Christy Soto-Johnson, NMD

Hello,
Exercise is one of many lifestyle-related options that may be recommended by a naturopathic doctor. Whether or not it is, and what type/ specific details depends on what you're seeking help for and what you're already doing or not doing.
Generally speaking, getting regular movement (even just walking or stretching) is an important part of reaching and keeping good health for many reasons. Same with drinking enough water, which is also a common topic discussed at a naturopathic visit.

Hello, without knowing anything about why it's itching (ex: allergic reaction, dry skin from cold weather, etc.), some general things that can help make itching feel better are things like calamine lotion, salves/creams that have calendula or aloe. There's a huge variety of things you can use but knowing more about your itching skin would be needed. If these basic items don't help, you should be seen by a local health care practitioner.

Hello, that is a great question. Holistic treatments have the potential to do some wonderful things for liver disease. How severe the condition is and how much / what types of treatments you're able to do all directly impact how helpful or how much change one may experience.

Hi, this question would best be answered after having a consultation or first appointment with a naturopathic doctor as many of our elderly are on medications that may have interactions with natural medicines, or have other health issues that could impact the safely of any medication, natural or pharmaceutical.

Hi! The answer to your question is not straightforward in that it's not so much a just the disorder or illness, but rather what type of solution you're looking for, what state you live in and which particular doctor you go to.
All naturopathic doctors are taught the same foundation and medical approach as conventional primary care doctors, but then we get 4 years of natural medicine education as in addition to that. And each state has different laws on what we are able to do (or not do) of all the things were trained on. Also, some naturopaths, like conventional doctors, may get additional specialty training after graduation.
So what it comes down to is not the type of illness that we can or cannot treat, but what we can or cannot address is determined by both the specific doctor's speciality/focus as well as what their state allows them to do. Finally, if you're looking for, say major surgery, that is something not part of primary care training so no naturopath would do.

Hello. Many naturopaths work with newborns all the way to our wonderful elderly population. Some may specialize in gut issues or pain, etc. so there is definitely a naturopathic doctor out there who can help your father. What you describe would be something that most naturopaths, family practice or gut specialist, could address fairly easily.

Hi! As long as you are eating healthy, well balanced meals that contain macro-nutrients of proteins, complex-carbohydrates and healthy fats, you should still have enough energy despite going off of rice and wheat for a while. In fact, there are plenty of healthier, better sources of energy and nutrients than rice and wheat out there! Examples include sweet potatoes/yams, beans or any kind of legume, bananas, berries, nuts, fatty fishes (ex: salmon, tuna, sardines), and dark leafy greens.

Hi there. I'm so sorry to hear about your insomnia troubles. If your insomnia has not improved with trying conventional or common treatments, then it may be that the true cause of the insomnia is not being addressed or maybe not discovered yet. There are several natural remedies to reverse your insomnia and to know which one or ones are right for you, I'd need to ask several questions. Feel free to book a free 15-minute phone consultation via my website www.GuidingElementsMC.com.

Hello! While all naturopathic doctors receive training in herbal medicine that includes essential oils, whether or not a particular doctor uses them as part of their treatment recommendations varies from doctor to doctor. That would be an excellent question to ask the naturopath you have a consult with if it's a treatment approach you would like to use. I hope your consultation goes well!

Hello!
There is no limit to what type of supplements a naturopath can prescribe (so long as the state laws do not interfere as it may in some states). From a single specific vitamin to making their own herbal tinctures, recommending homeopathics, prescription grade supplement combos or over-the-counter available supplements; we recommend whatever is most needed to address the health concern you have. We also give nutritional recommendations to use food as medicine.

My 2 favorite tooth lasted that I personally use are Dentalcidin by Biocidin and fluoride-free peppermint Dr. Bronner's. Dentalcidin is best if you have more serious issues like irritated gums or bad breath issues, while the Dr. Bronner's is a good general tooth paste; both are natural, clean products (ie not loaded with chemicals) and pleasant taste.

Hi there!
While this could be a very long answer as there are many, many benefits, I'll list a few key points here and include a link to my article that tells you about what we do in more detail.

First, one of our founding principles is to seek and treat the root cause, aiming to resolve or reverse the condition.

Second, most naturopaths give a ton of time to you! Instead of 10-15 minutes with the doctor you'll get at least 45 minutes, sometimes even up to 2 hours!

Third, we use natural, gentle and least invasive treatment approaches first. While we can prescribe medications, it's a last resort rather than a first resort, or prescribed only when truly needed.

