by Robert Silverman, DC, MS, CNS, CCN Endurance athletes are a unique breed of athlete. Their specific energy system used during exercise requires them to eat differently than their peers. They also need to maintain adequate levels of electrolytes—before, during, and after exercise—and thus, need the support of targeted supplementation. As a sports nutritionist and Functional Medicine practitioner, I work with both competitive and amateur endurance athletes. Let’s take a closer look at what endurance athletes need to know about…

by Bianca Garilli, ND, IFMCP Too much inflammation can be a bad thing When the topic of chronic disease comes up, the term inflammation is sure to be close behind. In fact, inflammation has received a fairly bad rap in the past years as research has underscored its prominent role in the promotion and perpetuation of many aspects of physiological dysfunction. Although not the root cause per se, inflammation has been shown to “add fuel to the fire” of a…

by Bianca Garilli, ND Understanding Lyme disease What do The Platters and Lyme disease have in common? Both, although for totally different reasons, are associated with “The Great Pretender.” The Platters landed their “Great Pretender” connection through the 1955 recording of the song by the same name, which would go on to reach the #1 position on the R&B and pop charts just a year later.1 Lyme disease, on the other hand, is unfortunately connected to the term “The Great Pretender”…

Vitamin D deficiency is a global pandemic, and the clinical impact is far-reaching for pediatric and adult patients. In this video, Dr. Sara Gottfried discusses the US Endocrine Society guidelines for vitamin D sufficiency and explains the differential impact of vitamin D2 vs. D3 supplementation on serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels – 25(OH)D. Next, she provides insights on the synergistic role of vitamins D and K in bone and cardiovascular health. Since both of these essential, fat-soluble micronutrients are major nutrient…

Ashley Jordan Ferira, PhD, RDN If you can have a favorite nutrient, mine would be vitamin D. Historically famous for its essential, classical role in calcium and phosphorus homeostasis and bone physiology (think rickets prevention), the past few decades of research have unveiled diverse, extraskeletal health roles for vitamin D, including but not limited to the immune system, cardiometabolic pathophysiology, cancer, pregnancy, etc. Whether consuming vitamin D2 or D3 (FYI, the latter more potently impacts vitamin D status),1 vitamin D…

by Sara Gottfried, MD Behind closed doors, women bear all. Overwhelming fear, feelings of worry, irritability, and tension may plague them, yet the conversation around their anxiety has remained mostly unchanged for the past thirty years in mainstream medicine. Although anxiety is our nation’s most common mental disorder, there are lingering feelings of shame surrounding the condition. Women, who often feel pressured to live up to unrealistic expectations, may suffer silently and refrain from seeking the help they deserve. Anxiety…

by Bianca Garilli, ND Magnesium is the 4th most abundant mineral in the human body following calcium, sodium, and potassium. Intracellularly, magnesium is the 2nd most abundant cation behind only potassium.1 The number of essential roles magnesium plays in the body is extraordinary, with over 300 enzymes requiring magnesium as a co-factor for proper functioning.1 This essential element is involved in numerous critical physiological processes such as energy production (ATP metabolism, oxidative phosphorylation, and glycolysis), protein synthesis, muscle contraction, nerve…

by Bianca Garilli, ND Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is estimated to affect nearly 15 million adult women in the US.1 This chronic disease can lead to a host of medical concerns including detrimental effects on bone health, making T2D an independent risk factor for bone fractures.2 A study published in Menopause sought to assess the status of bone mass, bone microarchitecture, and factors associated with vertebral fracture in postmenopausal women with T2D.3 This is a particularly important research query to…

by Bianca Garilli, ND Globally, 39% of adults aged ≥18 years were classified as overweight and 13% obese in 2016, totaling a jaw-dropping 1.9 billion adults overall.1 With obesity rates soaring, tripling worldwide since 1975, most of the Earth’s population now lives in countries where overweight and obesity cause more morbidity and mortality than being underweight.1 Keeping pace with these gains in adiposity is the behemoth weight loss and weight management market, which consists of fitness centers, slimming centers, consulting…

by Sara Gottfried, MD and Lewis Chang, PhD Media headlines have claimed that aspirin has no benefit for older adults. What’s the truth? Should we, as one major news website suggests, toss our aspirin? Aspirin is derived from the bark of several species of willow trees. It has been used for centuries for pain and inflammation. As a low-dose therapy, aspirin has been prescribed to reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer, and stroke based on the results of multiple…