Healthcare Perspectives
School of Naturopathic Medicine Mentorship Program at Bastyr University
07-01-2015 Since 2010, the School of Naturopathic Medicine at Bastyr University has paired first-year naturopathic students with core faculty mentors. This article explores the essence of the mentor/protégé relationship and gleans insights from students and faculty about the benefits of mentorship.
Fresh, Sustainable, and Cage-Free: The 30th Anniversary AANP Conference
06-23-2015 The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) is hosting the largest gathering of licensed naturopathic physicians at its 30th Anniversary Conference August 5-8, 2015, in Oakland, CA. The AANP 2015 Conference program will feature day-long boot camps, expert panels, Naturopathic Education Doctoring (NED) talks, research, and Personal Insightful Tales of Healing (PITH). We talked with AANP Conference Curriculum Committee Chair Tori Hudson, ND, about what makes the AANP Conference an essential experience for anyone involved in natural medicine.
FDA’s Proposed Changes to Nutrition and Supplement Labeling
04-23-2015 In 2014, the FDA issued a proposed rule titled, “Food Labeling: Revision of the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels.” This means in the next few years, everyone in the United States will need to learn to read new food and supplement labels to find out nutritional information for everything from breakfast cereals to ice cream to multivitamins. This article gives readers a head start.
Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians Continues to Grow
03-04-2015 Read our report from this year’s conference of the Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians (OncANP), where 195 attendees and a variety of exhibitors enjoyed exceptional content, healthy cuisine, and comfortable camaraderie.
Integrative Cardiology
02-12-2015 A message from Karolyn A. Gazella, publisher of the Natural Medicine Journal, regarding the special issue on cardiology.
New York Attorney General Orders Removal of Herbal Products From Store Shelves
02-09-2015 Michael D. Levin, founder of Health Business Strategies, LLC, Clackamas, Oregon, encourages practitioners to fight against the move by the New York Attorney General to remove dietary supplements from the shelves of major retailers.
2015 SpiritMed Annual Updates in Environmental Medicine Conference
02-04-2015 A report from the annual SpiritMed environmental medicine conference, held January 15-18, 2015, in St Petersburg, Florida.
When Cancer Survivors Return to Primary Care
01-07-2015 Cancer survivors often find themselves “lost in transition” once the disease has been treated and they transfer from oncologists to primary care physicians. In this article, Shani Fox, ND, explores the idea of survivorship care plans and how holistic medicine may easily step in to fill the gaps left in the care of cancer survivors.
Top 10 Stories of 2014
01-01-2015 With a huge dose of gratitude to our many talented and dedicated contributors, let's take a look at the most popular articles of 2014.
Perspectives on the Present Primary Care Crisis
12-11-2014 The looming shortage of primary care physicians presents a potential crisis in the healthcare system. We talk with a medical doctor, a nurse practitioner, a naturopathic physician, and the executive director of the Academic Consortium for Complementary and Alternative Health Care to explore possible solutions.
Upcoming Continuing Education Opportunities for Enhancing Research Literacy Skills
12-03-2014 In this final article of a 3-part series, the authors provide information about continuing education opportunities that will enhance practitioners’ research literacy skills.
Restorative Medicine Conference Deemed a Success
11-05-2014 A report from the 12th Annual Restorative Medicine Conference, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, sponsored by Association for the Advancement of Restorative Medicine.
Thyroxine and Triiodothyronine in Commercially Available Thyroid Supplements?
08-28-2014 A recent study from the journal Thyroid found potentially dangerous adulteration in many popular thyroid supplements. All integrative practitioners who use thyroid support dietary supplements in their practices should be concerned and should commit to asking manufacturers if any product or its component ingredients have been tested for T3 and T4 adulteration.
The Importance of Research Literacy
08-06-2014 The ability to access, interpret, and critically evaluate primary medical literature—is a skill natural medicine practitioners must develop to better educate their patients and promote their profession.
Making Sense of Screening Mammography Recommendations
04-02-2014 Recent research has called into question the efficacy of screening mammograms. Natural Medicine Journal asked women’s health expert and editorial board member Tori Hudson, ND, to weigh in and offer her guidance for integrative health practitioners. Should the new research change your approach to breast cancer screening?
Recent OncANP Conference Delivers Exceptional Content
03-01-2014 Cutting-edge researchers and clinicians from North America presented at this year's annual conference of the Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians (OncANP). In a stirring keynote, Dan Rubin, ND, FABNO, the founding president of the organization, reminded the oncology-focused audience that their journey requires endurance and confidence in what they do.
Integrative Cancer Experts Weigh in on Recent Conference
03-01-2014 At the recent OncANP conference, Natural Medicine Journal caught up with three leading experts in integrative oncology: Jacob Schor, ND, FABNO, Shauna Birdsall, ND, FABNO, and Dan Rubin, ND, FABNO.
Are Multivitamins a Waste of Money?
02-01-2014 In December, the Annals of Internal Medicine (AIM) published 3 studies evaluating the effects of multivitamin supplementation on chronic disease prevention. These studies were accompanied by an alarming editorial: "Enough Is Enough: Stop Wasting Money on Vitamin and Mineral Supplements." The authors of the editorial claim that the results of the 3 studies, along with previous trials, indicate "no substantial health benefit" of multivitamins and call for an end to further research on multivitamins for chronic disease prevention in well-nourished populations. While the authors of the editorial are correct in concluding that there is not enough rigorous evidence to support that an MVMM alone will prevent chronic disease or death, it is misguided and scientifically inaccurate to overinterpret this to mean that there is no benefit to taking multivitamins or that this line of investigation should stop.
Holistic Well-Child Promotion in a Family-Centered, Group-Based Format
12-01-2013 Lifestyle choices made in childhood have a tremendous impact on morbidity and mortality not only during the pediatric years, but throughout one's lifespan. Stakeholders have identified the importance of prioritizing multi-tiered approaches to wellness promotion for children. Naturopathic medicine has demonstrated benefit to illness prevention and wellness promotion, but is inaccessible to much of the population, particularly those at greatest risk of poor health. Group-based programs may be a successful and cost-effective method of delivering naturopathic care to greater numbers of families in the community as part of a larger public health effort. We propose a pilot program to evaluate the efficacy of such an approach.
First International Clinical Congress a Success
12-01-2013 If record attendance from healthcare practitioners from around the world is an indicator of success, this conference hit the mark. Convened by the Consortium of Academic Health Centers for Integrative Medicine and held in collaboration with Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago on Oct 29-31, 2013, the conference featured keynotes from two leaders in the field of integrative medicine: Tracy Gaudet, MD, and Joseph Pizzorno, ND.