To ForgiveThe act as defined as I see it - to release consciously another person from your negative feelings based on an event that was hurtful toward you from them whether it is perceived on your part or known by both parties.What I find fascinating is that often the act of forgiveness may have to push past an unconscious threat injury in order to…

This week we sit down with Dr. John Warner, an Emeritus professor of Pediatrics at the Imperial College of London in the United Kingdom and also at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. We discuss his recent paper entitled: Strategies and Future Opportunities for the Prevention, Diagnosis, and Management of Cow Milk Allergy. Dr. Warner compl…

Pregnancy is a super important time. Do not take by inhalation, ingestion or other exposure anything that is a potential toxin for the body.Things to avoid:1) Caffeine - in low to minimal doses, it is clear that caffeine is safe for pregnant women and their offspring. Caffeine easily crosses into the placenta and thus the baby's circulation. In ute…

Measles Overview AgainFrom the CDC: As of this week, there have been 35 cases of measles, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported including seven direct importations of measles by international travelers and two outbreaks with more than five cases each. Most of these cases were among children and adolescents who had not receiv…

Dr. Kate Kresge is the Head of Medical Education at RUPA Health and host of the Root Cause Medicine Podcast. Dr. Kate collaborates with clinicians to bring leading-edge root-cause medicine information to the world through bootcamps, courses, podcasts, articles and more. Before joining RUPA, Dr. Kate was the founding Director of Functional Medicine …

APOE4 and the history of human diseaseApolipoprotein E, discovered in 1973, is derived from a polymorphic gene called ApoE that encodes for a signaling protein on a class of fatty proteins that primarily carry cholesterol and other molecules around the body. We find ApoE primarily on VLDL, very low-density lipoproteins and HDL, High density lipopro…

Light and It's Impacts on Health - Circadian RhythmsCircadian comes from the latin Circa Diem or about the dayI have long believed that indoor sedentary behavior is profoundly bad for us beyond just the lack of movement and outdoor natural education. Today, we will look at another major concern: light. We will also get into a circadian rhythm post …

ADHD without Drugs - This is a reboot of this podcast from 2022 as it aligns with the podcasts of Dr. James Greenblatt and Dr. Kate HenrySandy Newmark, MD is the Director of Clinical Programs at the University of California at San Francisco's Osher Center for Integrative Health. He is an Integrative Pediatrician and a Professor in the Department of…

Literature Review1) Cancer is now a unique risk factor for Cardiovascular disease according to recent research. This is being discussed as a point of emphasis for those that have been diagnosed with cancer as the knowledge is a wake up alarm to the biological underpinnings of these disparate immune based diseases. (Melchiori R. et. al. 2023) If you…

{display_podcast]Attention Deficit and Upstream Personalized TreatmentsThis week we sit down with Dr. James Greenblatt, a pioneer in the field of integrative medicine/psychiatry. He obtained his MD and completed his psychiatry residency at George Washington University School of Medicine. This training was followed by a fellowship in child and adole…

This weeks podcast turned out to be so much more than expected when I first heard about Dr. David Clarke. His work transcends much of what I see in clinic and has given a name to the reality of puzzling chronic illness. From the PPDA website: Psychophysiologic disorders (PPD) are stress-related, brain-generated pain or illness. Even people who hand…

Literature Review1) Psilocybin is showing further signs of great promise in the fight against depression and PTSD. Psychedelic assisted psychotherapy has gained a foothold in the mainstream of treatment interventions for treatment resistant depression and PTSD. Psilocybin comes from a mushroom that has serotonergic effects on the receptor 5HT2A in …

Dr. Mark Houston is a thinker and researcher into the root causes of cardiovascular disease and metabolism. He graduated from Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee summa cum laude in Chemistry before graduating with honors from Vanderbilt Medical School. He completed his medical internship and residency at the University of California, San Francisco…

Sugar, Immune Health and Two StudiesLet us start right out of the gate with two studies. #1: Here is the abstract from European Journal of Clinical Nutrition: "Milk contributes with saturated fat, but randomized controlled trials (RCT) on the effects of dairy on the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D) where dairy is given as whole foods are scarce. The o…

Literature Review1) In an excellent paper by Dr. Harlan and colleagues, we see a group looking at how to modify ultra processed foods to remain tasty for consumption but also healthy. The lead author is Dr. Rob Lustig, a pioneering Pediatric Endocrinologist from UCSF and upcoming podcast guest. From the paper: "Ultraprocessed food is established as…

Dan Shapiro is a man on a mission to help physicians, other providers and the medical healthcare administrators understand the reality of healthcare provider burnout. He is currently the Director of the Chartis Center for Burnout Solutions, where he and his team assist leaders of multi-hospital systems with efforts to reduce burnout and the turnove…

Resolutions? Do we need them?The simple answer for me is this - if it causes beneficial change, then yes we need them. Ideally, change should occur real time as the need or knowledge of benefit becomes apparent.New Years is traditionally a time that we introspect and set new goals for a better life. What that means to each one of us is as varied as…

