Functional Medicine
You are unique … truly one of a kind! Your biochemistry. Your nutritional status. Your hormone levels. Your energy level. Your immune function. Your cardiovascular risks. Your ability to deal with stress. Your cognitive function. Your memory. Your exposure to toxins. Everything about you is unique.
When something goes wrong, the “fix” that works for you may not be (indeed, probably isn’t) the “fix” that might work for someone else. Something about your unique system — your physiology, your nutrition, your hormonal milieu, etc. — begins to malfunction. What used to function well, now doesn’t. At Living With Intention, with his training in FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE, Dr. Elliott works to determine the heart of the matter, the true “root cause” of your dysfunction. Then, as naturally as possible, he works to restore you to optimal function. In fact, this, in a nutshell, is why it’s called FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE in the first place.
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can help you recapture the vitality, energy, and wellness you used to enjoy, when you were younger, when all systems were functioning well. In this initial 90-minute appointment, Dr. Elliott will review and discuss with you your:
Initial MD Consultation
Additionally, you will be offered, free of charge, a comprehensive body composition analysis. From this you will learn your current BMI (body mass index), your weight-related cancer risks for as many as six specific cancers, your ideal body weight, your current basal metabolic rate (daily calorie burn rate), body fat composition, and lean body weight.
At the conclusion of your initial evaluation, Dr. Elliott will provide you with recommendations for further evaluation, if any are indicated, to get at the true “root cause” of your particular concern(s). A few days following your appointment, you will receive, in writing, a brief review of these recommendations for your personal records.
When something goes wrong, the “fix” that works for you may not be (indeed, probably isn’t) the “fix” that might work for someone else. Something about your unique system — your physiology, your nutrition, your hormonal milieu, etc. — begins to malfunction. What used to function well, now doesn’t. At Living With Intention, with his training in FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE, Dr. Elliott works to determine the heart of the matter, the true “root cause” of your dysfunction. Then, as naturally as possible, he works to restore you to optimal function. In fact, this, in a nutshell, is why it’s called FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE in the first place.
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can help you recapture the vitality, energy, and wellness you used to enjoy, when you were younger, when all systems were functioning well. In this initial 90-minute appointment, Dr. Elliott will review and discuss with you your:
- Specific current and past concerns
- Past medical history, including: family history, surgical history and social history
- Nutrition habits
- Sleep habits
- Exercise habits
- All current medications and supplements
- All known allergies, intolerances, and hypersensitivities
- Comprehensive review of systems (GI, cardiac, respiratory, digestive, etc.)
Initial MD Consultation
Additionally, you will be offered, free of charge, a comprehensive body composition analysis. From this you will learn your current BMI (body mass index), your weight-related cancer risks for as many as six specific cancers, your ideal body weight, your current basal metabolic rate (daily calorie burn rate), body fat composition, and lean body weight.
At the conclusion of your initial evaluation, Dr. Elliott will provide you with recommendations for further evaluation, if any are indicated, to get at the true “root cause” of your particular concern(s). A few days following your appointment, you will receive, in writing, a brief review of these recommendations for your personal records.
What Is Functional Medicine?
Perhaps Functional Medicine is best explained by contrasting it with Conventional Medicine.
- Where Conventional Medicine asks, “What’s the diagnosis?” Functional Medicine asks “Why is the body not working, not “functioning,” the way it was designed to work?”
- Where Conventional Medicine asks, “What is the treatment for this disease, for these symptoms, for this diagnosis?” Functional Medicine asks, “How do we best restore optimal function?”
- Where Conventional Medicine leans predominantly on prescription medications, Functional Medicine aims to restore optimal function more naturally — correcting nutritional deficiencies, restoring hormonal imbalances, minimizing immune stressors, eliminating food hypersensitivities, and so on.
- Where Conventional Medicine treats each body system in isolation, Functional Medicine recognizes the intricate, web-like interconnections linking everything together.
- Where Conventional Medicine tends to treat all patients with a given diagnosis the same way, Functional Medicine tailors a specific treatment plan to each individual, recognizing that everyone’s physiology, biochemistry, and genetic predisposition is unique.
- Where Conventional Medicine focuses almost exclusively on the physical body, Functional Medicine recognizes and addresses the complex inter-relatedness of body, mind, and spirit.
Allergies – Food and More
Sometimes the symptoms are obvious: runny nose; nasal congestion; itching, burning, watering eyes; wheezing; shortness of breath; itchy rash.
