The 6 Underlying Principles of Naturopathic Medicine

The Healing Power of Nature
(Vis medicatrix naturae)
Within the human organism is an ordered and intelligent inherent healing process. The goal of a naturopath is to support, facilitate, and augment this process by identifying and removing obstacles to health and recovery, and supporting a healthy internal and external environment.

Identify and Treat the Cause (Tolle causum)
Symptoms can be expressions of the body's attempt to defend or to heal itself, or they may be the direct result of the cause of the disease. Rather than just eliminate (or suppress) the symptoms, a naturopath seeks to find and treat the cause.

First Do No Harm (Primum non nocere)
A naturopath will use methods and medicinal substances which minimize the risk of harmful effects, and apply the least possible force or intervention to diagnose illness and restore health.

Doctor as Teacher
The word 'doctor' is from the Latin docere meaning "teacher". If an individual is educated in their own health matters, they have the potential to take more responsibility for their health, and to feel more in control.

Treat the Whole Person
Naturopathic medicine recognizes that many factors can impact your health, including physical, spiritual, mental, emotional, genetic, environmental, and social factors. Therefore, your condition is not treated so much as you are treated.

Prevention
Health promotion is the best prevention of illness. This involves the assessment of risk factors, heredity, and susceptibility to disease, and the appropriate interventions in partnership with patients to prevent ill health.