Enhancing Fertility through Functional Medicine: Using Nutrigenomics to Solve 'Unexplained' Infertility provides cutting-edge information and solutions to help support the worldwide rise of fertility challenges. It addresses common, yet not commonly known, root-causes of oxidative stress that are at the heart of reproductive issues (and all chronic health issues). These solutions can help enhance the outcomes of assisted reproductive technologies (ART) or support women to avoid them altogether.
Enhancing Fertility through Functional Medicine: Using Nutrigenomics to Solve 'Unexplained' Infertility will show you how to improve cell health (including egg and sperm), lower inflammation, balance nervous system functioning, and optimize genetic expression, allowing the body to return to its naturally fertile state. It details information on numerous root causes of health-derailing inflammation and oxidative stress, while the appendices discuss the genetic and biochemical pathways related to these topics.
Each chapter also provides easy “Action Steps” that can be implemented immediately. Chapter topics include iron dysregulation; oxalates; mold/mycotoxins; phase 2 liver detoxification pathways; fat utilization; introductory information on genetics, epigenetics, and nutrigenomics; everything one needs to know about histamine intolerance; and how these factors adversely affect metabolic and reproductive functions.
Enhancing Fertility through Functional Medicine: Using Nutrigenomics to Solve 'Unexplained' Infertility is the handbook for people wanting to achieve and sustain a healthy pregnancy. It highlights lesser-known causes of fertility challenges the reader can learn how to investigate. This book also serves as a reference guide for practitioners, providing them with additional tools to add to their repertoires when other protocols have not been effective. It may also provide clarity as to why other protocols did not work and will enable the practitioner to custom-tailor protocols for each patient.
Author(s): Jaclyn Downs
Publisher: CRC Press
Year: 2023
Language: English
Pages: 236
City: Boca Raton
Cover
Half Title
Endorsements
Title
Copyright
Dedication
Contents
Foreword
Acknowledgments
Author Biography
Introduction
PART 1: Introduction to Functional Fertility and Oxidative Stress
Chapter 1 What Is Functional Genomic Fertility?
1.1 My Realization
1.2 The Statistics on Infertility and Miscarriage
1.3 ART Statistics
1.4 What Exactly Is a Hormone, Anyway?
1.5 A Word on Assisted Reproductive Technologies in Relation to Hormones
References
Chapter 2 Oxidative Stress and Inflammation as Major Root Causes of Reproductive Issues
2.1 Inflammation as a Cause and Result of Oxidative Stress
2.2 How Inflammation Affects Fertility
References
PART 2: Your 12-Week Functional Fertility Solution
Chapter 3 Improving Sleep Quality as a Solid Foundation for Fertility
References
Chapter 4 Get Salivary Genetic Testing Done That Goes above and beyond Just MTHFR and Methylation
4.1 First, What Is a Gene?
4.2 Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms
4.3 Enzymes Require Nutritional Cofactors in Order to Work
4.4 Epigenetics Describes the Way the Genome Interacts with the Environment
4.5 “Genetics Loads the Gun, but Environment Pulls the Trigger"
4.6 Food and Environment Are Information for Our Genes
4.7 Government Nutrition Recommendations Are Antiquated
4.8 Now That You Know All That, It’s Finally Time to Talk about MTHFR
4.9 Folic Acid Conversion to Folate
4.10 Methylfolate
4.11 Notes on Intermittent Fasting
4.12 Action Steps for Patients
References
Chapter 5 Eat a Nourishing Diet, Not a “Healthy” Diet
5.1 Water Nourishes the Body and Is Essential for Life
5.2 Here Are Some Basic Tips to Know If a Supplement Is Halfway Decent
References
Chapter 6 Address Stress: Your Physical and Emotional Health May Be Hindering Your Fertility
References
Chapter 7 Mold and Mycotoxins: Get the Mold Out
7.1 Mold Spores
7.2 Mycotoxins and Gut Health
7.3 Mold, Mycotoxins, and Reproductive Health
7.4 Testing for Mycotoxins in the Body
7.5 Clearing out the Mold
References
Chapter 8 Iron Behaving Badly: Understand Your Iron Status
8.1 While Hemochromatosis Isn’t All That Common, Iron Dysregulation Is
8.1.1 Iron Dysregulation and Its Effects on Fertility
References
Chapter 9 Investigate If Oxalates Are a Culprit
9.1 A Note on Oxalates and Estrogen Dominance
References
Chapter 10 The Importance of Proper Fat Utilization for Hormonal Balance and Fetal Growth
10.1 The Fat/Oxalate Relationship
10.2 L-Carnitine to the Rescue!
10.3 Other Helpful Nutrients for Proper Fat Usage
References
Chapter 11 Improve Egg and Sperm Health
References
Chapter 12 Toxins, Toxins, Everywhere: Prioritize Avoiding Toxins!
