Mathias is a patient who has been working with Dr. Kharrazian to manage his sports-related brain injury and related chronic health conditions. He has shared this as an open letter to all practitioners. It is posted here with his permission. This is a follow-up to my case history. It has been an intense struggle to…
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(Click here to read Part II of the Autoimmunity Mind-Body Connection.) When managing a chronic health condition — pain, inflammation, hypothyroidism, an autoimmune disease — it’s easy to get caught up in the nuts and bolts of care. Strategies such as an anti-inflammatory diet, supplements, medications, sleep hygiene, exercise, and other functional medicine protocols can…
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(To read Part 1 of the Autoimmunity Mind-Body Connection click here.) So how exactly do happiness, positivity, and socialization improve health? They profoundly influence stress levels, inflammation, and the release of feel-good chemicals, all of which play roles in autoimmune management. Social isolation, pessimistic thinking, toxic relationships, unhappy marriages, dead-end jobs, living a life without…
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A recent study we conducted showed infections — bacterial, viral, parasitic, mold and yeast — may trigger the development of Alzheimer’s disease in a mechanism similar to the development of autoimmunity. The study, published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease (JAD), examined how infections may play a role in the development of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). We performed…
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Every day our bodies work hard to cope with the effects of environmental toxins, food intolerances, inflammatory diets high in sugar but low in nutrients, sleep deprivation, and chronic stress. To minimize the damage, it’s important to support levels of glutathione, a powerful antioxidant produced by the body. This can be done by taking glutathione…
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It wasn’t long ago that the “autoimmune protocol (AIP diet)” was unknown term for what used to be known in functional medicine as the “elimination and provocation diet.” Today, the AIP diet is a well-known tool in autoimmune management, and thousands of autoimmune patients have used it successfully to help recover their health. However, while…
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Oral Tolerance Part I: Sensitive to multiple foods and not getting better? Here’s why If you’re managing your autoimmune disease, chronic health disorder, or brain health, then you’re probably familiar with the autoimmune paleo (AIP) diet, also known as the leaky gut diet or autoimmune paleo protocol. Prior to its rebranding online, functional medicine practitioners…
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The immune system is responsible for protecting us from bacteria, viruses, parasites, and other pathogens. However, many factors of modern life have created exploding rates of immune-related disorders, including autoimmunity — a condition in which the immune system attacks and destroys body tissue. Although autoimmune disease can affect any part of the body, many people…
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One of the most common health issues I see in new patients is unstable blood sugar. Unstable blood sugar underlies many of the symptoms that autoimmune patients cope with, including exhaustion, insomnia, anxiety, depression, and brain fog. This is a relatively simple issue to remedy, and many patients don’t realize how deeply it impacts their…
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While male hormone imbalance is not a topic that gets as much press as female hormone imbalance, it is nevertheless vital to men’s health and well-being. It is important for practitioners and patients to understand the factors that underlie male hormone imbalances so the root caused can be addressed, instead of routing patients automatically to…
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Healthy gut bacteria is key to managing autoimmunity and other chronic disorders in part because they produce short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), compounds that help modulate the immune system and dampen inflammation. The primary SCFA we look at in relation to immune health is called butyrate. Butyrate is so important to intestinal cells they will…
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When you’re managing autoimmunity and other chronic health issues, the dietary changes, lab testing, and lifestyle overhauls can be a lot of hard work. But it’s also vitally important to your immune health to do things that make you feel good in a positive way. This is because having fun boosts your endorphins, which dampen…
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