans, in fact all living beings, have this capacity to heal themselves, it is NOT the physician’s role to cure the patient. The role of the physician is only to facilitate and reinforce the healing process. This, however, makes the physician no less important when his or her intervention is needed to set the process in motion.
- Identify and treat the cause. The symptoms that the disease produces especially in chronic cases are NOT the problem. Rather they act as safety valve and expression of the body’s attempt to heal. Therefore, as long as they are not life threatening, they should not be suppressed. Rather we need to look for the causes, which can arise from physical as well as psychological and emotional imbalances. Even frustrated spiritual needs can cause disease. Such imbalances need to be discovered and addressed on all levels.
- Treat the whole person. Naturally, if all spheres in a person’s life can contribute to or cause disease, I then will also have to address the whole person when I attempt to eliminate any such causes. I have to take into account the web of the person’s life, all physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, social and other factors.
- The physician is a teacher. Well, more like a health trainer or coach for happy living, in modern terms. The physician needs to educate, motivate and empower the patient to assume increasingly more responsibility for his or her own wellbeing and happiness.
- Prevention is the best cure. Yes, that is why I specialize in preventive medicine, by focusing equally on detoxification as well as on encouraging wholesome habits.
- Establish health and wellness. As stated above even the World Health Organization defines health as “state of optimal physical, mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing”; whereas wellness is defined as “a state of health characterized by a positive emotional state.” I have seen it many times over, even when severe disease hits, a high level of wellness or comfort can be achieved.
After all, especially we physicians should not kid ourselves: we will never be able to control life to the degree that no diseases will manifest. If we try and do that, which we are in the process of trying and doing, we make life a living hell for ourselves and for the patient. What we can, however achieve, for our patients under many different conditions, is “a state of relative health accompanied by a positive emotional state”.