According to the Office of Research of Women's Health at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), autoimmunity is the underlying cause of more than 100 serious known chronic illnesses - which includes but is not limited to: endometriosis, rheumatoid arthritis, celiac disease, alopecia, hashimotos thyroiditis, dermatamyositis, type 1 diabetes, and more. A new approach MUST be taken in order to combat this fast-growing problem and take better care of our patients and clients - so many of which are our very own family and friends that are affected by these debilitating and life altering ailments. Of the millions living with autoimmune issues, approximately 1 in 12 women are afflicted, (Roadmap to Resolution, Andrea Nakayama).
A diagnosis is proving not to be the end point. There is no fool-proof diet or one-size-fits-all approach to solving this healthcare crisis. The solution is a multi-pronged approach that utilizes a variety of practitioners and healthcare specialists -- one of which being a Functional Nutrition Counselor. A powerful addition to your arsenal of good health practices, a practitioner who understands the upstream issues causing these impactful and debilitating downstream issues, one that sees the environmental impacts and either the positive or damaging effects of diet, lifestyle and supplementation. The Certified Functional Nutrition Counselor is one that is versed in Functional training and looks at the whole system, understanding that the human body is all connected and one area cannot be viewed simply, in isolation of the rest. In consult with additional alternative integrative practices to help re-balance the body and harmonize the effects of treatments and protocols to get you back to homeostasis, the Functional Nutrition Counselor is an integral part of the shifting health paradigm.
According to a survey by the American Autoimmune Related Disease Association (AADRA), it takes at least four doctors and three years, on average, before a patient with an autoimmune disease is properly diagnosed, with 75% of those patients being women. (Nakayama)
This paradigm shift is a key indicator that we need a new, holistic viewpoint of our health and healthcare system and it is time to build team of practitioners, integrating their expertise into our own individualized paths to good health.
