europe.tianmedical.com blogger

Celebrating internal medicine through our human connections with patients

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 19:00:32 +0000

Students have been sharing with me their reasons for deciding to pursue a career in internal medicine, a fitting topic for this year’s upcoming Internal Medicine Day. The most moving stories are those describing them seeing the person behind the patient, often for the first time. Many students also mention, of course, their attraction to

The debate on English tests for immigrant nurses

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 19:00:24 +0000

As a research scientist who is devoted to ensuring that immigrant nurses have successful U.S. careers, the issue of internationally educated nurses’ (IENs’) cross-culture language competence has recently been both a sensitive and front-and-center issue pervading my work. In my more than 30 years in the health care sphere, the topic is now reaching a

The FQHC model and medicine’s moral promise

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 17:00:31 +0000

The Federally Qualified Health Center stands as perhaps the most eloquent institutional response to the perennial tension between medicine as market commodity and medicine as moral imperative. In the concrete reality of the FQHC (with its sliding-fee scales, its community governance structures, and its legislative mandate to serve the underserved) we find materialized those aspirations

The FQHC model and medicine’s moral promise originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

AI companions and loneliness

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 16:00:05 +0000

Into this psychological wasteland, we’re now introducing AI companions as the solution. Meta’s personas, Character.AI’s virtual friends, and romantic chatbots; the market for artificial intimacy is exploding. The promise is seductive: connection without risk, companionship without effort, and validation on demand. But here’s what these AI relationships actually do: They allow users to avoid the

AI companions and loneliness originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

The frustrating bureaucracy of getting a vaccine

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 15:00:43 +0000

At age 81, I speak and write voluminously as a health care educator specializing in public health policy and practice for the treatment of pain and addiction. My wife and I are also careful about getting our periodic vaccinations for flu and COVID-19. A few days ago we responded to an invitation from our pharmacy

Who profits from medical malpractice lawsuits?

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 13:00:36 +0000

I define a frivolous medical malpractice lawsuit as being caused by a random error of nature. Plaintiffs are entitled to feel aggrieved and to seek legal counsel. Some, however, have ulterior motives. Plaintiff attorneys are “good Samaritans.” They work for a contingency fee. This invites ulterior motives; however, because these attorneys bear the cost, motives

Who profits from medical malpractice lawsuits? originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Healing from the pandemic’s mental toll

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 11:00:03 +0000

The pandemic changed us in ways that cannot be measured by infection rates alone. Beyond the physical toll, it left lasting scars on our mental health. Fear, uncertainty, and isolation became daily realities. As a health professional and researcher, I wanted to understand how people could begin to heal. During my doctoral work, I studied

Healing from the pandemic’s mental toll originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Defends His Health Policies to the US Senate

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

On September 4, 2025, U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. attended the President's 2026 Health Care Agenda hearing, appearing before the Senate Committee on Finance.¹

The hearing allowed senators to question Kennedy's recent shake-up of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). At the same time, Kennedy used the opportunity to defend his vision and lay out his future plans to accomplish President Trump's Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) campaign.

I encourage you to listen to the entire hearing, which is over three hours long.² If it's too much in one sitting, I recommend you break it up in parts. It contains new, eye-opening information regarding the corruption behind our health agencies, and what Kennedy aims to do to improve public health while regaining the trust that was broken because of the draconian COVID-19 pandemic policies.

A Vision for a Healthier America

In his opening statement, Kennedy set the tone by telling the committee the country is finally shifting from what he called a "sick care system" to a real health care system that tackles the root causes of chronic diseases.

• Chronic disease levels are at crisis levels — Kennedy noted that 76.4% of Americans are diagnosed with a chronic disease right now, calling it a national security issue that threatens the country's future. "When my uncle was president, it was 11%. In 1950, it was 3%. Today it's 76.4%," he said.

• Getting down to the roots of chronic disease — Kennedy told the committee that the White House released the MAHA Report, which he described as the first government review to look at the key drivers of chronic disease.

The report pointed to four main culprits — ultraprocessed foods, chemical exposures, physical inactivity, and what he called "over-medicalization" — the tendency to use too many drugs and procedures rather than addressing lifestyle factors. Kennedy promised that a full strategy plan will follow, detailing how each of these problems will be tackled.

• Actions the HHS has taken during the first half-year under Kennedy — These included cracking down on food dyes and contaminated baby formula, closing loopholes in food safety laws, reviewing fluoride levels in drinking water, fighting the sale of addictive "gas station heroin" and e-cigarettes, and working to lower drug prices and make prior authorization faster and easier for patients.

He wrapped up this statement by saying that Americans are now living under the "busiest, most proactive administration in HHS history."

• A necessary reset at the CDC — Kennedy argued that the agency failed its most basic mission during the COVID-19 pandemic, pointing out that America has 4.2% of the world's population but nearly 20% of its COVID deaths.

"We literally did worse than any country in the world," he said. Kennedy explained that many CDC leaders were leaving because the agency needed "bold, competent, and creative new leadership." He insisted that his goal is to give you "unbiased, politics-free, transparent, evidence-based science," so you can trust public health guidance again.

• Restoring trust and focusing federal programs where they matter — Kennedy said programs like Medicaid need to serve those who truly need them and that new reforms in the One Big Beautiful Bill are designed to reduce waste and improper payments so that coverage is preserved for the most vulnerable patients.

• Kennedy aims to change the entire culture of health care in America — He made it clear that his campaign isn't only about cutting medical bloat or political debates — it is also about making sure you and your family have a future where chronic disease does not hold you back. "If we don't end this chronic disease, we are the sickest country in the world," he warned, promising to make tough personnel decisions at the HHS and the CDC to make sure "this doesn't happen again."

Keeping Rural Hospitals Alive and Well

The problems facing rural hospitals did not just appear overnight. Senator Mike Crapo said Congress had been studying the issue for years and that the One Big Beautiful Bill was created specifically to stop the collapse of rural health care systems.

Crapo explained that the new law injects $50 billion into rural hospitals over five years, representing a more than 50% increase in federal support for these communities. This infusion of money is meant not only to keep hospitals open, but also to help them modernize and prepare for long-term stability.

