Dr. Lad Santiago was born and raised in New York City, but has lived in the Southern States of the United States for nearly four decades.  He received his B.A. degree in Molecular Biology from Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut in 1974.  Thereafter, he completed his premedical education at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.  In 1979, he received his D.C. degree from Sherman College of Chiropractic in Spartanburg, South Carolina.  He completed his postgraduate education and training in Preventive Medicine, and was conferred the Diplomate in Preventive Medicine from the Florida Institute of Technology and the International Preventive Medicine Foundation in Melbourne, Florida in 1981. Additionally, he received further education and training in Emergency Medical Technology from Spartanburg Technical College and received his certificate in 1993.   In 2001, he was conferred his N.D., D.M., N.M.D. degrees from Central States College of Health Sciences in Columbus, Ohio.

In addition, he has achieved various specialty postnominal designations throughout his health care career.  In addition to the diplomate noted above, he holds a Diplomate in Clinical Nutrition from the College of Clinical Nutrition of the American Association of Integrative Medicine.  He holds a Diplomate in Clinical Nutrition from the Chiropractic Board of Clinical Nutrition.  He is a Diplomate in Functional Medicine from the American Board of Functional Medicine.  He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Nutrition.  He is also a Diplomate in Clinical Thermography from the American Board of Clinical Thermography.  He is a Fellow of the American College of Functional Medicine, and is a Senior Fellow of the American Academy of Functional Medicine.  He is a Fellow of the American Board of Nutrition and a Fellow of the American College of Clinical Nutrition.  He is also a Fellow of the American Association of Integrative Medicine.  He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Clinical Thermography, and a Fellow of The American College of Wellness Doctors.  He also holds various other certifications in cineradiography, impairment ratings, and disability ratings.

He has served on the postgraduate faculty of Texas Chiropractic College, New York Chiropractic College, and Central States College of Health Sciences.  He has also served as a faculty member for postgraduate continuing medical education programs with various postgraduate professional organizations like the Florida Association of Naturopathic Medicine and the American Association of Naturopathic Medicine.  From an administrative perspective he has served as Senior Vice-President and President of Central States College of Health Sciences in the U.S.A.

He founded and served as Executive Director of the National Boricua Health Organization, a national health manpower advocacy association.  He also served as a health manpower consultant to the Office of Health Manpower Opportunity at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.  He has served as a key organizer of the first National Latino Health Manpower Conference held in Chicago, Illinois in 1973; a national conference sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, HEW.   He has  served as Executive Director of the Florida Association of Naturopathic Physicians, which worked diligently to enact legislation for licensure of Naturopathic Medicine in Florida.  He has also served as a primary convener, organizer, and lecturer for several statewide conventions of the Florida Association of Naturopathic Physicians and the American Association of Naturopathic Medicine.

In years past, he has represented multiple non-profit health care organizations before the executive and legislative branches of the state governments of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Ohio.  In addition, he has garnered substantial experience as an expert witness in court depositions and testimonies in matters of physical and disability impairments, and in the use of natural medicines.  He was also a plaintiff in and responsible for the landmark Supreme Court decision Santiago vs. Safeway in the State of Georgia, where the Supreme Court upheld the sanctity of the assignment of benefits principle to the advantage of health care providers and others.

In recent years, he has served on the standard setting committee for the national specialty board examination of the Chiropractic Board of Clinical Nutrition for the profession of Chiropractic Medicine, which process was conducted by the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners in Greeley, Colorado.  He is currently serving on the standard setting committee for the national specialty board examination of the American Board of Functional Medicine, and the American Board of Nutrition.  He is also serving on the standard setting committee of the National Board of Naturopathic Medical Examiners national board examination.

Presently, Dr. Santiago serves as President of the American Board of Functional Medicine, and as President of the American Academy of Functional Medicine.  He serves as President of the American Academy of Clinical Thermography, as Vice-President of the American Board of Clinical Thermography.  He is also serving as President of the American Board of Nutrition.  He has served as Secretary of the Chiropractic Board of Clinical Nutrition, and is Senior Vice-President of Mission and Strategic Development, and Clinical Dean of the American Council on Excellence.

