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
I was really excited to sit down with Dr. Robert Lustig for this conversation. If you’ve ever thought seriously about sugar, fructose, or metabolic health, his work has probably shaped your thinking in some way. He’s also deeply outspoken, and while we don’t see every issue exactly the same way, I really value conversations like this, especially on the heels of the new USDA dietary guidelines. We talk through what he supports, what gives him pause, and where he thinks the real leverage points actually are, from food policy to ultra-processed foods to the bigger systems driving chronic disease. I didn’t quite know where this conversation would go, but I found it thoughtful, provocative, and grounding, and I think you will too.
Mitochondrial decline is one of the core biological drivers of aging, contributing to fatigue, loss of muscle, slower recovery, and reduced resilience across nearly every organ system. In this live conversation, Dr. Kara Fitzgerald and Dr. Anurag Singh review the clinical science behind mitophagy, the cellular renewal process that clears damaged mitochondria and restores energy production.
I just had a really fascinating conversation with the scientists at Sōlaria biō—Mark Charbonneau and Alicia Ballok—about a line of research that genuinely made me stop and rethink how we approach bone health. We talked about their journey from isolating microbes living inside edible plants, to identifying synergistic microbial interactions, to building out the preclinical work and then taking it all the way into human clinical research. It’s a rare and thoughtful progression, and the science is compelling. Their first clinical focus has been bone loss, and the results they’ve seen so far are striking. In an early clinical study, they reported a substantial reduction in bone loss—up to 80% in certain groups—along with meaningful reductions in CTX, one of the key markers we use to assess bone turnover. They’re now recruiting for a follow-up study in postmenopausal women in collaboration with Harvard, and we’ll share details in the show notes for anyone who may be eligible. This is a rich, science-forward conversation, and I think you’ll find it as interesting as I did. ~DrKF
This isn’t the podcast I expected to release this month. Not even close. But, in the wake of the most recent release of Epstein-related documents, things took a turn. In the face of what is such a colossal abuse of power over young women, it’s easy to feel paralyzed. In fact, along with a deep sense of pain, it was one of the first feelings that I felt as this new wave of information washed over us.
Dr. Carrie Jones (ND, FABNE, MPH, MSCP) and Rose MacKenzie (Clinical Manager at Mira) join Dr. Kara Fitzgerald for a practical, case-based exploration of real-time hormone testing in perimenopause and menopause care. Traditional hormone testing often captures a single snapshot, missing the dynamic fluctuations that define the menopause transition. In this clinician-focused webinar, we’ll show how longitudinal, at-home hormone data can sharpen diagnostics, guide HRT decisions, and improve treatment monitoring. Using real patient cases and cycle charts, this session will walk through how continuous hormone insights can change clinical decision-making in practice.
2026 is the year functional medicine finally gets an EHR that supports the way you practice. Vibrant Practice is a new, AI-native platform created specifically for functional, integrative, and longevity medicine. It is designed to remove the biggest barriers to clinical efficiency and give you time back to focus on what matters most.
How close are we to ovarian rejuvenation and what role will AI play in getting us there? In this conversation, reproductive biologist and aging researcher Dr. Vittorio Sebastiano joins Dr. Kara Fitzgerald to explore how rapidly advancing technologies are transforming geroscience and regenerative medicine.
This was an energizing and important conversation with Dr. Gabrielle Lyon. Her ability to connect muscle health with metabolic stability, aging, and even our current misunderstanding of obesity lit up something for me. The idea that intramuscular adipose tissue may be the real driver of metabolic dysfunction, and that skeletal muscle is our most underappreciated longevity organ, brings a clarity and direction I think our field really needs. And I’ll say personally, talking with her made me rethink my own training and protein patterns, especially as I reflected on how my body responds now compared to years ago. There’s something profoundly validating, and also motivating, about realizing that the levers we can pull — protein, resistance, intensity — still work, and may matter even more as we age. I think you’re going to feel that same spark listening to her. ~DrKF
Exosomes are having a moment right now, but this is the first time I’ve felt like I was able to sit down and really unpack what matters, the science behind them, the variability in sources, and why not all exosome products are created equal. In our conversation, Alisa Lask, CEO of Rion Aesthetics, helped bring clarity to a field that’s quickly becoming noisy, and I found myself genuinely impressed by the rigor and precision behind the platelet-derived exosomes she describes. For those of us watching regenerative aesthetics evolve, this discussion offers a grounded, thoughtful look at what’s real, what’s emerging, and what clinicians should be paying attention to. I think you’ll find it as illuminating as I did.
In this webinar, Dr. Kara Fitzgerald will be joined by Dr. Jason Barker, ND, Clinical Lab Educator at Vibrant Wellness to explore how combining advanced functional testing with genomic insights provides a comprehensive upgrade to cardiovascular disease prevention.
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Dr. Kara Fitzgerald, ND
Dr. Fitzgerald is an internationally-recognized expert clinician, as well as nationally-bestselling author, who is actively engaged in clinical research on epigenetics and longevity using a diet and lifestyle intervention developed in her research and practice.
She has published two clinical studies on the potential bioage-reversing effects of an 8-week DNA methylation-supportive diet and lifestyle in middle-aged men and women in the journal Aging. She continues to lead the conversation around interventions for healthy aging and their extensive potential in improving individual and population level disease burdens, while also providing evidence-based and practical advice that cuts through the hype.
Dr. Fitzgerald is on faculty at the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM), is an IFM Certified Practitioner, and lectures globally on functional medicine, longevity, and epigenetics to practitioners and consumers.
She maintains an award-nominated podcast series ranked in the top 1% of global podcasts by Listen Score, New Frontiers in Functional Medicine, and an active blog and Clinic Immersion webinar series through her website, www.drkarafitzgerald.com.
