Our institutes link the university to the public sector through continuing medical education and credentialing enhancement for practitioners, and community education for the general public. The institutes advance the mission of the university by providing evidence-based professional programming, education and research. They collectively empower communities and champion whole-person wellness and optimal health through natural medicine.

NUNM’s Helfgott Research Institute is a professionally independent, nonprofit research institute whose mission is to conduct rigorous, high quality, research on the art and science of healing, specifically working to understand natural forms of medicine. Together, scientists from the fields of naturopathic medicine, Chinese medicine, acupuncture, immunology and nutrition apply their expertise to the study of natural medicine.

After the success of NUNM’s Ending Childhood Obesity (ECO) Project in 2014, the Food as Medicine Institute (FAMI) was formally established. FAMI provides nutrition education for individuals, families and communities to help nurture healthy relationships with whole foods while enhancing healthcare professionals’ understanding of food as medicine. The institute’s programming includes a robust hands-on Food as Medicine Everyday (FAME) cooking series, as well as an annual Food as Medicine Symposium. FAMI fosters communities free of chronic disease and nourished through healthy, whole foods.