by Sara Gottfried, MD and Kari Hamrick, PhD, RD Did you grow up with parents who told you that breakfast is the most important meal of the day?  The word “breakfast” comes from breaking the overnight fasting period, and replenishing the body with a supply of glucose and other nutrients. It implies a period of metabolic rest that we know from ancestral health is beneficial, but in recent time, that period has shortened. While physicians and dietitians have touted the…

by Sara Gottfried, MD and Elnaz Karimian-Azari, PhD The endocannabinoid system is a fascinating network involved in regulating many physiological, homeostatic, and cognitive functions—including appetite, immune function, pain, metabolism and energy balance, stress response, anxiety, mood, fertility, pregnancy, pre- and postnatal development, memory, and neurogenesis, as well as the well-known pharmacological effects of cannabis.1,2 In our developing understanding of network medicine, it’s important as clinicians to understand that the endocannabinoid system plays a role far beyond getting high and impacts…

by Sara Gottfried, MD Monday, 7:50 a.m. Cup of coffee in hand, I walked into my office and shut the door. I sat at my desk and reviewed my schedule of patients for the day. I was on call for my group of 14 obstetricians/gynecologists. There were 26 patients on the schedule, and several urgent slots remained open for the problems I’d triage throughout the day with the nurse manager and medical assistants. I could hear the clunk of messages…

Host: Deanna Minich, PhD Guest: Carrie Jones, ND, MPH “Hormones control so much of who we are.” - Deanna Minich, PhD In this discussion, Carrie Jones, ND, MPH and Deanna Minich, PhD explore the nitty gritty of hormones, which control and impact so many body functions and health conditions. They delve into estrogen metabolism and detoxification pathways and how that biochemistry impacts our physiology and can manifest as hormonal symptoms. Dr. Jones opens the discussion by making an important distinction—differentiating the…

Host: Deanna Minich, PhD Guest: Rob Silverman, DC As literature and clinical discussions on the ketogenic diet continue to grow across the globe, Robert Silverman, DC and Deanna Minich, PhD are infusing nuance and pragmatism into an important discussion on the ketogenic diet approach (“keto”) in clinical practice. First, Dr. Silverman defines keto (in his clinical practice) as 75% fat, 20% protein, and 5% carbohydrates (< 50g per day) and differentiates “dirty” vs. “clean” keto. The latter focuses on healthy fats,…

In recent years we have witnessed a groundswell of interest in the ketogenic diet. This concept of consuming certain types of high-fat foods (while reducing carbohydrates) to induce a physiological state called ketosis is a form of therapeutic nutrition that has been studied for decades in a variety of conditions. Cancer researchers have become very interested in the potential benefits a ketogenic approach might bring to oncology patients taking certain types of anti-cancer drugs. Why? Because initial experiments conducted in…

by Milene Brownlow, PhD; Sara Gottfried, MD; Nikky Contractor, PhD Here at Metagenics Institute, our goal is to keep you abreast of the latest scientific literature in health, nutrition, and personalized lifestyle medicine. As the ketogenic diet continues to grow in popularity in mainstream and clinical settings, we want to know what’s new and what patient populations or individuals may be uniquely positioned to benefit from a ketogenic dietary approach. In the past 10 years, citations for the ketogenic diet…

by Erik Lundquist, MD Metagenics Institute sat down with family physician Erik Lundquist, MD for a Q&A session to bust some myths about the Cannabis plant and glean current insights for our readers on the clinical utility of phytocannabinoids naturally found in Cannabis, like cannabidiol (CBD). Read on to learn how, based on the scientific literature and in Dr. Lundquist’s clinical experience, these unique bioactives with actions in the endocannabinoid system (ECS) may be relevant to you and your patients.…

Host: Deanna Minich, PhD Guest: Erik Lundquist, MD In this discussion, Erik Lundquist, MD and Deanna Minich, PhD explore thyroid physiology, assessment, and clinical pearls for treating patients with thyroid dysfunction or disorders. The crux of the discussion is treating the individual patient, not the labs. You will learn valuable insights and effective clinical strategies that Dr. Lundquist utilizes every day in his clinic to provide personalized support to patients with thyroid disorders. Dr. Lundquist shares that in his medical school…

by Sara Gottfried, MD and Melissa Blake, BSc, ND Hormones drive the many functions of our body and mind. For example, hormones and their receptors influence metabolic function, heart rate, appetite, tissue growth, and development. Ultimately, the body relies on the hormonal signals of a strikingly choreographed endocrine system. Most of the endocrine system is regulated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-thyroid-gonadal (HPATG) axis, which is instrumental in regulating mood, reproductive health, and general homeostasis.1 Unfortunately, the HPATG axis is remarkably sensitive to…