Study Links Chronic Xanthan Gum Consumption to Colon Inflammation
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Release Date: 09/23/2026
This Simple Supplement Could Help Boost Immune Function
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Arginine does more than help build proteins — your cells also need this amino acid to produce immune-alert proteins that help T cells recognize infected or abnormal cells When arginine became scarce, the cellular machinery responsible for building these immune-alert proteins stalled, leaving fewer warning signals available to help the immune system detect threats In mice, increasing dietary arginine reduced colon tumor formation and improved outcomes in influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, benefits that disappeared when researchers disabled the immune pathway arginine supports, confirming...
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Ovarian Syndrome Linked to Fourfold Higher Heart Disease Risk
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Women with polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS), the condition formerly called polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), showed a more than fourfold higher rate of artery disease in a large U.S. study based on more than two decades of health insurance records The analysis included more than 413,000 women with PMOS and over 2 million women without the condition, with an average age of just over 31, showing that cardiovascular risk can emerge during the reproductive years High blood pressure, high cholesterol, Type 2 diabetes, and obesity explained only about 36% of the association,...
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10 Natural Remedies for Flu Symptoms
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Severe flu season can affect millions, but symptoms such as fever, tiredness, swelling, and mucus often show that your immune system is working to fight the infection inside the body A large systematic review found zinc lozenges may modestly shorten common cold and flu duration by 2.4 days Honey, propolis, royal jelly, and other bee products contain natural compounds that may act against viruses, but most evidence still comes from laboratory and animal studies rather than human trials Tea tree oil did not kill the flu virus directly, but lab tests found that it interrupted an early step the...
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How Brief Breaks from Sitting May Benefit Cognition
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Breaking up long periods of sitting with brief movement may improve certain thinking skills, with the strongest evidence showing benefits for memory and executive function Walking and other gentle activities are enough to interrupt prolonged sitting, so supporting your brain throughout the day doesn’t require repeated strenuous workouts Just four three-minute activity breaks during 80 minutes of sitting helped adolescents maintain the brain’s oxygen-rich blood response during a demanding memory task Some improvements in working memory, attention and reaction speed persisted for up to 30...
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The Role of Vitamin K in Tooth Decay
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Vitamin K2 helps direct calcium into your teeth and jawbone, supporting stronger enamel and the tissues that keep your teeth firmly in place instead of relying on calcium intake alone People with the lowest vitamin K2 blood levels had the most advanced periodontal disease, including greater gum bleeding, deeper pockets around the teeth, more bone loss and faster disease progression Healthy teeth depend on more than brushing and flossing because they constantly lose and replace minerals, making your daily food choices an important part of maintaining your smile Natto, aged cheeses such as...
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Why Simpler Supplement Routines Make More Sense
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Every so often, someone takes an industry that had become cold and complicated puts the humanity back into it. The way we take supplements is overdue for exactly that For decades, supplements were one of the least human corners of health, requiring people to take fistfuls of pills and capsules and maintaining a dosing schedule that was easily forgotten on a busy day This article series has presented one idea from several angles: removing the burden that makes people quit, retiring the pill pile, abandoning the mega-dose game, and meeting the inevitable backsliding with forgiveness instead of...
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Vestibular Migraine — The Migraine Many Doctors Miss
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Vestibular migraine often causes dizziness, imbalance and motion sensitivity without a severe headache, so many people spend months or even years treating the wrong condition before receiving the correct diagnosis Looking at all of your symptoms together instead of treating each one separately makes it much easier to recognize vestibular migraine and begin a treatment plan that targets the underlying neurological problem Keeping a detailed symptom journal helps uncover your personal trigger pattern, allowing you to identify factors such as poor sleep, stress, skipped meals, weather changes or...
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Why Strokes Are More Common in the Morning
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Research consistently finds that strokes cluster in the morning, roughly between 6 a.m. and noon, rather than spreading evenly across the 24-hour day A meta-analysis of 11,816 strokes and a systematic review of 58 studies both linked this window to higher stroke onset across ischemic, hemorrhagic, and transient ischemic attacks Scientists attribute the pattern largely to normal circadian shifts, including the blood pressure surge on waking and morning changes that make the blood more prone to clotting Strokes that begin overnight are often recognized late and have been associated with greater...
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Muscle Health Plays Crucial Role in Diabetes Risk, Study Finds
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Having both excess body fat and low muscle mass and strength increased the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes by more than 3.5 times, showing that muscle health is just as important as body weight for protecting your metabolism Your diabetes risk changes as your body composition changes, meaning that building and preserving muscle while reducing excess body fat helps shift your long-term metabolic health in the right direction Women and adults younger than 60 experienced a greater increase in diabetes risk from poor muscle health than other groups, highlighting the importance of protecting...
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Why the Best Supplement Routine Starts with Your Real Life
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
A nutritional supplement regimen is only helpful when it fits the way you actually live Health communication research suggests narrative messages can influence health intentions when people identify with the story being told. Identification matters because it turns a health message from something abstract into something you can recognize in your own day A practical supplement routine reduces friction that can otherwise derail the best of intentions. For example, a scoop of nutritional powder added to food you already eat makes adherence as easy as adding spice to your meal, and makes...
info_outline- Long-term xanthan gum consumption triggered measurable inflammation in the colon of otherwise healthy rats, even though their weight, blood sugar and cholesterol remained normal, suggesting digestive changes can develop before routine health markers reveal a problem
- Researchers found that xanthan gum altered proteins that help maintain the gut's protective barrier, making the intestinal lining more permeable and allowing inflammation to become established
- The study also found subtle shifts in specific groups of gut bacteria that occurred alongside inflammation, indicating that repeated xanthan gum exposure affected both the gut microbiome and the intestinal environment
- Xanthan gum is widely used in processed foods, including gluten-free products, salad dressings, sauces, protein powders, frozen meals, and many packaged snacks, making it easy to consume multiple times a day without realizing it
- Reading ingredient labels, choosing fresh whole foods over heavily processed products and preparing more meals at home are practical ways to reduce your xanthan gum exposure and support a healthier digestive tract