Integrative Practitioner Digital Summit
IMMUNITY - JUNE 14
Botanical Therapeutic Interventions for Autoimmune Disease
Rising healthcare costs, long-term complications, and side-effects of immunosuppressant medications have led many patients to seek out other solutions to delay the progression of, and for the management of autoimmune disease. Many clinicians are only familiar with the persistent cautions that exist around the use of herbal medicine with autoimmune disease when the data simply doesn’t exist to support these warnings. An example of this misunderstanding is the concept of herbal medicine enhancing the cytokine response, which was a focus point of discussion within the integrative medicine community during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In many cases, traditional and clinical use of herbs differs from modern pharmacological understanding of the mechanism of action of key compounds, and by becoming familiar with how these plants and their active constituents work, the clinician will feel more confidence with botanical therapeutic interventions for the management of autoimmune disease.
Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to:
- Become aware of misconceptions around the concept of herbs exacerbating autoimmune disease.
- Look at clinical evidence and new experimental research to become familiar with key plant compounds and herbs, and how they can be used to enhance the management of autoimmune disease.
- Learn how plant medicine can be used for patients who wish to come off immunosuppressant medication.
- Understand how safe use of herbal medicine can stabilize and modulate the immune response as part of an integrative, naturopathic approach, with case study examples: Hashimoto’s, inflammatory bowel disease, Sjogren’s syndrome, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis.
Speaker: Carolina Brooks, ND, IFMCP
Carolina Brooks, ND, IFMCP, is a certified functional medicine practitioner who uses a systems biology and science-based approach to healthcare involving nutrition, genetics, herbal medicine, endobiogeny, and orthomolecular medicine. She is the only IFMCP with her unique combination of qualifications in the world. She is also trained in Ayurveda and Chinese medicine, ear acupuncture, coaching, hyperbaric oxygen therapy frequency specific microcurrent, neuro-linguistic programming, hypnotherapy, and has completed various fellowships in both the United States & France. She works to educate, support, and empower clients to take responsibility for optimizing their health. She has first-hand expertise in managing stress and improving energy levels in high-pressure working environments and specializes in a biohacking approach for prevention of chronic disease, optimizing performance, and works with patients with chronic and complex diseases issues. She consults wellness start-ups and clinics, formulates supplements, and has created herbal products for both the wellness and hospitality sectors, working both in the U.K. and internationally.
