Naturopathic doctors (ND’s) are primary care physicians who diagnose and treat a wide variety of conditions.  To become a naturopathic doctor, you must attend a 4-5 year accredited naturopathic medical school after completing 4 years of undergraduate education. Naturopathic doctors utilize many modalities to treat patients, including herbs, pharmaceuticals, homeopathy, physical medicine (naturopathic manipulation), and nutritional therapy. The following tenets of naturopathic medicine are the foundation upon which all naturopathic doctors approach the practice of medicine.

Tenets of Naturopathic Medicine:

The Healing Power of Nature

• The body has an amazing ability to heal itself. Naturopathic medicine focuses on helping individuals tap that ability.

Identify and Treat the Cause

• Naturopathic medicine seeks to identify the root cause of illness to most effectively treat that cause rather than address only symptoms.

First do no Harm

• Naturopathic physicians seek to minimize patient’s risk of harm and avoid suppression of symptoms by acknowledging the body’s self-healing process.

Doctor as Teacher

• Naturopathic medicine focuses on empowering patients to take responsibility for their own health and wellness.

Treat the Whole Person

• People exist in a complex environment and naturopathic physicians seek to address their entire physical, mental, emotional, genetic, and social well-being.

Prevention

• Naturopathic medicine focuses on preventing illness by assessing patients’ susceptibility to disease, including risk factors and environmental exposure.

For additional information on naturopathic medicine, please visit the following links:

Oregon Association of Naturopathic Physicians

 American Association of Naturopathic Physicians

National University of Natural Medicine