Sometimes the symptoms are far more subtle: fatigue, chronic GI problems (diarrhea or constipation), abdominal bloating, headache, joint and muscle pain, “brain fog,” depression, anxiety.
Clearly, not all allergies are created equal.
ENVIRONMENTAL allergies, the one’s causing the more “classic” symptoms, are typically mediated by a specific antibody type called IgE. Here we find the MULTI-BILLION dollar industry of antihistamines, decongestants, nasal sprays, saline rinses, steroids, cold remedies, and … ouch!!! … allergy shots.
Beyond these, often overlooked, sometimes very devious and deceptive, are FOOD allergies. Far more common than once suspected, these may be mediated by either IgE or IgG antibodies. The IgE food allergies aren’t deceptive at all. They’re terrifying! They can cause — almost immediately — facial swelling, difficulty breathing, difficulty swallowing, choking, even death! The IgG allergies are the subtle ones, the silent ones, where symptoms often show themselves two or three (or more) days after exposure to the offending food.
Tired of suffering all the time? Want to minimize, or even eliminate, your allergy medications, even those frequent, painful, costly shots? Want to find out what foods to avoid so that you can feel better, more energetic, and less fatigued?
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can help you identify, and control, your specific allergies. The goal, as always, is optimal health with minimal medication.
Sometimes the symptoms are far more subtle: fatigue, chronic GI problems (diarrhea or constipation), abdominal bloating, headache, joint and muscle pain, “brain fog,” depression, anxiety.
Clearly, not all allergies are created equal.
ENVIRONMENTAL allergies, the one’s causing the more “classic” symptoms, are typically mediated by a specific antibody type called IgE. Here we find the MULTI-BILLION dollar industry of antihistamines, decongestants, nasal sprays, saline rinses, steroids, cold remedies, and … ouch!!! … allergy shots.
Beyond these, often overlooked, sometimes very devious and deceptive, are FOOD allergies. Far more common than once suspected, these may be mediated by either IgE or IgG antibodies. The IgE food allergies aren’t deceptive at all. They’re terrifying! They can cause — almost immediately — facial swelling, difficulty breathing, difficulty swallowing, choking, even death! The IgG allergies are the subtle ones, the silent ones, where symptoms often show themselves two or three (or more) days after exposure to the offending food.
Tired of suffering all the time? Want to minimize, or even eliminate, your allergy medications, even those frequent, painful, costly shots? Want to find out what foods to avoid so that you can feel better, more energetic, and less fatigued?
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can help you identify, and control, your specific allergies. The goal, as always, is optimal health with minimal medication.
Brain and Neurological Health
Emotional well-being. When we have it, we take it for granted. When we don’t, everything we try to do seems a struggle.
When the brain works well, a complex symphony of neurotransmitters work together for good. When the brain misfires, the results can be personally, socially, relationally, and professionally debilitating: depression, anxiety, panic episodes, insomnia, fatigue, ADD/ADHD.
When the brain REALLY misfires, the results can be crippling and truly terrifying: Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, vascular dementia, Multiple Sclerosis, Lou Gehrig’s disease.
So what causes the brain to misfire? What disturbs the symphony? As you might guess, a variety of factors play a role: things like genetic predisposition, previous life experiences, stress, nutritional deficiencies, oxidation and chronic inflammation. Here’s the good news: there are a number of non-pharmaceutical, non-prescription steps you can take to improve, restore, and maintain optimal brain health. At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can identify those elements of your unique biochemical makeup that may be causing brain health problems. He can then formulate a plan utilizing brain exercises, lifestyle changes, counseling, and nutrition to restore your brain to the harmony it was designed to sing from the beginning.
When the brain works well, a complex symphony of neurotransmitters work together for good. When the brain misfires, the results can be personally, socially, relationally, and professionally debilitating: depression, anxiety, panic episodes, insomnia, fatigue, ADD/ADHD.
When the brain REALLY misfires, the results can be crippling and truly terrifying: Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, vascular dementia, Multiple Sclerosis, Lou Gehrig’s disease.
So what causes the brain to misfire? What disturbs the symphony? As you might guess, a variety of factors play a role: things like genetic predisposition, previous life experiences, stress, nutritional deficiencies, oxidation and chronic inflammation. Here’s the good news: there are a number of non-pharmaceutical, non-prescription steps you can take to improve, restore, and maintain optimal brain health. At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can identify those elements of your unique biochemical makeup that may be causing brain health problems. He can then formulate a plan utilizing brain exercises, lifestyle changes, counseling, and nutrition to restore your brain to the harmony it was designed to sing from the beginning.
