{"id":294692,"date":"2025-10-11T12:57:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-11T12:57:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/294692\/"},"modified":"2025-10-11T12:57:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-11T12:57:10","slug":"qa-what-is-a-naturopath","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/294692\/","title":{"rendered":"Q&A: What is a naturopath?"},"content":{"rendered":"

A highly publicized DHS case,\u00a0involving a 17-year-old with\u00a0Leukemia\u00a0taken into emergency state custody,\u00a0has generated outrage online; prompted by some state lawmakers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The family, who initially sought chemotherapy, eventually decided to\u00a0discontinue\u00a0treatment at the urging of their son.\u00a0<\/p>\n

DHS placed the teen, through its custody, back on chemotherapy treatments, according to State Sen. Shane Jett, R-Shawnee.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Jett said, as of Friday, the teen had been released from DHS custody but remained in the hospital as he\u00a0is\u00a0weaned from\u00a0chemotherapy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gwendolyn Posey said the family became connected with\u00a0her\u00a0a few months ago.\u00a0She runs a naturopathy business\u00a0in Oklahoma City.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Naturopaths are a controversial subject across the country. Oklahoma does not recognize them as doctors, and they cannot practice medicine or write prescriptions.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In some other states, they can.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Bills to expand their practice have been filed before but\u00a0have not\u00a0become law.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Organizations like the American Medical Association have fought against naturopaths, arguing\u00a0attempts to substitute naturopaths in place of physicians is an encroachment on the scope of practice of licensed physicians.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cNaturopaths lack the evidence-based medical knowledge and clinical expertise necessary to safely perform surgical procedures, prescribe legend drugs, including controlled substances, and order and interpret diagnostic tests,\u201d the association writes in one of its handouts on the subject.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cNaturopathy recognizes the body\u2019s self-healing abilities,\u201d the American Naturopathic Medical Association writes on its website. \u201cThe human body has the inherent ability to recover from\u00a0the constant\u00a0assaults by the environment, lifestyle, and improper or bad dietary habits.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The ANMA also emphasizes that its practice does not cure disease, but \u201csupports the body\u00a0while going through traditional medical treatments.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Known as \u201cintegrative medicine,\u201d naturopathy can be combined with conventional medicine,\u00a0according to the National Institutes of Health on cancer.gov.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Also called complementary or alternative medicine, naturopathy is sometimes used to \u201chelp cope with the side effects of cancer treatments, such as nausea, pain, and fatigue,” the NIH says.<\/p>\n

Representatives for the Oklahoma State Medical Association and Oklahoma Society of Clinical Oncology did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n

Out of respect for the 17-year-old’s privacy,\u00a0Posey\u00a0declined to discuss details of his exact condition or the\u00a0exact treatment plan he was following.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: What is a naturopath?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cWhat we do is practice helping people heal themselves using alternative methods,\u201d Posey said. \u201cHerbs,\u00a0homeopathies, nutrition. I look at people\u2019s genome and see whether\u00a0ot\u00a0not they can process things like\u00a0Glutathione\u00a0or\u00a0Vitamin\u00a0D.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: Have you seen a patient with cancer before?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cSeveral, actually. We just had a gentleman, an older man, who had bladder cancer. We were able to get rid of his bladder cancer completely. So, it depends on the level of cancer. It depends on all sorts of factors.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: What would be involved in an alternative treatment plan for cancer from a naturopath?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201c100% vitamins, and sometimes herbs. I am overseen by a medical practitioner, by choice, here in Oklahoma.\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0not legally required to.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: In your treatment plan,\u00a0there is\u00a0no prescribed medication?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cNo, prescribed none. No. All nutritional. Nutraceutical is another word for it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: Can you\u00a0coexist\u00a0with oncologists?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cEither we coexist or one will be obsolete.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: What is the effectiveness of your services?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cThere\u2019s\u00a0no way to\u00a0know, because\u00a0the research\u00a0hasn\u2019t\u00a0been done. So, I\u00a0couldn\u2019t\u00a0give you a specific number and it would be on an individual basis.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q:\u00a0What\u2019s\u00a0your response to people who say\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0not a real doctor?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cI\u2019m\u00a0not \u2014 on purpose.\u00a0Don\u2019t\u00a0want to be. Look at how many people they kill a year. Now, I\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0want to work\u00a0against\u00a0physiology. I want to work\u00a0with\u00a0physiology.\u00a0That\u2019s\u00a0pretty specific.\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0not them, and I\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0want to be them.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: Is there a knowledge gap\u00a0in regard to\u00a0understanding how chemotherapy works?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cIt\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0just attack the\u00a0cancer,\u00a0it attacks the body.\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0going to put it to you in a simpler manner: poisoning your body\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0bring\u00a0you to\u00a0better health.\u00a0That\u2019s\u00a0kind of\u00a0an easy way\u00a0to look at this.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: Even if it kills\u00a0the cancer?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cI think in very few cases, yes. So,\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0not \u2018anti-chemo.\u2019\u00a0I actually had breast cancer three years ago, and I treated my breast cancer myself, and no, I don\u2019t have breast cancer anymore.\u00a0But my breast cancer\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0advanced. If my breast cancer was stage four, and certain criteria,\u00a0maybe I\u00a0should consider that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: In your career, did you ever consider\u00a0seeking out\u00a0an MD or DO as credentials to cross-pollinate with your pathway as a naturopath?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cI started off pre-med, and I\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0fit in. And that goes to the fact that I have a lot of children, and I\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0vaccinate my children. My second son almost died from his vaccinations. And the fact that, from then on, for all the other children, I\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0vaccinating. So, I was not a good fit for the medical community, having almost lost my second child.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: Are\u00a0you\u00a0anti-vax person?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cNo, no, no.\u00a0For\u00a0a\u00a0couple\u00a0reasons. One,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0all about the person. There is\u00a0choice. So, when a mom comes to me and she says, \u2018I\u2019m going to vaccinate my children,\u2019\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0like, \u2018okay, fantastic.\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Q: So,\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0not rejecting conventional medicine?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A: \u201cNever, never. And my husband, when he had an accident, we went to OU trauma.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A highly publicized DHS case,\u00a0involving a 17-year-old with\u00a0Leukemia\u00a0taken into emergency state custody,\u00a0has generated outrage online; prompted by some…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":294693,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[77016,150676,2347,150675,210,1060,67476,6949,150677,150674,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-294692","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-american-medical-association","9":"tag-american-naturopathic-medical-association","10":"tag-anma","11":"tag-gwendolyn-posey","12":"tag-health","13":"tag-medication","14":"tag-nih","15":"tag-oklahoma-city","16":"tag-oklahoma-state-medical-association","17":"tag-shane-jett","18":"tag-united-states","19":"tag-unitedstates","20":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294692","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=294692"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294692\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294693"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=294692"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=294692"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=294692"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}