Finally (again you can read more in the article), we don't just treat and care about your body's symptoms. We also look at and care for your mental, emotional and whole-life health situation.

https://guidingelementsmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/NATUROPATHIC-MEDICINE-GEMC.pdf

Often the best natural treatments for mono are things you can only get through a naturopathic doctor. They don't sell them over the counter or on Amazon. The best recommendation would be to see a local naturopath or one who can treat your daughter via telehealth as my team can.

Hello,
Naturopathic doctors are trained in many therapies including adjustments (like chiropractors do), but you'd need to ask the specific naturopath you want to see if they do that therapy as we have many to choose from.
Our training includes primary care medicine, herbal medicine, nutrition, homeopathy, hydrotherapy, physiotherapy and much more!
Some do a little of everything and some specialize in only a few areas.

Hello - yes! Generally speaking, high dose turmeric capsules like any "mireva" type supplement, or for some, feverfew herb can help prevent migraines as well as treat headaches. However, keep in mind it's best to ask an herbalist or naturopath before starting to get a specific dose AND to make sure it's not going to interfere with any existing medications you may be on.

Hi there. I'm sorry you're having frequent stomach issues. Without knowing what kind of stomach issues you're struggling with, I can say that generally speaking, natural treatment approaches can successfully address most stomach and gut issues. Sometimes natural is used in conjunction with conventional, but often times it can be successful on its own. It really depends on the specific cause and complexity of the issue on how long it would take to see results and what all you would need to do.

Hello! Yes, naturopathic medicine would be a great way to get going on a natural approach to your healing. If you don't have a naturopath in your area, another option to look into would be an acupuncturist who also works often with Chinese herbs. That could also be another good avenue to natural healing for many health conditions.

Hello,

Naturopathic doctors who treat diabetes will absolutely give natural treatments along with insulin, metformin and any other diabetes related medications the person is on. It's not safe to just cut off all that medicine and do all natural. It takes time for the body to respond to the natural treatment.

At the same time, depending on how long they've had diabetes, how severe their case is, and how willing (or unwilling) the patient is to make lifestyle changes, one patient may be able to fully reverse their diabetes and come off medications while others will always need some medications. If they cannot come off fully, naturopathic treatments often helps them to reduce how much of the other medicines they need.

Hi! This is a great question because it's a tricky topic.

There are several types of water fast and lots of people have written articles and even books on it. There are even clinics that a person can stay at for long-term fasting for serious medical issues.

I have seen some people really hurt themselves because they didn't know what they were doing or they did it for too long, or they didn't follow instructions. Other times I have recommended it to my patients and gave them very detailed instructions, plus checked in on them daily during the fast.

Doing a water fast, even if you do it "right", for weight loss won't give you permanent results. IF you lose any weight it will just be water weight, meaning a quick flush of excess water you're carrying, but once you go back to your regular diet you will gain it right back. Some people even gain more than before the fast, depending on their nutrition and overall lifestyle.

For safety reasons, I will say that there is a way to do a very short term water fast correctly that is safe and has positive results. However, most people struggle to do this because they often find it difficult to follow all of the requirements, such as no physical activity, drinking the right kind of water, the right amount, knowing how to deal with possible detox symptoms, etc.

I can only give exact instructions to my current patients who I can monitor during a water fast and help trouble shoot to keep things safe and maximize results.

I hope they this helps you understand that water fasting can be beneficial if done correctly and can be harmful if done incorrectly, and it's not a guarantee that you will lose weight even if you do it right.

Hello!

There are some over the counter natural remedies for UTI's that can be effective for most people. Some of them are general homeopathic blends and for the average person work well. But every now and then there are some who need more than that.

If you do traditional / classical homeopathy where you get a single remedy instead of a general combo, that's usually where people don't have as much success because if they don't get the exact right one for their specific symptom presentation, then it won't work.

What I usually recommend for my patients is to use these combo remedies plus an herbal tincture for UTI's and dietary changes during illness. If in 2 days they have no improvement but they still don't want a regular antibiotic then I might suggest Azo or similar, also found over the counter. But if you have worsening pain or it's harder to pee at any point, or your urine starts to look orange or dark, go see your doctor ASAP!

I highly recommend finding an herbalist in your area or checking a local health food store for a UTI tincture.

Re diet- for example, cut out all sugar and dairy as they create more inflammation and thicken the mucosal lining of the bladder wall making it harder to flush the bacteria. Also, a lot of people think drinking cranberry juice is good for UTI's. Yes BUT most people drink the wrong type! Juice like Ocean Spray, Welch's, etc have very little juice and tons of sugar. It MUST be 100% cranberry juice with no added sugar to be helpful! And don't add sugar lol. It will be extremely tart.