Mark Kosins, M.D. and Associates

Cyberbullying & Functional Med

TO MY PATIENTS -this time it’s a blog.

You can respond to my newsletter by e mailing me.

But please put newsletter response in the subject line so I won’t think it is an urgent patient e mail.

WHY DID I GET

INVOLVED IN

FUNCTIONAL

MEDICINE?

^{The Patient Become a Partner}^{. As a patient you become an active partner with your doctor. You may be asked to make changes that, when combined with nutrients and or medicines will allow you to really be in charge of improving your own health and change the outcome of disease. Disease is the absence of ease.}

Dr Kosins does not spell check and sometimes his English is not good.

We provide care. Think about it. Providing treatment is easy. If you have a ear ache all it really takes is for you to:

1. pass a credit card or insurance card through a slot and put your ear into a hole with a note saying ear ache

2. someone looks into your ear and the brief form you filled out and then if they see red they could give you drops and a note back telling you how to put them in and a slip to sign for the drops and the visit to the ear hole.

9 TIMES OUT OF 10 THIS WOULD WORK.

On the other hand providing care takes part of who I (we) are in relationship to who you are and what you tell us and what we can figure out and what we know.

READ THAT LAST SENTENCE AGAIN PLEASE.

More on functional Medicine. In my blog to follow: please read it. If you know where I am going and what I do you can decide to go with me or run for the hills. The stuff on the blog is all new:

^{Ever wonder what it feels like to feel good most of the time}

^{ALL THIS INFORMATION ON FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE IS NEW AS OF JANUARY 31, 08}

^{WHAT IS FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE: YOU JUST GOTTA GET THIS TO KNOW HOW TO CARE FOR YOURSELF AND UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU CAN DO TO BE HEALTHY.}

^{Functional medicine is an evolution in the practice of}^{medicine that better addresses the healthcare needs of the 21st century in my opinion. By shifting the traditional disease-centered focus of medical practice to a more patient-centered approach,}^{functional medicine addresses the whole person,}^{not an isolated set of symptoms.}

^{Functional medicine practitioners spend time}^{with their patients, listening to their histories and looking at the interactions among genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors that can influence long term health and complex disease.}

^{In this way, functional medicine supports the unique expression of health and vitality for each individual.}

^{Why Do We Need Functional Medicine?}

^{Most imbalances in function can be addressed: some can be completely restored to optimum function, and others can be substantially improved. That is the bottom line.}^{Let us help with medicine if needed, nutrition if needed, diet always (not a diet-what are the first three letters in the word diet) and movement of the body. Motion is lotion.}

^1.^{Prevention is paramount:}^{Virtually every complex chronic disease is preceded by long term disturbances in function that can be identified and managed. This is for physical and mental.}

^2.^{Changing how systems function can have a major}^{impact on your health. A functional medicine practitioner examines many interventions and customizes a treatment plan including those with the most impact on underlying function. One size dose not fit all.}

^3.^{Functional medicine expands the physician’s}^{tool kit.}

^{Treatments may include combinations of drugs, supplements, therapeutic diets, nutrition, and counseling on nutrition, lifestyle, exercise and stress.}

^4.^{The Patient Become a Partner}^{. As a patient you become an active partner with your doctor or practitioner. You may be asked to make changes that, when combined with nutrients and or medicines will allow you to really be in charge of improving your own health and change the outcome of disease. Disease is the absence of ease. We don’t want that.}

^{Why do we need Functional Medicine}^?

^{1. Our society is experiencing a sharp increase in the number of people who suffer from complex chronic diseases such as diabetes, mental illness, autoimmune disorders such as}^{fibromyaliga, chronic fatigue, adrenal fatigue, obesity. All stuff we treat in our office except Diabetes which we treat indirectly through diet, exercise and life style.}

^{2. The system of medicine practiced by most physicians is oriented toward acute treatment,}^{the diagnosis and treatment of trauma or illness of short duration in need or urgent care. Physicians apply specific prescribed treatment such as an ear drop or surgery to treat an immediate problem or symptom.}

^{3. The acute-care approach to medicine lacks the proper methodology and tools to prevent and treat complex chronic disease}^{. In most cases it does not take into account the unique genetic makeup of the individual or their environment or their lifestyle that has direct influences in our modern Western society.}

⁴^{. There is a huge gap between research and the way a doctor practices. The gab between emerging research in basic science and integration into medical practice is enormous-as long as 50 years-particularly in the area of complex, chronic illness}

^{5. Most physicians are not adequately trained to assess the underlying causes}^{of, complex chronic disease and to apply strategies such as nutrition, diet, and exercise to both treat and prevent these illnesses in their patients.}

^{HOW IS FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE DIFFERENT?}

^{Functional medicine involves understanding the origin, prevention, and treatment of complex chronic disease. Hallmarks of a functional medicine approach include:}

