Find a doctor and Other Medical Providers
There are currently only four states that include naturopathic doctors and other preventive health care practitioners within their health plans. These states are Washington, Vermont, New Hampshire and Colorado. The numbers of these states should grow as more people become aware of the benefits of naturopathic medicine and preventive health care. As the demand for this type of medicine increases so will the numbers of health plans that will include providers who practice preventive health care. As many of you are well aware, most health insurance companies do not cover the services of naturopathic doctors or other holistic practitioners of preventive health care.
The four states above are the exceptions. However, your may ask, why is it that those four states can do so while the other 46 states have not? As you’ll see in another section of this website, preventive health care provides enormous cost savings to health plan insurers as demonstrated by the studies listed at the links in that webpage. These studies show a 30%+ reduction in claim costs due to the principles, goals and objectives of preventive health care and naturopathic medicine.
Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine
Acupuncture is derived from ancient Chinese medical philosophy and practices. All are based on the view that the human body must be perceived and treated as a whole and as part of nature; health is the result of harmony among bodily functions and between the body and nature, and disease occurs when this harmony is disrupted. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) therapeutic interventions, including acupuncture are used to restore the state of harmony.
Acupuncture is closely associated with Chinese meridian theory. When the normal flow of energy over a meridian is obstructed, pain or other symptoms result. The purpose of acupuncture therapy is to re-open the normal energy flow, thereby relieving the symptoms by stimulating specific sites (acupuncture points) on the meridians.
Naturopathic Doctors
Naturopathic physicians/doctors work with their patients to prevent and treat acute and chronic illness and disease, restore health and establish optimal fitness by supporting the person's inherent self-healing process.
Holistic Medicine
Holistic medicine is the art and science of healing that addresses care of the whole person - body, mind, and spirit. The practice of holistic medicine integrates conventional and complementary therapies to promote optimal health.
Chiropractic
Chiropractic is a health care profession that focuses on disorders of the musculoskeletal system and the nervous system, and the effects of these disorders on general health. Chiropractic care is used most often to treat neuromusculoskeletal complaints, including but not limited to back pain, neck pain, pain in the joints of the arms or legs, and headaches.
Environmental Medicine
The Academy is interested in expanding the knowledge of interactions between human individuals and their environment, as these may be demonstrated to be reflected in their total health. The AAEM provides research and education in the recognition, treatment and prevention of illnesses induced by exposures to biological and chemical agents encountered in air, food and water.
Dietitics
What is a dietician? A specialist in the study of nutrition who can assist people plan the kinds and amounts of foods that promote a healthy lifestyle. Let food be our medicine.
Dietitians in Integrative and Functional Medicine
Ayurveda
Ayurveda is a holistic system of medicine that originated in India thousands of years ago. Its basic approach is to balance the mind, body and spirit through traditional techniques and treatments that promote health and prevent illness. Ayurvedic practitioners view people as having a unique constitution and combination of life forces, known as doshas, which determine their physical and psychological health and vulnerabilities. Healthful balance is maintained using a customized regimen of cleansing practices, meditation or yoga, herbal medicines, vitamins and/or mineral treatments.
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM)
