Does Functional Medicine Work for Weight Loss?

Weight management can be a lifelong battle. Whether you struggle to lose weight or keep weight off after a period of weight loss, weight management issues can be a significant cause of angst and frustration.

When traditional weight loss strategies have failed, it’s common to start looking for alternative methods to lose weight and keep it off—but does functional medicine work for weight loss?

For many, functional medicine has been the solution that’s allowed them to regain control of their health and achieve their weight loss goals.

What is functional medicine?

Unlike traditional medicine, functional medicine focuses on identifying and addressing the underlying root cause (or causes) of a condition, rather than merely treating the symptom itself.

Considering everything from an individual’s genetics to their environment and lifestyle practices, functional medicine works to provide overall better outcomes for patients by adopting a more holistic approach to managing health and wellness.

How does functional medicine work for weight management?

Most doctors when approached by a patient struggling with their weight will adopt the usual approach to treatment, such as recommending dietary changes, increasing physical activity, prescribing medication or referring them to a nutritionist. However, this strategy fails to identify and address any underlying issues preventing the patient from being able to gain control over their weight.

Weight gain can be caused by a range of things. Factors including hormonal imbalances, fluid retention, certain medications, inflammation, various toxins, constipation, stress, lack of sleep or a range of other lifestyle factors can all influence weight gain.

Rather than simply adopting a ‘calories in, calories out’ approach to weight management, functional medicine considers the full spectrum of factors that could be influencing an individual’s weight gain, to develop a highly-customized weight management plan which focuses on addressing any underlying causes.

Our functional approach to weight management

At the Renaissance Clinic, our holistic science-based approach to weight management allows us to identify the cause of unwanted weight gain and provide bespoke coaching and support to help you achieve your weight loss goals and enjoy long-term success.

Find out more about our functional approach to weight loss.