COMPENDIUM ON FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE - Flipbook - Page 69
This structured approach allows practitioners to connect the dots
across systems and create individualized treatment strategies.
Differences from Conventional Medicine
Functional medicine is distinct from the disease-centered model of
conventional medicine in several ways:
● Focuses on why a condition occurs, not just what the
condition is
● Prioritizes prevention and lifestyle as key therapeutic tools
● Uses advanced functional lab testing to assess physiological
function, not just pathology
● Encourages collaborative, long-term partnerships between
practitioner and patient
● Integrates nutrition, genomics, detoxification, and stress
modulation as core modalities
Conventional vs. Functional Lab Ranges
One of the most significant distinctions in functional medicine is
how laboratory results are interpreted. In conventional medicine,
lab reference ranges are based on statistical norms derived from
the general population.
This "normal range" typically reflects the middle 95% of the tested
population. However, this population is often composed of
individuals with chronic illness, obesity, inflammation, or metabolic
dysfunction4skewing the reference range toward
disease-tolerant values.
Functional medicine practitioners use optimal ranges
instead4tighter, evidence-based parameters that reflect ideal
physiological function rather than statistical averages.
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