Dr. Craig Hauser: The Five Pillars Of Functional Medicine

written by: Zanne Lamb-Hunt

Dr. Craig Hauser achieved a B.S. from Tulane University in New Orleans and his M.D. from Uniformed Services University for the Health Sciences in Bethesda. He resides in Maryland with his wife, two daughters and a son.

His own health issues led him away from practicing 100% western medicine. He now incorporates Integrative & Functional Medicine at Hauser Health in Frederick.
The US is ranked #37 by the World Health Care Organization. “The only known category we win in is expenditure per capita. We spend a ton of money on health care but we don’t get very good results. That’s where Integrative Medicine comes into play.”

“It allows me, your typical western medicine trained doctor who has also been trained in Alternative and Complementary Medicines to combine or integrate the two. Integrative Medicine gives us the best of both worlds.”

The Five Pillars Of Functional Medicine

1. Nutrition

“We need to focus on eating three healthy meals a day and two healthy snacks. That should center on quality proteins and fats. Reduce or eliminate the unhealthy grains, cereals and sugars but get plenty of fruits and vegetables. And, don’t forget to keep hydrated.”

2. Sleep

“Strive for seven to eight hours of quality sleep each night. The buzz word to remember is ‘sleep hygiene’ — that means clean up your environment so you set yourself up for success. Eliminate extraneous lights, move the iPhone away from your pillow and drop the temperature in the room to 68 degrees or lower.”

3. Exercise

“You want to move your body every day but you don’t want to overdo it, especially if you’ve got underlying issues like adrenal fatigue. So, take the dog out for a walk. Grab a friend or your spouse and head on outdoors.”

4. Social

“This is where you find happiness, peace, contentment…where you find comfort and joy. What do we do about it on a daily basis? Do you go to yoga? Do you meditate? Do you knit?”

5. Nutraceuticals

“It’s a fancy word for vitamins, minerals and supplements. Our bodies are constantly being depleted of these. You can no longer fix your body solely by eating good foods. An apple grown on today’s depleted farm field is not the same as an apple one hundred years ago. So, supplementation becomes an important factor in health.”

Dr. Hauser grew up in Colorado “right in the foothills near the Air Force Academy. That’s where I fell in love with science and medicine.” He was an EMT for the city, as well as for the University, while attending Tulane in New Orleans.

He has served in base hospitals around the world. He was Pacific Air Force’s Consultant to the Surgeon General. “I got my jump wings and worked my way up to Lt. Colonel. I absolutely loved serving the country!”

After 16 years as a military doctor, he “found a great group of radiologists in Hagerstown.” That was the end of his military service and the start of his service to the local community.

Yes, Sometimes Doctors Have Medical Issues Too

Dr. Hauser moved to western Maryland about eight years ago and soon started to have medical issues of his own. “I had things like anxiety, irritable bowel disease, chronic fatigue, kidney stones and Bell’s Palsy, where half my face was paralyzed for about four months.”

Each medical issue resulted in another prescription added to the medicine cabinet but he was getting worse instead of better. “I turned into a real mess. I didn’t do much else other than go to work and sit on the couch when I got home. I knew I needed something different than western medicine and decided I needed to take a more holistic approach to my health.”

“I worked on my nutrition and my exercise. I went to counseling. I learned successful ways to reduce stress. I slowly — very slowly — started feeling better and getting rid of all of my prescriptions. Once I started feeling like myself again, I lost thirty pounds without dieting, I started doing palates and building muscle. And, I started feeling happy again.”

Driven to help others to feel better, Dr. Hauser changed his specialty to Integrative and Functional Medicine and opened the door of his Frederick office in July, 2015. “It’s really neat that I find that most of the time I can relate to my patients. I’ve had a lot of the issues my patients have had.”

Hauser Health Is Making A Difference

Dr. Hauser points to the commercials for “an amazing new drug that will solve your irritable bowel problems..or your love life. The only catch is that there are a hundred other issues this drug causes. It only works half the time but 100% of the time it will cause side effects. Well, nine out of ten times, my patients are taking medications like this when they come to see me.”

One of his early patients in his new practice was experiencing several medical issues and she was taking one of those drugs that cause terrible side effects and it wasn’t working for her.

“Her GI doctor wanted to switch her to another terrible drug. That’s when she decided she’d had enough and she came to see me. I put her on a really safe medication with no side effects, ran a few specialized tests and got her on a great nutritional program. Now, I love when she visits the office because she just looks so darn healthy!”

The Biggest Challenge of Opening His Own Practice

“The biggest challenge was to make the decision to leave a secure job to open my own medical office. I really was kind of paralyzed by that decision. Leaving a practice that had a steady income and was a well established business to set out on my own was really nerve wracking.”

“They don’t teach business courses in medical school. I had to learn to write things like a business plan, track inventory and balance a budget. Once I made the decision to commit to Functional Medicine, life really became easier because I knew I had a goal and I knew I had a destiny. I really could get myself on that track — but, man, it was a whirlwind!”

Is it any surprise that his favorite quote is from Sun Tzu? “Can you imagine what I would do if I could do all that I can?”

Dr. Hauser reminds us all, “You don’t have to be sick to get better!” Contact Hauser Health today to put yourself on the path to enjoying an optimal level of health!

HauserHealth.com
Facebook.com/HauserHealth

4802 Old National Pike, Frederick
(240) 670-4802

Content Provided by Frederick Advice Givers Podcast #033