• Kennedy backed Crapo's comments — He noted that more than 120 rural hospitals had closed in the last decade and many towns are now at risk of losing their most important community anchor. He called rural hospitals "economic centers" and "the centerpiece for those communities," saying that when a hospital closes, the whole town suffers — jobs disappear, and people lose access to urgent care.

Kennedy framed the Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program as President Trump's direct answer to the crisis and said it was designed to stop what he described as a slow-motion collapse of small-town health care.

• Rural hospital leaders are not panicking about the bill — Crapo said they are working with Dr. Mehmet Oz and other officials to carefully plan the rollout so that the money is used effectively.

• Cleaning up fraud, waste, and abuse in the system — Kennedy pointed out that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) found millions of duplicate enrollments in Medicaid and Affordable Care Act exchange plans. He said that fixing these errors will save $14 billion a year while making sure those who are legally eligible will get to keep their coverage.

• Chronic disease is a bigger threat to the country than most political debates admit — The rising rates of heart disease, diabetes, and other conditions are costing $1.3 trillion each year and threatening national security since 8 out of 10 young Americans are too sick to serve in the military.

• The path forward is about changing incentives so that health care rewards you well for being healthy — That means focusing on lifestyle and environmental changes — healthier food, safer products, and better access to chronic disease prevention — so that fewer people need expensive treatment later in life.

Again, Kennedy said that failing to act would keep the U.S. as "the sickest country in the world" and that his job was to fire people and reorganize agencies if that's what it takes to put prevention first.

The Clash Between Following the Science and Public Trust

This part of the hearing turned into a fierce debate over the shots, science, and the role of government in public health. This issue started before the hearing when Kennedy removed all 17 members of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.³

• An agency shake-up was deemed necessary — Other senators joined in, questioning Kennedy on both the substance and optics of his personnel decisions. Senator John Cornyn pressed him on whether he truly intended to remove politics from science, asking directly if his goal was to keep scientific research independent.

Kennedy replied, "That's what my mission is," framing his actions as a way to restore the credibility of public health advice. Senator Michael Bennett challenged him on specific appointees, including Dr. Robert Malone, who is widely known for questioning mRNA shots. Kennedy defended these choices as necessary to bring a broader range of views and argued that dissenting scientists had been silenced during the pandemic.

• Rebuilding confidence in health authorities — Senator John Barrasso told Kennedy that Americans had lost faith in health agencies after the pandemic and asked how he planned to rebuild that trust. Kennedy answered that the only path forward was to make CDC decision-making fully transparent and data-driven so you could see exactly why policies were being made. He said that the secrecy and top-down mandates of the COVID-19 pandemic had backfired and fueled skepticism.

• The COVID-19 pandemic measures harmed Americans — Kennedy countered the charge that he was anti-science by turning the argument back on the government's COVID-19 response. He said mask mandates, school closures, and lockdowns were imposed without solid evidence and caused immense damage to families and businesses.

In addition, Kennedy argued that scientists who questioned these measures were fired and insisted that his shake-up at the CDC was about ending that culture. "We need unbiased, politics-free, transparent, evidence-based science in the public interest," Kennedy said, promising that the next three years would look very different.

Taking Aim at High Drug Costs Set by Big Pharma

The hearing then shifted to the problem of rising drug prices and the complicated system surrounding it. Senator James Lankford raised the issue of Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) and how their lack of transparency hurts rural pharmacies. He said that many local drugstores are closing because they cannot survive under current payment systems.

Kennedy agreed that PBMs have been too secretive about their pricing and said his department has secured commitments from them to follow new transparency protocols. He noted that direct-to-consumer models are being considered to "eliminate the middleman."

• A push for better pricing transparency — Senator Chuck Grassley pushed for even more openness by asking Kennedy whether he would support requiring drug ads on TV to list their prices. Grassley argued that if you are seeing a commercial for medication, you also have the right to know right away how much it will cost.

Kennedy responded that HHS is actively working on such a rule and that it aligns with the administration's goal of giving you clear information so you can make better health decisions. This is part of a broader theme of putting consumers in charge by arming them with information that used to be hidden behind legal and corporate walls.

• Imperfections will still need to be ironed out — Senator Catherine Cortez Masto pressed Kennedy on whether he even knew how much seniors were going to pay next year. She pointed out that Part B premiums are expected to jump 11.6%, taking them to $206 per month in 2026 — one of the biggest single-year increases in decades.

Kennedy admitted he did not have the exact figures during the hearing but insisted that the administration's Program Integrity Bill had already lowered premiums by about 5% in other areas.

The Organ Donation Problem Reaches the Senate

In a previous article, I discussed how Kennedy made the decision to publish his findings about the widespread failures in the organ donation system. Now, this topic was also discussed during the hearing.

• The system is dishonest — Grassley raised concerns about disturbing reports of "line-skipping" in transplant allocation — situations where some patients allegedly received organs ahead of others who had been waiting longer. He also cited whistleblower claims about attempts to procure organs from patients who were "still showing signs of life," which he said demanded a full investigation.

Senator Ron Wyden echoed these concerns and reminded the committee that transplant policy is supposed to be based on fairness and medical urgency, not money or connections. He said the American people deserve to know that if they or a loved one needs a transplant, the system will treat them equally.

• The new administration aims to rectify previous organ transplant failures — Kennedy responded by saying that HHS had "mounted a major investigation" into the entire transplant system. He explained that the department had already acted by ending the contract with a legacy organ procurement contractor that he said had failed to meet ethical and operational standards.

Kennedy noted that the entire industry is being reorganized to ensure that such abuses cannot happen again, calling it a matter of life and death for thousands of patients waiting for organs.

The Battle Between Costs and Cuts of Health Care Expenditure

As the hearing moved back to the state of health care finances, the focus turned to whether the Trump administration's policies will help or hurt your wallet. Senator Wyden warned that the One Big Beautiful Bill signed by President Trump contained what he called "the largest health care cuts in American history" and predicted that they would hit like a "wrecking ball" after the next election.

