by Bianca Garilli, ND Screen time is quickly becoming one of the hottest topics for parents, healthcare practitioners, and educators. How much screen time should children and adolescents be allowed per day? Does screen time include the time spent on laptops to complete homework and reading assignments for classes? At what age should children begin to use screens? When is an appropriate developmental timeframe to buy your child a phone? Does the use of screens increase the risks of behavioral…

by Whitney Crouch, RDN, CLT  Cruciferous vegetables belong to the Brassica genus of plants and include foods such as broccoli, arugula, Brussels sprouts, mustard and collard greens, cabbage, and watercress. Known for their cancer-fighting biological properties and support of the body’s natural detoxification system, these veggies contain sulfur-containing chemicals called glucosinolates, which are responsible for the vegetable’s pungent aroma and bitter flavor.1 During the digestion of cruciferous vegetables, glucosinolates are broken down to form biologically active compounds such as indoles, nitriles,…

by Whitney Crouch, RDN, CLT Sugar is a hot topic. It’s one of the recently recognized, major culprits for increasing rates of overweight and obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease and contributes to a multitude of other health conditions related to inflammation in the body.1 Sugar intake in America 42% of Americans ≥ 2 years meet the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommendation for limiting added sugars intake to <10% of daily calories.1-2 That leaves 58% of Americans consuming…

by Sara Gottfried, MD and Lewis Chang, PhD Introduction When I finished my medical training in 1998 at the University of California at San Francisco, I thought I knew everything about vitamin D, particularly vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency. I understood vitamin D was important for the efficient trafficking of calcium in the body, and that helps to keep bones strong, which was important for women’s health over the age of thirty when bone density begins to decline. What I…

by Bianca Garilli, ND, IFMCP, USMC Veteran Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) is a lipoprotein encoded by the apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene located on chromosome 19; this protein is primarily responsible for transporting and metabolizing cholesterol and other lipids.1 Although expressed in various tissues throughout the body, the highest ApoE concentrations are found in the liver, kidney, spleen, adrenal, adipose tissue, and the brain or central nervous system (CNS), where it is predominately involved in neuronal maintenance, growth, and repair.1,2 There are…

Host: Deanna Minich, PhD, CNS, FACN, IFMCP Guest: Tricia Paulson, ND In this discussion, Drs. Tricia Paulson and Deanna Minich discuss the nuts and bolts of detoxification or “detox” and explore practical tips for practitioners in structuring a successful group detoxification program for their patients. While negative perceptions and misinformation about the word “detox” exist, Dr. Paulson explains that detox is simply a “physiological process of taking toxins in the environment, of which there are an abundance, and trying to eliminate…

by Bianca Garilli, ND, USMC Veteran The estimated cost of diabetes in the US was $327 billion in 2017, which reflects both direct medical costs ($237 billion) and indirect costs ($90 billion).1 After adjusting for inflation, this amounted to a 26% increase in diabetes costs from 2012 to 2017 and accounted for 1 in 4 healthcare dollars spent in the US.1 In 2015 it was estimated that 30.3 million people of all ages, roughly 9.4% of the US population, had…

Bianca Garilli, ND A fiery debate is occurring in homes, schools, research institutes, corporate board rooms, and healthcare organizations across the globe: Are e-cigarettes (e-cigs) harmful? Are e-cigs a healthier alternative than conventional cigarettes? Are e-cigs effective smoking cessation tools? Do e-cigs act as a gateway to more harmful smoking and lifestyle behaviors? In order to answer these questions and more, it’s important to understand the history of e-cigs and how we’ve arrived to this point. History of e-cigs Prototypes…

by Sara Gottfried, MD My granny blinked behind her glasses as she drove us to her home after school, trying to conceal her panic. It was 1975. I was 7 years old, and she was 50. Granny wasn’t sure where to turn her Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme next. The distance between the school bus stop and her home was only 5 miles, but we were lost. When my grandmother’s memory and then her personality drained out of her due to Alzheimer’s…

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…