Do Naturopathic Doctors Prescribe Medication?

Licensed naturopathic doctors (NDs) are trained as primary care providers to diagnose, prevent, and treat acute and chronic illness. NDs complete rigorous education in pharmaceutical drugs during their four-year, science-based medical education and they may prescribe medications when indicated as allowed by state regulations. However, naturopathic doctors typically don’t prescribe drugs at the first sign of symptoms or trouble.

Instead, NDs choose to work with natural, less invasive therapies without strong side effect profiles before reaching for the prescription pad. 

They support and enhance a patient’s innate capacity for healing with evidence-based therapies such as lifestyle modification, clinical nutrition, botanical medicine, and behavioral medicine, to name a few.

Pharmacology education and training

Pharmacology is taught through a series of courses that build upon each other through an ND’s medical education. This training is reinforced through a minimum of 1200 hours of hands-on, clinical training. Naturopathic medical programs are accredited and are recognized by the United States Department of Education. Pharmacology is an essential part of the Naturopathic Physicians Licensing Examination (NPLEX), the passage of which is required before a doctor of naturopathic medicine can be licensed or regulated by a state/province.

As part of the pharmacology curriculum, naturopathic doctors learn both medical and clinical pharmacology. They study primary therapeutic uses, mechanisms of action, potential adverse effects, and drug/drug interactions of medicines commonly encountered, including prescription drugs, controlled substances, and over the counter (OTC) medications. Additionally, they learn how to prescribe and manage pharmaceuticals for the most common presenting concerns in primary care medicine.

Additional Training for NDs

While pharmacology coursework is comparable to that taught in conventional medical schools, NDs receive additional training and focus in two important areas:

  1. Botanical or herb/drug and supplement/drug interactions. Seventy-five percent of Americans regularly take herbs and dietary supplements, and they don’t always inform their primary care doctor. Naturopathic doctors complete approximately 130 classroom hours of botanical medicine education. This encompasses the science and practice of using medicinal plants and extracts to improve overall health, support wellness, and treat acute and chronic disease. Extensive knowledge of herbs and supplements allows NDs to better help guide patients and prevent harmful interactions.
  • Identification of nutrient depletions caused by long-term use of drugs. Some of the most commonly prescribed or recommended drugs can interfere with or cause deficiencies of vital nutrients with ongoing use. These include medicines prescribed for acid reflux, heartburn, cholesterol, and more. Naturopathic doctors are expert at identifying signs of nutrient depletion and apply their extensive knowledge of clinical nutrition and botanical medicine to help reverse these harmful side effects.

NDs are also trained to identify when and whether a patient is overmedicated, and when prescriptions, OTC medicines, and supplements can be tapered off or discontinued.

When NDs Use Pharmaceuticals

Naturopathic doctors prescribe drugs based on available evidence, clinical experience, patient preference, and the Therapeutic Order.  As a principle, naturopathic doctors support and enhance the body’s inherent ability to heal itself. They utilize a deep toolbox of natural therapies to help get a patient healthy enough to heal disease without strong interventions. Yet when a careful assessment of lifestyle, social/emotional factors, physical exam, and/or targeted laboratory testing reveals that the patient is not able to heal with natural therapies, naturopathic doctors prescribe appropriate medicine or refer.

NDs match the patient’s level of health and pathology with the necessary level of intervention.

The Therapeutic Order is the framework NDs use to evaluate the patient’s obstacles to healing and to choose therapeutic approaches in the most logical, least invasive ways first. If NDs do prescribe medication, they anticipate and address potential side effects of that medication with natural therapies. For example, if a patient requires antibiotics, which are known to wipe out needed, healthy bacteria in the microbiome in addition to harmful bacteria, NDs may also prescribe probiotic foods or supplements to help keep the GI system in healthy balance.

Real-Life Scenarios

Here are two care scenarios when a naturopathic doctor may use pharmacology in addition to natural therapies to treat acute or chronic illness:

  1. A hypertensive patient with a comprehensive physical exam showing multiple signs of ongoing vascular damage including swollen ankles, skin discoloration, hair loss, and multiple blood pressure readings of 200 over 120. A detailed intake reveals that the patient’s diet consists largely of fast food and coffee. In this case, the patient requires a high level of intervention to prevent further harm, and the ND is likely to write a prescription for an anti-hypertensive drug, a diuretic, and refer the patient to a cardiologist for further testing. This is in addition to recommending significant lifestyle changes and other natural medicine approaches.
  2. A patient is traveling and has left his “rescue inhaler” for asthma at home. He encounters an irritant (e.g. an excessive amount of smoke), and is wheezing and experiencing difficulty breathing. The ND would call in a prescription for an inhaler and work to restore the patient’s health with natural approaches when he returns to his hometown.

Overall, naturopathic doctors believe that natural medicine and conventional medicine are not mutually exclusive. 

They recognize that there are times when both approaches can be utilized together for the patient’s benefit.

A service for consumers from the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) and the Institute for Natural Medicine (INM). INM and AANP would like to acknowledge Christie Fleetwood, ND, RPh, for her contributions to the content of this FAQ.

