Hippocrates (460-377 BC)

Hippocrates the Greek physician, is considered to be the father of Western medicine. Hence, when a doctor graduates from medical school, he or she  takes  the Hippocratic Oath. A promise to practice medicine ethically.

Hippocrates was the first to practice Natural Medicine all those centuries ago, as pharmaceutical medicine did not exist back then.

Hippocrates practiced by advising patients to use foods and herbs to heal their ailments, as he believed that any ailment was due to poor eating habits, therefore, poor nutrition.

Many centuries down the track, we western doctors are taught to practice medicine by prescribing pharmaceuticals before looking into anyone’s diet, environment or lifestyle.

When I was going through medical school in the early 80′s, I certainly was not taught much about nutrition or diet. In biochemistry classes we studied many biochemical pathways. We were never taught the  relevance of those complex pathways to realistic and common human conditions or ailments, let alone how much of each vitamins and minerals were crucial to maintain the basic human function.

During those years of practicing Orthodox or Pharmaceutical Medicine, I did  not see the relevance of those biochemical pathways very much. Only when I started to incorporate Natural Medicine into my practice, I realised how relevant those biochemical pathways were to the survival and health of every living human cell.

Natural Medicine is not an Alternative Medicine. It is a science of  reinforcing the building blocks of every human cell. Yet, when one talks about Natural Medicine, it is often linked to “Alternative Medicine”  implying it is something other than, or less than accepted mainstream medicine. In a way, it is ‘Alternative’ to the Pharmaceutical Medicine that we ‘western doctors’ are taught to practice. Natural Medicine goes back to the basic science and hence  should be a building block to every medical practice. It should be part of  “Orthodox” medicine, but it’s not.

I trained in this traditional Orthodox or Pharmaceutical Medicine and my main qualification is of that of General Practice. However, my journey for this “Alternative” route started over 30 years ago when I trained as a medical acupuncturist, and discovered that pharmaceutical medicine doesn’t have all the answers to human health.  I then came across Natural Medicine and discovered a large part of a ‘Missing Link’ to human health.

In truth, no one aspect of medicine can provide all the answers to all facets of human health, and it’s unlikely that we will ever get there. However, we Doctors need to use all the resources we can, rather than turning away valuable sciences that help our patients, however unfamiliar they are. We need to learn, and learn with an open mind.

Humans consume enormous amounts of food, which upon entering the mouth start trillions of biochemical reactions ultimately affecting the way each and every one of our cells function. We are unable to easily source and consume foods that are meant to be absorbed by the human body, the way we were designed in prehistoric times. We are faced with contaminated soils, air and oceans, genetically modified crops and over processed food, causing a heavier and heavier load on the biochemical pathways of each of our cells, which without more resources at times simply can’t cope.

We have to take care of this basic function before we consider adding further chemicals into the body in the hope that those medications we ingest will “fix” the ailments.

If I can help my patients to stop and think about what they eat, read and understand the labels of food they pick up from supermarket shelves  before consuming them, and wean them off unnecessary medications (as many conditions can be reversed without medication) and still feel great, I would say I live true to the oath taken when I received my medical degree.