Tag Archives: functional medicine

Create a Vibrant Life With A Functional Medicine Approach

Life Style Intervention

Dr. Linda Jager believes that we all deserve a vibrant life and that we each have the potential to
create this for ourselves. We know that the root cause of many of chronic diseases can be
helped with lifestyle intervention. By that we mean changes in what we eat, how
much we move, and our attitudes and outlook on life.

Dr. Jager uses a Functional Medicine approach to help you achieve your health goals.
Functional Medicine is a systems-oriented approach that engages both the patient and doctor
in a therapeutic partnership. Instead of treating just the symptoms of disease, Functional Medicine addresses the whole person. Many diseases have genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors that can influence long term health and disease progression. Most doctors are not adequately trained to apply strategies such as nutrition, diet and exercise to prevent or treat chronic illness. Functional Medicine practitioners are specially trained in these areas.

Principles of Functional Medicine

  • Patient-centered care
  • Health promotion, beyond just the absence of disease
  • Individual, not protocol-driven, treatment plans
  • Integrative, science-based approach to healthcare
  • Attention to internal (mind, body, spirit) factors
  • Attention to external (physical and social environmental) factors
  • Integration with best medical practices

The Vibrant Health Approach

When treating cancer, a Functional Medicine doctor would agree that both radiation and other
conventional approaches are required, but then would also ask what else we can do as a patient-doctor partnership? And, how can we promote the patient’s underlying health issues? MostAmericans diets full of sugar and other unhealthy items, lack exercise, and are under chronic stress. Dr. Jager helps her patients implement changes to have the best chance of healing. A critical part of this type of care is to develop a health plan that the patient will embrace and adhere to.

Science is now proving what we all knew intuitively – that how we live, the quality of our
relationships, the food we eat and how we use our bodies determines much more than our
genes ever will. There are numerous strategies to combat or prevent cancer, including eating
well, exercising regularly, getting sufficient sleep, and controlling stress levels.

Interested?  On Sunday, February 3rd  from 4-5 pm Dr. Jager will be offer a free introduction to her Functional Medicine approach by reviewing the principles and strategies used in Functional Medicine. This class is located at the Genesis West Medical Center in the Borromeo Conference Room. If you cannot make this event,  please call ICS at 563-421-1960 for future dates.   Of, note, Dr. Jager also teaches a six-week lifestyle modification class on Sunday evenings.  The last class for this session is February 10th.  Call ICS for more details.

We look forward to seeing you.

Dr. Linda Jager Joins ICS

Iowa Cancer Specialists is happy to welcome Dr. Linda Jager to our team!

Dr. Jager is a graduate of the Indiana School of Medicine.  Her diverse medical background in family medicine, wound care, emergency room care, pathology, functional and palliative care is  an asset at Iowa Cancer Specialists.

At ICS, Dr. Jager will primarily be working with our patients who need palliative/supportive care.  Dr. Jager knows this field well as she formerly was the Palliative Care Director for Genesis Family Medical Center.  Palliative care is for patients who have a chronic illness and to help them manage their pain, symptoms, as well as help improve their quality of life.  Palliative care also helps with advanced care planning and supports patients and families as they face a life changing disease.

Dr. Jager will also use her experience in functional medicine with her patients at ICS.  Functional care is an individualized, science-based approach that addresses the root cause of disease.  It leverages the patient’s genetics, lifestyle, and biochemical components to personalize treatment plans including  lifestyle modifications, stress reduction, and dietary changes to promote optimal wellness.  According to Dr. Jager “watching the body heal is phenomenal.”

In addition, Dr. Jager intends to utilize her skills as a medical educator derived from teaching at Mary Crest College and St. Ambrose University while working with her patients at ICS.  She states that education and teaching is her passion and it is important to her that “patients be heard, and that the truth be spoken. ”

Dr. Jager is originally from Pennsylvania, but has lived in Louisiana and Indiana before settling in the Quad City Area.  She has three children, a daughter and two sons, and enjoys gardening, and playing tennis.  She also loves hiking and spending time in the woods.  A woman of faith, one of her core beliefs is that “you should live to use the gifts God has given you to serve others.”

Dr. Jager is enthusiastic to live out this belief while serving her patients at Iowa Cancer Specialists.