INM's team is made up of naturopathic doctors and health journalists.

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Deb Hubers

Debra Hubers is a serial entrepreneur and has started seven businesses; ranging from an advanced genomics to an employer health care purchasing cooperative. Deb has over 35 years of experience in healthcare finance, education, technology, and pharmacogenomics.

Ms. Hubers has dedicated her career to measuring and improving healthcare outcomes. Her expertise is leveraging technology to deliver personalized, preventative medicine. Ms. Hubers co-founded La Vita Compounding Pharmacy in 2007. Collaborating with her business partner, physicians and strategic partners, Deb has grown La Vita to be one of the most respected and sought-after personalized medicine providers on the west coast. She is also Co-Founder of EpigeneticsRx, a leading provider of precise, personalized, prevention which positively impacts genetic expression.

Alex Keller, ND

Dr. Alex Keller, ND, AFMCP is a graduate of the University of Ottawa with an Honours Bachelor in Health Sciences and Psychology. Although originally intending to attend conventional medical school, following a three-month volunteer internship at a rural Kenyan hospital where he observed how doctors used local food to treat patients, he shifted his career goals and pursued a degree in naturopathic medicine at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine in Toronto.

After one year of practicing with the esteemed Dr. Chris Pickrell, ND, RH in a community acupuncture setting, in 2015 he and his wife Dr. Jenn Keller, ND moved to rural Ottawa, Canada where they started an organic farm and retreat center. In the same year, Alex and his athletic therapist sister Jess Keller combined their practices to form Keller Active Health, an integrative physical therapy clinic.

Ever curious and passionate about the education of evidence-based natural medicine, in 2017, Dr. Keller joined a fledgling Ottawa-based health tech startup named Fullscript. He serves as its Medical Director and oversees the development of medical education content for practitioners across North America.

Prior to medicine, Alex worked in the renewable energy sector, where he developed a deep passion for sustainable agriculture and environmental stewardship. This connection between medicine and agriculture now drives Alex to focus much of his energy on bringing awareness to the quality and sourcing standards in the supplement and organic agriculture supply chains.

Today, he splits his professional time practicing as a clinician, working for Fullscript, and expanding the farming operation while chasing his kids with Jenn and occasionally running ultra-marathon trail races. He is also currently completing an Executive MBA through the Quantic School of Business & Technology with a focus on supply chain innovation.

Pamela Snider, ND

Pamela Snider, ND, is Executive and Senior Editor for the Foundations of Naturopathic Medicine Project, producing a first of its kind international textbook of Naturopathic medicine through a series of international retreats and symposia. A nationally recognized integrative health and policy leader, she is active in both national and regional integrative health initiatives. Dr. Snider serves on the Board of Directors, was founding Executive Director and co-founder of the Academic Consortium for Integrative Health (ACIH/ACCAHCa consortium of the councils of schools, accrediting agencies and certifying bodies of the licensed, traditional and emerging integrative health professions, and is currently Vice Chair and co-founder of the Integrative Health Policy Consortium (IHPC).  Dr. Snider served as a founding Board Member of the Academy of Integrative Health & Medicine from 2014-2016. Her public policy work includes completing a two year appointment to the DHHS Center For Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee (MCAC); serving as a Steering Committee Member for  the HRSA funded American College of Preventive Medicine NCCIM Integrative Medicine in Preventive Medicine Residency program, co-directing in USPHS Region X the Building Bridges Between Provider Communities Group, an exploration of interdisciplinary collaboration and common ground between public health and CAM; serving for 22 years on Washington State’s Health Professional Loan Repayment and Scholarship Program Advisory Committee (HPLRSP); providing technical assistance to and developing key language for the enabling legislation for NIH Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCIH/NCCAM); and staffing Joseph Pizzorno ND during his appointment as Commissioner on the White House Commission on CAM Policy.

From 1994-2003, Dr. Snider served as Associate Dean for Public and Professional Affairs and Naturopathic Medicine at Bastyr University, dividing her work between academic and public affairs activities, including chairing the Naturopathic Medicine Program Curriculum Review Committee.  Dr. Snider has been teaching, publishing and lecturing widely on Naturopathic philosophy, theory integrative health, public policy, and other topics for over 30 years. Currently, an Associate Professor at National University of Natural Medicine (NUNM) in Portland, OR, Dr. Snider also continues at Bastyr University in her 22nd year as a faculty member teaching naturopathic medicine history, clinical theory, and global context. Among her Naturopathic medicine professional roles she serves on the Institute for Natural Medicine’s Leadership Council.  In 1989, she co-led the naturopathic profession with Dr. Jared Zeff, in developing a unifying definition of naturopathic medicine and its principles of practice adopted unanimously by the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) House of Delegates. She was a co-investigator in the 2004 NIH NCCAM research study, the North American Naturopathic Medical Research Agenda and CAM Advisor in NIHCCAM’s Financing Integrative Health Care (University of Washington).  Her areas of experience include healthcare education; naturopathic and interdisciplinary clinical theory, curriculum development; clinical practice; government and legislative affairs, public policy, interdisciplinary collaboration, and community organizing.  Dr. Snider has received the Ontario Naturopathic Physician of the Year Award, the Physician of the Year Award from the AANP, the President’s Outstanding Vision Award and Distinguished Alumnus Award at Bastyr University, AANP’s President’s Award, an honorary Doctorate of Naturopathic Philosophy from the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine (CCNM), the William A Mitchell Vis Award from the AANP and The Gathering – NMSA’s Beacon Award. She received her ND degree in 1982 from Bastyr University of Natural Health Sciences and is a licensed naturopathic physician in the State of Washington. She lives with her husband and children at their homestead in North Bend Washington, in the beautiful mountain to sea landscape and home of The Revival – Restore the Vis, an annual student-led community gathering.

