News & Insights

After suffering from ulcerative colitis for several years, a patient arrived at the clinic of Robert Rountree, MD. Dr. Rountree practices Functional Medicine, and his approach yielded good results with this patient – watch the video to learn more.

As an educator at IFM’s GI Advanced Practice Module (APM), Tom Sult, MD, is an expert in treating simple and complex gastrointestinal problems. In this video, he explains the DIGIN framework, a cornerstone of GI treatment.

IFM Executive Director of Medical Education Robert Luby, MD, describes how a Functional Medicine approach can help to shift a clinician’s approach and reduce burnout.

In the following video, IFM educator Monique Class, MS, APRN, BC, describes the research around social isolation, mortality, and health. As an emerging field, social genomics has enormous implications for lifestyle prescriptions and preventative medicine.

In this video, Kristi Hughes, ND, describes the benefits of fasting insulin testing at two-hour intervals.

Oral exams can reveal signs and symptoms of more than 90% of systemic diseases. However, in spite of these associations, some researchers feel there is a lack of awareness in the healthcare community on their possible importance. What do Functional Medicine practitioners look for within the oral cavity to assess overall health?

Sleep disruption has many negative health effects, and frequent nighttime urination (nocturia) that interrupts sleep is common, under-recognized, and benefits from personalized treatment. Nocturia is prevalent and worrisome, and treatment can greatly improve health-related quality of life. Yet 66% of sufferers polled had not talked to a doctor about their symptoms.

The “state of ketosis,” achieved by adhering to a ketogenic diet, has been shown to exert a protective action against neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and more. In AD and PD, single human studies have shown a reduction of disease symptoms in participants following a ketogenic diet.

Inflammation is correlated with uterine fibroid development. Estimates are that at least 23% of women of reproductive age are exposed to three or more toxicants above the level of known safety.

The heavy bleeding associated with fibroids can cause anemia, fatigue, and pain, while sufferers report difficulty with diagnosis and concerns about available treatment options.

Priya Kamani, MD, is not only a clinician but also a technology entrepreneur. It has become her mission to support Functional Medicine clinicians through a software she has developed called LivingMatrix. LivingMatrix automates many stages of data collection and analysis while providing a tool for communicating clinical needs to patients, connecting patients to educational materials, and tracking outcomes in a Functional Medicine framework.

Studies suggest that many patients do not have optimal nutrition, are experiencing record levels of chronic disease, and are most likely being treated with pharmaceuticals despite the availability of other, less invasive but highly effective options. One such option is to incorporate teaching kitchens into the patient educational experience, like Swathi Rao, PA-C, has done in her family practice.

Gallup’s most recent poll found that lower-income Americans tended to report more stress. While some stress is normal, chronic stress is connected to a range of conditions, including mental health issues, cognitive changes, and chronic disease. This makes widespread stress a public health issue that affects underserved populations disproportionately.