Should You See a Naturopath or a Doctor?

Copyright © 2022 Modern Daye Naturopath. All Rights Reserved.

It can be both time-consuming and frustrating in the search for the appropriate healthcare practitioner/s. This article aims to explain the difference between naturopathic and conventional medicine to minimise the stress and expenses paid that can lead to exhaustion and a sense of hopelessness. 

Naturopathy Treatment VS Conventional Pharmaceuticals 

Both Naturopaths and GPs use biological and biochemical sciences in order to understand how the human body functions, and therefore how treatments can take effect. 

In many cases, conventional medicine is absolutely required to assist with disease processes, and may be essential to survival. For example, conventional medicine needs to be used for emergencies or issues that require a visit to the hospital, like major surgery. GPs can prescribe pharmaceutical medications, powerful antibiotics and immunisations that are sometimes essential.

In other cases, when health conditions are less acute, you may often be torn between wanting to use natural or conventional methods of healthcare treatment. 

Naturopathy is a great option for people who might not find relief for their chronic illness through conventional medicine. Naturopathic treatments, in general, such as herbal medicine and nutritional supplements are known to be less invasive, less toxic and more natural than conventional pharmaceuticals. Therefore, negative side-effects tend to be minimal. Some treatments can be gentle and slow acting, and some may be more powerful and fast-acting (depending on the treatment type, dosage, potency, quality and the patient’s vitality). Naturopaths have access to practitioner-only products. These treatments usually have more scientific evidence, with ingredients of higher quality, higher bioavailability and manufacturing standards than off-the-shelf vitamins and supplements. For these reasons, practitioner-only products are seen to have superior efficacy. 

Herbal Medicine

Herbal medicine can be an effective and natural alternative for treating an extensive range of health conditions. Herbs are sustainably sourced, and are available in liquid, tablet and capsule form. Although herbal medicine is often referred to as ‘complementary’ or ‘alternative’ in most Western countries, it remains the sole form of medicine widely available to much of the world’s population.

Did you know the active ingredients in many prescribed medicines from GPs originate from plants? For example, the herb Salix alba was used in the 1800s to develop aspirin. Salix alba contains salicin, a chemical similar to acetylsalicylic acid utilised in aspirin, which are both used to this day for pain relief. Currently, pharmaceutical companies are actively investigating the potential of medicinal plants to provide new medicines and antibiotics.

Naturopathy VS Conventional Consults 

Naturopathy is a whole medical system combining an array of natural therapies to support healing and maintain well-being. Individualised treatment plans are created by Naturopaths for patients using herbal medicine, dietary counselling, nutrition, exercise prescription and lifestyle education to address your health concerns. 

Naturopathic consults are typically 40-90 minutes long, depending if the consult is an initial or return. This allows time for the practitioner to examine their client’s diet, lifestyle, exposure to environmental chemicals, sleep habits, stress, detox ability, health history and family history to understand your current state of health. Naturopaths develop an individualised treatment plan and will not use a "one size fits all" approach. Naturopaths aim to treat the underlying causes of disease, rather than the symptoms alone. They support the body's natural healing processes, in order for it to rebuild itself. Naturopathic practitioners also intervene for disease prevention to minimise illness from the outset, rather than waiting for pathology results to show disease down the track. 

Naturopaths may assist with health conditions that are prevalent in modern society, including stress, anxiety, depression, sleep disorders, cardiovascular health, overweight/obesity, hormonal imbalance, painful/irregular periods, fertility (male and female), PCOS, endometriosis, menopause, low libido, low sperm count, pain, digestion, gas, bloating, diarrheoa, constipation, poor immune system, allergies, acne, headaches, fatigue and degenerative illness. However, you don’t have to be sick to try Naturopathy; you may just want to boost your overall health or prevent an illness. 

Naturopathic appointments are affordable; they are cheaper than doctor's appointments per hour, and often cost similar to a facial or massage. Follow-up appointments cost less. 

Appointments with a GP typically last 5-10 minutes, which allows for less thorough questioning and understanding of your case. This is typically why treatments are generic, and there is less of a focus on preventative medicine, simply due to the lack of time allocated. A GPs job is to diagnose and treat an illness. GPs are under pressure with these time constraints, and often agree that these appointments are too short for proper patient care, as it is increasingly rare for a patient to present with a just single health condition. There is simply not enough time to consider the physical, psychological and social factors impacting on their patient’s health.

Both types of practitioners can organise pathology tests to be performed to investigate someone’s health status (i.e. blood, thyroid, hormones, etc.). Some doctors have access to bulk billing and can refer for imaging (x-rays and ultrasounds etc). Naturopaths have access to more functional tests, such as investigations of the digestive environment (how your body breaks down fat/protein/carbohydrates and the microbiome diversity), or neurotransmitter levels (such as serotonin and GABA, which are responsible for positively regulating mood). 

Practitioners Working in Harmony = The Ultimate Goal

Naturopathy can work extremely well in conjunction with conventional medicine. In fact, if practitioners work in harmony, a whole health strategy is possible and this can often produce the best patient outcomes with the most effective treatments. Communication is key between the patient and each practitioner to safely integrate natural evidence-based medicine with conventional medicine. 

How Do I Find a Quality Naturopathic Practitioner? 

Make sure your practitioner is fully qualified, is registered with a professional association and maintains insurance. Some practitioners specialise in certain areas of health; use this to narrow your search. 

Final Thoughts

Naturopathy can be used as a compliment to other forms of medicine or as a stand-alone therapy.

You have a right to make your own decisions about your healthcare. Weigh up the benefits and risks with your health care practitioners, including side effects and long-term consequences of proposed treatments.  

If you are interested in trying Naturopathy, Lauren Daye is a degree-qualified Naturopath, herbalist and nutritionist, registered with Naturopath and Herbalist Association of Australia (NHAA) and upholds comprehensive insurance.