Susan Haeger

Susan Haeger is Founder/Principal of Transformative Health Solutions Inc. She has applied her twenty plus years in executive leadership to help shape and drive adoption of progressive health policy for whole person healthcare. She was a section contributor to the 2021 INM/AANP published professional white paper, Naturopathic Physicians as Whole Health Specialists: The Future is Whole Person Health Care that provides supporting evidence for the profession’s significant and unique contributions to preventive, whole person care and models of integrative clinical practice.

Bruce Barlean

Bruce Barlean is an owner and founder of Barlean’s, a global dietary supplement manufacturer located in the Pacific Northwest in Ferndale, WA. Bruce has been actively involved in the Natural Products industry since 1989 and is passionate about making a difference in the world and positively impacting the lives of others.

Bruce believes that people can make a difference in the world through ordinary purchases. He is committed to improving the quality of life for every person on the planet by making the best products and by using the profits to support outreach programs. Bruce summarizes it simply, “We make good stuff to do good stuff”.

In the late 1980’s Bruce became passionate about how health could be dramatically improved with Flax Oil Supplementation. Bruce along with his entrepreneurial parents saw the potential to improve the lives of many people and in 1989 they began selling Flax Oil under the Barlean’s name. From 1989 – 2000 the business grew an average of 40% year over year. While most companies saw a decline in business in the 2001 recession, Barlean’s continued to grow and soon became America’s #1 selling flaxseed oil and continues to be to the present. The brand has since expanded to include additional oils, green food concentrates and other premium supplements. Bruce continues to drive innovation and over the years his products and company have won countless awards including: Eight consecutive Vity Awards for #1 EFA, Six consecutive Vity Awards for #1 Greens Food Supplement, Natural Choice Award for Best Specialty Supplement, Best Product of the Year, Best New Product, Gold Medal Taster’s Choice Award, Gold Medal American Masters of Taste Award, #1 Health Food Store Brand for Consumer Satisfaction by Consumer Lab, and Manufacturer of the Year.

In 2013 as the company was on the eve of celebrating the 25th year in business Bruce and his parents decided to take their desire to help people to a new level that they call Pathway to a Better Life – which is now seen in the Barlean’s logo. Bruce and his parents had always been generous in their giving and support of charities, but as part of the Pathway to a Better Life they decided to increased partnership with charitable organizations such as: Vitamin Angels, Compassion International, KidsTown International, Autism Hope Alliance, Engedi Refuge, Project 92, and others. And because so many people are unable to meet basic nutritional needs, Bruce created a comprehensive Omega-3 and multivitamin formula that he distributes free-of-charge to local food banks. In addition, Bruce decided the company would supply food banks with organic coconut oil to provide people with a health alternative to standard cooking oils.

Always generous with his time Bruce has served as a youth leader for his local church for several years and continues to mentor youth. He has been on several not for profit boards including; Whatcom County Pregnancy Center (2003-2006), Natural Products Association (dates?), and the Institute for Natural Medicine Leadership Council (presently).

The Barlean family have been avid supporters of Bastyr University since the 1990’s and in 2013 were given Bastyr’s most prestigious honor, the Mission Award, which recognizes their leadership over time in improving the health and well-being of the human community.

Bruce currently resides in Ferndale, WA with his wife Lisa and their two dogs: Heinz & Shadow. When he’s not helping others he can be found fishing (catch & release).

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Michelle Simon

Michelle Simon, PHD, ND

President & CEO

As president and CEO of INM, Dr. Simon brings her passion for working with organizations dedicated to improving the quality and delivery of healthcare. This desire stems from her years of practice as a licensed naturopathic physician. In addition to holding a Naturopathic Doctorate from Bastyr University she also holds a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

She has served on boards for the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP), the Naturopathic Physicians Research Institute (NPRI), and several advisory boards. Dr. Simon served nine years on the Washington State Health Technology Clinical Committee, as Ambassador to the Academy of Integrative Health and Medicine (AIHM) and was recognized as 2018 AANP Physician of the Year. Dr. Simon shares with her husband a passion for adventure travel, preferably by boat or motorcycle. She also enjoys teaching a women’s off-road motorcycling class.