Environmental Health Functional Medicine Advanced Practice Module® (APM)

When was the last time you assessed total toxic burden as a mitigating factor in your patients’ persistent symptoms? Chronic, low-level exposure to toxic compounds found in the air, water, personal products, and food affects human health in disparate ways and has been associated with disease pathologies ranging from cardiometabolic dysfunction to neurodegeneration. Given the ubiquitous nature of these compounds in the environment, the bioaccumulation and overload of various toxins can impact the vital enzymatic detoxification pathways and cause downstream disruptions in the body. Toxins that are absorbed but not properly eliminated may be an underlying, mitigating factor to disease; therefore, it is critical to assess total toxic load, especially if a patient’s condition does not respond to initial treatment. Understanding toxicity and taking practical steps to improve your patients’ biotransformation and elimination are essential for any integrative approach to health.  

The Environmental Health APM overviews the biochemistry and genetics of biotransformation pathways, connects organ system dysfunctions to potential toxic exposures, and details the available laboratory evaluations useful in assessing both the toxic load and physiologic responses to toxicant and toxin exposures. Several interventions, including exposure reduction, lifestyle-based modifications, and therapies to support the microbiome and the gut-liver axis will be explored. 

New Online Cohort Format — Learn at Your Own Pace!

The Environmental Health APM is now offered as a six-week online cohort course! Learners can access course materials and review lectures when it is most convenient for them. The new format expands access to functional medicine education, allowing clinicians to balance the demands of their practice and their training.

Advanced Practice Modules apply the foundational tools presented in Applying Functional in Medicine Clinical Practice (AFMCP)^TM within a specific area of health. At the Environmental Health APM, you'll learn how to:

• Understand the synergistic effects of both toxicants and toxins and identify potential toxic exposures as the antecedents and mediators of chronic, systemic diseases.
• Accurately recognize five clinical patterns of chronic toxicity.
• Identify and address the effects of chronic toxic insult on neurotoxicity, immunotoxicity, autoimmunity, mitochondrial dysfunction, endocrine disruption, and carcinogenesis.
• Integrate clinical point-of-care tools to effectively evaluate patterns of toxicity and monitor patient progress.
• Maximize physical exam findings and conventional laboratory results to assess toxic load and burden.
• Recognize and evaluate the most important root causes and contributors of toxic load, including impaired biotransformation, impaired excretion, and nutritional deficiencies.
• Order and interpret reliable laboratory evaluations of toxic load and biotransformative capacity.
• Apply nutritional support, toxicant reduction techniques, therapeutic detoxification regimens, and other personalized approaches to decrease total toxic load.
• Apply various nutraceuticals, botanicals, pharmaceuticals, and lifestyle interventions to increase the mobilization, biotransformation, and elimination of toxic compounds.
• Engage your patients in meaningful dialogue about their health concerns, working together to establish the optimal treatment plan for their needs.  
• Expand upon the functional medicine tools and concepts presented in Applying Functional Medicine in Clinical Practice (AFMCP)^TM.