I talk a lot about 'cookbook' Medicine. Cookbook medicine is symptom based supressive medicine. It is based on a model of care that is similar to simply following a recipe. A symptom is identified and matched to a drug that removes that symptom. Think, for example, of a migraine headache. You take a migraine medication that stops you from experience the pain. But the cause of the migraine is not addressed and not considered important.
Cookbook medicine is mainstream American Healthcare because it supports the pharmaceutical industry ( treatment consists of long term drug therapy ), supports insurance ( matching symptoms to drugs can be done in a 5 minute office visit ), and creates repeat business for the physician. Pretty much the entire healthcare system benefits from cookbook medicine.
The only thing not addressed by cookbook medicine is healthcare. Healthcare, the promotion of health, means healing people so that they don't NEED ongoing drug therapy. Determination of underlying causes and solving health problems so they go away takes time. Physicians need time to do a comprehensive intake, require a significantly higher level of skill and training, and make a significantly greater investment in a patient. Patients must participate in their care and often are called to make changes once causative problems are identified.
The impact of this type of care which is essentially 'disease care' is not limited to MD's. The Natural Health Movement lends itself to a cookbook approach. Instead of taking a drug to stop a symptom, you take a natural substance to cover up the symptom.
The reason Naturopathic Medicine is critical of 'cookbook' style medicine is because it is in conflict with the philosophical Principles of Naturopathic Medicine. These principles include finding the cause, restoring balance, promoting responsibility and education for patients, etc. Naturopathic Medicine's objective is to promote health by providing Health Care.
