by Lewis Chang, PhD Ultra-processed foods, or highly-processed foods, are food products manufactured via multiple chemical or mechanical processes that are designed to make them convenient, affordable, palatable, and hygienic. Nutritionally, they tend to be loaded with added sugar, salt, and fat, and devoid of high-quality macronutrients, micronutrients, and fiber. Many ultra-processed foods also contain flavoring agents, artificial colors, cosmetic additives, and preservatives, some of which have exhibited carcinogenic potential in experimental models.1 The packaging may also contain chemicals (such…

In this video Allison Monette, RD, ND discusses how medical nutrition therapy help patients with diabetes and why it is important for all clinicians to integrate nutrition and lifestyle medicine into their practices.

In this video presentation Annalouise O’Connor, PhD provides an in-depth overview of homocysteine, its function in the human body and why it is clinically important, as well as the risk factors for raised homocysteine. Dr O’Connor describes the link between homocysteine and methylation, and the pathways involved in homocysteine metabolism for the function of SAM and SAH. During the presentation, she covers specific nutritional supplementation for the management of raised homocysteine.

by Nilima Desai, MPH, RD Research has established that inflammation is a risk factor for several chronic conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and metabolic syndrome.1 But understanding how inflammation works can be overwhelming. Types of Inflammation Inflammation is classified as either acute or chronic. Inflammation is a natural and necessary component of innate immunity since acute inflammation is the normal physiologic response to injury, infection, or irritation1 and is often short-lived. This acute inflammatory process…

This downloadable article discusses the relationship between bacterial infections and acute inflammation. Underlying mechanisms for how bacterial infections contribute to active resolution of acute inflammation are unknown. Here, we performed exudate leukocyte trafficking and mediator-metabololipidomics of murine peritoneal Escherichia coli infections with temporal identification of pro-inflammatory (prostaglandins and leukotrienes) and specialized pro-resolving mediators (SPMs). In self-resolving E. coli exudates (10(5) colony forming units, c.f.u.), the dominant SPMs identified were resolvin (Rv) D5 and protectin D1 (PD1), which at 12 h were…

Acute inflammation is normal and protective to the host, but when inflammation becomes chronic, it can damage tissues and be destructive to health. The resolution of inflammation involves several key steps: the termination of neutrophil recruitment, counterregulation of proinflammatory mediators, stimulation of macrophage-mediated clearance, and tissue remodeling. This review of the evidence by leading experts explains how the failure of inflammation resolution contributes to metabolic diseases and the pivotal role that specialized pro-resolving mediators (SPMs), resolvins, protectins, and maresins, play…

by Kara Fitzgerald, ND It is plain myth that there is nothing that can be done to prevent, slow or even reverse the progress of cognitive decline or Alzheimer’s Disease. The Institute for Functional Medicine held a 3-day international conference earlier this month, attended in droves, diving into the body of evidence that demonstrates this, and we also just really appreciate the work of Dr. Dale Bredesen and his team from the Buck Institute for Research on Aging who are showing that mild-to-moderate…

by Bianca Garilli, ND A Presidential Advisory on brain health was recently released by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association in September 2017. The goals of the publication were to provide a definition of “optimal brain health” in adults, and guidance on how to maintain brain health through the years. From these data, the following 7 metrics were brought forward as steps to implement for improving brain health where ideal brain health was defined as “having an optimal capacity to…

by Lewis Chang, PhD Hormone therapy may be the most effective treatment for reducing vasomotor symptoms. But for many symptomatic perimenopausal and postmenopausal women, the risk of hormone therapy outweighs the benefit. One of the non-pharmacological options that many women consider is acupuncture. However, there has not been a systematic review of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) assessing acupuncture’s effectiveness in the past few years. Researchers from the Center of Integrative Medicine at Wake Forest School of Medicine (Winston-Salem, NC) and…