Functional Holistic Healing
Functional Integrative Medicine Practice of
Dr. Nadia Ali

 

 

1. Effective Evaluation for identifying disease causing pathogen

 

Bacterial, viral and fungal infections can cause similar symptoms and signs. Even if an infection is caused by a bacteria, it is not a guarantee that it will respond to a specific antibiotic. It is for this reason that every patient who presents with infection needs to be evaluated for the cause of the infection as well as an assessment of what antibiotic is the bacteria sensitive to before initiating an antibiotic. Unfortunately many physicians do not assess the cause of infection prior to initiating an antibiotic. According to Center for Disease Control, 50% antibiotics prescribed are either not needed or not optimally effective as prescribed. This is one of the most important factor leading to antibiotic resistance.

 

2. Minimize side effects of antibiotics

 

Antibiotics can predispose us to other infections such as fungal infections and infections from other bacterias such as Clostridium Difficile. One important reason for this is that they destroy all the good bacteria in our body. These bacteria help us fight fungal infections and other bacterial infections. Antibiotics also cause of drug allergies, serious interactions with other drugs and have serious side effects such as liver or kidney damage, tendon rupture and hearing loss. Most individuals are not aware of potential side effects of antibiotics or drug interactions and are more likely to be affected adversely. The program minimizes side effects of antibiotics by using them only if they are absolutely necessary.

 

3. Identification of alternative strategies

 

A  common myth is that the only solution to a infection is an antibiotic that kills the bacteria. This misconception leads to patients requesting an antibiotic script from their doctors. It is important to understand that there are 3 different ways to deal with bacterias causing infections. The first and more effective method is to strengthen and stimulate the immune system so the system itself kills the organism. The second is to aggressively decrease the inflammation which is the cause of the symptoms which significantly helps the body in dealing with the infection. The third is killing of the bacteria. Interestingly, there are a number of botanicals that research has shown to be effective in infections and they use all three mechanisms. Customized botanicals are used to prevent and treat infections.

 

4. Immunity Assessment for Recurrent infections

 

Individuals who get recurrent infections or chronic infections such as recurrent sinusitis are often prescribed multiple rounds of antibiotics without an assessment of the root cause of the problem. In addition to finding out what bacteria, virus or fungus is causing the infection, it is important to find out what is causing the weakened immune system. We are surrounded by bacterias but our immune system has the ability to prevent these bacterias from attacking us and causing infections. Recurrent infections indicate a breakdown of immunity and simply giving multiple antibiotics is not a solution. A comprehensive assessment is undertaken to identify risk factors and address them to prevent and treat chronic infections.

 

Dr. Nadia Ali is board certified in  Internal Medicine and Integrative Medicine. She is a diplomate of the American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine. She has expertise in integrative Care for prevention and treatment of chronic infections, inflammation as well as associated conditions such as decreased immunity, fatigue and pain .