Naturopathy . . . :S

CorvusCorax77

but at which point does that line between helping your body achieve it's functions and simply taking things for the hell of it become blurred?

In my opinion,

That line becomes blurred the moment you walked into a naturopathy building.

maybe outside the scope of this discussion, but I had a midwife for my birth and it was awesome. She went to Bastyr and was a naturopath as well. On the other hand, when I was bleeding like hell, she had no problem turning to the surgeon and saying "would you mind stitching this up? I think you have steadier hands than me."

edited...because apparently I don't know what the word "osteopathic" actually means.

CandelLife

I think it becomes blurred when you take something just because it's the newest faze or fad, or the naturist behind the counter wants to make a bigger sale so she decides to be "helpful" more than asked. LOL...

Personally I'm a big believer in supplements because we can't always eat only the best foods for our body and the right variety for various reasons.

conniedj

I have an MD, and I have a naturopath. When I spent 5 years trying to get pregnant....MD put me on meds that didn't work without even knowing "what" was wrong. My Naturopath muscle tested me for a plethora of issues, and treated me with homeopathics, vitamins, minerals herbs. Within 2 months I was pregnant.

Fast forward after 2 children(4 years)......went to MD in tears because I just felt sick and tired ALL of the time. Ran a plethora of tests. Nothing. Put me on thyroid meds...did not help. I honestly felt like I was on my way to being in a chronic state of sickness. Went back to naturopath. Muscle tested--again multiple issues ( including parasites) treated with homeopathics, vitamins, minerals and herbs. It took several weeks of this building/cleansing regimen....but one day while in the *bathroom* a bunch of unsightly stuff came out.....for the first time in forever the fog lifted from my brain, and I could breath deeply. You can see in my profile pic that I am on my way to being a pretty healthy individual.

You can call "bunk" all you want--and quite frankly if someone who wasn't willing to do a thorough examination wanted to say "you need......" after looking at me for all of 5 minutes--I would definitely be skeptical. There are a lot of folks out there just trying to sell stuff ( prescribed medicine is definitely included).

I was referred by people I trust to a good and well respected practitioner. Insurance doesn't cover any of it. I consider my naturopath my main "Doctor". I am just disappointed with our "health"care system. Just treating people once they are super sick, not treating the body as a whole, oreven considering prevention as part of "health" care.

BTW...My undergrad is in sports med. I sold pharmaceuticals for a living for years--many years ago. I love science and am a research- aholic. But this is JMHO! HTH!

nickyfm

I firmly stand by naturopathy. Vitamin injections and supplements are my life, but just like in western medicine, naturopathy will also have its share of quacks.

SrJoben

but at which point does that line between helping your body achieve it's functions and simply taking things for the hell of it become blurred?

In my opinion,

That line becomes blurred the moment you walked into a naturopathy building.

In NZ, where I live, most pharmacies have a natural section and naturopathy often lies alongside medicinal remedies. Plus...I'm open minded. If it works, why not??

If it works why not? Indeed. But the question is does it work.

The important thing you need to understand in many countries, including NZ i think, you don't need to prove an 'herbal supplement' does ANYTHING in order to sell it. Often you don't even need to prove that it's not dangerous.

Because of the ways the rules work for this sort of thing just having it on store shelves does not mean that it works.

trudijoy

quite frankly if someone who wasn't willing to do a thorough examination wanted to say "you need......" after looking at me for all of 5 minutes--I would definitely be skeptical.

I was. She claimed she could explain things that I knew were caused by other things.... Needless to say I only bought what I was familiar with and knew worked for me.

racergirl1991

As a certified Holistic Health Practitioner ( yes I studied it in school and have passed a national board test), I can tell you that in order to correctly identify any deficiencies it takes completing an in depth health history and having the results of a full blood panel. Those people that work in "vitamin stores" are usually not certified at all and just promoting the "remedy of the month".

Additionally many times natural remedies for one issue can make an underlying issue much worse, an example would be Licorice Root. Licorice Root is amazing as an expectorant, but can also raise your blood pressure. Always research any supplement before taking it and if at all possible go to an herbal store to purchase them. The quality is better and you also have a better chance of having someone on staff that is qualified to help you with your questions. I fully believe in natural medicine in conjunction with traditional medicine. No one can know everything but when we work together, the results are amazing.