He pointed to real-world examples, such as hospitals in Idaho reducing payments and Providence Seaside Hospital in Oregon closing its labor and delivery unit.

• The reduction of health care costs is false — Kennedy rejected the claims, stating bluntly, "There are no cuts to Medicaid." He argued that the narrative about funding reductions was misleading and said that the new law was designed to stabilize programs rather than take them away.

However, Senator Mark Warner challenged Kennedy, saying rural hospitals in Virginia were on the verge of shutting down and that communities were bracing for disaster. Warner urged Kennedy to support raising the "area wage index" — a policy change that would boost payments to rural hospitals so they could pay staff competitive wages. Kennedy confirmed that both he and President Trump supported that fix.

• Rural hospitals will benefit — Kennedy also reminded the committee that the One Big Beautiful Bill was delivering a $50 billion boost to rural hospitals. Senator Lankford reported that rural hospital leaders in Oklahoma were "very pleased" about this funding and were working with CMS and Dr. Oz to plan how to use the money effectively.

Other Big Issues on the Table

The hearing also covered several other topics that touched the average American's health care experience in less obvious but still important ways. Senator Lankford brought up the problem of delays in Medicare Advantage, which affects many seniors who rely on this coverage. He asked Kennedy what HHS is doing to fix slow approval times and cut through the red tape that frustrates patients. Kennedy said his team is working to speed up the process so you can get care without waiting months for paperwork to clear.

• Research funding is coming back properly — Senator Lankford also mentioned that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants had been frozen for a time but were recently released. He commended Kennedy's department for moving quickly to restart these grants, which support vital medical research, including long-term studies that track health outcomes over decades.

This is promising news because it means new treatments and deeper knowledge regarding chronic conditions are less likely to be delayed by funding gaps.

• Another topic that the hearing focused on is interoperability — In other words, it's the ability of different health systems to share data easily so you don't have to lug paper records from doctor to doctor. Senator Marsha Blackburn thanked Kennedy for launching a new interoperability framework and asked how it will fit with the existing national standards.

Kennedy explained that HHS had brought together 60 top technology companies to agree on common principles for data sharing, patient access, and interoperability. Eventually, it means that your health records follow you seamlessly between providers, making care more efficient and reducing the chances of errors.

• The collusion with big industry corporations will eventually be stopped — Finally, Senator Blackburn circled back to rural health care by thanking Kennedy for addressing conflicts of interest between regulators and the industries involved. She said it was "unseemly" that people could move from big food or drug companies into federal agencies and then regulate their former employers, or vice versa.

Kennedy agreed, saying that ending this "revolving door" is essential to restoring public confidence. This means future health policies need to be less influenced by private profit and more focused on what keeps you healthy.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Senate Finance Committee Hearing

Q: What is Kennedy's main goal with the "Make America Healthy Again" plan?

A: Kennedy wants to shift the U.S. health system from "sick care" — just treating you when you get ill — to prevention-based solutions. He said 76.4% of Americans now have at least one chronic disease, which he called a national security issue. His plan focuses on tackling ultraprocessed foods, chemical exposures, physical inactivity, and over-medicalization so you and your family can stay healthier in the first place.

Q: How is the administration supporting rural health care?

A: The One Big Beautiful Bill directs $50 billion over five years — a 50% funding boost — to rural hospitals. Kennedy and Senator Crapo said this is meant to stop closures, modernize rural health systems, and keep jobs and emergency care in small towns. Rural hospital leaders are working with CMS and Dr. Mehmet Oz on careful rollout plans to make sure the money leads to lasting improvements.

Q: Why did Kennedy shake up the CDC and vaccine advisory panel?

A: Kennedy argued that the CDC failed during the COVID-19 pandemic, pointing out that the U.S. had nearly 20% of global COVID deaths despite having only 4.2% of the world's population. He removed all 17 members of the vaccine advisory committee and replaced them with what he calls a more diverse group, saying it was necessary to eliminate conflicts of interest. He promised to make CDC decisions transparent so you can see the science behind its recommendations.

Q: What steps are being taken to lower drug prices?

A: Kennedy said HHS has secured commitments from Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) to be more transparent about their pricing. Senator Grassley pushed for drug commercials to show prices, and Kennedy said HHS is working on a rule to make that happen. However, senators pressed Kennedy about expected premium hikes for Medicare Part B and Part D, warning you might still see higher costs soon.

Q: What other health issues were discussed in the hearing?

The Underappreciated Role of Carbon Dioxide in Health

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Editor's Note: This article is a reprint. It was originally published December 17, 2023.

In this interview, repeat guest Georgi Dinkov reviews the role of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in health. CO₂ is typically thought of as nothing more than a harmful waste product of respiration, but it's actually a driver of mitochondrial energy production, and it improves the delivery of oxygen into your cells.

While this may come as a shock to most people, of all the strategies I know of to increase life extension, CO₂ is one of the most effective longevity interventions available. There really isn't anything that comes close, other than a low linoleic acid diet and reducing estrogen dominance.

Unfortunately, virtually no doctors understand this. The now deceased Ray Peat, a biologist and physiologist who developed the bioenergetic theory of health,¹ was one of the few who understood it inside and out, and actually recommended its clinical use.

I wrote an article about this that featured his lecture on CO₂, which I watched six times as it catalyzed my interest in the topic. At the time I found his video there were fewer than 2,000 views on YouTube. You can find it by going to YouTube and typing in Ray Peat CO₂.

Proper Breathing Is Important for Optimal CO₂ Levels

One of the simplest ways to optimize your CO₂ is by breathing properly. Unfortunately, bad advice is rampant in the breathing arena as well. The problem is that most people tend to over-breathe, which causes them to expel (breathe out) too much CO₂, resulting in respiratory alkalosis. Chronic CO₂ deficiency will also contribute to premature death.

In a nutshell, "proper" or life-extending breathing involves breathing less and breathing slower. Both of these allow CO₂ to build up, and that appears to be part of why breathwork has such wide-ranging benefits.

