National Nutrition Month: The Effects of Sugar Addiction on the Body

March 18, 2022

While sugar may seem like an innocuous substance to some, the compound can cause severe damage to both physical and mental health when consumed in excessive amounts. Experts believe that high sugar intake is one of the leading causes of rising obesity and chronic disease rates across the globe. What’s more, chronic overconsumption can increase future cravings for sugar and ultimately result in sugar addiction, which has become prevalent in the population. Many people remain unaware of the negative health effects the substance has on their bodies and even the amount they are consuming on a daily basis, as sugar is often a hidden ingredient in various food products. These individuals experience a heightened risk of developing one or more of the many conditions associated with high sugar consumption, including but not limited to obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

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National Nutrition Month: 5 Nutrition-Based Tips for Healthy Aging

March 4, 2022

March marks the beginning of National Nutrition Month, an annual campaign focused on expanding awareness and education, promoting informed dietary choices, and helping the population develop healthful eating and physical activity habits.

From a functional medicine perspective, nutrition plays a crucial role in overall health and can be leveraged as part of an integrated approach to prevent, manage, and treat diseases. Even slight changes in dietary habits can significantly benefit patient well-being, outcomes, and age-related disease risk. A recently published New York Times article outlined five nutrition-based tips that can be easily implemented to promote healthy aging.

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Post-Pandemic Need for Functional Medicine and Integrative Care

February 25, 2022

The speed and scale of the COVID-19 pandemic response highlighted the fragmentation of current healthcare systems across the globe and how it significantly impairs the ability to respond effectively. Making matters worse, the impact of the pandemic on population health and the functionality of healthcare systems has been and will continue to be far-reaching and long-lasting.

As the world attempts to rebuild from the pandemic, many individuals are left with serious and lingering health issues that require immediate and consistent attention. Healthcare practitioners are now facing a rising prevalence of chronic disease, growing cases of long COVID infection, as well as pandemic-influenced mental, physical, and emotional crises.

Addressing the devastating psychological and physical aftereffects of the pandemic will require deviation from the current standard of medicine. An integrated approach to patient care heavily grounded in functional medicine is emerging as the solution to healing global public health and repairing the siloed structures of the healthcare industry.

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