^1.^{Patient –centered care}^{: Health is a positive vitality. It is beyond the absence of disease. If I listen to you and learn your story I can bring you into the discovery process and tailor your treatment and make it individual for you.}

^2.^{An integrative, science-based healthcare approach}^{: by looking upstream I can consider the complex web of interactions in your history and lifestyle that can lead to illness. Take into account the mind, body and spirit as well as the physical and social factors that impact you.}

^3.^{Integrating best medical practices:}^{I can use Functional Medicine to integrate traditional Western medical practice with what are sometimes considered alternative medicine. Really what we want to do is crease a}^{focus on prevention.}

^a.^{prevent you from getting worse}

^b.^{prevent you from getting something you do not have to}

^c.^{educate you about what you can do and prevent you from doing things to prevent you from being as healthy as possible in mind, body and spirit.}

^{thanks Dr. Kosins:}

^{THE FOLLOWING INFO}^{WAS ON THE BLOG IN THE PAST}

^{Maybe you don’t have to have irritable bowels, Fibromyalgia, joint pain, lack of energy, poor sleep, be overweight, have low energy, or have recurrent bouts of feeling bad emotionally. Change takes effort. Let me be part of your team.}

^{I keep talking about what I am doing, how my practice is changing. This is because if you do not know what I am doing and where I am going, you won’t know if you want to go with me or run for the hills. It’s your life.}

^{Functional medicine promotes wellness by focusing on the fundamental underlying factors that influence every patient’s experience of health and disease.}

^{The Functional Medicine Approach to Assessment:}

^{Which means looking at the function of how your body and mind work together and how to help them work together more efficiently? When it comes to medicine, I will only provide those that are within the field of my expertise.}

^{My goal is to assess your basic clinical imbalance through a careful history, doing needed laboratory testing and gathering information from others.}

^{I will consider:}

^{Environmental inputs}^{-Air -water –diet- food –exercise-toxic exposure-brain trauma. 70% of chronic disease risk is attributable to lifestyle. Lifestyle can be altered.}

^{Mind-body elements}^{-Psychological-spiritual-factors social}^{actors, including how you deal with stress impacts your health.Your health impacts how you deal with stress. Your mind and body are connected. Your body is needed to carry your mind around. You need your body to live. Taking care of both is important. I WANT TO HELP. Please let me.}

^{Genetic makeup}^{-genes make you more susceptible}

^{to some diseases and emotional problems, but your DNA is not an unchanging blueprint for life. Your genes may be influenced by your environment, your experiences, attitudes and beliefs. So you can change the way genes are activated and expressed by what you believe, what you feel, and by what you eat (including medicines and herbs and supplements).}

^{Fundamental physiological processes-}^{these are body processes that keep you alive. These processes involve such things as:}

^{How your body gets rid of toxins Regulation of neurotransmitters}

^{Immune system function Inflammatory responses}

^{Digestion of nutrients and absorption Psychological and spiritual balance}

^{Managing stress How much energy you have.}

^{If these are not in balance, they lead to symptoms, which lead to disease. Then you don’t feel well. You have the absence of ease= dis ease.}

^{So What To Do? Take a comprehensive approach.}

^{More detail in coming weeks,}^{but the bottom line is:}

^{Prevention, changing how systems function, making you (my patient a partner in your own health), using the expanded tool kit I have as a functional medicine doctor and so on.}

^{Mark Kosins MD and Staff}

· 1. All new patients will receive an initial nutritional evaluation at no additional charge. This is in addition to a comprehensive psychiatric evaluation you will receive if you see me, Patty, Jackie, or Dennis.

· In addition: We are offering a significantly discounted weight loss program. This works for those who want to lose weight, but is not another Jenny, Wt. Watcher, Nutrisystem approach.

· We are looking at the person who is not weak and just overeats all the time. We understand that you want to lose weight and try hard. Then your brain chemistry and body deceives you and set you up to fail.

· Ask Charlotte, Jackie, Patty, or Me about our new program. WE CAN HELP if you are really ready for a life change.

The American Pharmaceutical Industry really does do the best it can with the limited view it has, and the regulatory system it must work within. The American Medical system has similar limitations in both training and approach. The Holistic Healing system also tries by using only non medical ways of healing and helping.

Doesn’t it make sense to combine the three in an integrative approach? In my opinion, this is the best way to help with the overall health, emotional health, symptoms of irritable bowel, fibromyalagia, chronic fatigue, feeling down, or just not getting as well as you can. This is called INTEGRATED FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE. Please don't accept less than the best you can be.

This may help you to need less prescribed medicines for hypertension, cholesterol, diabetes, etc. This must be coordinated with the doctor prescribing them.