Kyle Chavers, MD, IFMCP, founder and physician at Foundations Medical Center, offers a new approach to the practice of medicine called Functional Medicine.
In simplest terms, Functional Medicine seeks to find the root cause of disease and addresses one of the key issues in healthcare practice today – improving the management of complex, chronic disease.
Dr. Chavers ultimately chose medicine as a career because he wanted to find the best way to help people in the most significant way. He understood from the beginning the importance of lifestyle factors such as nutrition and exercise. After completing medical school at the University of Alabama School of Medicine and a residency in Family Medicine in Tuscaloosa, AL he set out in a traditional Family Medicine practice ready to make a difference in the lives of his patients.
Dr. Chavers saw very quickly that the current medical model—oriented toward acute care and prescribed treatments aimed at treating an immediate problem or symptom—was in no way conducive to educating patients on how to make lifelong changes to improve their health and quality of life. In addition, time constraints due to pressure to see a higher quantity of patients along with increasingly burdensome requirements from insurance companies overshadowed the ability to form meaningful relationships or provide quality care. He became incredibly frustrated because he felt that he was unable to truly make anyone well—he was simply writing more and more prescriptions. At that time he made the decision to no longer practice primary care. Soon thereafter, he discovered the emerging field of Functional Medicine. This revolutionary approach to the management of chronic disease was a perfect fit. It provided in-depth, scientifically backed education behind what Dr. Chavers already knew to be necessary and effective for the management of chronic disease.
Lifestyle modifications are a very big factor indeed. Research estimates that 70-90% of the risk of chronic disease is attributable to lifestyle. That means what you eat, how you exercise, what your spiritual practices are, how much stress you live with (and how you handle it) are all elements that must be addressed in a comprehensive approach.
“…we have been able to identify modifiable behavioral factors, including specific aspects of diet, overweight, inactivity, and smoking that account for over 70% of stroke and colon cancer, over 80% of coronary heart disease, and over 90% of adult-onset diabetes.” [Willett, WC. Science, 2002:296, 695-697]
Working in partnership with a trained functional medicine provider, patients make dietary and activity changes that, when combined with nutrients targeted to specific functional needs, allow them to really be in charge of improving their own health and changing the outcome of disease.
Functional medicine practitioners may also prescribe drugs or botanical medicines or other nutraceuticals; they may suggest a detoxification protocol, a physical medicine intervention, or a stress-management procedure. The good news is: when you look at functionality, you uncover many different ways of attacking problems — you are not limited to the “drug of choice for condition X.”
A consultation with Dr. Chavers involves gathering an extensive history with a focus on lifestyle factors such as sleep, exercise, nutrition and stress. Personalized lab testing plays a vital role in developing an intervention that is specific to the needs of each individual patient. The goal is to find any excesses and remove them, and uncover any deficiencies and replace them. He may use diet, supplements, lifestyle changes or medication to treat your illness but will seek the most natural way to help your body restore balance along with the least invasive treatment possible.
Dr. Chavers received his certification in Functional Medicine through the Institute for Functional Medicine. IFM programs utilize the emerging research base to identify effective interventions and to train physicians and other providers to integrate those approaches for the benefit of their patients. This training involves understanding the etiology, prevention, and treatment of complex, chronic disease. It is an integrative, science-based healthcare approach that treats illness and promotes wellness by focusing assessment on the biochemically unique aspects of each patient, and then individually tailoring interventions to restore physiological, psychological and structural balance.
Learn more about Dr. Chavers and Foundations Medical Center by visiting www.foundationsmedicalcenter.com. Foundations Medical Center is located at 870 Mack Bayou Road, Suite D, Santa Rosa Beach, FL, 32459. For more information contact info@foundationsmedicalcenter.com or call (850) 660-6701. For information on the 3 Pillar Wellness partnership between Foundations Medical Center and Fit Your Way visit www.fyw30a.com
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