My thoughts On IV Therapy
What is IV Therapy?
IV therapy involves the administration of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, amino acids, and other nutrients through intravenous access. This means the nutrients go straight into the bloodstream, where they can be readily absorbed by cells, tissues, and organs. Unlike oral supplements, which must pass through the digestive tract before being absorbed, IV nutrients achieve high blood concentrations and can offer rapid effects.
What makes IV Therapy Unique?
IV therapy delivers nutrients directly into the bloodstream, bypassing the digestive system. This means the body can absorb 100% of the nutrients without being limited by digestion or gut health. It avoids issues like poor absorption, stomach upset, or nutrient loss that can sometimes happen with oral supplements. In short, your cells are able to get what they need, when they need it at a therapeutic dose.
Improved absorption — no gut barriers to block nutrients.
Timely effects — nutrients go to work right away.
Individualized nutreints — ND’s are able to tailor nutrients to your specific needs.
Potentially fewer side effects — less risk of upset stomach from high-dose oral supplements.
While oral supplements work well for many, IV therapy provides an alternative route of administration for nutrients.
Why I Use IV Therapy in My Practice
As a naturopathic doctor, I focus on identifying and treating the root causes of illness, not just managing symptoms. IV therapy is a versatile tool that helps address underlying deficiencies, supports cellular function, and enhances the body’s resilience.
Here are some common concerns that can be supported with IV nutrient therapy:
Nutrient Deficiencies: People with malabsorption issues (such as those with celiac, Crohn’s disease, or after certain surgeries) often struggle to get adequate nutrients from their food or oral supplements.
Fatigue and Burnout: Chronic stress depletes key nutrients like magnesium, B vitamins, and vitamin C. IV therapy helps restore these nutrients, and can often help with concerns of low- energy, mood, and mental clarity.
Immune Support: When contents of an IV bag focus on vitamin C, anti-viral nutrients/ amino acids and antioxidants, immune system support and regulation can be achieved. A boost to the immune systems response and recovery is the goal with these infusions.
Physical Activity Recovery: Athletes push their bodies to the limit, leading to oxidative stress and electrolyte imbalances. IV therapy can aid recovery, muscle soreness, and support hydration.
Inflammation/ Detoxification: Certain nutrients, like glutathione, play a critical role in liver detoxification. Administering these intravenously can help support detox pathways and reduce inflammation if present in the body.
Is IV Therapy Right for Everyone?
No. While IV therapy is generally safe when administered by a trained professional, it’s not appropriate for everyone. A thorough intake, medical history, and sometimes blood work are necessary to determine if it’s a good fit. As always, a comprehensive treatment plan will be created with your goals in mind, with IV therapy being apart of that if deemed necessary and safe.
Integrative Approach: IV Therapy is just one part of the puzzle
It’s important to emphasize that IV therapy is not a magic solution. It is most effective when used as part of a comprehensive treatment plan that also focuses on lifestyle, diet, stress management, sleep health, functional testing + others. At the end of the day it’s really just one more tool in our tool kit that we can offer to patients as naturopathic doctors.
Additional types of IV therapy that can be provided
In addition to wellness IV nutrient infusions, ND’s can also provide additional therapies by way if IV infusions if appropriately trained and certified. One that I provide in practice is IV iron infusions- which allows for the improvement of iron stores (ferritin) levels rapidly, when compared to oral supplementation improvements.
Iron IV infusions are considered to be an advanced treatment and are only recommended and administered after a thorough visit, including interpretation of recent lab work and discussion of risks/ benefits of the infusion have been discussed and the infusion has been deemed medically necessary.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, I really believe that IV infusions have a time and a place. They aren’t right for everyone, but they do offer support to many on their path to achieving their health goals, whether they be acute or chronic in nature.
As always, this information is not to be taken as personal medical advice and is for educational purposes only.