Metabolic Disorders: Critical Missteps in Metabolism
When considering metabolism, what may first come to mind is the breaking down of dietary components to make energy for us to perform our daily tasks. However, metabolism is an...
Nutrition in a growing world: Weighing in on nutritional supplements
For many people, nutritional supplements are a regular part of their diet. In 2015, over 45% of Canadians reported taking at least one type of nutritional supplement, including but not...
How Are Diets Changing Our Immune Systems?
“I am on a diet.” is probably one of the most commonly heard sentences these days. With or without a specific aim in mind, most of us have tried to...
“Fat to Fit” While you Sit? – The Secrets of Resting Metabolism
Being sedentary and consuming fast food are habits that have stealthily entered our fast-paced Western lifestyles and are common contributors to obesity. In response, most of us have either aimed...
A D-lightful Vitamin: The importance of vitamin D for a healthy individual
Vitamin D describes a group of fat-soluble chemical compounds that promote normal growth and development, with vitamin D2 and D3 being the most important for humans. While essential vitamins cannot...
Sleep and Immunity
As a kid, my father always emphasized the importance of sleep. Little did I know, as I hid under my blankets, reading a novel with a flashlight, that I was...
Microbiome Research is Blasting Off
“Our bodies are spaceships for microbes” is Dr. Allen-Vercoe’s microbiology lab motto at the University of Guelph. Amusing, yet completely on point. If earth is a rock hurtling through space...
Restoring the Balance of the Gut Microbiota: How Our Feces Can Help Fight Inflammatory Bowel
"FMT differs from other IBD therapeutics as the intended outcome for treatment is to ultimately cure IBD." Everyone has heard of kidney, heart, or other organ transplantations but many people...
The Gut-Brain Connection: Role of Microbial Messengers
People often experience “butterflies in their stomach” or a “gut-wrenching” feeling in the face of stressful situations, but what does this entail? Is it just our imagination, or can the...
Impact of the Gut Microbiota on Immunotherapy Responses
A hot topic nowadays is discussions surrounding the microbes in our gut and the numerous health benefits they provide. What isn’t as frequently discussed, however, is how gut microbial composition...