Resistance, Resilience and Recovery: New Resources for Functional Approaches to COVID-19
I am deeply impressed with the functional medicine community in taking on multiple, strong leadership roles around the pandemic.
Kara Fitzgerald, ND, received her doctor of naturopathic medicine degree from the National University of Natural Medicine in Portland, Oregon. She completed the first Counsel on Naturopathic Medicine-accredited post-doctorate position in nutritional biochemistry and laboratory science at Metametrix Clinical Laboratory under the direction of Richard Lord, PhD. Her residency was completed at Progressive Medical Center, a large, integrative medical practice in Atlanta, Georgia.
Dr. Fitzgerald is the lead author and editor of Case Studies in Integrative and Functional Medicine and is a contributing author to Laboratory Evaluations for Integrative and Functional Medicine and the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM)’s Textbook for Functional Medicine. With the Helfgott Research Institute, Dr. Fitzgerald is actively engaged in clinical research on the DNA methylome using a diet and lifestyle intervention developed in her practice. The first publication from the study focuses on reversal of biological aging and was published 04-12-2021 in the journal Aging. She has published a consumer book titled Younger You as well as a companion cookbook, Better Broths and Healing Tonics and has an application-based Younger You Program, based on the study.
Dr. Fitzgerald is on the faculty at IFM, is an IFM Certified Practitioner and lectures globally on functional medicine. She runs a Functional Nutrition Residency program, and maintains a podcast series, New Frontiers in Functional Medicine and an active blog on her website, www.drkarafitzgerald.com. Her clinical practice is in Sandy Hook, Connecticut.
Additional publications
Maternal Psychological Stress During Pregnancy May Lead to Asthma in Children
Children whose mothers had anxiety and depression during pregnancy may have an increased risk of developing asthma at 10 years of age, according to a new prospective cohort study of over 4000 children. Results showed a 46-91% increased risk of asthma and lower lung function in children whose mothers experienced stress or depression while pregnant. Paternal stress…
The Perfect Pumpkin and Breast Cancer: An Ode to Autumn and Functional Medicine
by Melissa Parker As part of Breast Cancer Awareness month, one of our clinic’s nutritionists, Melissa Parker, MS CNS CDN, bravely and graciously shares her own story, highlighting the differing options she was offered for breast cancer treatment and why she chose to include the functional medicine (FM) path. Her experience shows just how…
Winter Squash Soup
Yes, you can eat your methylation nutrients! This delicious burger is rich in methylation amino acids (methionine, cysteine, taurine), as well as B vitamins, betaine, choline and zinc, cofactors for homocysteine metabolism and necessary for forming methionine and the all-important methyl donor, SAMe
Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Using Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy as a Part of a FxMed Approach to Treatment
Obstructive Sleep Apnea is a condition affecting up to 22 million Americans and close to 1 billion people worldwide.
This condition can have serious impacts on overall health and has been shown to be a contributing factor to:
heart disease
diabetes
stroke
cognitive decline
weight gain
daytime fatigue
anxiety
depression
chronic pain
teeth grinding
and chronic headaches
There are a variety of treatment options available to manage Obstructive Sleep Apnea including Positive Airway Pressure devices (the most common being CPAP), dental mandibular advancement appliances, and various surgeries, but there are also functional treatment approaches that can target the underlying causes of the disease.
Subway Bread Cannot be Defined as Bread, Irish Court Rules
When is bread not actually bread? When it’s Subway bread, according to a ruling by the Irish Court. The case in question was brought by Bookfinders Ltd, Subway’s Irish Franchise, who sought to make their sandwiches tax exempt under Ireland’s Value-Added Tax Act of 1972 that allows such exemptions for staple foods. The court declined, saying…
New Diagnostic Test Suggests Chronic Lyme Disease Associated with Altered Gut Microbiome
Over 800,000 Americans suffer from chronic Lyme disease and experience associated symptoms such as malaise, neurological disorders, cardiac complications, and arthritis. Lyme disease is often treated with antibiotics, however 10-20% of Lyme patients develop posttreatment Lyme disease syndrome (PTLDS). A study published in the American Society for Microbiology proposes a new way to diagnose PTLDS via gut…
Poorly-Implemented Gluten-Free Diets Are Potentially Harmful
Is there a dark side to a gluten-free diet (GFD)? With nearly one-third of Americans having tried a gluten-free or gluten-reduced diet in recent years, there is more and more research on both the positive and negative effects of going gluten-free. My friend and colleague, Dr. Tom O’Bryan, recently published an article summarizing this “dark side” of…
Dr. Mark Pimentel Presents New Perspectives on SIBO and IBS
Dr. Mark Pimentel. We all know him as the clinician/scientist who understands the varied pathogenic underpinnings of IBS/SIBO/IMO. In my recent conversation with him, we cover the definition of terms, causes, when to use a stool test. We discuss the Pimentel low fermentation diet, intervention (including botanicals), and diagnosing hydrogen sulfide (a test is coming soon, but wasn’t available at time of recording). Probiotics: any utility? Elemental diet, and so much more. Grateful to have Dr. Pimentel on the podcast, and know you will benefit from this insightful convo. Thanks for listening, please leave a review if you can! ~DrKF
Respiratory Health and the Microbiome: The Gut-Lung Axis
Respiratory conditions, both chronic and acute, are some of the most common issues seen in clinical practice. In 2016, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) alone accounted for around 3 million deaths, and was the third leading cause of death worldwide. Asthma is one of the most common chronic diseases globally affecting nearly eight percent of people (over 24 million) in the US alone. Childhood onset of asthma can impair airway development, and persist into adulthood. Adult asthma may accelerate the decline of pulmonary function, and increase susceptibility to infection