We like to stay on top of the latest news in functional medicine and nutrition. If you do too, you’ll find our monthly, easy-to-digest compilation of research and news articles right here. Check back regularly to find updates, or follow us through our newsletters and social media to ensure you don’t miss any.
New Uses for N-Acetylcysteine
It’s Never too Late to Exercise
FDA Approves Imports of GMO Salmon
Fructose Consumption Mimics Chronic Stress States
New Brain Cells are Possible Even in Your Eighties
Diet Helps Protect Against Effects of BPA Exposure
Topical Corticosteroids Appear to Promote Type 2 Diabetes
New Uses for N-Acetylcysteine
This will broaden your view of N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a commonly used nutraceutical in nutrition and Functional Medicine: NAC is well-know for its role in endogenous production of glutathione, our body’s ‘master antioxidant’. However, it also has potential lesser-known beneficial actions such as decreasing proinflammatory cytokines (IL-6, TNF-alpha and IL-1beta), modulating neurotransmitters, preventing fibrosis, and vasodilation. We can think of multiple instances where these actions would be helpful, but one recent paper highlighted how they apply in various dermatological conditions.
It’s Never too Late to Exercise
Even if you’re in your mid-to-later years, it’s never too late to get active and reap the benefits. People who start exercising 2-8 hours per week even as late as in their 50s can reduce their mortality risk by twice as much as those who are sedentary. One study suggests even by the same amount as those who’ve exercised their whole lives! One caution for those who are active in their younger years, but sedentary in their older years, ‘lost nearly all of the benefit of that early activity.’
FDA Approves Imports of GMO Salmon
If you eat salmon, you’ll want to know to avoid GMO salmon, which has been recently re-approved by the FDA. Look for the labeling which will be required to contain the word ‘bioengineered.’ There are major loopholes in labeling requirements for other types of GMO foods – high-fructose corn syrup and refined vegetable oils, for instance, don’t have to be labelled as ‘bioengineered’ since the USDA’s 2018 rule allows exceptions for foods that have been processed so as to remove any DNA fragments from the original food source.
Fructose Consumption Mimics Chronic Stress States
High fructose diet during pregnancy may increase adrenal hormones circulating in offspring, in part by altering epigenetic methylation, according to new lab research. Fructose is widely used in processed beverages worldwide, and has been associated with obesity, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure. This raises the question – could high fructose consumption contribute to a ‘turned on’ adrenal system, similarly to chronic stress states? Both in mothers and in their offspring.
New Brain Cells are Possible Even in Your Eighties
The old thinking that brain cells never regenerate – that you’re born with a certain amount and gradually lose function over time – is officially outdated. In fact, thousands of newborn nerve cells exist in adult brains, including in octogenarians. The right diet, healthy lifestyle practices, and even certain targeted interventions can help support brain regeneration. Visit Functional Memory RX for additional information.
Diet Helps Protect Against Effects of BPA Exposure
The right diet can help protect against many of our inevitable physiological weaknesses, including ‘poor’ genes and exposure to toxins. These can be like ticking time-bombs for our health, yet it’s within our reach to keep that bomb from going off – this recent research study shows how BPA exposure (common in plastics) in young rodents normally promotes adult-onset metabolic disorders, but when given a healthier diet, the rodents were protected from those effects. They also noted that BPA altered epigenetic marks on more than 5400 genes, including 3000 genes involved in aging.
Topical Corticosteroids Appear to Promote Type 2 Diabetes
Can your topical steroid cream raise your blood glucose? Type 2 diabetes is a known side effect of long-term oral corticosteroid use, however raised blood glucose has also been confirmed in long-term topical use (which in itself is increasingly common). Researchers studied over 170,000 adults in a case-control study and found that topical steroid cream use was significantly associated with type 2 diabetes in a dose/duration-dependent manner. Functional Medicine can help work on the root cause of dermatological conditions, often avoiding the need for topical steroids.
