We don’t need statistics to know that cancer is a huge epidemic in our world today. The treatment methods we have become accustomed to unfortunately have developed into household names. For example, the term “chemotherapy” is now recognized as a buzzword for fear, trauma, and excruciating recovery periods that we wouldn’t wish on our worst enemy.
This leaves little exposure to the world of functional or natural cancer treatments. The idea that a disease so deadly and consuming could be cured or prevented by natural means is often questioned. We have become accustomed to fighting fire with fire as a way to approach these pressing health problems and as such, the seemingly passive approaches of functional healthcare seems to be all too painless to be believed. Fortunately, many professionals are beginning to shift their perspective and realize that functional medicine may be the more productive route of treatment.
How Can Functional Medicine Help?
So often today medical professionals have treated the symptoms of cancer with an equal aggression as the aggression with which it attacks the cells. The cellular nature of cancer makes it difficult to imagine how to possibly predict the onset of it and even more difficult to remove from the body. Addressing the root cause of the illness is how functional medicine seeks to treat issues such as this. In the case of cancer specifically, this means creating a healthy base within the body to ensure the development of imbalances at the cellular level is avoided.
The imbalances that lie at the root of cancer formation are what functional medicine seeks to prevent – by enhancing immune function, ensuring optimum balance within the body is obtained, and making sure that things such as nutrition, physical activity, and environmental factors are all at their highest level of functional capacity. In short – the functional approach is creating the healthiest manifestation of the human body as possible.
As a functional health expert, Dr. Mark Hyman, states of functional cancer medicine:
“We can enhance immune function and surveillance through dietary and lifestyle changes, as well as nutrient and phytonutrient therapies. We can facilitate our body’s own detoxification system to promote the elimination of carcinogenic compounds. We can improve hormone metabolism and reduce the carcinogenic effects of too much insulin….from our high sugar and refined carbohydrate diet.”
Ultimately, functional medicine aims at preventing the onset of cancer cell-growth within the body. There are also certain actions that can be taken to decrease the rate of cancer-cell growth in those currently suffering from the disease. These include:
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- Improving gut health
- Cutting out sugar
- Eliminating food sensitivities
- Reducing inflammation
- Decreasing toxic exposure
- Changing immune system by the thought-process awareness
As each patient’s case will differ, functional health understands that generating awareness of your own stressors and particular needs is key to successfully removing and reducing the likelihood of developing symptoms altogether.
Additionally, you can immediately implement some cancer preventing habits by including some of the following foods in your regular diet:
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- Leafy Green Vegetables
- Cruciferous Vegetables
- Berries
- Orange Fruits and Veggies (Citrus Fruits, Squash, Sweet Potatoes, etc.)
- Fresh Herbs and Spices
- Organic Meats
- Cultured Dairy Products
- Nuts and Seeds
