Our doctors and dentists would not be insurance-driven, but patient-centered, and would take the time to really listen to patients and get to the root cause of their health issues. With a proper diagnosis and education, we could help them on their journey towards optimum health.

With that as the core mission, the founders started National Integrated Health Associates, or NIHA, as it is more commonly known. Our goal is to provide patients of all ages with comprehensive, integrative medical and dental care, and respect the innate healing wisdom of the body in the process.

Since 1995, our team has included biological dentists, integrative and functional medicine physicians, naturopaths, a chiropractor, a physical therapist and other skilled and experienced holistic professionals. Some of our doctors and dentists are considered pioneers and experts in their respective fields. One of the highlights in our long history, and a principle of integrative medicine, is adding a full-service lab where patients can get IV treatment and advanced lab testing needed to diagnose the root cause of a health issue.

When we started, the hazards of chemicals, plastics, pollution, silver fillings and processed food were not common knowledge. Maybe we were a little ahead of the curve. But now, thankfully, most of our patients are well-educated on the impact of diet, chemicals and lifestyle factors on their health. Other patients come to us because traditional medical care for chronic disease just doesnt seem to be working, and they want more options. A natural or holistic and integrative approach is important for wellness, disease prevention and disease management, and finding a caring medical partner to help make the shift to an integrative approach can be the difference between short-term improvements and long-term better health.

Dr. Mark McClure, a pioneer in holistic & biological dentistry, is one of the founders and dentists. With his vast knowledge and expertise, Dr. McClure has had the privilege of treating patients from all over the United States.

Areas of Focus: Adult wellness, general preventive medicine and holistic primary care; comprehensive detoxification for chronic diseases, including autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, exposure to mold, heavy metals, solvents, pesticides and other toxins; occupational, environmental and recreational toxic exposures; chronic infections, including Lyme Disease and co-infections; womens preventive and sexual health, especially in perimenopause and menopause.

Master of Science, Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, University of Maryland Doctor of Medicine, Howard University College of Medicine Bachelor of Arts, Natural Sciences, University of Pennsylvania

Postgraduate training in: Preventive Medicine and Public Health (residency) University of Maryland Medical Center Transfusion Medicine (fellowship) Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Anatomic and clinical pathology (residency) Temple University Hospital Obstetrics and gynecology (internship) Thomas Jefferson University Hospital

About: Dr. Cannon comes to NIHA after a 20 year career in academic medicine, and medical education and administration. Board-certified in anatomic and clinical pathology, and blood banking/ transfusion medicine, Dr. Cannon worked in student affairs and admissions at the medical school level, guiding, mentoring, and learning from students, from college through entrance to residency training and beyond.

A long-standing interest in disease prevention, environmental medicine and the integrative approach to diagnosis, testing and treatment led her to the preventive medicine program at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, where she learned the population approach to prevention among other topics. Fortunately, the curriculum also included integrative, as well as environmental and occupational medicine; the information dovetailed beautifully with her interests and helped fill in the gaps that remain when addressing populations rather than individuals.

We can all benefit from work on our health foundation - the fundamental lifestyle factors of functional medicine, which include nutrition, exercise, sleep/ rest, stress management and healthy relationships. Prevention is always a goal, no matter how challenging our health may be.

You are not your problem list, and your diagnoses are labels that usually point to underlying nutritional, assimilation (digestion and metabolism), structural, environmental, genetic, behavioral, physical, hormonal, energetic and/or spiritual issues that will respond, when correctly identified and treated. Finding the root cause(s) of your health issue is a tenet of integrative medicine.

My special interests include the damaging effects of environmental exposures and toxins and their roles in autoimmune, inflammatory, infectious, cardiovascular and other chronic diseases. I follow with great interest, any developments regarding the health effects of pesticides, heavy metals, nanoscale materials (as found in personal care products and cosmetics, for example) and genetically engineered foods. Finally, the explosion of the omics (microbiomics, genomics and epigenomics, etc.) and their roles in precision medicine will hopefully be areas of focus that I can bring to bear on the health of patients through the internal environment, or milieu.

Areas of Focus: Allergies, Environmental Medicine and Chemical Sensitivities, Herbal Medicine and Homeopathy, Anti-Aging, Weight Loss, Cancer Co-Management, Heavy Metal Detoxification, Liver and Immune Dysfunction, Autoimmune Disorders, Women's and Mens Health

Naturopathic Medicine is a natural approach to health and healing that recognizes the whole person. Dr. Frandsen believes the body has a natural ability to heal itself. She operates under the belief that although there is a place for conventional medicine, more often than not, disease is caused by a disruption of the bodys natural processes and prefers to use gentle and natural methods to correct imbalance before introducing drugs or surgery.

