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Functional Medicine Health Concerns

A Functional Approach to a Healthy Weight

I started my program focused on gut health & overall better function in the body – and the weight just took care of itself!!

Approaching Weight from a Functional Perspective

Healthy Weight: (adj. + n.) a body’s relative mass or the quantity of matter contained by it, that does not negatively impact but rather regulates optimal bodily functions; can be comfortably maintained with lifestyle and does not consume one’s thoughts.

You take up space. A measurement of space is weight. The weight of your body is a compilation of purpose! Down to every one of your 724+/- trillion cells.

One of the beautiful things about how we are designed is that we have the ability to guide the purpose of our cells by what we do and how we live.

An Integrative Approach to Healthy Weight

The etiology of unhealthy weight in today’s world is multi-factorial including genetic, psychosocial, emotional, behavioral and environmental factors.  Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight may require attention to deeper issues in all aspects of lifestyle including:

  • Nutrition
  • Mindfulness
  • Physical activity
  • Lifestyle imbalances
  • Stress management
  • Quality sleep
  • Spiritual connection

Addressing Root Issues

When journeying on the path to a healthy weight, it is necessary to address not the symptom of unhealthy weight but rather the root issues that is causing it. With functional medicine, providers often do in-depth testing to uncover what is going on or not going on internally such irregular thyroid activity, insulin resistance, hormonal imbalances, toxic overload, nutrient deficiencies or imbalances, etc.

Evidence suggests the following therapies may be helpful for weight management:

  • Body therapies such as chiropractic, message therapy, and acupuncture
  • Mind-body techniques such as meditation, breathing exercises, and artistic expression
  • Talk therapy including counseling, support groups and motivational interviewing

“We used to eat to fill our stomachs but now we eat to fill our hearts.” – Dr. Rangan Chatterjee

If we stop to look at the real reasons people eat certain foods, it’s not a lack of self-control like the stigma suggests- it is a lack of other things in life.

Don’t Weight! A Better Approach to Healthy Weight

Here are five key elements that can help us tune into our hunger cues, emotional needs, and physical responses to food in a way that makes us feel better overall, with weight loss as an added benefit. Stopping to ask yourself what, when, why, where, and how, every time you eat, creates a sense of awareness and sustainable results that are often missing from diet culture.

When we regulate the body’s biological systems, we automatically regulate the brain chemistry, hormones, and other factors that can lead to an unhealthy weight when left unchecked. And, when we begin to understand that the food industry knows how to hijack those systems at the highest level, we can stop blaming ourselves and start making positive changes!

If the body still can’t seem to find its healthy weight, seek assistance! There may be deeper issues going on.

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