Much of our time in providing functional medicine care is spent in establishing balance in a patient’s body. Too little or too much of just about anything can be bad for the person sitting across from us. Take salt for example. It has gotten such bad press relating to blood pressure and heart disease that…
Functional medicine providers are always searching for silver linings in medical research to share with their patients. In this case, the silver lining is literal: silver nanoparticles have been found to synergize with a class of somewhat toxic antibiotics, making it easier to use the antibiotics at a lower dose. Building on the centuries long…
Functional medicine providers get lumped in with conspiracy theorists and get a lot of quacking scoffs, but again we have to say a “I told you so” on this one. For decades, natural, functional and integrative providers have warned patients about the dangers of all the artificial ingredients in the food supply. We have warned…
A study of the history of warfare emphasizes that an army’s supply lines are often the difference between victory and defeat. Our immune system’s battle for our health, though enacted at a microscopic level, likewise depends on supply lines. The recent pandemic, by highlighting the effects of nutrients like vitamin D on the outcomes of…
Sometimes researchers get really sweet ideas. Who wouldn’t want to inhale some honey to treat an infection? Well, okay, the reality of this new therapy for a drug resistant infection is not as taste-bud-exciting as it initially sounds. However, the potential benefits for thousands of cystic fibrosis and bronchiectasis patients could be far more exciting…
If COVID is a four letter curse word, Long COVID is a drunken sailor’s mouth which torments adults after COVID and includes a few children as well. Thankfully, studies like today’s focus article indicate that children are affected less often than adults. Still, parents want to know the chances and be prepared if their child…
Foggy brains during a viral illness are nothing new as most of us feel foggy during the flu or bad head cold. This fogginess typically resolves as the infection is clear. COVID foggy brains can rise to a different level, however, both in terms of severity and duration. Not that the flu bug can’t kill…
Sometimes antibiotics are needed to save a life. They are not inherently evil. However, not all uses of antibiotics are worth the risks associated. We know that antibiotics can trigger yeast overgrowth, intestinal problems, and possible allergic reactions. In this study, researchers also found a link between increased use of antibiotics over the lifetime and…
What do immune cells look like when they age and why do some immune systems grow more gray hair than others? When we talk through a mall, we can usually separate strangers by age through a variety of characteristics like gray hair and wrinkles. Sometimes, though, we marvel at how certain people seem to age…
In the world of functional medicine, we deal with numerous occult infections. Viruses, bacteria, parasites, and fungi can sometimes find great hiding places in our bodies preventing our immune surveillance from eradicating them. Medical scientists must admit that even pharmaceuticals like antivirals and antibiotics may leave behind these hiding infectious agents. To fully eradicate these…