12.1 Toxins and Hormones
12.2 Toxins and Mitochondrial Energy Production (or Lack Thereof)
12.3 Plastics
12.4 Pesticides
12.5 Heavy Metals
12.6 Mold Exposure and Mycotoxins
12.7 Indoor Air Quality
12.8 Body Care Products
References
Chapter 13 Optimize Your Liver Detoxification Pathways and Detoxify with Precision
13.1 Drainage before Detoxification
13.2 Sulfation Is Critical for Hormonal Health
13.3 Sulfation Ability Impacts Thyroid Hormones
13.4 Vitamin D Levels Can Be Deficient If Someone Doesn’t Have Sulfate
13.5 Sulfite from Foods
13.6 Glucuronidation: The Unsung Hero
13.7 Glutathione Conjugation Pathway
13.8 Action Steps: How We Support Glutathione and the GST Genes
13.9 Acetylation
13.10 For All Acetylation Reactions, We Need Adequate Acetyl-CoA
13.11 Action Steps: Beginning to Support Acetylation
13.12 Phase 2.5 and Phase 3 Detox
References
Chapter 14 Show Your Guts Some Love
14.1 The Gut–Hormone Connection: How Gut Imbalance Leads to Inflammation and Hormonal Havoc
References
Chapter 15 Histamine Can Affect Reproductive Outcomes
15.1 What Is Histamine?
15.2 What Causes Histamine Intolerance?
15.3 Histamine Intake/Exposure
15.4 Histamine Production
15.5 Action Steps to Compensate for HDC Gene Upregulation and Slow Histidine-to-Histamine Conversion
15.6 Histamine Receptor Activity
15.7 Meet the Histamine Receptors
15.8 A Note on Antihistamines
15.9 The Ability to Clear Histamine from the Body
15.10 Nutritional Cofactors to Support DAO Activity
15.11 Excess Histamine Causes Poor Gut Health (and Vice Versa), Which Causes Low DAO, Which Causes Elevated Histamine
15.12 DAO Blockers
15.13 Methylation of Histamine
15.14 Testing for Histamine Intolerance
15.15 Acetylation of Histamine
15.16 Glucuronidation of Histamine
15.17 Probiotics: Harmful and Helpful
15.18 Histamine and Reproductive Outcomes
References
Chapter 16 Additional Support: Tighten Up Your Blood Sugar Levels: Why Addressing All the Previous Steps Will Help Balance Blood Sugar
16.1 Blood Sugar Imbalance = Rise in Cortisol = Reproductive Problems
16.2 The Blood Sugar Roller Coaster Constantly Relies on Cortisol to Save the Day
References
Chapter 17 Summing It Up/Conclusion
Appendices
Appendix 1
Appendix 2
Appendix 4
DNA Structure
Ancestral/Wild Type versus Risk Allele
Upregulation and Downregulation, Also Referred to as Gain of Function and Loss of Function
Promotion of Autophagy to Keep mTOR in Check
References
Appendix 8
There Are Other Genes Relating to Iron Dysregulation besides the HFE Gene
References
Appendix 9
What a Urine Organic Acid Test Can Tell Us About Oxalates
References
Appendix 10
Appendix 11
NADPH Is Required for Glutathione Recycling
Now, on to NOX
NOX Must Be Kept under Control
mTOR Stimulates NOX
Homocysteine Stimulates NOX
Additional Nerd Notes on Homocysteine
Histamine Is Another Factor That Stimulates NOX
Glutamate Stimulates NOX
Natural Progesterone Promotes GABA and Suppresses Glutamate
Caveat for GABA Supplementation
Tamp down NOX Activity to Spare NADPH
NAD+ and NADPH: Not to Be Confused, But Definitely Related
What Are NADH and NAD+?
Action Steps for Supporting NAD+ and NADPH Levels
Let’s Go Upstream of NADPH
Nrf2: An Essential Component for NADPH Production, along with Controlling Many Other Processes
What Is Nrf2?
Nerd Note for My Nerdies: Genetic Variants and Autophagy
Nrf2, NADPH, and Folate
NAD+ Governs Mating Ability via the SIRT Genes
References
Appendix 13
Phase II Detoxification Conjugation by Acetylation
PANK Is Needed for Healthy Fats, Which Make Hormones
References
Appendix 15
Glossary of Terms
Resources
Index