Detoxification
“For the first time in the history of the world, every human being is now subjected to contact with dangerous chemicals, from the moment of conception until death. In the less than two decades of their use, synthetic pesticides have been so thoroughly distributed throughout the animate and inanimate world that they occur virtually everywhere.” — Rachel Carson, Silent Spring, 1962.
Did you catch the date on the quote above? 1962! Almost 50 years ago, Rachel Carson penned these hauntingly prescient words.
Ours is truly a toxic world. From pesticides to herbicides to solvents to cleansers to heavy metals to food and cosmetic additives to synthetic medications, we are surrounded by poisons.
The good news? Fortunately, the human body was designed to detoxify itself, to rid itself of all this bad stuff. The bad news? The human body was NEVER designed to detoxify THIS MUCH stuff. Our systems simply get overwhelmed, stressed to the max.
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can evaluate your body’s unique detox capacity, oxidative stress profile, and heavy metal load. He can then prescribe for you a comprehensive detoxification plan that will help you avoid and remove the bad stuff and revitalize and restore your body’s own healthy defense system to prevent problems in the future.
“It’s never too late to become what you might have been.” – T.S. Elliot
Did you catch the date on the quote above? 1962! Almost 50 years ago, Rachel Carson penned these hauntingly prescient words.
Ours is truly a toxic world. From pesticides to herbicides to solvents to cleansers to heavy metals to food and cosmetic additives to synthetic medications, we are surrounded by poisons.
The good news? Fortunately, the human body was designed to detoxify itself, to rid itself of all this bad stuff. The bad news? The human body was NEVER designed to detoxify THIS MUCH stuff. Our systems simply get overwhelmed, stressed to the max.
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can evaluate your body’s unique detox capacity, oxidative stress profile, and heavy metal load. He can then prescribe for you a comprehensive detoxification plan that will help you avoid and remove the bad stuff and revitalize and restore your body’s own healthy defense system to prevent problems in the future.
“It’s never too late to become what you might have been.” – T.S. Elliot
Heart Health
For years, heart disease has been the leading cause of death in the United States. By now, we can recite the risk factors in our sleep: Diabetes, high blood pressure, smoking, high cholesterol levels, a positive family history, getting older, being male (though a woman’s risk catches up quickly after menopause).
For years, we have had scores of drugs on the market to help us reduce our cardiovascular risk, to keep our blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar under control. Why, then, do we still have this great problem? Is there something else going on? Is there something else we can do to minimize our risk of heart disease?
The answer, of course, is, “YES.” There’s a lot more going on. There are a number of newly-emerging risk factors that we can identify and treat. Many medications themselves can adversely affect the heart. Hormones play a major role in cardiovascular health. Nutrition plays an enormous role. Specific vitamins, minerals, and co-factors are absolutely essential to cardiovascular health. There are a number of non-pharmaceutical, non-prescription tools we can use to improve cardiac function.
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can design a plan specifically for you. By measuring these newly-emerging and cutting-edge cardiac risk factors, by evaluating your unique nutritional needs, hormonal balance, and physiological stress status, he can design a plan to optimize your heart’s health.
For years, we have had scores of drugs on the market to help us reduce our cardiovascular risk, to keep our blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar under control. Why, then, do we still have this great problem? Is there something else going on? Is there something else we can do to minimize our risk of heart disease?
The answer, of course, is, “YES.” There’s a lot more going on. There are a number of newly-emerging risk factors that we can identify and treat. Many medications themselves can adversely affect the heart. Hormones play a major role in cardiovascular health. Nutrition plays an enormous role. Specific vitamins, minerals, and co-factors are absolutely essential to cardiovascular health. There are a number of non-pharmaceutical, non-prescription tools we can use to improve cardiac function.
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can design a plan specifically for you. By measuring these newly-emerging and cutting-edge cardiac risk factors, by evaluating your unique nutritional needs, hormonal balance, and physiological stress status, he can design a plan to optimize your heart’s health.
Hormone Balance
Medical science has long recognized that, by and large, as we age, our body’s hormone production decreases.
The big question, however, is this: Does hormone production diminish because we age, or do we age because our hormone levels fall?
