Harris Whole Health

03/05/2026

Did you know that Medicare only covers renal disease (stage 4 and beyond) and diabetes? It's unfortunate. That means that people with Celiac, inflammatory disease, IBS, cancer, (and the list goes on...) can't get coverage, and many private plans follow Medicare guidelines. If you think this should change, there's currently a bill in Congress, and you can support it here:

Introduced in the Senate by Sens. Collins (ME) and Peters (MI) and U.S. House of Representatives by U.S. Reps. Robin Kelly (IL) and Jen Kiggans (VA), the Medical Nutrition Therapy Act (H.R.6199 and S. 3934) would expand coverage of medical nutrition...

02/28/2026

there's a lot of suspicion that dairy can raise the risk of inflammatory bowel disease. But does it really? The newest meta analysis of prospective data looking at almost 200,000 people suggests no, likely it's protective, especially yogurt, and especially for UC. Obviously the usual "more research needed" caveats...

02/27/2026

I do recommend GERD pillows a lot. Hey, no real side effects...but there are fewer studies on them, so it's nice to see a new one comparing them to PPIs and finding they're just as effective as an evening PPI, and they help with sleep quality.

The wedge pillow showed comparable efficacy to evening PPI in relieving nocturnal reflux symptoms, indicating its potential as an alternative management strategy.

02/15/2026

POTS, HRT & menopause? just out! we have more questions than answers, but it's nice to see the beginnings of data on the topic

Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), characterized by a rise in heart rate of at least 30 beats per minute from supine to standing position without accompanying orthostatic hypotension, is one of the most common autonomic disorders with disabling cardiovascular and neurologic manifestat...

02/12/2026

choline doesn't get enough love, but it may be one of the reasons medications like mestinon (Pyridostigmine) works for POTS.

AbstractBackground. Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is a common autonomic disorder of heterogeneous pathophysiology involving relative sym

02/05/2026

there are a lot of harms of weight stigma. it's also inflammatory. yep. not surprisingly, it increases emotional stress, but it also it increases IL-6, TNF alpha and other measures of inflammation. So it's difficult to separate out the impact of weight vs weight stigma. Keirns NG, Keirns BH, Tsotsoros CE, Layman HM, Stout ME, Sciarrillo CM, Emerson SR, Byrd-Craven J, Krems JA, Pearl RL, Tomiyama AJ, Hawkins MAW. The Acute Inflammatory Effects of Weight Stigma: An Experimental Pilot Study. Stigma Health. 2025 Aug;10(3):567-571. doi: 10.1037/sah0000487.

Weight stigma is a chronic stressor and may contribute to cardiometabolic health risk. This pilot study tests an experimental protocol exploring acute inflammation as a potential biological mechanism connecting weight stigma and disease risk. ...

02/03/2026

really great review on the fundamentals of POTS (not diet, but still; great overview)

Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is a complex disorder mainly of orthostatic intolerance, often accompanied by a spectrum of symptoms related to autonomic nervous system dysfunction. Although the diagnostic criteria require an orthostatic challenge test, the associated symptom burden...

02/01/2026

I've been getting some wonderful Qs about GLP1s in my EDS/HSD patients, so I put together a quick post:

Posted on February 1, 2026February 1, 2026 by Cheryl HarrisWhat I wish patients with bendy bodies heard before starting GLP-1s First, I’m not against GLP-1 meds. Tools are tools; they seem to have potential as anti-inflammatory medications, especially for people with MCAS, and that’s some really...

01/30/2026

out yesterday...https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1114634

01/29/2026

The National Celiac Association’s Feeding Gluten Free (FGF) program exists to address a real and often overlooked gap: access to safe, gluten-free food for folks who have celiac disease/another gluten-related condition AND food insecurity.

Through this program, we are able to purchase and coordinate donations of gluten-free food to areas with known need, ensuring support reaches the people who need it most.

After Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina in 2024, we connected with the Hunger & Health Coalition in Boone, NC, which is an incredible organization that began as a food pantry and has grown into a comprehensive health resource. Their team includes nurses, physicians, pharmacists, registered dietitians, and even social workers who work together to support whole-person health. They are uniquely equipped to serve individuals with celiac disease and other medical dietary needs.

We’re excited that our Feeding Gluten Free program is able to provide regular shipments of gluten-free food to help support this mission. This month’s shipment arrived just in time, as Boone, like much of the country, was hit with a winter storm this weekend. Whenever there are weather conditions that can cause power outages or damage, it increases demand on mutual aid resources like pantries. We are so glad we were able to get GF there before the storm!

Access to gluten-free food is a medical necessity for those of us with celiac disease and other gluten-related conditions. We’re grateful to partner with organizations doing the work on the ground to make that access possible.

01/26/2026

Just sent out the G-free/digestive health newsletter with a roundup of all sorts of interesting things--gf labeling, recipes, research.

Posted on January 25, 2026January 25, 2026 by Cheryl HarrisComments open for GF labeling winter kale… BIG NEWS! The comment period is open for U.S. Food and Drug Administration re: labeling of gluten. The tl;dr: the FDA has a comment period open NOW re: requiring labels to clearly mark ingredients...

01/24/2026

interesting case study on cromolyn for people with MECFS & MCAS (continuous, vs discrete doses)

Our clinical experience in the last four years using oral cromolyn in patients with mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS) suggests that a continuous oral regimen of high-dose cromolyn may enhance compliance with the medication. The five patients described in this retrospective case series were given....