"As it turns out, carbon dioxide, even though medically it's mostly viewed as a waste product of respiration, is actually the thing that protects us from oxygen's well-known toxicity," Dinkov explains.

"In fact, if you speak to people who work in trauma or in the intensive care unit, when they have to revive people that are in shock or have suffered some kind of ischemic attack, they will tell you that the premature delivery of oxygen, or delivering too much oxygen ... is actually what kills most patients after they come out of the initial shock stage.

The introduction of too much oxygen too quickly creates this massive cytokine storm and inflammatory reaction, and one of the reasons [for that] is that the cells are hypermetabolic — they're not producing sufficient carbon dioxide, so they're not able to utilize the oxygen properly."

Forgotten Truths

It's rather surprising that the benefits of CO₂ have become forgotten considering its historical use. Asian cultures, for example, have a long history of using carbonated water for its health benefits.

The Romans recommended taking baths in naturally carbonated water for all kinds of ailments but especially arthritis, infertility, and psychiatric ailments, and this practice extended well into the Middle Ages when monks prescribed it. To this day many visit natural hot springs, and the likely benefit in many of these springs is the CO₂ content of the water.

In the 20th century, Russian scientists did loads of research on CO₂, and to this day, many Russian clinics offer CO₂ baths and other CO₂ treatments. There's even a suit that can be filled up with CO₂, which then diffuses into your tissues. You'll start feeling hot very rapidly and this is a sign of vasodilation, which is one of the cardiovascular effects of CO₂.

It's been shown that CO₂ can, over the long term, even reverse arterial calcification. It can also reverse many other signs of and damage caused by the aging process.

Mitochondrial Dysfunction Inhibits CO₂ Production

The key, though, is that in order to have sufficient CO₂ production, you need healthy mitochondria, because CO₂ is produced exclusively in the Krebs cycle in the mitochondria. If you have mitochondrial dysfunction, if you're hypothyroid or have high levels of inflammation, then you will not be producing enough CO₂.

When your CO₂ is too low, your body reverts to an "emergency" vasodilator, nitric oxide (NO). There are three types of nitric oxide:² neuronal nitric oxide synthases (nNOS); endothelial NOS (eNOS); and inducible NOS (iNOS). Low CO₂ triggers iNOS. The problem with that is that now you're overproducing NO, which is not ideal. Dinkov explains:

"Most of the eNOS ... stays in the actual blood vessel. iNOS also spills into the blood. That's kind of the purpose of iNOS because the primary purpose of nitric oxide in the body is to fight pathogens. It's a reactive nitrogen species.

It's produced for only two reasons, either as an emergency vasodilator, or if the immune system senses an invasion from pathogens, specifically bacteria and viruses, in which case iNOS is activated.

The reason iNOS is bad is because the nitric oxide does not stay localized. It's made available systemically because you want to affect all blood vessels, and that's what happens when you don't have sufficient amounts of carbon dioxide production. So, if you don't have [enough] CO₂, you will have elevated NO.

But with NO, nitric oxide, you have a lot of other bad things happening. It's a highly reactive molecule. It can form peroxynitrite species. It can damage the polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs) in the cells, no matter where they are.

Nitric oxide itself can form a covalent bond with something called cytochrome c oxidase [Complex 4 in the electron transport chain], which is the rate limiting step of the oxidative phosphorylation ...

You want to break that bond because otherwise your oxidative phosphorylation is inhibited. Methylene blue can do it, magnesium can do it, carbon dioxide can do it, near-infrared light and some quinols."

Another significant problem associated with elevated NO is pseudohypoxia, because you have oxygen in the cells but it cannot be utilized because NO impairs Complex IV in the electron transport chain.

CO₂ prevents this by dissociating the covalent bond between NO and Complex IV. Hence, oxygenation is optimized when sufficient CO₂ is present. So, to summarize, CO₂ keeps your blood vessels supple without the drawback of blocking Complex IV.

The Bohr Effect

Needless to say, optimal delivery of oxygen is crucial for good health. Oxygen from the air binds to hemoglobin when you inhale and enter your blood circulation. This bond is relatively strong. To break that bond and deliver the oxygen where it's needed, you need CO₂. This is known as the Bohr Effect.

Basically, the Bohr Effect describes the process in which CO₂ weakens the bond between oxygen and hemoglobin so that the oxygen can separate and enter into the tissues.

As the hemoglobin releases the oxygen, it binds to the CO₂ instead. The CO₂ is then expelled through your outbreath. Without enough CO₂, you will not be able to liberate sufficient amounts of oxygen from hemoglobin.

A Note on Oxygen Saturation

On a side note, a pulse oximeter measures the amount of oxygen in your blood. However, if your CO₂ is extremely low, it could still read 100% saturation because you're not dissociating the oxygen. It's circulating in your bloodstream but cannot be used.

The major factor that determines your tissue oxygenation is how much CO₂ you're producing. If you're hypermetabolic, if your mitochondria are not working, then you're oxidizing mostly fats, which produces less CO₂ per molecule, so you'll be deficient in CO₂.

In the past (going back 100 years ago or so), the test for seizure susceptibility was hyperventilating. The doctor would instruct you to breathe through your mouth very quickly for 30 seconds, and if seizure symptoms emerged, it was a sign that you have insufficient CO₂, as that's what causes the seizure activity.

How CO₂ Can Combat Cancer

Another important aspect of CO₂ is that it lowers the pH of your cells, thereby allowing extra water to be excreted. This is the exact opposite of linoleic acid (LA) and estrogen, both of which suck water into your cells which causes the cells to swell. Cellular swelling, aside from being the cause of edema, is also a feature of cancer cells. So, you don't want your cells to retain excess fluids. Dinkov explains:

"Because carbon dioxide is a Lewis acid, it's an electron withdrawing agent, even though it doesn't directly bind them like a quinol. If you look at the structure, it's very similar to a quinol. It's a carbon atom with two carbonyl groups, and the quinol is very similar. They usually have a ring and two or more carbonyl groups.

Lewis acids drop the pH of the cell, which automatically decreases the cell's affinity for water. Which means you're going to be excreting some of that extra water of the cell.

