Hi, I'm Dr. Stephen Sinatra, cardiologist and integrative physician. You know, a lot of people ask me, "Dr. Sinatra, why did you become an integrative doctor?"

And I tell them, "Because that's the best way to practice medicine!"

In all seriousness, I have to say that even though I've been an integrative doctor for most of my career, I wasn't planning to become one when I went to medical school. It's really something that has evolved over time. And I have to give most of the credit to my patients for showing me the way.

You know, I was like most docs. I went through a standard medical school program, did my residency and cardiovascular fellowship, and got a job. And I took a lot of pride in the lives I saved. But at a certain point I began to believe that there had to be more to being a good doctor than just saving lives.

Back in my early days, when I was working in the ER and cardiac care units... I would see the same patients for the same problems over and over again. Oftentimes, I was able to ease their symptoms and send them back home.  However, many kept coming back.

Clearly, there had to be a better way of treating people. A way that addressed the cause of their problems and prevented them from having more.

For example, I noticed that many heart patients were over-achieving, Type A personalities. So I started studying psychology to better understand the connection between the mind and the body. Also early in my career, I got a phone call from a man named Jacob Rinse, a PhD biochemist in the petroleum industry.

There I was in my office, and we're really busy, and the secretary yells, "He claims he cured his arterial disease with nutritional supplements. You should talk to him."

Rinse was truly remarkable. He needed bypass surgery and he refused, stating that he could cure it in his own way. As I listened to Rinse, I realized how intelligent, witty,  and erudite he was. I said to myself, if I ever made it to 91, and could be this sharp, maybe this guy is on to something. 

Rinse was truly a messenger. He spoke about Magnesium, Vitamin E, Choline, and other supplements that I knew very little about. The conversation I had was an epiphany, a deep knowing in my heart that this was the right path  to take.

At that very moment, I became a conventional doctor in recovery. I started researching and studying nutrition, vitamins and minerals. And that was in 1978—long before complimentary medicine arrived on the scene.

Since then, I've never looked back. 

The results you get when you combine natural therapies with conventional ones are just fantastic. I can't imagine practicing medicine any other way. I call it Sinatra Smart Medicine.