Functional Medicine for Weight Loss
One of the most common questions I get asked is can functional medicine help with weight loss? My answer is always the same. Functional Medicine is the best way to lose weight. The reason I say this is because Functional Medicine is about getting you healthy and if your metabolism is not working it can be close to impossible to lose weight and keep it off. Functional Medicine addresses the underlying health problems that are at the root of weight gain and the inability to lose weight. Functional Medicine is perfectly positioned to address underlying issues like poor digestion, insulin resistance, diabetes, inflammation, thyroid problems, irritable bowel and other digestive problems—all of which can contribute to weight issues.
Functional Medicine is lifestyle based, so it is about changing lifestyles that are contributing to poor health and weight gain. Getting to the root behavior and lifestyle issues is part of making lasting changes. Once these functional issues are corrected it is not uncommon to lose 20-35 pounds in 2-3 months and for most people the weight loss is easy because they are not restricting calories or exercising excessively. Once the metabolism is fixed the weight comes off on its own. Then if we implement other weight loss strategies, they are more effective.
Akilah’s Story
Akilah came to my office desperate to lose weight. She had tried everything—pills, patches, diets and a personal trainer—but nothing worked. Just prior to coming to the office she had investigated getting bypass surgery. Akilah attended one of my weight loss seminars and everything made sense to her so she set up an appointment to see if Functional Medicine could help her with her weight loss problem.
After reviewing Akilah’s case we discovered that she had some underlying problems that were preventing her from losing weight and just making her feel awful. She had some food sensitivities and some digestive issues that resulted in her developing diabetes and a thyroid problem at the young age of 23!
We started Akilah off on a gastrointestinal repair program to address her foundational dysfunction that was contributing to her poor digestion, diabetes, and thyroid issues. In less than 4 months, Akilah had lost 110 pounds, her thyroid was in the normal range, she no longer had diabetes, and she even joined a soccer team. She expressed how easy the process was for her. She describes how she was not deprived from food, not forced to exercise like a fiend, no pills or patches, just information, messages, and encouragement.
Losing 110 pounds is not typical. Most people can expect 20-35 pounds in that time frame but the point is just how fast her body was able to lose the weight once we restored function to her metabolism. Not only did she lose weight and get her life back, we reversed some major medical conditions in the process.
To get more information on functional medicine for weight loss, schedule a free weight loss consultation.