St. Charles Functional Medicine

02/05/2026

Cold plunges won’t fix a nervous system that’s fried by poor sleep and blood sugar swings

02/02/2026

Gut-healing myths that need to die

If gut healing were as easy as social media makes it seem, nobody would still be bloated, tired, itchy, or reacting to everything they eat.

• “Just take a probiotic.”
Probiotics can help the right person. They can also make symptoms worse. If the gut environment is inflamed or imbalanced, adding bacteria isn’t always the answer.

• “Bone broth heals the gut.”
Sometimes. Other times it triggers symptoms, especially in people with histamine issues or active inflammation. If you feel worse, that’s not healing it’s a poor match.

• “If you cut out gluten, your gut will heal.”
Removing triggers helps, but it doesn’t fix why the gut became reactive in the first place. That’s why symptoms often return.

• “Leaky gut isn’t real.”
It’s very real. Well documented. The better question is why your gut barrier is compromised.

• “Just give it time.”
Time doesn’t correct dysbiosis, immune activation, or infections. Those need to be addressed directly.

The reality:
There is no universal gut-healing protocol. What works for one person can make another worse.

If you’ve “done all the right things” and still don’t feel right, the issue usually isn’t effort, it’s that the root cause hasn’t been identified.

01/30/2026

💊Supplement Hot Seat: Oil of Oregano

Oil of oregano gets labeled as “natural antibiotics”…
👉 But it’s actually one of the most powerful botanical antimicrobials we have — and it needs to be respected.

This isn’t a daily wellness herb.
It’s a microbial reset tool.

Who Oil of Oregano Helps

✔️ SIBO (hydrogen & mixed types)
✔️ Candida / yeast overgrowth
✔️ Parasites
✔️ Chronic sinus infections
✔️ Recurrent UTIs
✔️ Chronic bloating / gas
✔️ Mold-related gut dysbiosis
✔️ Frequent infections

Why It Works

🦠 Broad-spectrum antimicrobial
— carvacrol & thymol disrupt bacterial, fungal & parasitic cell membranes
— reduces biofilms and resistant organisms

🔥 Anti-inflammatory
— calms cytokine storms
— reduces inflammatory signaling in gut & sinuses

🧬 Immune modulating
— improves innate immune response
— enhances microbial clearance

🧠 Anti-biofilm action
— weakens microbial protective layers → allows clearance

Why It Can Backfire

❌ Can wipe out beneficial flora
❌ Can worsen histamine reactions
❌ Can irritate gastric lining
❌ Can trigger die-off reactions (headache, nausea, fatigue)

How to Take It

150–300 mg
1–3x/day with food

Use in short cycles (2–6 weeks), not long-term.

Clinical Pearls

1️⃣ One of the strongest botanical antimicrobials
2️⃣ Always pair with gut lining support
3️⃣ Follow with targeted probiotics
4️⃣ Expect die-off if infection burden is high
5️⃣ Not for maintenance — this is a treatment tool

🚫 Who Should Be Cautious

⚠️ Pregnancy
⚠️ Gastritis / ulcers
⚠️ Histamine intolerance
⚠️ Very sensitive nervous systems
⚠️ Long-term daily use

01/29/2026

🚨 New Study Says “Fat Might Be Safe After All” 🚨

A big headline came out claiming that saturated fat isn’t as bad as we once thought and social media is exploding with people celebrating that shaming on low-fat diet culture is finally “science-approved.”

But here’s the part almost nobody is talking about…

These headlines ignore the context of the person’s biology.

Here’s what research and clinical experience show:

• Saturated fat is not inherently evil, but how your body handles it depends on your metabolic state.
• If someone is insulin resistant or inflamed, eating lots of fat without stabilizing blood sugar can still drive fat storage, hormonal disruption, and dysbiosis.
• If someone’s gut is unhealthy or bile flow is poor, fats can cause bloating, pain, constipation, and nutrient malabsorption.

So yes, the old “fat is bad” idea needed to be retired.

But the new oversimplified conclusion that fat is universally good for everyone, in any quantity is exactly the same mistake in reverse.

Health is not about vilifying a nutrient.

Health is about how your body processes that nutrient.

This is why:
Two people can eat the same meal and have very different reactions
A food that heals one person can inflame another
Guidelines that treat everyone the same still fail the individual

Functional medicine doesn’t ask:
“Is this food good or bad?”

We ask:
“How does your body interact with this food?”

01/27/2026

01/23/2026

💊 Supplement Hot Seat: CoQ10

Fatigue isn’t always hormonal…
👉 Sometimes it’s mitochondrial depletion.

Especially if statins are involved.