This weeks guest is Dr. David D. Clarke. Dr. Clarke is President of the Psychophysiologic Disorders Association where he teaches the science of the mind body connection as it relates to GI related diseases that do not fit a traditional diagnostic nor pathological framework. For three plus decades, he conducted detailed interviews with over 7000 peo…

Literature Reviews have been very popular. Thus, 2024 will start with science update.1) Time restricted eating patterns are known to help physiology and metabolism by initiating a pause in the action of mTOR and muscle synthesis as well as inducing autophagy. Autophagy is critical to the clearance of broken or damaged cells following injury or dise…

Christmas, Tradition and Holidays in General.When I think about the holidays, I think about large family gatherings, fake birds chirping in the Christmas tree, my Babcia cooking pierogis in butter, bacon and onions and serving me a huge plate, my cousin tripping and falling into the tree trying to turn off the chirping bird. I think of Christmas ev…

Podcast #62Jeff Bland, Ph.D.This week I have the absolute pleasure to introduce you to Dr. Jeff Bland. He is in a word, incredible.Dr. Bland is supreme thinker in the field of medicine and biology. He is a teacher, product developer, thought leader, unifier of minds and so much more. He obtained his BS in Biology at the University of California at …

What have I learned over the last 13 years?1) That medicine is an onion peel that never ends! We keep learning and evolving into newer and more mature ways to understand the physiology of balance in all things human. When in balance, disease is stymied. When not so balanced, disease has a chance to start and flourish. After interviewing 68 guests, …

Literature Review1) High resting cardiac vagal tone or control, CVC, is associated with more flexible emotional responding to external stressful stimuli. With regard to vagal changes the evidence shows us that stress will decrease CVC . (Balzarotti et. al. 2017)Being relaxed and not stressed out is always associated with better cellular physiology.…

This is the third story of hope for us as a species. We have a level of control over our outcome that is baked into our DNA.Bridget R. Briggs, M.D. and I sit down today to discuss the clinical approach to epigenetics in patients especially women. She is a physician who specializes in Women’s Health. Dr. Briggs received her undergraduate degree from…

Literature Review1) Pericytes are critical cells that sit around the tiny blood vessels called capillaries of the body especially in the brain. They are involved in regulating blood vessel activity. They communicate directly with the endothelial cells making them super important in the activity of the blood vessel and metabolism at the local tissue…

Respiratory Syncytial VirusRSV is a 150 nanometer RNA virus that comes from a human orthopneumovirus that circulates in the winter primarily. Young children and infants infected with RSV mostly have upper respiratory tract symptoms where a subset develop lower respiratory tract disease known as bronchiolitis with the primary infection. It is the mo…

Covid 19 Post Mortem Part IIThe story of the Standard American Diet and its directional connection to death from Sars2 - Covid.Post Covid population health data has shown us that humans that chronically consume more meat, sugar, animal products and highly processed foods were associated with more death and morbidity if they contracted early version…

This week's guest is Professor Moshe Szyf.This is the second story of hope for us as a species. We have a level of control over our outcome that is baked into our DNA.Dr. Moshe Szyf joins the show today to discuss the social programming of the epigenome. Dr. Szyf and his colleague Dr. Meaney proposed over two decades ago the first set of evidence t…

Covid 19 Post MortemAs you all know, after reading countless articles that I have posted about COVID and the policies that were put in place by "well meaning" bureaucrats, I have been highly critical of the events that took place and the US Government's failure on so many fronts. There are two seminal articles that have been written on these topics…

Delaying Gratification and DopamineWhen we think of our current societal view on raising children, we have a conundrum. We want our children to experience the world as it is progressing through a technological viewpoint, a growth mentality. What does that mean? . When technology enters the learning process, we progress at log rates. We can process …

Randy Jirtle, Ph.D.This week's guest is Professor Randy Jirtle.Dr. Randy Jirtle joins the show for the second time today to discuss his new research on the imprintome, the regulatory regions that at the earliest stages of fetal development control our epigentic and thus our genetic outcome. This is the Hope locus.Time Magazine nominated him for per…

Nature Deprivation Disorder: As we are getting closer to the end of the year and the cold strikes us hard in the face, we have a tendency to hunker down indoors and avoid the outside. Video games and screens are omnipresent in many of our children's lives. They pervade their thoughts. They significantly limit their self-driven need and desire to ex…

In a Nature study by Dr. Chassaing and colleagues we see a data set raising a legitimate concern regarding synthetic emulsifiers. Let us look at the title, dietary emulsifiers impact the mouse gut microbiota promoting colitis and metabolic syndrome.....Emulsifiers are the topic today. Also, some information with a mini literature review and a discu…

