Health Watch: Functional medicine blends tradition and innovation

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Functional medicine is blending traditional therapies with an innovative approach to tackle some serious health issues.

33-year-old Haley Miller cherishes every second she spends with daughter Sienna. But almost two years ago, her health took a sudden nosedive.

"I actually got a really bad headache. The next morning, I was looking at my daughter's face and I noticed it was vibrating a bit," Miller said.

Haley quickly began to lose her vision, and at one point was almost blind.

"I had an emergency MRI that showed I had a lesion touching my optic nerve, and I had two older lesions," she said.

Doctors diagnosed Haley with multiple sclerosis causing her vision problems.

"Wow. I can't take care of my daughter. That was terrifying for me," she said.

Specialists treated the side effects with steroids, and Haley committed herself to exploring every option to fully restore her health.

Linda Matteoli is a family medicine doctor with a concentration in functional medicine. Practitioners look for ways to rebalance the body.

"Diet is first for most people because it is the quickest way to reduce inflammation immediately," Dr. Matteoli said.

She recommends patients avoid what she calls the big five: gluten, dairy, corn, soy and sugar.

Haley follows a strict diet and takes many supplements. The lifestyle changes resulted in a 60-pound weight loss and in a little more than two months, Haley's eyesight returned.

"I was just purely motivated to get my eyesight back and be healthy for my daughter, and for myself and my family."