Dr Rudy
Proesmans

My approach returns to the foundations of medicine. A healthy diet is, in my view, the best medicine for achieving and maintaining good health. The right nutrition is central to my approach to preventing cancer, cardiovascular disease, dementia, fatigue, depression, rheumatic conditions and other illnesses. Getting the right nutrients in the right amounts is also essential for optimal health. This is the principle of nutritional medicine, often referred to as orthomolecular medicine. This approach encourages you to take an active role in your own health by choosing a healthy diet, adding vitamin and mineral supplements where appropriate, and using conventional medication as a last resort in this approach. In my practice, I help patients obtain as many nutrients as possible from healthy, unprocessed foods. I also use nutritional supplements (vitamins, minerals, enzymes, amino acids and plant extracts) to address deficiencies confirmed by blood tests.

Medicines are important treatments. In my approach, they are prescribed when the body’s own capacity to recover, supported where appropriate by orthomolecular treatments, is no longer sufficient. Conventional medicines such as antibiotics are valuable and should be used for specific indications. My approach favours orthomolecular treatments to avoid the long-term adverse effects I associate with conventional medication.

'The groundwork of all happiness is health'

The term “orthomolecular” was first used in 1968 by Professor Linus Pauling. The Greek word orthos means “correct”, “straight” or “healthy”; “molecular” refers to molecules. Orthomolecular medicine aims to provide the body with the natural substances it needs to function optimally.

The potential medicinal effects of food have been recognised for centuries. Hippocrates (460–377 BC), for example, referred to them on several occasions.

His maxim was: “Let food be your medicine and medicine be your food.”
Maimonides (1135-1204)

A balanced, nourishing diet, mental wellbeing and physical activity are the foundations of health. In my approach, these three pillars are essential both to preventing disease and to treating existing conditions. This means taking an active role in looking after your own health.

“The greatest medicine of all is to teach people how not to need it.”

For each patient, we begin with a detailed questionnaire about their eating habits and address any dietary issues. We also investigate possible food intolerances. Foods that suit one person may cause symptoms in another.

We also arrange comprehensive blood testing. Alongside routine tests (red and white blood cell counts, kidney function, liver function and cholesterol), we carry out additional investigations relating to cancer prevention, cardiovascular health and ageing. These include assessments of oxidative stress, oxidised DNA, intracellular minerals such as selenium, DHEA, melatonin, carnitine and coenzyme Q10, as well as urine testing relating to premenopausal breast cancer risk.
For healthy ageing treatment (see Treatments), hormone measurements in a 24-hour urine collection are important.