It is known that Naturopathy encompasses a number of alternative therapies which have in common the application of holistic medicine, unlike conventional medicine, focuses on the recovery of the health of the organism in a global way and not focusing only on the affected part.

These different therapies intervene, mainly, in a preventive way. But they also help in the treatment of different health problems.

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When Can you resort to Naturopathy?

Naturopathy can be used in the prevention and treatment of different health problems. The application of alternative therapies that are part of this, take into account the person as a whole, so it is not strange that when going to a consultation of this type it is required that patients provide various information, such as:
  • Your habits and lifestyle: food, water intake, physiological habits, physical exercise practice, hours of rest, stress management, etc.
  • Your medical history: the history of personal and family illness, intolerances or allergies, taking medication, evaluation of analyzes and other diagnostic tests, mental health, among others.
Once they have enough information to guide appropriate measures, therapists can address different health problems.

These problems can be acute or chronic, such as colds, respiratory conditions, headaches, musculoskeletal conditions, digestive problems, food intolerances and allergies, hypertension, Type II diabetes, etc.

In addition to these, there are other health problems in which the naturopath, depending on the case, can also intervene:

  • Menopause, when it comes to relieving the common symptoms at this stage of life resort to the treatment of night sweats and hot flashes through the use of Phytotherapy and yoga.
  • Post-operative, post-surgical therapies such as, aromatherapy or music therapy have been shown to be able to help reduce pain or stress in recovering patients. Also the constipation problems that occur in these cases can be alleviated by nutritional therapy.
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder, in these cases resorted to yoga or acupuncture combined with psychotherapy.
  • Depression and anxiety, faced with the mistrust that treatments often generate through the use of pharmacotherapy to treat these problems, many people resort to the search for alternative therapies, such as meditation (Mindfulness), acupuncture or Phytotherapy. In these cases, the naturopath must be sufficiently prepared to know how to indicate the most appropriate therapy, as well as explain the convenience of not abandoning medical treatment in depending on which cases, since Naturopathy alone will not always be of help, but if it can be complementary.
  • Attention deficit and hyperactivity, as with drug treatments indicated to treat depression and anxiety, drugs that are indicated to treat this problem also generate distrust, especially when prescribed at early ages. Nutritional therapy with Omega-3 fatty acids and other nutrients is the one that has obtained the best results to complement the conventional treatments that are given to this group, always accompanied by psychotherapy. Phytotherapy is also used in these cases, but requires good control and follow-up, especially if combined with pharmacological treatments.

When could not the naturopath help?

Because the therapies that are included within Naturopathy are based on the self-healing of one's own organism, receiving stimuli from natural sources or means, its progress despite being effective, is slower.

For this reason, there are cases such as infectious diseases: urinary infections, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), among others, which require an effective treatment, but of rapid action as that offered by conventional medicine, since it acts on the symptoms shown. An intervention of Naturopathy in these cases would be preventive in order to avoid a subsequent infection.

It should be borne in mind that alternative therapies that are included within Naturopathy are compatible or complementary to conventional medicine treatments, because being varied you can opt for those that do not interfere with medical treatments.

As mentioned, only in certain cases that require an effective and immediate response, its use would not be the most appropriate.

Knowing when to go to a naturopath and in which cases to opt directly for a treatment of conventional medicine, you will avoid complications and facilitate the solution to health problems. On the other hand, if the intention is to prevent the occurrence of diseases, the visit to the naturopath will not be anything else.

If you want to know more about naturopathy, its use as treatment and Prevention of diseases, we recommend our course.