About
Holistic Naturopathic & Functional Medicine for Chronic Illness
Serving Pleasant Hill & Walnut Creek, California — In-Person & Virtual Care
CEO
Dr. Jenny Valencia Root, ND
About: Salus Natural Medicine
Salus Natural Medicine draws its name from Salus, the Roman goddess of health, safety, and well-being. Her symbolism reflects the heart of the practice: helping patients restore balance, build resilience, and achieve better health through thoughtful, whole-person care.
Our approach combines naturopathic and functional medicine with evidence-informed evaluation and individualized treatment. Rather than focusing only on symptoms, we look at the broader picture—including nutrition, hormones, immune function, digestion, stress, lifestyle, environmental exposures, and medical history—to better understand what may be contributing to each patient’s health concerns.
Through both in-person and telehealth services, Salus Natural Medicine provides personalized, accessible care designed around each patient’s unique needs, goals, and stage of healing.
Dr. Jenny Valencia Root, ND, is a licensed naturopathic doctor in California and the founder of Salus Natural Medicine in Pleasant Hill. She practices functional, evidence-informed, whole-body medicine, helping patients understand how their symptoms, health history, environment, lifestyle, and physiology are connected. Rather than viewing symptoms in isolation, Dr. Root looks for patterns across the entire body. She evaluates how nutrition, hormones, immune function, digestion, stress physiology, sleep, environmental exposures, infections, genetics, medications, and lifestyle may be contributing to a patient’s health. Her goal is to identify the factors that may be driving illness while creating a practical and sustainable path toward improved function and long-term well-being.
Her clinical focus includes environmental illness, endocrine and metabolic health, autoimmune conditions, and chronic complex illness. She commonly works with patients experiencing CIRS, mold-related illness, chronic fatigue, brain fog, weight changes, insulin resistance, diabetes, PCOS, perimenopause, menopause, thyroid disorders, MCAS, POTS, and other persistent or difficult-to-explain health concerns.
Dr. Root’s understanding of chronic and complex illness is both professional and personal. Her own health experiences have shaped the way she listens to patients who have felt dismissed, misunderstood, or overwhelmed by persistent symptoms. She approaches each case with curiosity, empathy, and clinical attention to detail. Patients are given the time and space to tell their full story, often uncovering connections that may have been overlooked when symptoms were evaluated separately. Her approach recognizes that healing is rarely about one supplement, one laboratory result, or one diagnosis. It is about understanding the complete picture and helping the body regain stability, resilience, and function.
Education and Advanced Training
Dr. Root earned her Doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine from Bastyr University in Seattle, Washington, one of the nation’s leading institutions in natural and integrative medicine. She has pursued advanced education and certification in:
- Functional medicine
- Functional nutrition
- Mold toxicity, CIRS and environmental medicine
- Advanced gastrointestinal health
- IV nutrient therapy
- Metabolic and hormonal health
Her background in nutrition, fitness, and wellness allows her to bridge clinical medicine with the foundational habits that support lasting health. She helps patients translate complex medical information into realistic strategies they can use in everyday life.
Dr. Root also brings a strong sense of emotional intelligence to patient care. She understands that health decisions are influenced by stress, relationships, work, finances, motivation, and past medical experiences. Her goal is to meet patients where they are while helping them move forward with greater confidence.
Author, Educator, And Community Leader
In 2024, Dr. Root partnered with Lucas Root to write Beyond Sleep: Mastering Rest and Rejuvenation for Optimal Health, a guide to understanding the many forms of rest required for physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
In 2025, she was recognized as a Top Doctor in Naturopathic Medicine in the East Bay.
Dr. Root serves on the Board of the California Naturopathic Doctors Association and is an active member of several professional and community organizations, including:
- California Naturopathic Doctors Association
- National Association of Environmental Medicine
- Institute for Functional Medicine
- American Association of Naturopathic Physicians
- Academy of Integrative Health and Medicine
- Pleasant Hill Chamber of Commerce
Salus Natural Medicine is also recognized by the Better Business Bureau as a trusted business.
Beyond the Practice
Outside of patient care, Dr. Root enjoys traveling, reading, hiking, running, spending time outdoors, and discovering great food. She believes health is not only about preventing disease. It is about having the energy, clarity, and resilience to participate fully in the life you want to live.
At Salus Natural Medicine, patients receive thoughtful, personalized care designed to connect the dots, uncover contributing factors, and support the health of the whole person.