David Rakel MD, FAAFP
Professor and Chair, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WisconsinDr. David Rakel is Professor and Chair of the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Wisconsin. During his time at UW–Madison, he founded the Integrative Medicine Program (now known as the Integrative Health Program) and received the Gold Foundation’s Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award, the school’s highest honor for excellence and compassion in care. His team worked with more than 50 clinical systems within the Veterans Health Administration to implement changes to make care more personalized, proactive, and patient-driven.
After residency training in family medicine in Colorado, Dr. Rakel worked in private practice in rural Idaho. His burgeoning interest in the relationships across health, the human experience, and the environment led to a fellowship in integrative medicine at the University of Arizona.
An author of both academic and popular writings, Dr. Rakel says one of his missions is to communicate medical information in a way that is accessible to people of all backgrounds.
Recent Contributions to PracticeUpdate:
- Self-Treatment of Recurrent Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo
- Long-Term Outcomes of the Six-Food Elimination Diet and Food Reintroduction in Patients With Eosinophilic Esophagitis
- Vitamin D and the Risk for Type 2 Diabetes in People With Prediabetes
- Statin Use Reduces Hepatocellular Carcinoma Risk in Patients With NAFLD
- Efficacy and Safety of Drugs for Gastroparesis
- Comparative Efficacy of Low-Dose Rosuvastatin vs Placebo and Dietary Supplements in Reducing the Levels of Lipids and Inflammatory Biomarkers
- Chlorthalidone vs Hydrochlorothiazide for Hypertension-Related Cardiovascular Events
- Impact of Loneliness on the Risk of Type 2 Diabetes
- Micronutrient Supplementation to Reduce Cardiovascular Risk
- Effects of Complementary and Alternative Medicines in the Management of Heart Failure