A lady at work has made an astonishing change since going to a Naturopath (maybe 18 months ago). She is now on a very strict diet due to allergies, which the ND made her aware of. But she looks great, feels great + runs 5 miles a day! She is in her mid-40's BTW.

So, my New Year's resolution is to eat healthier. Yes, I have plenty of weight to lose, but I'm not willing to do anything insane to lose it. I want to feel good. That's it!

There's a 12 week Biggest Loser class at work during Thursday lunchtime that is teaching us how to eat healthier. It's a pretty informal thing, with no money exchanging hands, just the hint of maybe a day off with pay for losing the biggest % body weight.

So, do you know anything about Neuropaths and what they do? Since making the appt., I've read a little and think they believe in chiropractic manipulation. The last time I walked out of a chiro's office, I was so dizzy I could barely make it to the car! So I determined not to return.

If you can, shed a little light on this subject, please.

While doing massive chemo from breast cancer I did go to an ND. She was WONDERFUL! I loved her. She ordered some expensive tests that were not covered by insurance. she ordered expensive suppliments that were not covered by insurance. She ordered expensive rehab proceedures that were not covered by insurance.

She did get me to thinking about what I put in my mouth. how clean is my food. Where did it come from? how many chemicals are in my daily life? After seeing her I dramatically changed the way I eat, and my food choices. I no longer at McDiets of any kind. I went gluten free for a while and even did the cave man diet to clear my system. Much of what she said made great sense to me and she opened my eyes to many things I was doing wrong.

Loved her! but it was very expensive to keep going and I couldnt afford to pay for those suppliments for the rest of my life. I slowly weaned off them, and while maintaining a good clean diet I found I dont need them anyway. I do notice if I slip off the diet and eat processed foods.

I am cancer free a very long time now and she gets much of the credit for that. I was a diatetic mess before her.

This is what most NDs will tell you

What is a Naturopathic Physician?

Health and disease come from a complex interaction of physical, emotional, dietary, genetic, environmental, lifestyle and other factors. Naturopathic physicians treat the whole person, taking all these factors into account. Naturopathic physicians prefer non-invasive treatments which minimize the risks of harmful side-effects. Treatments are tailored to the needs of the individual patient based on a cogent philosophy that acknowledges the patient as participant.

Naturopathic medical colleges are four-year postgraduate schools with admission requirements like those of conventional medical schools. Because the coursework in naturopathic theory and natural medicine is added to a standard medical curriculum, naturopathic doctors receive significantly more hours of classroom education than the graduates of leading medical schools, including Yale, Stanford, John Hopkins and Mayo medical schools.

Patients are demanding evidence that medical practice be safe and effective. Natural medicine has been demonstrated to be both safe and effective through clinical studies and scientific evaluation. There are over 90,000 medical studies on complementary and alternative medicine, mostly from conventional medicine database resources. In fact, one textbook on naturopathic therapeutics references over 10,000 citations to peer-reviewed scientific literature documenting the efficacy of natural treatments.

I took 2 of my boys - years ago when very young they both had colds & some sort of mild, chronic nasal, rash, allergy issues that the regular dr & standard medicines couldn't fully clear up.
Plus I just prefer to try the natural approach first for many things..

I had read some books on natural medicine /homeopathy and such which got me thinking in that direction , luckily found a very nice one in the next town. A few years later he was appointed to a state advisory board by the governor at the time.

Anyway after only an interview /assessment & few treatments they both responded nicely.
I used the homeopathic cures if any slight relapses happened ( they call them cures or cell salts- back then anyway , now they might be called something else).

I did find out they both had chronic milk/dairy sensitivities and over time it had dragged down their natural immunity resistance.

So we adjusted the foods and addressed the sx with the cures.

I think there is some difference between homeopaths & naturopaths - but the one we saw used both techniques I believe. I don't recall what his title /label was.

I also went to a naturopathic dr for some misc health problems, but she was fairly young and newly lic. so the depth of knowledge was not there for complicated or confusing sx. first visit was free though..


She was nice but when you have a condition or multiple things going on an expert with some years behind them is the best way IMO.

we use primarily naturopathic treatments and my son has seen much improvement in his Crohn's and Tourette with them

I have learned so much about the importance of correct nutrition on health since my son's diagnosis, and feel a lot better myself since adapting my own diet to naturopathic recommendations.

I love my Naturopath but she is well known in the area and specializes in MS and other neurological problems. As was mentioned earlier, she's not covered by insurance and the supplements she suggested are a little pricey. We've done blood, urine and hair testing - the whole shebang - I've been referred to all kinds of specialists and have ruled out all the other possible diseases it could be.(I think) The neat thing about Naturopaths is that they offer another choice if you choose not to do any drugs. However I'm on Copaxone and she's not at all anti-DMD. Also, they look at the whole package - your emotional health, diet, etc....We've done food allergy testing and she recommended a diet based on the results. I do my best but it's very restrictive...no dairy, yeast/bread, eggs and a bunch of other stuff. If you do go the Naturopath route just make sure you know what you're in for by calling your insurance first and see if it's covered. And yes, they will ask you to change your diet - it's just part of it. In the Seattle area, we have a very well known school for natural medicine so we may have more choices than other parts of the country. For me, it's very comforting to talk to someone outside the regular medical community and get a different perspective. It's not for everyone though..you have to have an open mind...Good luck!

My LDN Doc is an MD, but also practices Naturopathic medicine.

Ugh, Sal, could you elaborate a bit on the naturopathic part? Please?

Not sure, just know that he likes certain vitamins and such, along with or instead of harsh meds. He believes in LDN (a real med), but he also believes taking the natural way, if possible.

There are many MDs who are also Naturopaths.