Bifidobacterium Adolescentis Strains Identified as GABA-Producers
Several mood-altering human neurotransmitters originate from microbes in the digestive tract. Now science is starting to dig into which bacterial strains are responsible.
A Few Surprises About Ketogenic Diets and Their Effects on the Microbiota and Th17
As you know, here at drkarafitzgerald.com we like to push the boundaries of what we know, and sometimes this means being a little contrarian. In this blog, our Nutrition Director, Romilly Hodges CNS takes us on a tour of some…
Sweet Potato Cauliflower Curry
I’m cooking the rainbow and making colorful, nutrient-dense meals to help support and strengthen our immune defense.
Not a Recommended COVID Remedy – Oleander Plant Linked to Serious Side Effects, Including Death
Following the recently-reported news that oleandrin, an extract of the oleander plant, may combat COVID-19, the nonprofit American Botanical Council (ABC) issued a concerned warning about oleander, raising the alarm about the plant’s substantial toxicity.
Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EOE): A Deeper Look at Antecedents, Triggers, and Mediators
My first EOE patient in the early 2000’s was fortunately, already diagnosed by a very savvy Yale gastroenterologist. I hadn’t heard of EOE at that time, but quickly learned about this highly challenging and potentially disabling mixed IgE allergic condition.…
Uterine Fibroids – New Bill Aims to Increase Research and Education Funding
Wow! (forehead slap) Of course we need funding for this sometimes tough-to-treat but ubiquitous condition. It wasn’t too long ago that fibroids were a much less common entity. Now, sadly, they are nearly ubiquitous. A new bill introduced by Senator…
BPA Exposure Increases Risk of Death from Any Cause
There has been a wealth of research on the negative health effects of Bisphenol A (BPA) exposure. However, very little research has looked at long-term health outcomes. This study, published in the top tier JAMA Network Journal, serves as a…
Hidden in Plain Sight: The Skin Microbiome and Gut-Brain-Skin Axis
When you hear “microbiome,” you may think of gut bacteria first. Cutting-edge research, however, shows that the skin biome is another vital population of microorganisms that influences human health in surprising ways. From 2009 to 2019, the annual number of…
Functional Medicine, COVID-19 & Racial Disparities: Bridging the Gaps Webinar
I am so grateful for the participation of the panel in the roundtable discussion on Bridging the Gaps in Functional Medicine, COVID-19 & Racial Disparities.
The Utility of a Low Nickel Diet in Refractory Celiac Disease
A low nickel diet may be helpful for refractory Celiac Disease symptoms, according to this new study, published in the journal Nutrients. Especially if other contributors such as positive food IgE, SIBO, IBD, H pylori, and lactose intolerance have been…
Fecal Microbiota Transplant Passes Phase 1 Clinical Trial for Alcohol Use Disorder
This phase 1 trial shows that FMT is safe and associated with short-term reduction in alcohol craving and consumption with favorable microbial changes versus placebo in patients with alcohol-related cirrhosis with alcohol misuse. There was also a reduction in AUD-related…
A Reckoning with Modern Medicine: One Individual’s Journey to Find Healing When Faced with Eosinophilic Esophagitis
This month’ blog is a story both painful and hopeful. Our own Juston Jaco MS, current team member in our residency program for nutrition professionals, shares his from-the-heart decades of experience with a challenging allergic condition – eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE).
From The Lancet – Very High Cortisol Predicts Poorer COVID Outcome
As with most things biology, there is a relatively tight range for optimal: insufficiency of compound X is a problem and excess of compound X is a problem as well, for a different, but related, set of mechanisms…. I have…
Teach-In: Vaccines – Dr. Heather Zwickey Joins Us to Discuss the Latest in Vaccine Development, Efficacy, Preparation and Detox
Dr. Heather Zwickey joined us in July for a Teach-In webinar on Vaccine development, efficacy, preparation and detox. During her session, she lays out the history of vaccine development, details the mechanism of action of different vaccines, and discusses COVID-19…
Early Cytokine Signatures Predict COVID Severity and May Guide Interventions
According to this new Nature paper, those with severe COVID are spiking higher cytokine signatures early on. This would suggest value in testing, including possibly IFN-gamma (see below), and addressing it early through anti-inflammatory diet and lifestyle, as well as…
More Robust Data Now Emerging on Vitamin D and COVID
COVID patients with poor prognosis have significantly lower serum levels of vitamin D compared to those with good prognosis, according to new data from a systematic review that pulled data from seven previous studies into its meta analysis. A total…
New Data on Effects of Ketogenic Diet in Breast Cancer
This is an important new trial providing for the use of ketogenic diets in certain cancers, coauthored by our valued colleagues Dr. Thomas Seyfried and Miriam Kalamian. This randomized, controlled trial of 60 patients with locally advanced or metastatic breast…
From CDC: Weekly Death Counts for Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) 02-01-20 through 08-01-20
What do you think is going on here? The main report is that the death counts lag behind infection rates. But the pandemic (I like the term “patchwork pandemic”) has been raging through Florida, Arizona and Texas for quite some…
Are Children Major COVID-19 Spreaders? Evidence is Mixed But Leans Against School Closures
It’s an understandable concern based on past experiences with other viral infections, such as influenza and measles, where children are known to be significant transmitters. However, according to several recent publications, infected children are less significant spreaders of COVID-19 and…
BRCA Gene Mutations and Hypermethylation – The Flavonoid Potential
BRCA1/2 gene mutations, not included in direct-to-consumer genetic testing, are associated with higher rates of ovarian cancer (17-44%) and breast cancer (69-72%). A new study argues that routine testing for these gene vulnerabilities could prevent up to an estimated 2,666…