NUNM Alumni | One Doctor’s Journey into Naturopathic and Regenerative Medicine
When you first meet Noel Peterson, ND, DAAPM, you’re struck not only by his calm confidence but by the quiet energy of someone who has spent a lifetime learning to work with, rather than against, the forces of nature. His eyes light up when he talks about his favorite pastime: kite surfing on the Oregon coast. “Resistance is futile,” he laughs. “You can’t fight the wind or the waves. You have to learn how to work in harmony with it.”
That lesson, learned through decades spent enjoying open-water sports, is also the foundation of his approach to medicine. Like riding a beautiful wave, healing requires balance, timing, and a deep respect for natural forces – especially the body’s innate power to repair itself.
“Resistance is futile,” he laughs. “You can’t fight the wind or the water. You have to learn how to work in harmony with it.”
From the Ocean to the Exam Room
Dr. Peterson grew up along the northern San Diego coast, immersed in surf culture from age 11. When he moved to Oregon, his passion shifted to wind surfing, kite surfing, and now to wing foiling. He relishes the challenge of reading wind and waves, of transforming chaotic energy into a smooth, powerful ride. “It keeps my balance sharp and my mind happy,” he says. “It charges my batteries.”
But his passion for adventure sports has also come with a cost: injury. Twenty-five years ago, a snowboarding accident left him with severe trauma, multiple fractures, pelvic injuries, and a ruptured bladder. While the surgical care was excellent, he found the deeper ligament and connective-tissue injuries remained unresolved. This personal struggle with recovery became a catalyst for a lifelong dedication to helping others heal through regenerative medicine.
Discovering Regenerative Medicine
Decades earlier, chronic rib injuries from martial arts led him to try prolotherapy, a treatment he once dismissed as “preposterous.” This modality involves injecting a dextrose solution into damaged connective tissue to stimulate the body’s natural repair response. To his surprise, the therapy was effective, and his skepticism transformed into genuine curiosity.
Prolotherapy injection mimics an injury, “tricking” the body into thinking an old injury is new again. The dextrose solution provokes a mild inflammatory signal, sparking a repair cycle in tissues with poor blood supply.
Prolotherapy was just the beginning. As research into platelet-rich plasma (PRP) grew, Dr. Peterson became one of the early adopters and published some of the first studies on these therapies more than 25 years ago. Together, these approaches form the backbone of regenerative medicine.
“The body still does the healing,” he emphasizes. “We’re just re-initiating a process that has gone dormant.” This focus on supporting the body’s innate ability to repair aligns perfectly with the core values of naturopathic medicine.
Bridging Traditional Wisdom with Modern Innovation
For Dr. Peterson, regenerative medicine isn’t a break from naturopathic principles, it’s their natural evolution. “The body still does the healing,” he emphasizes. “We’re just re-initiating a process that has gone dormant.” This focus on supporting the body’s innate ability to repair aligns perfectly with the core values of naturopathic medicine.
His clinic now offers a range of biologic therapies, including prolotherapy, PRP, PRF, stem cell treatments, and specialized proteins like A2M. But it’s not just about injections. He also evaluates nutrition, hormones, and lifestyle factors to ensure each patient has the internal resources to heal. “If your vitamin D is low, if your diet is poor, or if your hormones are out of balance, you’re simply not going to repair as well,” he explains.
A Lifelong Commitment to Naturopathic Medicine
Long before regenerative medicine became a buzzword, Dr. Peterson had already embraced a whole-person approach to health. Raised in a family that gardened, canned, and fished, he learned early to value real food. Originally planning to study architecture, he changed course in 1973 after meeting a student at what was then NCNM (now NUNM) and realizing naturopathic medicine aligned with his interests.
He graduated in 1978 and opened his practice in Lake Oswego that same year with his friend and colleague, the late Dr. Kenneth Rifkin. Over the first decade, Dr. Peterson and his wife, Teresa a lay midwife, delivered babies, treated children, and practiced a wide ranging family medicine, while building a reputation for compassionate, evidence-informed care. Yet he never stopped innovating. As a primary care provider, he noticed the number one complaint of his patients was pain. Regenerative medicine provided a new way to address stubborn injuries and chronic conditions that resisted other therapies.
A Champion Donor and Advocate
Dr. Peterson’s deep connection to NUNM extends far beyond his student days. He has become one of the university’s most active and generous donors, contributing time, expertise, and financial support to ensure future naturopathic physicians have the same opportunities he did. He is a founding member of the new Legacy Building Committee, further demonstrating his commitment to the future of NUNM and natural medicine.
Why does he give so much back? “This school launched my career and gave me a philosophy of healing that has guided my entire career,” he says. “Supporting NUNM is my way of making sure the next generation can innovate, research, and lead, just as I was encouraged to do.”
Teaching the Next Generation
Dr. Peterson has also spent years sharing his expertise internationally, both learning from and training physicians in Oregon, Mexico Argentina, and Peru, and helping establish standards for naturopathic orthopedic medicine.
For students, these experiences offer a model of how regenerative medicine can transform lives while staying true to the principles of natural healing.
Advice for Future Naturopathic Students
So how can prospective students follow a similar path? Dr. Peterson’s first recommendation is to build a solid foundation in naturopathic medicine. “There’s hardly enough time in four or five years of school to do more than master the basics,” he says. After graduation, seek advanced training through the the American Association of Naturopathic Physician’s (AANP) specialty societies, such as OncAANP, in cardiology, or the Naturopathic Orthopedic Medicine Academy (NOMA).
Above all, he emphasizes patience and persistence. Developing expertise in any specialty requires years of practice, mentorship, and continuing education. Yet for those who love science, innovation, and the art of healing, it’s a rewarding career.
Whether it’s wind and water or connective tissue and platelets, the goal is the same: work with nature, not against it.
Full Circle
Standing on his wing foil board, carving across the Columbia River, Dr. Peterson embodies the same principles he brings to his patients. Balance. Harmony. Respect for the forces at play. Whether it’s wind and water or connective tissue and platelets, the goal is the same: work with nature, not against it.
For prospective students drawn to both science and healing, naturopathic medicine offers an exciting path. As Dr. Peterson’s journey shows, our medicine is where passion, innovation, and a deep belief in the body’s capacity to heal can combine to change lives, including your own.