THE MISSING PIECE IN CONCUSSION CARE
Specialist clinical naturopathic consulting for sporting organisations managing concussion risk
I work with sporting organisations who want to lead the way in systemic, evidence-based concussion care. From pre-season risk mitigation to addressing what happens physiologically after a head impact: the neuroinflammation, gut-brain axis disruption, and metabolic and hormonal changes that determine whether a player recovers fully or carries unresolved effects into the future. Naturopathic care is a collaboration with your existing medical team and protocols, addressing a layer of player health that standard concussion protocols aren't built to assess.
Systemic support for concussion risk mitigation and recovery
Specialist clinical naturopathic consulting for sporting organisations, covering pre-season microbiome-based risk mitigation, collaborative acute care alongside your existing medical staff, and ongoing support for players carrying the effects of multiple head impacts. Engagements are individually negotiated and scoped to your organisation and needs.
Systemic recovery:
for leaders in concussion care and player welfare
The gut-brain connection isn't emerging science anymore. It's where concussion care is heading, and it's the competitive edge for the organisations who act on it first.
Concussion assessment tools such as HIA and SCAT protocols play an essential role in identifying and managing the acute injury. But they're built to rule out structural damage, not to assess the physiology that continues afterwards: standard imaging and manual therapy can confirm a player is structurally clear, without addressing the neuroinflammation and systemic disruption that may still be unresolved.
This is where clinical naturopathic care offers the missing piece. Using advanced metagenomic sequencing of the microbiome, I identify and address the specific drivers of ongoing neuroinflammation in each player. Concussion is not an injury limited to the brain. It's systemic, and treating it systemically doesn't just support better recovery: a robust, diverse microbiome is a genuine competitive advantage, with athletes who have resilient gut health performing better overall, not only in recovery from injury (Patel et al., 2024).
For players who sustain multiple head impacts across a career, this compounds. Each subsequent impact occurs against a physiological baseline that may already be disrupted, so the cumulative effect isn't simply additive, it escalates. Organisations that address this are protecting players in a way a return-to-play protocol alone cannot.
WHERE CLINICAL NATUROPATHIC CARE FITS INTO YOUR SEASON
For sporting organisations and teams who are leading the way in concussion care
Engagements are individually negotiated, customised and can be structured as season-long retainers or scoped projects, built around your organisation's needs, goals, season, and players.
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Risk Mitigation Strategy
Comprehensive microbiome baseline testing for players, followed by targeted strategies to build a robust, diverse gut microbiome ahead of the season. A well-established microbiome means a player is better equipped to manage inflammation and recover if a head impact occurs, and the same diversity is independently linked to improved athletic performance more broadly (Patel et al., 2024).
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Acute Injury Support
Direct collaboration with your existing medical, allied health staff and the player in the period following a head impact, when physiological intervention has the greatest effect on recovery trajectory
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Ongoing Care for High-Risk Players
Players exposed to multiple head impacts need an informed, systemic and targeted response. Support here is ongoing and individualised, adapting as a player's physiology, training load and season demands change, so risk is actively managed year-round rather than addressed only after a new injury.
My approach is grounded in current concussion, microbiome and neuroscience research: the inflammatory cascade following head impact (Giza and Hovda, 2014), the expanding evidence connecting gut health to neurocognitive outcomes (Lin et al., 2025), the role of microbiome modulation in athletic performance and recovery (Patel et al., 2024), and the systemic dimensions of concussion management recognised in the current international consensus statement (Patricios et al., 2023).
The competitive edge
Clinical, evidence-informed care, for leaders in player welfare
Have some questions?
FAQs
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Concussions and head impacts affect the entire body and are not resolved by rest and manual therapies alone. Naturopathic care considers pre-existing health, the entire physiology of the injury, working to build strong foundations for future health. It covers neuroinflammation, gut-brain axis disruption, and metabolic and hormonal changes that determine whether recovery is actually complete, working alongside your existing medical team.
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Yes. A player's health history and current health including gut and immune health directly influence how well their body manages inflammation and recovers after a head impact. Naturopathic care, including microbiome testing and targeted nutritional and herbal support, addresses this physiological layer directly, and a healthier gut microbiome is independently linked to better athletic performance and recovery more broadly (Patel et al., 2024).
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The gut and brain are directly connected through the gut-brain axis, and disruption in one affects the other. Emerging research links gut health to neurocognitive outcomes, which is why addressing it is a forward-thinking, evidence-informed part of concussion recovery (Lin et al., 2025).
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I don't replace your team doctor, physiotherapist or sports medicine department. I work in collaboration, bringing a specific clinical expertise in systemic and gut-brain axis physiology, along with naturopathic tools of herbal and nutritional medicine, diet and lifestyle interventions. Working within the scope of regulatory authorities.
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Typical engagements include pre-season baseline microbiome testing, in-season availability for acute support, and ongoing care for players managing multiple head impacts. Scope depends on your organisation's season, size and needs, and every engagement is quoted individually.
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Yes, I can work internationally by arrangement, in-person or online.
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I'm a clinical naturopath, BHSc, and a member of the NHAA, specialising exclusively in concussion and post-concussion physiology.
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Contact me via the contact page or email hello@theconcussionnaturopath.com and let’s set up a meeting to discuss your needs
Neuroinflammation doesn’t resolve when a return-to-play protocol is completed. There’s a significant gap in physiological recovery, and naturopathic care helps close it.
Concussion recovery deserves the same rigour as any other injury
Louise Cork | Clinical Naturopath | BHSc (Naturopathy) | Member of NHAA | Based in Ballarat, Victoria | Telehealth consultations Australia-wide, and internationally by arrangement.