So, what exactly is naturopathy?

If you’re visiting this website you probably have some idea about what naturopathy is and why you might like to visit a naturopath, however, unless you’ve seen a naturopath before, it’s probably still a bit of an unknown. 

So let’s start with a bit of background. Naturopathic philosophy and principles can be traced as far back as 16th/ 17th century Europe, when naturopaths were trained by doctors in the healing arts. Modern day naturopathy, however, was spearheaded in North America in the early 20th century by Dr. Benedict Lust, who introduced the modality to the country through experiencing the healing power of nature first-hand after conventional medicine was ineffective in curing his severe tuberculosis. Naturopathy is now practiced in every region of the world across more than 80 countries, and in Australia plays an important role in primary healthcare with more than 16% of the population visiting a naturopath for a chronic condition.

Naturopathy is a holistic approach to health, based on prevention of disease and belief in the inherent ability of the body to heal itself given the right conditions. The healing power of nature is at its core, and gentle therapeutic techniques are used to stimulate the vitality of the patient in order to support the body as it regains balance. Naturopaths believe in identifying and treating the cause of disease, minimising the risk of any harm in the process, and educating and empowering the patient as an important aspect of treatment. 

Naturopathic care is suitable at any age or stage of life, is effective for both acute and chronic conditions, and offers a safe and efficacious solution for many common health complaints. Modern naturopathy incorporates a number of modalities that may be utilised by the practitioner, including nutritional medicine, dietary and lifestyle advice, herbal medicine, homeopathy, hydrotherapy, iridology and flower essences. In all cases the aim of these therapies is to remove or minimise obstacles that are preventing the body from attaining its natural state of health; be it nutrition or lifestyle-related, stress related, or due to some other disturbance to the organism such as toxin exposure.

Whilst naturopathy is firmly rooted in thousands of years of traditional medicine, the addition of modern-day scientific evidence to clinical practice has resulted in a healing modality so powerful that there is now evidence for the efficacy of naturopathy and Western Herbal Medicine for virtually every body system and all major disease states. It has also been proven to be effective in treating a range of complex chronic conditions including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, anxiety and depression, polycystic ovarian syndrome, and musculoskeletal pain. With 1 in 2 Australians suffering from a chronic health condition, naturopathy provides a safe, accessible and efficacious addition to mainstream medicine.