The Natural History of Disease & The Power of Functional Medicine Testing
- Dr Michael Elliott MSc, D.C., CFMP.
- Aug 12
- 2 min read
From the moment we are born, our bodies are in a constant state of adaptation. Over time, various factors—genetics, lifestyle choices, environmental exposures, emotional well-being, and nutrition—interact to determine whether we maintain health or progress toward disease.
In public health, the Natural History of Disease describes this process as a continuum:
Birth and Early Life – We begin with our genetic blueprint, shaped by early-life exposures and nutrition.
Biological Onset of Disease – Subtle imbalances start to develop in our physiology long before we feel symptoms or see changes in standard medical tests.
Disease Detectable by Screening – At this stage, specialized screening tests may detect early disease markers, even if no symptoms are present.
Disease Detectable by Routine Methods – This is where most conventional diagnoses occur—when signs, symptoms, and standard labs make disease visible.
Progression and Death – Without intervention, disease advances, impacting quality of life and potentially leading to death.
The challenge with conventional healthcare is that intervention often starts at Stage 3 or 4, once disease is already present. Functional medicine and Lifestyle medicine changes that timeline.
By using advanced functional testing—including hormone panels, nutrient status, inflammatory markers, gut microbiome analysis, and oxidative stress measurements—we can evaluate an individual’s Terrain Score at the point of biological onset. This means detecting subtle imbalances before standard screening methods would show anything abnormal.
Examples of what functional testing might detect early include:
Suboptimal vitamin D levels that could affect immune regulation.
Elevated inflammatory markers before cardiovascular symptoms appear.
Hormone imbalances that precede metabolic disorders.
Early oxidative stress markers before chronic disease develops.
Why this matters: When imbalances are detected early, targeted interventions—nutrition, lifestyle changes, stress management, and supplementation—can shift the trajectory back toward health, often avoiding the need for more aggressive medical treatment later.
Bottom line: Your health journey doesn’t start when you get a diagnosis—it starts now. Functional testing offers the opportunity to intervene at the earliest point possible, supporting your body’s resilience and longevity.