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Who CoQ10 Helps

✔️ Statin users
✔️ Chronic fatigue
✔️ Muscle pain
✔️ Cardiovascular disease
✔️ Migraines
✔️ Aging-related energy loss

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Why It Works

⚡️ Mitochondrial energy
— essential for ATP production

🧠 Neuroprotection
— reduces oxidative damage

🫀 Heart muscle support
— improves contractility & endurance

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How to Take It

100–300 mg daily
Ubiquinol preferred for absorption

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Clinical Pearls

1️⃣ Statins block CoQ10 synthesis
2️⃣ Muscle pain often improves first
3️⃣ Pair with magnesium
4️⃣ Aging = declining CoQ10 naturally
5️⃣ Helps post-viral fatigue

🚫 Who Should Be Cautious

⚠️ Very low BP (rare)

01/21/2026

“IBS” is not a diagnosis.
It’s a description.

Bloating.
Gas.
Constipation.
Diarrhea.
Food sensitivities.
Fatigue.
Brain fog.

If your tests keep coming back “normal” but your symptoms are not — there is a very real chance the real problem has been missed.

It’s called SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth) — and it is one of the most common root causes behind chronic gut symptoms we see at St. Charles Functional Medicine.

Most people are told:
“Just change your diet.”
“Take a probiotic.”
“Try another medication.”

But if the root cause isn’t found, the symptoms always come back.

https://stcharlesfunctionalmedicine.com/sibo-the-hidden-gut-condition-behind-bloating-ibs-fatigue-food-sensitivities/

By Dr. Glenn Ezell, CFMP | St. Charles Functional Medicine If you’ve been told you have IBS, unexplained bloating, gas, constipation, diarrhea, fatigue, food reactions, or persistent gut symptoms that “nothing seems to fix,” there is a high chance the real issue has been missed. That issue is ...

01/16/2026

💊 Supplement Hot Seat: DIM (di-indol methane)

DIM is marketed for “estrogen balance”…
👉 But estrogen balance isn’t just about lowering estrogen.

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Who DIM Helps

✔️ Estrogen dominance
✔️ Heavy periods
✔️ PMS
✔️ Breast tenderness
✔️ Poor estrogen detox

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Why It Works

🧬 Estrogen metabolism
— shifts estrogen toward safer metabolites

🫀 Liver detox support
— improves phase I/II clearance

🔥 Anti-inflammatory signaling
— reduces estrogen-driven inflammation

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Why It Can Make Symptoms Worse

❌ Estrogen already low
❌ Poor adrenal support
❌ Detox pathways overwhelmed

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How to Take It

100–300 mg daily
Always with food

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Clinical Pearls

1️⃣ Symptoms matter more than labs
2️⃣ Low estrogen + DIM = worse fatigue
3️⃣ Pair with calcium-D-glucarate cautiously
4️⃣ Liver support is mandatory
5️⃣ Not a “set it and forget it” supplement

🚫 Who Should Be Cautious

⚠️ Low estrogen symptoms
⚠️ Post-menopause without testing

01/14/2026

I was honored to write an article for The Menopause Association about menopausal weight gain..if you've been ignored or weight loss is stalled in menopause, check it out!

Women walk into my practice after being told by their doctors that gaining 20 or 30 pounds during menopause is normal. They've been eating less. They& # ...

01/13/2026

You Don’t Have IBS , You Have Undiagnosed Infections

IBS is a label.
SIBO, parasites, fungal overgrowth, viral infections, bacterial infections, food sensitivities are causes.

You don’t have a mystery problem.
You have an uninvestigated problem.

01/09/2026

💊 Supplement Hot Seat: Fish Oil (Omega-3s)

Fish oil gets recommended for everything…
👉 But most people don’t understand what it actually fixes — and what it doesn’t.

Omega-3s are not a cholesterol drug.
They are anti-inflammatory signaling molecules.

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Who Fish Oil Helps

✔️ Chronic inflammation
✔️ Joint pain & stiffness
✔️ High triglycerides
✔️ Brain fog
✔️ Mood disorders
✔️ Autoimmune patterns
✔️ Cardiovascular risk
✔️ Dry eyes / skin

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Why It Works

🔥 Anti-inflammatory signaling
— EPA & DHA reduce inflammatory prostaglandins

🫀 Lipid metabolism
— lowers triglycerides (not primarily LDL)

🧠 Brain & mood support
— DHA stabilizes neuronal membranes

🩸 Vascular support
— improves endothelial function

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Why It Sometimes “Does Nothing”

❌ Dose too low
❌ Oxidized / rancid oil
❌ Poor absorption
❌ Inflammation source not addressed

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How to Take It

2–4 g combined EPA/DHA daily
Always take with food

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Clinical Pearls

1️⃣ Triglycerides respond better than LDL
2️⃣ Liquid isn’t always better — quality matters
3️⃣ Fish burps = oxidation problem
4️⃣ Essential in autoimmune patterns
5️⃣ Pair with antioxidants (vit E)

🚫 Who Should Be Cautious

⚠️ Bleeding disorders
⚠️ On anticoagulants (high dose)