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Dr. Benda is a practicing emergency medicine physician, lecturer, writer, and researcher committed to the integration of alternative and conventional medicine. He is the first medical doctor to be elected to the Board of Directors of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians and currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the American Holistic Medical Association. He completed a two-year fellowship in the Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona under the direction of Dr. Andrew Weil. During his tenure he presented this new concept of health care delivery extensively at various academic and corporate symposia. He has served as a principal investigator through the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine of the National Institutes for Health. Dr. Benda also cocreated a nonprofit organization, the National Integrative Medicine Council, and served as Director of Medical and Public Affairs.

Dr. Benda graduated cum laude from Duke University, received his medical degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine at Jackson Memorial Hospital, and completed his residency in Emergency Medicine at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, where he remained as director of Emergency Medical Services and Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCLA. He has been actively involved in the instruction of medical students and residents and has lectured at numerous professional conferences.

He serves as Associate Editor of both the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Integrative Medicine – A Clinician’s Journal.