New to Functional Medicine? Why This Employee Benefit Puts You Ahead

Most people discover functional medicine after years of frustration, bouncing between specialists without answers. You are starting differently. Your employer has made this care available to you early, and that is a real advantage. This benefit is designed to help you understand your health more clearly, address issues before they escalate, and support sustainable, long-term well-being.

In this article, we will walk you through what functional medicine is, how it differs from conventional care, and what to expect as a Root member.

What Functional Medicine Is

Functional medicine is a patient-centered, science-based approach that restores healthy function by identifying and addressing the root causes of illness. It treats the whole person, considering how your physical, mental, and emotional health are connected. For example, your hormones, mood, skin, and more are intricately connected to the health of your gut. By understanding your unique genetic, environmental, and lifestyle influences, functional medicine creates personalized interventions that restore balance and well-being.

Conventional medicine often asks: "What diagnosis fits this symptom?"

Functional medicine asks: "What is driving this pattern, and how do we change it?"

This distinction matters. Functional medicine adds depth and personalization to your care. It does not replace conventional medicine. It works alongside it, filling in the gaps that a symptom-focused approach can miss.

Figure 1. The Body as an Interconnected System

How Functional Medicine Differs from Conventional Care

Both conventional and functional medicine have important roles. Understanding what each does well helps set clear expectations.

Conventional Care

Conventional medicine is excellent for acute issues, emergencies, and clear, single-system problems. It is where you want to be for a broken bone, a heart attack, or surgery. However, it is often limited by short visit times, symptom-focused solutions, and limited follow-up support.

Functional Medicine

Functional medicine is designed to fill gaps in care. It offers longer visits and deeper history-taking, advanced and preventive testing when appropriate, and an emphasis on nutrition, lifestyle, and environmental influences. We believe in a food-first approach, supported by collaboration between physicians and dietitians. All lab results and virtual visits include personalized, written action plans from our clinical team. It is an ongoing partnership, not a one-time visit.

This model is especially helpful for chronic symptoms and prevention. If you have been told your labs are "normal" but you still do not feel well, functional medicine is worth exploring.

Why Your Employer Chose This Benefit

Chronic conditions and low-grade symptoms affect more than just health. They affect energy, focus, and attendance. When employees are not feeling their best, it shows up across the board.

Your employer chose functional medicine because it supports prevention, early intervention, and whole-person health. From a company perspective, this means fewer unnecessary referrals and procedures, more engaged and healthier employees, and a benefit built for long-term impact rather than short-term fixes.

What Root Commonly Helps With

Root works with a wide range of conditions. Some of the most common include:

Metabolic health concerns including blood sugar imbalances, pre-diabetes, type 2 diabetes, and elevated cholesterol, are increasingly common. An estimated 40 percent of adults in the United States have insulin resistance, and many of them do not know it. Functional medicine uses comprehensive testing that includes fasting insulin levels alongside glucose to catch metabolic issues early.

Digestive health, including IBS, bloating, and food sensitivities. Up to 16 percent of Americans may suffer from IBS. Functional medicine starts with targeted dietary support from a registered dietitian, and many symptoms improve with this foundational work alone. When needed, comprehensive stool testing and targeted gut healing protocols help identify and address underlying causes.

Hormonal balance, including thyroid dysfunction, PCOS, and menopause symptoms. Functional medicine takes a comprehensive approach to hormone testing and addresses the factors that influence hormone balance, including nutrition, stress, and gut health.

Energy, mood, and brain fog. Functional medicine's longer appointments and advanced testing help identify underlying causes for these symptoms, whether related to nutrient deficiencies, hormones, inflammation, blood sugar imbalances, or other factors.

Care plans at Root are individualized. Not everyone follows the same path, and that is by design.

Getting Started

If you have access to Root through your employer, here is how to begin. Complete your lab testing so your care team has the data they need. Then visit your Root dashboard to explore your results, connect with your care team, and join the Root Community for ongoing support and guidance.

You are already ahead. Now it is time to take the first step.

Root Functional Medicine works with companies nationwide via telehealth and lab testing to offer advanced benefits and decreased healthcare costs. Learn more here.

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