Dr. med. Sophia Wachner is intern and functional medicine. She runs a practice for functional medicine, orthomolecular medicine and nutritional medicine and is a partner in the MoleQlarconsultation program.
The numbers are worrying: In Germany, 40 percent of the total population currently suffers from one or more chronic illnesses. Almost one in three of them lives with these conditions for 20 years or longer (study by the Health Knowledge Foundation, 2021). Almost every second resident in Germany is now affected.
The number of people suffering from complex, chronic diseases such as diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular or autoimmune diseases (e.g. rheumatoid arthritis) and psychological limitations continues to rise - not just in Germany, but globally. However, while other countries have a mediocre health system, the German counterpart is one of the best in the world. The legitimate question arises as to how this can happen? The answer is as simple as it is frightening at the same time:
Our way of living is becoming less and less in line with what our human body actually needs.
Disproportion between body and environment
We are not designed to be stressed, surrounded by toxins, inflamed, infected, deficient in important micronutrients and unrested. Nevertheless, we expect (also driven by our society) to be full of energy, to grow, to reproduce, to be slim, to feel good, to eat everything we want, to digest perfectly and to have great sex. A desired combination that is a contradiction in terms.
All organisms on earth are adapted to a specific living environment. A maladaptation occurs when this environment changes dramatically and the organism does not have time to adapt. This mismatch between our genes and our modern lives is the main reason chronic diseases have become the massive problem they are today.
The conventional approach
The conventional approach of our healthcare system focuses on curation – that is, the treatment of diseases and individual symptoms. Instead of promoting true health, conventional doctors simply diagnose an illness and attempt to suppress the symptoms (most often) with prescription medications. These medications rarely address the root cause of the problem. Instead, they often just suppress symptoms at the expense of vital bodily functions. To treat these unintended side effects, the medication is expanded again. This creates a vicious circle of medication for the rest of life without addressing the root of the disease.
The eternal recipe cycle
To illustrate, let's take a quick look at an everyday example of conventional healthcare: A person with high blood pressure comes to the family doctor for a 10-minute appointment. This measures blood pressure and the patient then goes home with a prescription for a new medication. After that she is on her own until her next appointment. With this, she will probably only get a follow-up prescription, perhaps even without even seeing the family doctor. The causes of their complaints in terms of diet, lifestyle and environment would be completely ignored. And thus the opportunity to work with health advisors and other trained professionals to create an individual treatment plan for your cardiovascular health that would not only alleviate the symptoms, but actually bring about the longed-for healing.
The functional approach
Functional medicine takes this approach, which focuses on the cause of an illness rather than relying on medication to suppress the symptoms. It corrects the imbalance between our body and our environment through nutrition and lifestyle measures.
In short: Functional medicine is our best weapon against chronic diseases.
It views the body as an interconnected system, not as a collection of individual organs that are assigned to medical specialties. And functional medicine treats the entire system, not just the symptoms. She deals with the underlying causes of disease, pursuing a systems-oriented approach that focuses on the interaction between the body system (metabolism, nutrition, routines, ...) and the environment and both involves the patient and the treating doctor in a therapeutic partnership.
Functional medicine for the 21st century Century
Functional medicine is an evolution of the prevailing academic medical practice that meets the needs of 21st century healthcare. Century will be much fairer. Practitioners spend time with their patients, listening to their stories and examining the interactions between genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors that can influence health and disease. The aim should be to enable patients to take responsibility for their own health through a deep understanding of the complex relationships .
Acute care is pointless for chronic illnesses
The medicine practiced by most doctors is primarily focused on acute care, i.e. H to the diagnosis and treatment of injuries or illnesses that are short-lived and require urgent attention. Anyone who has had appendicitis or broken a leg, for example, can happily confirm this. Doctors act according to specific, prescribed guidelines and treat with medication or surgery aimed at treating the immediate problem or symptom. Unfortunately, acute medicine does not have the appropriate methods and instruments for the prevention and treatment of complex, chronic diseases. In most cases, neither the unique genetic makeup of each individual nor factors such as exposure to environmental toxins and aspects of contemporary lifestyle that have a direct impact on the increase in chronic disease in modern Western society are taken into account.
Only a few doctors work functionally
There is a large temporal gap between medical theory and medical practice. The time lag between the findings of the latest basic research and their integration into medical practice is enormous. Sometimes for up to 50 years, especially in the area of complex, chronic illnesses. Most doctors are therefore not sufficiently trained to recognize the causes of such diseases and to use strategies such as nutrition, diet and exercise to ultimately treat and prevent them.
Holistic instead of symptomatic
Functional medicine deals with the development, prevention and treatment of complex, chronic diseases on the basis of patient-centered treatment. The focus of functional medicine is on promoting health in the form of optimal quality of life and vitality and not just striving for the absence of disease.
By listening to the patient and learning their entire story, the doctor includes them in the treatment process and puts together a therapy concept that is tailored to the patient's individual needs. This creates an integrative, scientifically based health approach.
Functional medicine doctors look “upstream” to consider the complex web of interactions in the patient’s medical history, physiology and lifestyle that can trigger disease. Each patient's unique genetic makeup is taken into account, as are internal (body, mind and spirit) and external (physical and social environment) factors that impact overall function.
Innovative and traditional
Functional medicine integrates the best medical practices. It combines traditional Western medical therapies with what is sometimes referred to as “integrative” medicine. The focus is on prevention through diet and exercise, the use of state-of-the-art laboratory tests and other diagnostic techniques, as well as combinations of prescription medications and/or herbal medicines, dietary supplements, therapeutic diets, detoxification programs or stress management techniques.
Healing the system – rethinking medicine
Our society spends more and more money on “health care,” but yet we have less and less health to show for it. Today's healthcare industry has largely resigned itself to the belief that managing or alleviating disease is the best we can do. Now it's time to wake up and rethink medicine:
Good medicine, which can provide real healing, maximizes functional health and consequently minimizes disease by restoring human vitality, potential and balance. And that is exactly why functional medicine must be the approach that will accompany us into the future.