It's not a coincidence that linoleic acid has multiple double bonds. It's much more hydrophilic than the saturated fats, which lack the double bonds. Any time you have an increase of intracellular pH, you have increased affinity for water. The moment water streams in, that's a signal for de-differentiation and mitosis (division). If this process continues uncontrollably, we basically get cancer.

Conversely, when you excrete water, the cell becomes acidified and a little bit dehydrated, so to speak. Then you're getting high amounts of differentiation. You're also increasing the affinity of the intracellular proteins for potassium and magnesium, while decreasing their affinity for sodium and calcium. In fact, when carbon dioxide is produced and streams out of the cell, it draws calcium and sodium with it.

If you're not producing sufficient amounts of carbon dioxide, you're also probably not producing sufficient amounts of ATP, because carbon dioxide and ATP go hand in hand; they're signs of good mitochondrial function. ATP has affinity for magnesium, but if you don't have sufficient amounts of ATP, you'll have more ADP, which is the degraded version.

ADP has an affinity for calcium. So low metabolic rate, by definition, means cellular excitotoxicity, cellular alkalinity and cellular division, because of the lack of carbon dioxide and the lack of the ATP. ATP always exists in the body in a complex with magnesium. So, if you're taking magnesium but not producing sufficient amounts of ATP, it will not become bioavailable. But the production of ATP is tied to the production of carbon dioxide.

Carbon dioxide also increases the uptake of serotonin into the platelets, so producing sufficient amounts of carbon dioxide will lower your extracellular levels of serotonin.

It also increases the uptake of histamine, a very highly inflammatory mediator. Its transport also depends on carbon dioxide and on sodium as well, just like the serotonin ... So, almost everything that you do metabolically, in terms of health, depends on the production of CO₂. It's not a waste product."

Respiratory Alkalosis and Cancer

Cells can only produce a certain amount of CO₂ per unit of time, so when you breathe too fast, you overwhelm your cells' ability to maintain an appropriate level of CO₂. As a result, you'll have excess oxygen circulating in your blood stream, but because the CO₂ production cannot keep up with the amount of CO₂ you exhale, you end up with respiratory alkalosis.

Respiratory alkalosis also increases intracellular water uptake, as just described, and as the pH of the cell increases, it causes overproduction of several inflammatory mediators, including lactate, which is another hallmark of cancer cells.

"Cancer cells are highly alkaline, they're overproducing a lot of lactate and they have a very high uptake of water," Dinkov says. "In fact, I think the word tumor is a Latin word which meant swelling.

You can reduce the swelling of the tumor to a tremendous degree simply by either increasing delivery of CO₂ around the tumor, if it's on the surface, or increasing uptake of CO₂ through a CO₂ bath or drugs that increase the levels of CO₂ in the blood."

Drugs that increase CO₂ include carbonic anhydrase inhibitors such as acetazolamide, which decrease the degradation of CO₂, allowing more CO₂ to build up in your blood.

CO₂ Benefits Your Entire Body

A nearly 150-year-old medical book describes the many uses and health benefits of CO₂ that were known at the time. It basically included the entire body, and an extensive list of ailments of the day, including:

Dementia

Psychiatric disorders like mania

Dysentery

Fistulas

Fibrotic conditions

Whooping cough

Tuberculosis

Rhinitis

"Really, every condition you can think of, both physiological and mental, can be remediated, and in many cases cured, by increasing endogenous CO₂ production and decreasing degradation," Dinkov says. Migraines are another common ailment that can be addressed with CO₂. In many cases migraines are due to overbreathing causing a lack of CO₂ that constricts the blood vessels in your brain.

Exogenous CO₂ Delivery Methods

While it's obviously important to optimize your endogenous (internal) production of CO₂, exogenous delivery or supplementation will definitely produce the greatest benefits, as you can deliver far greater amounts than your body can produce. Such strategies include:

Breathing into a paper bag

Drinking carbonated water and other carbonated beverages

CO₂ baths

A special suit into which CO₂ is pumped

Hyperbaric administration

Taking small amounts of baking soda in your drinking water

One of our readers, LSquare, shared their experience with bag breathing in treating their hypertension a few days ago and I thought you would enjoy their story in case you did not see it in the comment section.

"Exercise, regular walking, and upping my potassium helped to lower my hypertension to the 120-130's. However, I started doing the paper bag breathing when Dr M first mentioned it last month, and the results could not be more amazing. My systolic readings now are regularly now less than 110, and my diastolic ones are in the 50s.

I just had my annual physical 2 weeks ago, and my Dr. REMOVED hypertension from my records. Bad things are almost never removed from your 'permanent record'. And I'd only done the CO₂ breathing for several days before that appt. I implore you to try it if you suffer from High BP. It's free, and it only costs you 4-6 minutes a day."

A book written in 1905 by Achilles Rose, M.D. discusses various methods of delivery including inhalation, irrigation and rectal insufflation. It contains case reports of it being used for asthma, whooping cough, dysentery, colitis, rectal fistulas, rhinitis and ear infections. It is a fascinating read.

Unlocking Optimal Health — The Science Behind Low-PUFA Diets and Sustainable Eating

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Editor's Note: This article is a reprint. It was originally published May 12, 2024.

This interview features repeat guest Ashley Armstrong, cofounder of Angel Acres Egg Co., which specializes in low-PUFA (polyunsaturated fat) eggs, and the Nourish Cooperative, which provides low-PUFA pork, beef, cheese made with natural animal rennet, A2 dairy, and traditional sourdough. She’s also a contributing author to this newsletter once a week.

Armstrong and her sister, Sarah, are strong advocates of the late Ray Peat’s work, a biologist and pioneer of bioenergetic medicine. It transformed both of their lives, and she shares some of that story in this interview. We also clear up some of the confusion surrounding these principles which, rather radically in some cases, differ from what I’ve previously taught and what many in the field of nutrition teach today.

Energy Production Is at the Heart of Health

“Health is too complicated for people these days,” Armstrong says. “My purpose in the health space is to uncomplicate things, like, take a step back and really make people reflect, ‘Do these things make sense?’ You don’t need to go plunge into cold ice water baths every single day to get optimal health. That doesn’t make sense. We don’t have to go to these extremes to achieve health.

