We discuss the importance of functional medicine as a model for healthcare.  We compare and contrast differences between conventional medicine and functional medicine.  Conventional medicine is the system of “what.”  What disease is present, and what pill or surgery should be prescribed for that disease.  Functional medicine is the system of “why.”  Why are you having these problems?  This “why” approach allows functional medicine doctors to get to the root cause of an issue rather than simply masking symptoms with medications.  Conventional medicine is a disease-centered, generalized approach to healthcare, while Functional medicine is a patient-centered personalized approach to healthcare.