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.
Hormone replacement in menopause and ovarian cancer risk
Hormone replacement in menopause must be evaluated thoroughly on an individual basis with careful attention to the important benefits and risks. This includes of course objective measurements of bioactive hormone levels before and during hormone replacement at appropriate intervals, including analysis of benign versus troublesome estrogen metabolites. Regarding adverse effects that must be weighed, an important study just published in The Lancet brings to light a significant risk for ovarian cancer in current and past users of hormone replacement.
Traumatic brain injury and chronic neuroinflammation
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) even in it's milder forms can initiate a process of chronic neuroinflammation that causes a range of chronic neurodegenerative disorders. ..Judicious application of natural anti-inflammatory agents to minimize side-effects along with other measures guided by objective measurements is a standard for treating traumatic brain injury that can be applied to other neurodegenerative disorders as well.
Gluten free labeled foods not always gluten free
Gluten free labeling is, sadly, not a guarantee of safety for those with celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity as demonstrated in a study recently published in the Journal of Food Protection.
Flu vaccination: worthwhile for most?
For each healthy adult, a Cochrane review found that vaccination saved an average of just 0.04 days off work and concluded that no evidence supported it as a routine public health measure.
Vertigo and dizziness associated with thyroid autoimmunity
Vertigo and dizziness can occur when the vestibular system (parts of the inner ear and brain that process sensory information to control balance and eye movements) is disturbed. "...the present study demonstrates the existence of a clear relationship between thyroid autoimmunity and subclinical vestibular damage, regardless of thyroid function. "
Subclinical hypothyroidism in pregnancy
Subclinical hypothyroidism has been associated with multiple adverse maternal, fetal, and neonatal outcomes...On the basis of current evidence, we believe it is reasonable to recommend treating women with new onset subclinical hypothyroidism during pregnancy.
Overactive bladder: urine is not sterile
Overactive bladder, and the often more painful condition interstitial cystitis (IC) and painful bladder syndrome (PBS) occur in the absence of infection and should be investigated for an autoimmune basis...A fascinating paper just published in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology demolishes the dogma that urine is sterile by using advanced methods to prove that the urinary bladder has its own microbiome.
Hair loss frequently associated with autoimmunity
Identifying hair loss as associated with early immune system dysregulation not only permits proper treatment of the presenting complaint but becomes an opportunity to ward off progression to more debilitating autoimmune disease.
Stroke risk reduced by magnesium
Stroke risk is reduced by higher plasma magnesium levels according to data from 32,826 women in the Nurses’ Health Study presented in a paper just published in the journal Stroke.
Metastasis reduced by low carb diet plus anti-inflammatory
Two papers just published in the journal Carcinogenesis presenting evidence that a low carbohydrate/high protein diet plus anti-inflammatory agent markedly reduces cancer metastasis.
Coffee is a liver elixir
Coffee has been documented in a multitude of studies to have metabolic, cardiovascular and brain benefits, and it is especially salubrious for the liver. A paper just published in the Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology handily summarizes several of the virtues that coffee has for liver function.
Fibromyalgia, a brain-based disorder
Fibromyalgia is characterized by an abnormally lowered threshold of sensitivity to a variety of stimuli due to impairment in the brain's ability to properly process sensory signals, as reflected in a study just published in the journal Arthritis & Rheumatology.
Fatigue commonly caused by iron deficiency without anemia
Fatigue, often accompanied by depression and anxiety, frequently has iron deficiency shown by suboptimal levels of serum ferritin but occurring without anemia. This often goes unrecognized in clinical practice.
Nuts reduce inflammation and all-cause mortality
In the absence of allergy, the evidence supports the consumption of nuts as wholesome foods with anti-inflammatory and metabolic benefits, exactly what paleo diets intend to accomplish.
Gout: updates in diagnosis and treatment
Gout diagnosis is rendered less invasive and more practical in the general clinical setting and treatment more sustainable by recent advances.
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.