There are many things working against us. The food system is working against us, our environment is working against us, that’s for sure. But in pursuit of health, people are often drawn towards extremes because people promise quick fixes. And I understand the idea of a quick fix is very enticing. But we have to understand that quick fixes often come with long-term consequences.

So, if something in the short-term may feel great because it may suppress a symptom, if we aren’t in tune with our health, that could come with long-term consequences. And this is where we see a lot of people today. They may have made a dietary switch away from the standard American diet, which is always a great first step. But if we aren’t in tune with metabolic markers, we could be going down the wrong path.”

Once you’ve studied molecular biology, there’s no other rational conclusion than your ability to create energy in your mitochondria is the primary, foundational key to optimal health. Every cell in your body requires energy to perform their intended function, and when energy is insufficient, ill health is the result. So, the foundational cure to every disease is plain enough. It’s to optimize cellular energy production. The question is how.

Fats Inhibit Optimal Metabolism

Like many, I used to believe glucose was an inferior fuel to dietary fat, when in fact it’s the complete opposite. Similarly, while many understand that processed foods aren’t good for you, most lay the blame on sugar, when in fact it’s the seed oils that do most of the harm.

Sure, refined sugar in high amounts is not healthy, but even refined sugar isn’t as bad as polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs) and to a slightly lesser degree, monounsaturated fats (MUFAs). After delving deep into Peat’s work, it’s clear that eliminating seed oils is a key measure for optimal health.

This includes not only oils from seeds but also all types of whole seeds and nuts, including macadamia nuts. I previously recommended macadamia, as they’re low in LA. However, they contain substantial amounts of oleic acid, a MUFA, which is nearly as damaging as LA thanks to its unsaturated nature, characterized by the double bonds in its chemical structure.

Even omega-3 can be problematic in high amounts. The reason? Because, like LA, it’s a PUFA. What makes PUFAs so problematic is their double bonds, which make them prone to oxidation. The omega-3 alpha linolenic acid (ALA) has three double bonds, eicosatetraenoic acid (EPA) has five, and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) has six. For comparison, LA only has two.

All three omega-3’s are known for their strong anti-inflammatory effects, which are instrumental in preventing and managing conditions like cardiovascular diseases, arthritis, and other inflammatory conditions.

However, because omega-3 fats are highly unsaturated, they’re also highly susceptible to oxidation, which can lead to the formation of harmful free radicals that contribute to oxidative stress and cellular damage. So, like other PUFAs, they can have a negative effect on glucose metabolism when taken in excessive amounts.

As explained in far greater detail in previous articles, if you eat too much dietary fat, your body ends up favoring fat metabolism at the expense of glucose metabolism, and burning glucose in your mitochondria is the pathway that creates the greatest energy production. So, excessive fat intake actually results in suboptimal energy production.

Ashley’s Personal Experience

Armstrong comments:

“I was looking for help because my health was not good. I eventually went down the keto, carnivore, fasting path. I can thank my sister Sarah, for waking us up to this. She said, ‘Ashley, let's measure our body temperature today.’

I was like, ‘This is weird. Why would you ever do that?’ Even though when you look back at like old-school medical textbooks, body temperature was used as a sign of health for so long. That tradition has been lost.

And so, we measured our body temperatures, and my thermometer said 96.3 degrees Fahrenheit. It should say 98.6. That was the first time I woke up to the idea of metabolism, as a way to objectively measure whether or not health is moving forward, or if we're going backwards. Because symptom suppression lowers your metabolic rate.

Lowering the metabolic rate is a survival mechanism for humans because when energy reserves are low, when we don't have the proper amount of micronutrients, it's the body's way of making sure that we're going to stay alive. If it were to push metabolism when you're in a restricted state, you would die.

You wouldn't have enough energy; you wouldn't have enough reserve. Think about when a squirrel goes into hibernation. It's not advantageous for that squirrel to have a high metabolic rate while it's trying to hibernate over the winter months. It would die because it would run out of resources.

And so, when my body was in that very low metabolic state, low body temperature state, it was literally screaming, ‘surviving not thriving.’ That was my wake-up moment. I realized that metabolism is a way to gauge your health, not these random dietary rules that someone on the internet was telling me to do.

A famous quote by Dr. Ray Peat is, ‘The main goal is to keep the metabolic rate up.’ And there are many ways to do it. I love that because there's not a single, exact path to get the metabolic rate up. What Dr. Mercola eats every day is different than what I eat every day. We all have different gut health; we all have different sun exposure.

But using simple metabolic markers frees you up. It’s so much simpler to use body temperature measurements as a way to assess metabolic health rather than staying below 10 grams of carbohydrates … these are arbitrary rules.

It’s been so freeing, learning about metabolism. It makes eating so much more pleasurable because you can eat so much food. I have sourdough bread every day. I have dark chocolate, orange juice, fruit, on top of dairy and meat and all these things.

When you view health as metabolism-focused, you get rid of these silly dogma things. That's why I like to talk about it because I don't want people living in this restrictive path. It's not a fun way to live. And you don't have to do these restrictive things.

My sister and I got so obsessed with this that we spent two years developing a course, because we just wanted to scream it from the rooftops. I went from being a full carnivore to now being able to enjoy such a wider variety of foods and not feel bad about it — and see my health improve in that process …

I don't want to discredit the fact that it's a little bit harder to be healthy today relative to the 1900s. But if we stress out about these things, it's just going to make our health worse. Something that's important to know is, the better your metabolism, the healthier your liver is, the better your body can detox.

Truly, the best way to [detox] is to have a healthy metabolism, where your liver can help you do that. Of course, the food system is severely messed up. And that's why I think finding a source is producing food how it was supposed to be produced. I think that food sourcing is important.”

Simplify, but Remember That the Devil’s in the Details

Indeed, one key simplification that will take you a long way is to ditch all processed foods and only eat real food, meaning whole, minimally processed food. The next step is to fine-tune your food choices by understanding that how a food was grown, raised, or made, affects its nutrition and ability to promote health.

