Many of us have come to know that much of medicine today is concerned with treating the symptoms of disease. Thousands of names have been created to label these disease entities along with their symptoms. And thousands of medicines have been developed to treat their individual symptoms. And then there are medicines to treat the side effects of other medicines. It is often a frustrating battle.

 
Is there another paradigm? Is there a way to identify why cells in our body function poorly? Is there a process to rectify the breakdown in communication between cells so healing could occur? Is there a science that treats the underlying causes, and not just the symptoms, of disease?

 
Yes! The science is called Functional Medicine. Functional Medicine looks for the cause of cellular miscommunication.

 
All disease starts with cellular inflammation. When the source of cellular inflammation is determined and addressed, then the various manifestations from cellular damage might begin a repair process throughout the body.

 
Let me be specific. Periodontal disease is a manifestation of inflammation around the gum margin, but this disease did not start with just plaque around the teeth. This inflammation has a much more complicated beginning.

 
When we eat certain harmful “foods”, the good bacteria in our gut become altered. Also these harmful food products weaken our gut lining, which is only one cell layer thick. This protective lining is the primary physical barrier that separates the outside world from our inner self. Bacterial byproducts and undigested proteins accumulating in our gut are able to leak into our blood. This portal to our blood system allows a vicious chain of events to occur, affecting our bodily functions. Now a host of degenerative diseases have a chance to simmer and develop over many years. Along with these changes, the bacteria in our mouths become more virulent, which can initiate gum disease.

 
By applying the concepts of Functional Medicine, we can begin to heal our gut, which begins a healing process for our mouths as well as the rest of our body. This thing called Functional Medicine is changing the way traditional medicine is practiced.