Hi, I’m Dr. Adam Perlman. I am the former Associate Vice President of Health & Wellness for The Duke University Health System as well as Executive Director of Duke Integrative Medicine. I currently hold the position of Director of the Leadership Program in Integrative Healthcare. As a practitioner of functional medicine, I have spent my entire career trying to help people take a more comprehensive, holistic approach as they address their health concerns while optimizing their vitality and living their best life.
You see, the world of medicine and the healthcare system, in general, is moving from a disease-centric approach to a systems biology that addresses the individual as a whole.
I believe, like many, that the healthcare model of tomorrow will be very different. It will be equally predictive, preventative, personalized and participatory.
- Predictive meaning medicine will incorporate genomics to determine the probability of disease.
- Preventative allowing people to know their individual risk profile, which will motivate them to make changes before they get sick.
- They will receive personalized recommendations, namely targeted and specific interventions and treatment.
- Finally, people will feel empowered and encouraged to engage in personal choices that are participatory, meaning patients will finally team up with the physicians to get to the root of their health problems.
In the meantime, I urge all of us to become experts about our own health and wellness.
Why?
I think you will agree that there’s a lot of confusing information out there about how to care for your health and well-being. What are we confused about? Well, some of the things I find confusing are simple, like what kind of eggs do I need to buy nowadays? There are at least ten choices out there.
What about probiotics and the microbiota? What about all of this bacteria in my gut? Should I take a probiotic? If so, what kind? How many strains? How many colony forming units?
All of the information out there can be very confusing and very misleading.
So what do I personally do? Well, I use my medical training and knowledge try to sift through the information while looking for the evidence. This enables me to make the best decisions for myself while helping inform my family and friends and frankly, I want to do the same for you, and help you become an expert on you.
Information Empowers You with Freedom of Choice
Ultimately, it is about our freedom of choice, because if we’re operating with incomplete information or misinformation, perhaps because it was put on the internet by the company that makes the product, then we don’t truly have freedom of choice.
I believe that with reliable information, we can make reasonable decisions about our health and well being and as I have said earlier, live our best life, while optimizing our vitality.
I am curious about anything that makes us look and feel great, including complementary and alternative treatments like cryotherapy, acupuncture, isolation float tanks, elimination diets and more.
I intend to report about my experiences here and invite you to join me on this health and well-being journey.
If you’re interested, follow me for some Perlz of Healthy Wisdom.
Pura Vida,
Adam
Dr. Adam Perlman 