Functional medicine for healthy kids

Functional medicine is a transformative approach to healthcare that focuses on addressing the root causes of chronic health concerns. Research shows that a child’s health is shaped largely by diet, lifestyle, and environment. Functional medicine recognises that every child is biochemically unique, meaning effective care must go beyond symptom management to uncover and resolve underlying imbalances.

Functional medicine practitioners take the time to understand your child’s full health picture, including medical history, nutrition, and daily habits. By assessing these factors together, they can identify patterns and potential triggers. This process often involves functional pathology testing to gain deeper insights into your child’s health. With this information, a personalised treatment plan is created to address the root causes and contributing factors, supporting your child’s long-term well-being and vitality.

They understand the difficulties of making lasting health changes because they’ve often overcome similar obstacles themselves. They act as a guide, supporter, and accountability partner, making it easier to implement and sustain positive health habits for your child. Many parents find this support invaluable, often realising its full impact only after seeing the transformation in their child’s health and well-being.

Health coaching is a core part of our program because it’s key to achieving lasting results. While this approach differs from conventional healthcare, we believe that combining functional medicine with coaching is the most effective way to create meaningful, lasting change. This holistic approach has earned us recognition, including the 2024 ATMS Clinic of the Year award. We’re confident that working with a health coach will empower your family and set your child up for lifelong health.

Working with our team could be the perfect fit if you’re a parent who is highly motivated, curious, and ready to make lasting changes to your child’s health. If your child is struggling with chronic conditions, recurring illnesses, or long-standing health concerns, and you’re seeking a personalised, root-cause approach, we’re here to provide the tailored support you need.

Our functional medicine children’s health expert and health coaches work closely with you to uncover the underlying causes of your child’s health challenges, developing a comprehensive plan that goes beyond symptom management to create lasting improvements.

If you’re ready to invest time and energy, learn new habits, and take an active role in your child’s well-being, we’re here to guide you through a transformative process toward long-term health.

During your child’s session, your practitioner will take on the role of a detective, piecing together all the factors that may be influencing their health. By gathering details about your child’s health history, diet, lifestyle, and any previous test results, they’ll create a mindmap to connect the dots and uncover the root causes of their health concerns.

Throughout the session, you’ll have the opportunity to ask as many questions as you need. If your child has had ongoing health issues or if you have unanswered concerns, bring them along – your practitioner will explain everything in simple, clear terms, avoiding medical jargon.

Toward the end of the session, you and your practitioner will collaborate on a personalised healthcare plan to address your child’s health challenges. At this stage, one of our health coaches will join the session to ensure you fully understand the plan and mindmap. They’ll provide additional resources, review the treatment plan, and answer any practical questions you may have.

If you choose to continue with our healthcare program, your health coach will help arrange supplements, coordinate any necessary testing, and schedule your first coaching session. Together, you’ll outline the practical steps needed to implement your child’s treatment plan effectively.

By the end of the session, you’ll have valuable insights into what may be driving your child’s health issues. Many parents leave feeling hopeful and empowered, knowing they have a clear path toward improving their child’s well-being.

A health mindmap is a powerful visual tool that brings together all the insights from your child’s deep dive session, giving you a clearer, more holistic understanding of their health. It organises the information you share with your practitioner, mapping out your child’s symptoms from a biological perspective and linking them to potential influences such as lifestyle, diet, and environmental factors. Many parents find that, for the first time, they can see their child’s health picture in a way that truly makes sense.

As your child progresses through the program, your practitioner will continually update and refine the mindmap as new insights emerge – ensuring nothing is overlooked. This evolving map serves as a guide for your child’s treatment plan, leaving no stone unturned in their journey to better health.

Here’s an example of what a mindmap looks like:

Yes, we work with patients worldwide via telehealth. However, managing international logistics, labs, and supplements often requires additional time and can lead to delays. To ensure we maintain the same high standard of care as for our local patients, international patients can access our 5 or 7 month program. This approach allows us to deliver a seamless and effective experience.

A payment of $870 is due at the time of booking your deep dive consultation. The program fee is payable upon signing up for one of our programs, with the option to split the payment into monthly instalments through our trusted payment partners.

To find out more about payment solutions download our resource here.

Any supplements or lab testing will be charged separately.

Functional medicine for kids is a holistic, root-cause approach that looks at how genetics, environment, nutrition, and lifestyle shape your child’s health. Rather than just treating symptoms, we focus on identifying and addressing the underlying imbalances that contribute to health challenges. At Melbourne Functional Medicine, our children’s health practitioner, Rebecca Hughes, partners closely with families to create personalised, child-centred care plans. By tailoring our approach to your child’s unique needs, we not only solve persistent health issues – we help support their optimal growth, development, and long-term well-being.

Unlike conventional medicine, which often focuses on managing symptoms with medication, paediatric functional medicine looks deeper to find and address the root causes of health issues, many of which are triggered through diet, lifestyle, and environmental factors. This may include assessing gut health, immune function, nutritional status, and factors like mould or pathogen exposure. At Melbourne Functional Medicine, your child will work with both a functional medicine children’s health specialist practitioner and a dedicated health coach, ensuring that personalised treatment recommendations are practical, sustainable, and tailored to your family’s needs.

A functional medicine approach can help manage both acute and chronic conditions in children by addressing the root causes rather than just the symptoms. This holistic method, which tailors strategies to each child’s unique needs, can benefit conditions such as:

• Digestive issues: Bloating, food sensitivities, and parasites
• Skin conditions: Eczema, acne and other inflammatory skin concerns
• Allergies and immune dysfunction: Including recurrent sensitivities
• Frequent infections and low immunity: For example, recurrent tonsillitis
• Sleep disturbances: Improving overall sleep quality

By addressing nutrition, lifestyle, and environmental factors, functional medicine helps restore balance and support long-term health and well-being in children.

During your initial consultation, your functional medicine practitioner will conduct an in-depth review of your child’s health by gathering details about their medical history, diet, lifestyle, and previous test results. This process helps us identify the underlying factors contributing to your child’s symptoms and create a comprehensive health profile. You’ll have ample time to ask questions, and everything will be explained in clear, simple terms.

Together, we’ll develop a personalised care plan with support from a dedicated health coach, who will guide you through every step of your plan – including arranging any necessary testing, supplements, and follow-ups. This collaborative approach ensures that your child’s care is thorough, effective, and sustainable, setting the stage for lasting wellness. If you’re curious to learn more about our approach, we invite you to schedule a discovery call with one of our team members.