Dr. Frandsen is a board certified naturopathicphysician who received her doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine with high honors from the University of Bridgeport. She began her collegiate career at Virginia Commonwealth University where she received a Bachelors of Science in Biology with a Pre-Med concentration.

Her graduate study includes Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine and the University of Bridgeport where she was trained in Nutritional Medicine, Homeopathy, Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture, Physical Medicine, Botanical Medicine, and Counseling. Her post-graduate experience includes ART certification through the Klinghardt Academy.

Dr. Frandsen believes that one of the most important things missing in medicine today is the willingness of physicians to educate patients on the cause and treatment of disease as well as prevention. With the help of wellness oriented practitioners, she believes each individual patient can take back their own health and independence.

Great News Dr Frandsen....so far this Spring (Tree) Allergy Season -my symptoms have been very negligible to light!! Hopefully, as the Weather warms, my allergic responses will remain Mild! Right On Dr Frandsen....as I have said Your practical understandings of Bio-Physiological Chemistry Is Superb!!! Thanks Again!!! Dr. B. 4/18

Specialty: Functional Medicine Physician, incorporating Functional medicine testing and treatment to address the root causes of most chronic medical and psychiatric disorders; MTHFR and Predictive Genomics, Gene Testing.

Practice Philosophy: 'If you dont test, youve guessed.' Many of the root causes of medical and psychological disorders can be discovered and modified if a careful and thorough, science-based search is made with cutting-edge, mostly insurance-covered, laboratory testing.

Areas of Focus: Functional Medicine, Integrative Cancer Care, and Genetic Testing to optimize genetic expression in every patient by assessing metabolic, infectious, gastrointestinal, neuropsychological, endocrine, immune, allergic, nutritional, toxicological and genomic risk factors to address medical disorders and the biochemical causes of mental/emotional disorders.

Dr. Gant is an author, teacher and most of all practitioner who provides innovative and personal care for his patients. Charles Gant MD, PhD, has practiced functional and integrative medicine, and mindfulness-based cognitive psychotherapy for nearly four decades. He has incorporated Precision Medicine into his practice in the last decade. Precision medicine is an innovative approach to disease prevention and treatment that takes into account individual differences in genomics, environmental stressors, and lifestyles.

Several decades of practicing functional and causal medicine has led me on a journey to ever deepening discoveries of the root causes of both wellness and disease. The question has always been for me, and I ask this now of you; exactly what nutritional deficiency, toxin, metabolic defect, infection, allergy, neurotransmitter or hormonal imbalance, psycho-emotional conflict and/or genetic predisposition do I/you NOT want to know about, that could be contributing to or causing your symptoms and problems? For me the answer has always been; I want to know about every one that I can test for and address in a rational way, and this is why I routinely test for hundreds of risk factors and spend a great deal of time piecing together the unique biochemistry of each patient. I am not comfortable with not knowing and guessing and I am not satisfied until I can find the answers. My faith in science compels me to believe that medical and psychiatric disorders dont just happen, that magical forces dont make people sick, and that causes for many disorders can be found if our technology is up to the task and I can be diligent enough to find the answers. My motto has always been, If you dont test, youve guessed.

Decades into this journey, I now find it hard to imagine how many chronic medical or psychiatric disorders could not be eliminated or at least significantly modified, if one embarks on a thorough search through the 1000s of potentially causal nutritional, immune, infectious, allergic, psycho-emotional, metabolic, energetic, hormonal and genetic risk factors, followed by precisely targeted treatments designed to address each causal risk factor. It does not matter what other kind of healthcare treatment you use, integrative, holistic, psychotherapeutic or conventional, or what kind of medical or psychiatric challenge you face. Finding and correcting the root molecular causes can only improve your outcomes.

Chief Science Officer of the Academy of Functional Medicine which offers a fully accredited doctorate degree in functional medicine and genomics in association with Huntington College of Health Sciences (www.hchs.edu )

Author: Awaken Your Godly Brain; ADD and ADHD: Complementary/Alternative Medicine (CAM) Solutions; End Your Addiction Now; End Nicotine Addiction Now; and ADHD (Attentional Disintegration of Hurt and Distress) Therapies, Basic Concepts in Integrative, Complementary and Alternative Medicine.