Genetic testing can help guide highly individualised diet and lifestyle medicine-based interventions and is also highly motivational. We meet Dr Denise Furness, a pioneer and thought leader on nutrigenomics and hear how she started in research and extended into clinical work and education for health professionals focusing on the role of genomics in nutritional and lifestyle medicine. Our discussion includes foundational concepts around nutrigenomics in clinical practice and her recent BIO AGE study.

Guest:

Dr. Denise Furness, PhD

About our guest:

Dr. Denise Furness PhD is a pioneer in the field of nutrigenomics and personalised health with almost 20 years’ experience in the area. Dr Furness began her research career in 2003 investigating folate and B vitamin metabolism, methylation and DNA damage in relation to pregnancy health. Over the years her research expanded to include vitamin D, immune health and oxidative stress in relation to both male and female fertility. This research was conducted with the University of Adelaide, CSIRO human nutrition and The Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Adelaide, Australia. During this time, she witnessed a high success rate in the recurrent miscarriage and high-risk pregnancy clinics. She has published her work in peer reviewed journals and has won numerous awards for her research and conference presentations.

In 2012 Dr Furness founded Your Genes & Nutrition and began working with integrative medical doctors and learning about functional medicine. She has since become a prominent thought leader in this field and lectured for the Australasian College of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine (ACNEM), is editor of the ACNEM Journal and on the editorial board for the Nutritional Medicine Journal. Dr Furness regularly lectures globally at conferences for health professionals on topics related to nutrigenomics and functional medicine.

In her clinical practice, Dr Furness works with a range of patients helping them identify underlying triggers and root causes of their health concerns. Using a combined approach of genetics, biochemical markers, nutrition and lifestyle medicine she helps people take charge of their health and wellbeing.

Guest websites and links:

https://drdenisefurness.com.au

Selection of our guest’s publications:

• Jankovic-Karasoulos T, Furness DL, Leemaqz SY, Dekker GA, Grzeskowiak LE, Grieger JA, Andraweera PH, McCullough D, McAninch D, McCowan LM, Bianco-Miotto T, Roberts CT. Maternal folate, one-carbon metabolism and pregnancy outcomes. Matern Child Nutr. 2021 Jan;17(1):e13064.
• Kos BJP, Leemaqz SY, McCormack CD, Andraweera PH, Furness DL, Roberts CT, Dekker GA. The association of parental methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase polymorphisms (MTHFR 677C > T and 1298A > C) and fetal loss: a case-control study in South Australia. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2020 Mar;33(5):752-757.
• McCormack CD, Leemaqz SY, Furness DL, Dekker GA, Roberts CT. Anti-Müllerian hormone levels in recurrent embryonic miscarriage patients are frequently abnormal, and may affect pregnancy outcomes. J Obstet Gynaecol. 2019 Jul;39(5):623-627.
• McCormack C, Leemaqz S, Furness D, Dekker G, Roberts C. Association between vitamin D status and hyperinsulinism. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2019 Dec;32(23):4005-4008.
• Furness DL, Yasin N, Dekker GA, Thompson SD, Roberts CT. Maternal red blood cell folate concentration at 10-12 weeks gestation and pregnancy outcome. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2012 Aug;25(8):1423-7.

Thomas G. Guilliams, PhD is an expert in a systems-biology based approach to dietary interventions, lifestyle medicine and nutritional and herbal supplements. This conversation shares his insights from extensive experience in dietary supplements that culminated in the publication of a foundational textbook, Supplementing Dietary Nutrients. We discus important themes such as how to contextualise the use and expectations of supplements alongside dietary and lifestyle changes, marketing vs. science, bioavailability, and issues around quality.

