FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE BLOG
Includes over 800 monographs reporting on emerging studies in the medical and scientific literature of practical clinical importance, easily searched for content.
Lung cancer, inflammation, and tumor microenvironment
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide. As with all other cancers, untangling the role of systemic inflammation (cancer promoting) versus inflammation in the tumor microenvironment (cancer fighting) is of fundamental clinical importance. A welcome study just published in PLOS One (Public Library of Science) sheds light on this critical conundrum while including the aspect of nutritional status.
Benzodiazepines associated with increased Alzheimer's risk
Benzodiazepines are well known to be deleterious to brain health with more than very short-term use. Research just published in BMJ (British Medical Journal) presents evidence that the use of benzodiazepines to treat anxiety or insomnia is associated with a substantial increase in the risk of Alzheimer's disease.
Eating disorders and the causative role of autoimmunity
Eating disorders are multifactorial; like other psychiatric conditions the causative role of auotimmune neuroinflammation is coming to the fore as evidenced by a study just published in PLoS One.
Prediabetes also damages the heart
A study just published in the journal Circulation demonstrates that prediabetes causes unfelt damage to the heart that substantially raises the risk of future coronary artery disease and heart failure regardless of cholesterol levels.
Antidepressants: expectation predicts response; relapses
A study just published in the British Journal of Psychiatry provides further evidence showing that there was no significant difference in outcomes between antidepressants and placebo, and the response to both was predicted by expectations. Moreover, antidepressants increase the vulnerability to relapses.
Prediabetes increases cancer risk
Prediabetes, elevated levels of blood sugar that are still 'within' the normal range, increases cancer risk among its mob of other afflictions as further validated by a meta-analysis just published in Diabetologia.
Bra wearing not linked to breast cancer
Bra wearing does not seem to be associated with breast cancer in postmenopausal women according to a study just published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.
Schizophrenia risk increased by maternal inflammation
Schizophrenia is well recognized to have a neuroinflammatory component, and a study just published in the American Journal of Psychiatry links maternal inflammation during pregnancy as reflected in elevated CRP (C-reactive protein) levels with a markedly increased irisk of schizophrenia in offspring.
Nigella sativa, a true 'wonder medicine'?
Nigella sativa, also known as black cumin, produces seeds with a mind-boggling wealth of medicinal virtues. For colleagues and others who may not be familiar with the abundance of scientific evidence for the use of Nigella sativa seed extract in clinical practice, this selection of citations serves as an introduction to its wide range of indications.
Statins — how they increase diabetes risk
Knowing that statins activate the NLRP3/caspase-1 inflammasome that promotes inflammation and insulin resistance should caution practitioners to attend carefully to insulin sensitivity in patients taking statins.
Acne, a disorder of dysregulated inflammation
Acne vulgaris case management with sustainable, functional methods requires its recognition as a disorder of inflammation associated with loss of immune tolerance for a commensal skin bacteria.
Magnesium supplementation improves insulin resistance
Insulin resistance is benefited by magnesium supplementation according to mounting evidence. A study published in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism documents significant improvements in insulin resistance by supplementation even when the subjects' magnesium levels appeared normal.
Depression and brain inflammation
Evidence for the role of brain inflammation in depression is proliferating as noted in a report published recently in JAMA. Certain biomarkers including the proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-6 (IL-6) and TNF, and CRP are standing out...
Type 2 diabetes risk associated with high normal serum calcium
Type 2 diabetes, characterized by impaired insulin action, is linked to elevated serum calcium according to a study just published in the journal Diabetes Care.
Calcium supplementation and abnormal calcium in blood and urine
Calcium supplementation is often recommended without careful determination of individual need and tolerance. Conflicting studies have raised the suspicion of an increase in cardiovascular risk associated with calcium (which may occur when the anti-inflammatory effects of magnesium are opposed). A study just published in the journal Menopause offers evidence that for a significant percentage of women modest calcium supplementation produces abnormally high levels in blood (hypercalcemia) and urine (hypercalciuria).
'Chronic' Lyme disease overdiagnosed according to original expert
'Chronic' Lyme disease, according to Dr. Allen Steere who first identified the spirochetal contagion caused by ticks in the town of Lyme, Connecticut, is a seductive but all too often misleading diagnosis that may prevent patients from finding the care that they need.
Antioxidants in excess can increase inflammation and blunt benefits of exercise
Antioxidants, even glutathione, taken in excess can increase rather than ameliorate harmful inflammation...The use of antioxidants must be calibrated with careful consideration of the balance between protective and suppressive effects according to the needs of the individual patient.
Walking in the evening improves cardiovascular markers better than walking in the morning
Walking is beneficial any time of day, but an interesting study published recently in the journal Preventive Medicine demonstrated significantly more improvement in some key cardiovascular lipid and inflammatory markers by walking in the evening versus in the morning.
Neuropsychiatric illness in non-celiac gluten sensitivity
Neuropsychiatric illness can result from neuroinflammation due to a variety of causes. Recent studies offer more evidence that depression and other neuropsychiatric disorders can be a manifestation of non-celiac gluten sensitivity. A paper published in Gastroenterology Research and Practice explores the pathophysiologic mechanisms by which gluten sensitivity can present as a variety of neuropsychiatric conditions in the absence of celiac disease.