He is a member of the American Academy of Functional Medicine, the American Association of Integrative Medicine, the International Thermographic Society, and the American Academy of Clinical Thermography, and the American Academy of Clinical Nutrition.  He serves as the Director of Clinical Services for the Upstate Clinical Associates – Natural Medicine Clinic, a facility that focuses on Natural Medicine, Chiropractic Medicine, Preventive Medicine, Physical Medicine, Functional Medicine, Integrative Medicine, Clinical Nutrition, Lifestyle Medicine, Wellness Medicine, and Energy Medicine.  He is Vice-President of Research and Development for BioPreventics Research, a national nutriceutical company that specializes in immune modulators.

As a result of his love for the creative arts, he pursued additional postgraduate education in the arts and humanities.  In this regard, he was conferred the M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing in 2007, and a second M.F.A. degree in Digital Cinema Production in 2008, both of which were conferred by National University in San Diego, California.  His M.F.A. in Digital Cinema Production thesis was comprised of a written dissertation entitled: The History, Theory, Interpretation, and Praxis of Cinema – The Evolution of an Artist, and a documentary film entitled: Iswa – The Catawba’s Path to Redemption based on the Catawba Native American Nation’s 20-year struggle to regain federal recognition by the United States Government.

He was recently conferred by European-American University the M.Phil. degree in English and Comparative Literature, and the Ph.D. degree in English Literature and Creative Writing.  He was also honored as a Fellow of The Institute of Arts and Letters, London.

He has studied with Professor Stephen Gill, an Indo-Canadian, international literary critic, literary fiction novelist, short story writer and poet, whose creative works embody multicultural themes.  He has also studied critical and creative writing with Professor Graeme Harper, an internationally renowned, Australian critical and creative writing scholar, and novelist of genre fiction.

In past years, he has been invited by a National British Writer’s Association to attend several national conferences of the American Writers and Writing Programs, the largest writers’ conference in the United States of America.  As a result, he has attended conferences in Chicago, Denver, and Washington, D.C.  He has also attended the induction ceremonies for the South Carolina Academy of Authors.  He has been present at numerous literary author readings and discourses given by writers like Joyce Carol Oates, Ron Rash, Richard Russo, Colson Whitehead, Jhumpa Lahiri, Luis Alberto Urrea, Edward P. Jones, Sandra Cisneros, Michael Chabon, and numerous others.

Moreover, he has written several works of literary fiction.  A Path Unknown will be his debut novel.  Furthermore, he has five other literary works ready to be published: a sequel to the aforementioned novel, a trilogy, a novella, while in the process of performing research for two other novels.

He has been a member of the Pen American Center and the National Association of Latino Independent Producers.  Presently, he is serving as Chair of the Upstate Writers Collective of South Carolina, and has recently been appointed Regional Ambassador for the Spartanburg-Greenville Chapter of The Authors Guild.

As regards his cultural and community ties, he has served as Commissioner and Chairman of the Human Relations Commission of the City of Spartanburg, South Carolina. Through this commission, he has addressed issues related to social, economic, health, and educational concerns in the marginalized communities of the City of Spartanburg.  Furthermore, he has served on the board of the Community Advisory Council of the Arts Partnership of Greater Spartanburg.  In addition, he has served as President of the South Carolina Hispanic Leadership Council, a state-wide non-profit organization serving the health, education, socioeconomic, legal/legislative, and artistic needs of the South Carolina Latino-American community.

Moreover, he has served as the keynote speaker for the Statewide South Carolina Hispanic-American Conference, and as a key lecturer on Native American Health at the South Carolina Native American Conference, both of which were commissioned by The South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs.  He has also served as Master of Ceremonies for the Martin Luther King Memorial Holiday Celebration in Spartanburg, S.C.  He has also served as the keynote speaker at the Executive Leadership Series and Annual Alumni Luncheon of the Bluffton Chamber of Commerce in Bluffton, South Carolina where he presented the keynote lecture on the importance of leadership principles as demonstrated by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  Additionally, he has served as the Master of Ceremonies for the South Carolina Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Annual Gala in Greenville, S.C.

In the past, he has been honored as an Outstanding Young Man of America, and has been selected for and noted in Oxford’s Who’s Who in America.

Dr. Lad Santiago lectures on Functional Medicine, Naturopathic Medicine, Integrative Medicine, Wellness Medicine, and Lifestyle Medicine.  He is also proficient in the History of Medicine in the U. S., and in the public health issues of the Native American and Hispanic-American communities in the U.S.A.  He is conversant in both Native American and Hispanic-American History and Culture, and is fluent in Spanish and English.

In summary, he is an avid follower of spiritual truth, a husband, father, community leader, academician, eclectic physician, and author.