Guest:

Thomas G. Guilliams, PhD

About our guest:

Thomas G. Guilliams, PhD (Tom) earned his doctorate in molecular immunology from the Medical College of Wisconsin. For the past 28 years, he has spent his time investigating the mechanisms and actions of lifestyle and nutrient-based therapies and is an expert in the science and therapeutic uses of dietary supplements. Tom currently serves as an adjunct associate professor at the University of Wisconsin School of Pharmacy and was the VP of Science for Ortho Molecular Products for 24 years (he now serves them as a consultant). Over the past decade, he has written a series of teaching manuals (Road Maps) that teach and evaluate the principles and protocols that are fundamental to the functional and integrative medical communities. His publication The Role of Stress and the HPA Axis in Chronic Disease Management, now in its second edition, has become the standard for teaching this critical topic to healthcare professionals. He is the founder and director of the Point Institute, an independent research and publishing organization that facilitates the distribution of his many publications. A frequent guest-speaker, Dr. Guilliams provides straight-forward science-based training to a variety of healthcare disciplines in the use of lifestyle and non-pharmacological therapies. Tom is an avid outdoorsman with too many hobbies to list. He is blessed to live in the woodlands of Central Wisconsin with his family.

Guest websites and links:

• https://www.pointinstitute.org

Selection of our guest’s publications:

• Guilliams, T. Supplementing Dietary Nutrients, Second Edition. The Point Institute. 2020.
• Guilliams, T. Bioavailability of Supplemental Dietary Nutrients: Challenges and Conundrums. The Point Institute. 2020.
• Guilliams TG, Weintraub J. Implementing Personalized Dietary Interventions for Immune-Mediated Inflammatory Diseases. Integr Med (Encinitas). 2023 Nov;22(5):18-26.
• Guilliams TG, Drake LE. Meal-Time Supplementation with Betaine HCl for Functional Hypochlorhydria: What is the Evidence? Integr Med (Encinitas). 2020 Feb;19(1):32-36.

Dr David Unwin started a grass-roots approach to reversing cardiometabolic disease, in particular type-2 diabetes, in his clinical practice that has resulted in the publication of clinical evidence documenting patient outcomes and spurred a global movement that is transforming people’s lives. In this remarkable conversation he shares his story, insights from the work he is doing, and new concepts around ultra-processed food addiction.

Guest:

Dr. David Unwin

About our guest:

Dr David Unwin is an award-winning GP known for pioneering the low-carb approach in the UK. He is the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) national champion for collaborative care and support planning in obesity and diabetes. He also won the NHS Innovator of the Year Award 2016 for his research into diet and lifestyle interventions. He has worked at Norwood Surgery in Southport since 1986 as a family doctor. To date, he has helped 141 patients achieve drug free, type 2 diabetes remission (achieving a remission rate of 51 per cent).

Guest websites and links:

• https://phcuk.org/
• https://phcuk.org/sugar/
• https://courses.bslm.org.uk/product?catalog=1693826133zBxc8

Selection of our guest’s publications:

• Unwin J, Delon C, Giæver H, Kennedy C, Painschab M, Sandin F, Poulsen CS, Wiss DA. Low carbohydrate and psychoeducational programs show promise for the treatment of ultra-processed food addiction: 12-month follow-up. Front Psychiatry. 2025 Apr 14;16:1556988. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1556988. PMID: 40357512; PMCID: PMC12067479.
• Unwin D, Delon C, Unwin J, Tobin S, Taylor R. What predicts drug-free type 2 diabetes remission? Insights from an 8-year general practice service evaluation of a lower carbohydrate diet with weight loss. BMJ Nutr Prev Health. 2023 Jan 2;6(1):46-55.
• Unwin D, Unwin J, Crocombe D, Delon C, Guess N, Wong C. Renal function in patients following a low carbohydrate diet for type 2 diabetes: a review of the literature and analysis of routine clinical data from a primary care service over 7 years. Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2021 Oct 1;28(5):469-479.
• Brown A, McArdle P, Taplin J, Unwin D, Unwin J, Deakin T, Wheatley S, Murdoch C, Malhotra A, Mellor D. Dietary strategies for remission of type 2 diabetes: A narrative review. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2022 Feb;35(1):165-178.
• Unwin D, Khalid AA, Unwin J, Crocombe D, Delon C, Martyn K, Golubic R, Ray S. Insights from a general practice service evaluation supporting a lower carbohydrate diet in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and prediabetes: a secondary analysis of routine clinic data including HbA1c, weight and prescribing over 6 years. BMJ Nutr Prev Health. 2020 Nov 2;3(2):285-294.
• McAuliffe S, Unwin D, Bradfield J, Ray S, Martyn K. Bridging the gap between science-led research and evaluation of clinical practice: the role of service innovation audits and case studies. BMJ Nutr Prev Health. 2021 Feb 16;4(1):350-351.