Can you become both a naturopathic doctor and medical doctor?!

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In North America, the ND training (from accredited institutions) is very much analogous to MD training and it absolutely IS science based.

It is possible to do both. We had 3 MDs in classes with us when I was in school - a psychiatrist, a gastroenterologist and a foreign-trained MD who had been working in the emergency and psych departments at a major hospital in Lebanon. We also had a few ND students who left to attend regular med school.

While the MDs had the opportunity to "write out" of common classes, only one tried. He didn't pass the exams. (Note: any student who can demonstrate that she has successfully completed course work that encompasses the material covered in a specific class has this opportunity. A few classmates did this successfully.) The ND students were not able to write out of classes only because local med schools have gone to modular learning so course material was not clearly delineated between classes.

Before you decide you need both, I'd suggest that you really investigate the training. Visit a few schools, talk with the students. Decide which practice model most appeals to you. And definitely look into whether NDs are regulated where you want to practice, and what their scope of practice includes, etc.!

naturopathic doctor

Of course you can. The only limiting factor in practise is whether the jurisdiction in which you intend to work has a medical association that prohibits you from doing anything that isn't pharmacy based. It all revolves around the drug companies wanting a monopoly on medical treatments.
Tons of MD's have ditched conventional practise to become Naturopaths and Homeopaths because they came to the realization that drugs can't cure anyone.
Many of these doctors such as Andrew Weill (and plenty of others) have written a huge number of books on preventive/orthomolecular medicine, naturopathic and homeopathic treatment.
Dr. Luc de Schepper is an MD, doctor of TCM and acupuncture and Homeopathy. He has written at least a dozen books and lectures worldwide.
Conventional medicine is great for emergency cases, in which people would go to a hospital anyway -- not to a family doctor.
A Naturopathic or Homeopathic college would give an MD credit for physiology and pathology courses.
In India, the medical schools are mostly integrated as far as the medical disciplines are concerned.
People who bash other forms of medicine are just shills for the drug companies.
Drug based medicine has only itself to blame for people being turned off by toxic negative effects, exposed research fraud, fatality statistics, etc. And arrogant rants by trolls just turns more people off.

I've actually met several Doctors who have gone on to study naturopathy.
The ones I've met trained as MD's first and then did some courses in naturopathy.
I do know of a lady who trained as a Naturopath and then trained as an MD but had to start the whole thing from scratch.
There are no combined programmes.
If you do study Naturopathy I recommend doing so where it is properly regulated which sadly it isn't in most of the world.
If you went to med school for 4 years you almost certainly would not be required to do another 4 years at a Naturopathic institution as you will already have your background in A&P + have done all your clinical screening training etc.

NZ registered Osteopath

In my area of the country, we have a large conventional medicine hospital, research institute, children's hospital, cancer center, plus quite a few other auxiliary clinics within two blocks of where I work. This large corporation has for generations been a teaching, research and practicing hospital of conventional medicine.

Guess what they are slowly adding to the curriculum, mainly because of practitioner's request?

Many advanced degree physicians realize the shortcomings of their profession. They understand that alternative therapy can be a great attribute to their education and it is slowly being intertwined as curriculum and as elective courses so they can further their education.

Yes, we even having practicing Naturopathic/ Conventional physicians already with offices open to the public in this area.

So if your dream is to be able to utilize both systems of medicine- go for it and Good Luck!

For an overview of some of the fields available in alternative medicine and how they can complement conventional medicine, see http://www.allergiesandalternativemedici…

There are no combined programs because naturopathy is bunk and medicine is science. I suppose you could study both but I don't see how you could learn about real medicine in an MD program and then use anything you learned in an ND program. Unless you're an evil, heartless monster, of course.

No self-respecting medical school would offer such a program because naturopathy isn't science-based. You can go to naturopathy school after medical school but like Gary, I doubt very much that you'll be interested in quackery after being exposed to real evidence-based medicine.

This would be a bit like looking for a combined astrophysicist/street sweeper program! (Actually probably not as street sweeper is a useful job....)

Become a medical doctor, but there's no need to train to become a quack too.

A few of the naturopaths I know have started their careers as MD and them later went on to get their naturopathic degrees. When questions about it they have told me that they are more interested in helping people than putting out fires.

I suppose its possible, but once you've done proper science based medicine, I doubt you'll have any interest in naturopathy.