Is it possible that, by accurately identifying and then replenishing hormone deficiencies, we can move toward the youthful vigor and vitality we once knew? The answer, not surprisingly, is a resounding “YES.”
Hormones … those tiny yet powerful chemical messengers that govern our body’s homeostasis and well-being … need to maintain a delicate balance for all to run smoothly. Growth hormone, thyroid hormone, cortisol, estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, melatonin, DHEA, pregnenolone, … the list goes on and on. Too much of one and our heartbeat races. Too little and we feel sluggish, cold, and have problems controlling our weight. Too little of another and our bones become brittle. Too little of yet another and our risk of heart disease increases.
Moreover, not all hormone replacement products are created equal. Some are far superior and safer than others. How do you know what you need? How do you know what’s optimal … not for just anyone, but for you?
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can evaluate your biochemically unique hormone status and develop a plan to restore any deficiencies to their more optimal, vibrant, youthful levels.
“I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I’ve bought a big bat. I’m all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!” – Dr. Seuss
The big question, however, is this: Does hormone production diminish because we age, or do we age because our hormone levels fall?
Is it possible that, by accurately identifying and then replenishing hormone deficiencies, we can move toward the youthful vigor and vitality we once knew? The answer, not surprisingly, is a resounding “YES.”
Hormones … those tiny yet powerful chemical messengers that govern our body’s homeostasis and well-being … need to maintain a delicate balance for all to run smoothly. Growth hormone, thyroid hormone, cortisol, estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, melatonin, DHEA, pregnenolone, … the list goes on and on. Too much of one and our heartbeat races. Too little and we feel sluggish, cold, and have problems controlling our weight. Too little of another and our bones become brittle. Too little of yet another and our risk of heart disease increases.
Moreover, not all hormone replacement products are created equal. Some are far superior and safer than others. How do you know what you need? How do you know what’s optimal … not for just anyone, but for you?
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can evaluate your biochemically unique hormone status and develop a plan to restore any deficiencies to their more optimal, vibrant, youthful levels.
“I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I’ve bought a big bat. I’m all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!” – Dr. Seuss
Nutrition
Gut Health and Nutritional Evaluation “We are what we eat.” Right? Only partly right, it turns out. Actually, and more precisely: We are what we eat and then don’t get rid of.
Did you know that your gut, your gastrointestinal (GI) tract, is one complex mechanism! In addition to the digestion, absorption, metabolism, and excretion of what we take in, our GI tract is also intimately involved in neuroendocrine and immune system regulation as well.
So, if something inside you isn’t working right, if you’re just not feeling right, if you suffer chronic disease, if you are overweight, gut dysfunction may be playing a considerable role.
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can evaluate your body’s:
“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, “I will try again tomorrow.” – Mary Anne Radmacher
Did you know that your gut, your gastrointestinal (GI) tract, is one complex mechanism! In addition to the digestion, absorption, metabolism, and excretion of what we take in, our GI tract is also intimately involved in neuroendocrine and immune system regulation as well.
So, if something inside you isn’t working right, if you’re just not feeling right, if you suffer chronic disease, if you are overweight, gut dysfunction may be playing a considerable role.
At Living With Intention, Dr. Elliott can evaluate your body’s:
- Nutritional status (identifying specific vitamin, mineral, and co factor deficiencies)
- Amino acid status
- Organic acid and short chain fatty-acid metabolism
- Cellular and mitochondrial metabolites
- Neurotransmitter metabolites
- Digestion, absorption, pH, metabolism
- Bacterial balance, yeast and parasite status, and immune function, and
- Ability to detoxify
“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, “I will try again tomorrow.” – Mary Anne Radmacher
Stress and Fatigue
We live in a fast-paced, stressed-out culture! Job demands, family obligations, financial pressures (especially in today’s world of economic uncertainty), and social commitments … all take a heavy toll on our health and create a sense of fatigue, and … well … “dis-ease.” While everyone easily acknowledges that stress affects our emotional and relational well-being, it should come as no surprise that stress profoundly affects us physically, as well. Specifically:
“If you don’t change directions, you’ll wind up where you’re going” – Mark Twain
- It affects thyroid function, zapping our energy and slowing our metabolism.
- It compromises our immune system, making us more vulnerable to infection, chronic illness, and even cancer.
- It decreases the production of important sex hormones, and inhibits our sex drive.
“If you don’t change directions, you’ll wind up where you’re going” – Mark Twain