This week's guest is Professor Mahmoud Ghannoum. For over four decades, Dr. Ghannoum has been exploring a critical but neglected inhabitant of the human body, the fungus. Born and raised in Lebanon, Dr Mahmoud Ghannoum is the current Director of the Center for Medical Mycology at Case Western Reserve University. He began his scientific journey at L…

The Power of SuggestionCan our thoughts affect us at a biological level not just a subjective level?In a new study published in pre print in BioRxIV entitled: A thalamic circuit represents dose-like responses induced by nicotine-related beliefs in human smokers, we see some new research looking at the power of suggestion well beyond the placebo eff…

Musk and RandElon Musk by Walter Isaacson is a book worthy of your time. He is an amazing writer and the context and content are so timely for the happenings of today. The story of Elon Musk remains one to be completely written, but it is being partially displayed in this new book that I am in the early stages of reading. The truth of the matter re…

Literature Review: Over the past 15 years we have noted a connection between the intestinal microbiome and allergic/autoimmune disease activity in humans. This study continues to pull on this thread of knowledge. We see a direct correlation between a dysbiotic microbiome and human disease risk as young as 5 years of age. The upstream targets remain…

This week's guest is Chef Mark Allison, a highly accomplished culinary artist known for his innovative and healthy creations. Born and raised in England to a family with a deep appreciation for food, Mark developed a passion for cooking at an early age. He honed his skills by attending prestigious culinary schools and gaining practical experience i…

Maternal Microbiome Part IIMom has a gut microbiome that directly seeds her babies microbiome. This microbiome dictates human long term and short term health. Eating a diet loaded with fiber based fruits, legumes and vegetables will cause a highly diverse bacterial microbiome to exist and this existence is correlated with better long term health...…

Maternal Nutrition and the Microbiome - Part IThis was a tricky topic to drill down into one article - so I split it into two. Bear with me on this topic as it is so important in the grander scheme of maternal and child health.The microbiome by definition: the microorganisms that reside in a particular environment.Pregnancy is a dynamic event where…

Robert Roundtree, MDThis weeks guest is Bob Roundtree.Robert Rountree, MD, received his medical degree from the University of North Carolina School of Medicine at Chapel Hill in 1980 before completing a residency in family and community medicine at Penn State Hershey Medical Center. He augmented his medicine training with extensive postgraduate stu…

Literature Review1) "Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common mental behavioral disorder in children. Alterations in gut microbiota composition are associated with neurological disorders....Also discussions on CTE, Covid, Omega 3 Fats, and more...Part II is about learning how to talk to your children and finally the recipe of the…

Literature Review1) What has happened in the realm of cancer incidence over the last decade? As one would expect, it is climbing especially for breast cancer and GI cancers....studies on plant compounds and neuronal health in babies, covid statistics and more. Also, information on nutritional misinformation and how to spot it. Plus a recipe of the …

This weeks guest is Ryan Conklin a self described - light chasing, storytelling, thread puller, adventure bound tracker and student of myth and maps. He is transformational coach by day, and bartender and hospitalitarian by night. He is a thinker that has a beautiful way of seeing grief and leaning into it in a grounding and therapeutic way. We div…

Literature Review this Week1) From Cell Host and Microbe - "The microbiomes of cesarean-born infants differ from vaginally delivered infants and are associated with increased disease risks. Vaginal microbiota transfer (VMT) to newborns may reverse C-section-related microbiome disturbances. Here, we evaluated the effect of VMT by exposing newborns t…

Today’s guest is Dr. Doug Thompson, a 27 year veteran of dentistry since he graduated from the University of Michigan School of Dentistry in 1996. Dr. Thompson is a teacher, researcher and trail blazer in the field of modern dentistry. Today we travel down paths that lead to explanations as to why oral health is so important to systemic and truly w…

Here is a short written version of the fructose story in tandem with the podcast with Dr. Rick Johnson where we go deep. We are going to discuss the survival switch and fructose metabolism in specific as it relates to pregnancy. It will be another life changing discussion for many of us. Fructose is the natural sugar found in fruit, honey and root …

Asthma and Nutrition Part VCase presentation: DM is a 12 yo caucasian male who presented to integrative pediatric clinic for the first time at age 8 years with the chief complaint of moderate persistent asthma and allergic rhinitis. His past medical history relates one to three severe asthmatic flairs per winter requiring steroids and overnight hos…

This weeks guest is Dr. Peter Ungar. Dr. Ungar serves as Distinguished Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Environmental Dynamics PhD Program at the University of Arkansas. He received his PhD in Anthropological Sciences from Stony Brook University and taught Gross Anatomy in the medical schools at Johns Hopkins and Duke before joining th…

Asthma, Allergies and Nutrition Part IV - The Story - MicronutrientsZinc is a mineral involved in over 100 enzymatic reactions in the body! It is necessary in adequate levels for cellular metabolism and is critical for the function of our immune system, our skin and our gut lining. At the cellular level, zinc is necessary for protein synthesis, DNA…