Take cheese for example. As Armstrong details in “Genetically Modified Ingredients in Most US Cheeses,” cheese made with GMO rennet is nothing like cheese made with traditional animal rennet.

Similarly, while olive oil has a long history of veneration, most olive oil sold today is adulterated with cheap seed oils, and even if you find unadulterated oil, its high oleic acid content still makes it inadvisable to consume it in high amounts.

Patent-Pending Personalized Health Tutoring Under Development

As mentioned, Armstrong and her sister have developed a course called Rooted in Resilience. This course is the culmination of their personal health experiences and insights into metabolism, inspired by Peat’s work.

The course not only provides theoretical knowledge but also practical tools to apply these principles in everyday life. The content is intended to make health concepts accessible and manageable, steering clear of quick fixes and emphasizing sustainable health practices through better understanding of bodily functions and nutritional impacts.

Energy Production and Gut Health Go Hand-in-Hand

Understanding the importance of gut health is crucial, as it forms the foundation of your overall well-being. A healthy gut microbiome can influence everything from energy production to immune function, so it’s a central element in maintaining health and preventing disease.

Your gut is like a complex highway system where different pathways are designed to ensure that your body efficiently makes the energy it needs. However, when this system faces blockages or disruptions — often caused by diet choices like high PUFA intake — it can lead to reduced energy availability, and that ultimately affects your gut health.

When your gut isn't working as it should, it often stems from a low metabolic rate. This slows down your gut's ability to process and clear out waste effectively. As a result, food lingers longer than it should, which encourages the growth of harmful bacteria and the production of endotoxins.

Additionally, a compromised metabolic rate can lead to an oxygen-rich environment in your gut. This change in oxygen levels shifts the balance of bacteria, allowing facultative anaerobes — bacteria that thrive in oxygen — to outcompete the beneficial anaerobes that prefer oxygen-free conditions.

These facultative anaerobes are often pathogenic and can trigger gut inflammation and other diseases. They produce damaging substances like endotoxins, which can harm the gut lining and cause broader health issues if they leak into the bloodstream.

This also helps explain why some treatments such as hyperbaric therapy and rectal ozone insufflation may be ill-advised. While the boost of oxygen supply to tissues can enhance healing in the immediate term, this elevated oxygen can also drastically alter your gut environment for the worse.

4 Key Contributors to Poor Mitochondrial Energy Production

As detailed in the interview, there are four key contributors to poor mitochondrial function, each of which plays a significant role in diminishing cellular energy production. The first is LA, a type of PUFA commonly found in industrial seed oils. Introduced into diets around the 1870s, LA has been increasingly implicated in the disruption of cellular processes.

Next is estrogen and related compounds such as BPA, found in plastics. These xenoestrogens mimic natural estrogen in your body, binding to the same receptors and triggering similar biological responses. Their prevalence in the environment and food chain has grown alongside industrial advancements, posing a significant threat to mitochondrial integrity.

The third contributor is endotoxins — toxic substances released from the outer membranes of pathogenic gut bacteria when they die. These toxins are particularly harmful when your gut health is already compromised, as low integrity in your gut lining (leaky gut) allows more endotoxins to enter your bloodstream, thereby further impairing mitochondrial function.

Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) are the fourth contributor. Common in modern environments due to wireless technology and various electronic devices, EMFs have been shown to interfere with cellular signaling and exacerbate mitochondrial dysfunction.

Each of these four culprits — LA, estrogen, endotoxin, and EMF — have a central mechanism of action by which they destroy your energy production. Each causes an influx of calcium into the cell, which increases superoxide and nitric oxide production. Superoxide and nitric oxide, in turn, react to form a reactive nitrogen species called peroxynitrite, which do most of the damage. As noted by Armstrong:

“In a well-functioning gut, we've got a really nice gut lining barrier with selective permeability. Also, the inside of the gut has high levels of CO₂ [carbon dioxide] and low levels of oxygen. It’s important for people to understand that the levels of gases inside your gut will change your microbiome balance. So, internal environment impacts function. And internal environment is impacted by systemic energy production.

So, you must have systemic energy production to have the right function. You see all these people trying to manipulate their microbiome. But if you don't change the internal environment, it's just going to go straight back to what it was before, or it's going to continue. It's going to require you to continuously do these things over and over and over again, rather than fixing the root cause.

In someone who has a low metabolic state, high oxygen gut, leaky gut, food particles that aren't broken down can leak through the gut lining and cause a lot of systemic problems. GI distress, inflammation, endotoxemia.

And so, for people in a very low metabolic state with a lot of gut problems, you got to be careful about what food you are consuming until you heal and seal your gut, until you fix your metabolism.

Eat the foods that cause the least amount of problems, but make sure that you're eating enough of those. Eating 1,200, 1,300, 1,400 calories is not going to fix your metabolism. If you're chronically eating low-calorie, your body is recognizing it's a time of scarcity, ‘I need to down regulate metabolism to make it through the winter.’

That's just what your body is thinking. So, the amount of food you eat is important. So, finding what foods you tolerate, and eating as much as you can of those while working on improving your metabolism, over time, you'll be able to regain function.

As long as you’re working in parallel with improving your body temperature and pulse measurements, and in boosting your metabolism, you should be able to tolerate more and more food over time.”

Suboptimal Energy Is the Root Cause of Leaky Gut

Leaky gut syndrome presents a complex challenge where increased oxygen in the gut favors pathogenic, or disease-causing, bacteria over beneficial ones. These beneficial bacteria are crucial because they process dietary fibers to produce short-chain fatty acids such as butyrate. Butyrate serves as a primary fuel source for the cells lining the gut, helping to maintain and repair the gut barrier.

So, the presence of beneficial bacteria like obligate anaerobes, which thrive in low-oxygen environments, is essential. These bacteria not only help digest fibers but also participate in a process called beta oxidation — a metabolic mechanism that consumes oxygen and helps reduce its levels in the gut. This reduction in oxygen mitigates the conditions that favor the growth of harmful, oxygen-tolerant bacteria.

