Back to Basics
Dr Raymond Escalona maximises food’s ability to reverse chronic illnesses and tackle its root cause through Nutrigineering Nutrigineering is located at Unit 701, Page 1 Building, Acacia Avenue, Muntinlupa City. Visit nutrigineering.com for more informatio
Statistics show that chronic diseases in the Philippines spread at a current rate of 70 per cent. Dr Raymond Escalona knows this all too well, having had a decade’s experience in the public health sector where he witnessed the ill effects of chronic diseases.
He disagrees with the common belief that such illnesses are hereditary. “Genetics play only 20 per cent in the occurrence of chronic diseases; the rest is due to environment and lifestyle,” he says, determined to find a more sustainable way to be healthy. So he set off for the Institute of Functional Medicine in Washington DC then to Bastyr University, also in the US, for further studies in nutrition and functional medicine. Today he uses what he learnt to treat autoimmunity and autism while also being the Director of Medical Education in LifeScience Institute, a social enterprise based in the Philippines.
But what is functional medicine? “The real definition of functional medicine is that it’s a systems biology perspective where you look at the body as a whole. Through that perspective, we’re able to understand why certain diseases are there,” Escalona shares. Simply put, functional medicine considers lifestyle and environmental factors in treating illnesses. “What we want to tell everyone is, if you have a chronic disease, we can help you understand things such as food, movement, stress, sleep, etc. As we move patients through that, we’re getting sustainable results to the point that some of them don’t come back anymore after six months,” he says.
One crucial factor that contributes to overall health is food. “Everyone’s talking about food, but no one really seems to be credible enough to say what ‘healthy’ food really is,” says Escalona. After seeing the positive effect a change in diet had for his patients, he founded Nutrigineering in 2017. It is a nutrition education and implementation company that uses sciencebased research and food to transition an individual from chronically ill to optimally well. They currently offer a 21-Day Elimination Diet to reduce the toxins in one’s body. “Think of it as a reset button,” says Escalona. It also reveals one’s food sensitivities to better understand what specifically triggers a negative reaction in the body, since it varies from person to person.
Nutrigineering will soon offer more services to better guide one on their journey to overall wellness, like webinars and health coaching. “We’re here to create a safe space and provide really clean food in a non-biased way,” Escalona reveals. “Our goal is to create a better implementation of buying and preparing healthy food.”
More than anything, Escalona feels that this is a call to action. “The reality is that everyone is sick to some degree,” he says. Making lifestyle choices that ultimately benefit one’s body is a simple idea that is often overlooked. Escalona hopes to change that, beginning with food. Ultimately, he hopes to create a future that is free of chronic illnesses, with people empowered by the ability to keep their health at its peak.