Naturopathic medicine integrates alternative medical practices—such as botanical medicine, homeopathy, acupuncture, and oriental medicine—with modern scientific diagnostic methods and standards of care.

Naturopathic doctors are trained in conventional medical disciplines as well as in alternative approaches. They integrate this knowledge according to principles that recognize the body's inherent ability to heal itself, the importance of prevention, and the possibility of therapeutic use of nutrition to promote health and fight disease.

Naturopathy was founded in the beginning of the 20th century by a group of therapists who were followers of Sebastian Kneipp, a 19th-century proponent of the healing powers of nature. At the height of its popularity, there were more than 20 naturopathic medical schools in the United States and naturopathic physicians were licensed in most states. The practice of naturopathic medicine declined as the use of pharmaceutical drugs increased. However, in the past several decades there has been a resurgence of interest in naturopathy. Now there are over half a dozen naturopathic medical schools in North America and many States are licensing naturopathic doctors again.

About Naturopathichealth.net

Naturopathichealth.net is the online home of Dr. David Olarsch, founder and director of the Institute for Naturopathic Health in Plymouth, New Hampshire. As an extension of Dr. Olarsch's dedication to the study and practice of natural healing, this website serves as an online resource center for those interested in health and natural healing, as well as a secure online health store featuring Nature's Path Supplements, Dr. Olarsch's own brand of high-quality supplements, herbs, and nutritional products.

Please feel free to browse the site, and be sure to sign-up for our free newsletter! Contact us with any questions or comments, or to make an appointment to meet Dr. Olarsch and visit our office.

“Unless we put medical freedom into the Constitution, the time will come when medicine will organize into an undercover dictatorship to restrict the art of healing to one class of men and deny equal privileges to others; the Constitution of this Republic should make a special privilege for medical freedom as well as religious freedom.”

—Dr. Benjamin Rush, signer of the Declaration of Independence