by Mike Gemmell

Conventional medicine (e.g, traditional psychiatry) holds the viewpoint that mental health issues such as anxiety and depression are caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain that leads to a lack of serotonin and other neurotransmitters. Conventional medicine takes the position that by addressing these chemical imbalances with antidepressant drugs patients depression and/or anxiety will lead to their cure.  

The problem with this approach is that it offers only temporary relief because it does not address the underlying cause of the mental illness.

Functional medicine practitioners realize that chemical imbalances in the brain are symptoms and to reverse mental health issues such as depression and anxiety requires an understanding of the underlying causes of the chemical imbalances.

There are many factors that either alone or acting together that can adversely affect our mental health including:

— Poor nutrition

— High levels of stress

— Excessive consumption of sugar, caffeine, and alcohol

— Inadequate sleep and exercise

— Environmental toxins and allergens

— Poor quality relationships

To address the role of these factors in mental health, Functional medicine practitioners utilize evidence-based testing to identify root causes of the mental illness and to develop individually based treatment programs to treat the illness. As part of their diagnoses and treatment plans, they review the interplay between biological, psychological, and social factors in understanding and treating mental health issues.

 How do Functional and Conventional medicine differ in their approaches to mental health treatments?

 The Conventional medicine approach to mental health issues

 The traditional treatment for mental health depression has been to attempt to relieve symptoms from chemical imbalances such as low serotonin with antidepressant drugs. Unfortunately, although the use of antidepressants and other conventional treatments for depression have increased, the prevalence of depression and anxiety have remained essentially the same for over 30 years.

To diagnose patients with traditional psychiatry, practitioners use a DSM-V manual. Medical professionals have noted that the manual provides a common language of symptoms for practitioners and patients, but it does not provide any understanding or insight concerning brain biology or the disorders that cause the symptoms.

According to Thomas Insel, former head of the National Institute of Mental Health:

“DSM diagnoses are based on a consensus about clusters of clinical symptoms, not any objective laboratory measure… Other areas of medicine have replaced this symptom-based diagnosis, as we have learned that symptoms alone rarely indicate the best choice of treatment” 

Traditional psychiatry fails to capture the root cause(s) of underlying disorders and as a result do not work for many patients. It can be characterized by:

Focusing on chemical imbalances in the brain and symptoms that arise from that.   

Treatments based on neurotransmitter research, 

Ignoring psychosocial factors,

Using generic treatments for diagnoses

The Functional medicine approach to mental health issues

Rather than focusing on symptoms from the DSM manual, the Functional medicine approach to mental health looks at the brain within the context of the health of the entire body. It takes an evidence-based approach to diagnosis and treatment that attempts to understand root causes of brain dysfunction through laboratory testing and in certain cases, “brain mapping.”

Brain mapping involves reviewing a patient’s brainwave activity and comparing it to a database of healthy people. For example, patients suffering from anxiety, tend to have an abnormally high number of beta waves and low values of alpha waves. Other types of testing employed to identify and treat the causes of mental disorders include:

— Searching for inflammation in the gastrointestinal system which can contribute to symptoms of psychiatric illnesses.

— Examining the immune system for inflammation, and

— Testing for hormonal imbalances

Functional medicine practitioners also recognize that not all mental health problems have biologically based root causes. Other possible causes that may need to be investigated include:

— trauma

— adverse childhood events,

— current stressors, and 

— cultural environmental factors

Conclusions

 Antidepressants and other  medication that treat a patients symptoms such as anxiety and depression can help with short term relief of
symptoms such as anxiety and depression, but rarely lead to long term emotional stability. Functional medicine goes beyond using medication for temporary symptom relief and uses a more comprehensive approach to treatment with the intention of creating long term positive improvements in a patients mental/ emotional state.

By taking a holistic, root-cause approach to mental health care, functional medicine can  address a patient’s social, emotional, physical, and cognitive baseline and can also incorporate past experiences when creating a treatment plan to achieve long term improvement.

Depending on the individual, treatment plans may include:

— Nutritional therapy to address dietary imbalances contributing to mental health symptoms

— Lifestyle modifications to manage stress, exercise routines, reducing environmental toxins, and optimizing sleep

— Herbal remedies and vitamin supplements to address chemical imbalances affecting brain function and emotional well being, and

— Mind-body practices to help control stress and promote emotional well being

References

·        Functional Medicine and Mental Health Care:
What’s the Link? (https://www.orchestratehealth.com/functional-medicine-and-mental-health-care-whats-the-link/)

·        Functional Medicine: A New Approach to Brain
Health (https://chandramd.com/what-is-functional-medicine/  

·        7 Steps to a Super Brain, Dr. Mark Hyman, (https://drhyman.com/blog/2016/06/10/7-steps-to-a-super-brain/)

 

·       Functional Medicine and Mental Health Care:
What’s the Link? (https://www.orchestratehealth.com/functional-medicine-and-mental-health-care-whats-the-link/)

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