Tag Archives: integrative medicine

Post-Pandemic Need for Functional Medicine and Integrative Care

February 25, 2022

The speed and scale of the COVID-19 pandemic response highlighted the fragmentation of current healthcare systems across the globe and how it significantly impairs the ability to respond effectively. Making matters worse, the impact of the pandemic on population health and the functionality of healthcare systems has been and will continue to be far-reaching and long-lasting.

As the world attempts to rebuild from the pandemic, many individuals are left with serious and lingering health issues that require immediate and consistent attention. Healthcare practitioners are now facing a rising prevalence of chronic disease, growing cases of long COVID infection, as well as pandemic-influenced mental, physical, and emotional crises.

Addressing the devastating psychological and physical aftereffects of the pandemic will require deviation from the current standard of medicine. An integrated approach to patient care heavily grounded in functional medicine is emerging as the solution to healing global public health and repairing the siloed structures of the healthcare industry.

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5 Topics You Can’t Miss at the 29th Annual World Congress

December 3, 2021

In just one week, the 29th Annual World Congress will be underway! We hope you will be joining us live in Las Vegas between December 9-12, 2021, for the medical education event of the year hosted by world-renowned industry leaders. In line with A4M’s mission to equip clinicians and other medical professionals with the most clinically current advanced education, this year’s conference will deliver a packed agenda of the most relevant topics in advanced integrative medicine education.

The premier event will delve into the numerous challenges and changes that have occurred in the last two years and highlight emerging opportunities in the health care field. Themed “The Next Chapter: Unmasking the Hidden Epidemic,” this year’s World Congress will address the crises within our medical system that have left patients and health care professionals neglected, and our shared communities vulnerable. Attendees will leave with forward-thinking expert insights to help them confidently lead the next chapter in health care with comprehensive knowledge, innovative care strategies, and invaluable tools. 

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How Cannabidiol Can Impact Your Health

October 14, 2019
Partner Blog: Foundation for Alternative and Integrative Medicine

Written By Dr. Joanne Quinn 

The body has an endocannabinoid system which produces cannabinoids naturally. The two main innate cannabinoids are anandamide and 2-AG with receptor sites throughout the body including the brain and the gut. We make our own cannabinoids during various activities like meditating, breast-feeding, or the runners high that joggers experience. When our natural endocannabinoid system is not operating normally there are symptoms which can culminate in many of the health issues listed below.

One way to bring balance to our endocannabinoid system is to supplement with plant cannabinoids found in Cannabis salvia plants including hemp and marijuana. There are many cannabinoids found in these plants with the two main ones being CBD (cannabidiol) and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol).

In hemp, the CBD is more prominent and in marijuana the THC typically is more prominent. However, marijuana plants are now being cultivated to be higher in CBD as a medicinal option. In addition to the cannabinoids found in cannabis, there are terpenes, flavonoids and waxes that are synergistic when the whole plant is used. CBD as a whole plant balances this endocannabinoid system bringing back health to the body.

THC has psychoactive components making one feel high and euphoric. THC and CBD both have healing benefits but in many cases the patient wants to avoid the psychotropic effects of THC. Thus the emphasis is often on CBD.

Research is showing that CBD offers more medical applications than THC. There are a tremendous number of conditions that research shows are helped with CBD. A quick search on PubMed will bring up studies confirming this. Conditions that were studied with favorable results include:

  1. Acne
  2. ADD and ADHD
  3. Addiction
  4. AIDS
  5. ALS
  6. Alzheimer’s disease
  7. Anorexia
  8. Antibiotic resistance
  9. Anxiety
  10. Atherosclerosis
  11. Arthritis
  12. Asthma
  13. Autism
  14. Bipolar disorder
  15. Cancer
  16. Colitis and Crohn’s
  17. Depression
  18. Diabetes
  19. Endocrine disorders
  20. Epilepsy and Seizures
  21. Fibromyalgia
  22. Glaucoma
  23. Heart disease
  24. Huntington’s disease
  25. Inflammation
  26. Irritable Bowel Syndrome
  27. Kidney disease
  28. Liver disease
  29. Mad Cow disease
  30. Metabolic syndrome
  31. Migraine
  32. Mood disorders
  33. Motion sickness
  34. MS
  35. Nausea
  36. Neurodegeneration
  37. Neuropathic pain
  38. Obesity
  39. OCD
  40. Osteoporosis
  41. Parkinson’s disease
  42. PTSD
  43. Rheumatism
  44. Schizophrenia
  45. Sickle Cell Anemia
  46. Skin conditions
  47. Sleep disorders
  48. Spinal Cord Injury
  49. Stress
  50. Stroke and TBI

It is apparent the applications for CBD are numerous and broad scoped. One area of investigation by the US government included oxidative associated diseases, such as ischemia (including stroke), inflammation, autoimmune issues, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s, and other age related diseases. This research found that CBD was neuroprotective.

One of the more famous cases that brought CBD into the limelight was Charlotte Figi. She suffered from a rare form of epilepsy. After five years of trying every treatment doctors could think of, her condition continued to deteriorate. Her father found research that marijuana had helped other cases. They needed a strain of marijuana that was high in CBD and low in THC. This was no easy task but they finally found a source in Colorado. Charlotte’s condition improved immediately. She went from 300 seizures a week to not having any seizures in the first week of treatment. It was remarkable and life-saving for Charlotte.

In 2013 Dr. Sanjay Gupta produced a documentary for CNN called Weed. This documentary has three parts and is listed by title Weed in the videos section of the FAIM website. It is a two hour piece that gives the history of hemp and marijuana and insightful information on the pros and cons of both. Dr. Gupta has now produced Weed 4 which explains how cannabinoids can help people with opioid addiction.

CBD has a physiological impact on the body by upregulating the genes that help calm inflammation and down regulating the genes that promote inflammation. CBD causes a balancing cascade throughout the central nervous system, immune system, nervous system, cardiovascular system and lymphatic system. CBD, when taken as a nutritional supplement, participates in this endocannabinoid system bringing balance to the body.

CBDs help the body counteract the insult from toxins we experience daily from chemicals, bacteria, fungus, viruses and endotoxins in the gut. Inflammation from these toxins cause a large variety of diseases as well as inflammatory conditions in the central nervous system affecting the brain. This is why CBD has such great success in treating so many diseases.

There are many companies that are producing and marketing CBD so it is important to determine the quality prior to purchasing. If you decide CBD could be helpful for your health, research the company carefully to ensure you are getting a high quality CBD. All reputable companies should do lab testing on their products and it is the consumer’s right to request these test results.