Furthermore, the beneficial bacteria produce substances that physically seal the gaps in the gut lining, preventing unwanted substances from leaking into the bloodstream. This local production of butyrate and other beneficial compounds ensures that repair and maintenance of the gut barrier are efficient and targeted, happening right where it's needed.

Thus, maintaining a balance of these beneficial bacteria is key to a healthy gut. When they flourish, they enable you to digest a broader range of foods, as they help break down all sorts of foods.

This is why some people can eat starch and thrive while in others, starch only increases endotoxin production and contributes to premature death. They may even go into septic shock, and most sepsis is due to this chain of events. They have severe leaky gut and produce so much endotoxin, it goes systemic and turns into sepsis.

How to Rebalance Your Body

So, how do you rebalance your body so that energy production and gut health can be optimized? In short, address each of the four key culprits, starting with your LA intake. Key sources to be avoided include seed oils, all nuts and seeds, processed foods, fast food, and restaurant food, conventionally raised chicken and pork.

Next, lower your estrogen burden. In addition to avoiding estrogen therapy, progesterone is something most adults can benefit from, as it’s anti-estrogenic. As noted by Armstrong, “the idea of supplementing progesterone is to, over time, push that estrogen out and have a better hormonal balance.” Having less estrogen stored in your body is one thing that can boost and improve your energy production. Sauna and exercise will also help detox xenoestrogens from plastic.

Also reduce your EMF exposure as much as possible. Together, these strategies will help suppress endotoxin production by restoring energy generation.

Also, as mentioned, each of these have calcium disruption as a central mechanism of action, which leads to reductive stress, i.e., a buildup of electrons that slow down energy production. One of the best remedies for that buildup is CO₂, and there are several ways to boost your CO₂. For more details, see “The Biology of Carbon Dioxide.”

Support Traditional Farmers

In closing, if you want to optimize your health, sourcing your food wisely is a primary concern. Farms and farmers have been under assault for some time, and the pressure to get big or get out is only getting worse. Between 2007 and 2020, 200,000 American farms closed.

Ashley and I are on a mission to reclaim the food system back to its original, where farmers are paid an honest wage to produce food the right way, so that the food provides the nourishment it’s supposed to and none of the toxins. Angel Acres Egg Co. and the Nourish Cooperative are just the start.

“We’re getting more farmers into the system,” Armstrong says. “We're slowly growing, but I'm not going to push Mother Nature, because then we would just be a conf

Choosing the right doctor: How patients can take control of their care [PODCAST]

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 23:00:07 +0000

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes! Professor and patient advocate Edward G. Rogoff discusses his article “How to choose the right doctor for you.” In this episode, Edward explains why selecting the right physician is one of the most important health decisions a patient can make. He

Read more…

Choosing the right doctor: How patients can take control of their care [PODCAST] originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

The infectious hypothesis of Alzheimer’s disease

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 21:00:56 +0000

When I tell colleagues that I offer Valtrex (valacyclovir) and low-dose lithium orotate to patients worried about developing Alzheimer’s, the silence in the room thickens. Someone always asks, “Where’s the randomized controlled trial?” That’s exactly the problem. We keep waiting for perfect evidence while the disease eats away at people’s brains. I’m an internist and

Read more…

The infectious hypothesis of Alzheimer’s disease originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

A pediatrician on the lead contamination crisis

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 19:00:19 +0000

I shake my head in disbelief. Is this really happening in the United States? As a pediatrician and public health advocate, I believe we are witnessing the literal systematic dismantling of our health care system. Case in point: the federal government’s mishandling of two recent lead contamination crises (in Michigan and Wisconsin). These failures not

Read more…

A pediatrician on the lead contamination crisis originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Physician burnout as a relationship crisis

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 17:00:42 +0000

When people discuss physician burnout, they often reduce it to a workplace issue: long hours, endless charting, electronic health records that seem never to end, and patient loads that test the limits of human capacity. The solutions we’re offered sound deceptively simple: take a vacation, practice gratitude, do yoga, and meditate more. It’s as if

Read more…

Physician burnout as a relationship crisis originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

The making of a rested healer

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 16:00:06 +0000

I didn’t realize how exhausted I was until everything stopped. First came burnout, the quiet unraveling so many physicians know too well. Then grief followed. I lost my mother unexpectedly to an aggressive cancer and, three years later, my father after years of caregiving through advanced Parkinson’s disease. These losses shattered not only my heart

Read more…

The making of a rested healer originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

The decline of the doctor-patient relationship

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 15:00:44 +0000

Something is wrong with our health care system. Our country spends more per capita than any other developed nation, yet we have some of the worst health care outcomes. Rising costs are making health care prohibitive. Access to the system is becoming a growing concern. Medical care has become bureaucratic, bulky, and inefficient. I am

Read more…

The decline of the doctor-patient relationship originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

The secret illnesses of U.S. presidents

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 13:00:39 +0000

Presidents are not immortal. But for much of American history, their bodies have been treated as state secrets, curated, concealed, and choreographed for public reassurance. When illness is hidden, the cost is not just clinical. It is geopolitical. Warren G. Harding: collapse before the scandal President Warren G. Harding died suddenly on August 2, 1923,

Read more…

The secret illnesses of U.S. presidents originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

A psychiatrist’s scarlet letter of shame

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 11:00:23 +0000

I put it on one night among tears and grief. It slid onto my skin like butter, like it was meant for me. It hugged my torso and clung to all the wrong places. The truth is, I had worn it before. I am unsure exactly when I last stopped wearing it. Unlike the donning

Read more…

A psychiatrist’s scarlet letter of shame originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

How Circadian Rhythm Shapes Gut Repair and Digestive Health

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Your intestine replaces itself on a schedule, not by chance. Every day, cells rise, repair, and release in a rhythm that keeps your gut calm and resilient. Your body's 24-hour clock sets that pace. When you sleep late, eat at odd hours, or rack up red-eye flights, you throw off that timing. These disruptions don't just make you groggy — they reshape how your gut defends you.

Your gut barrier is your frontline. When it falters, irritants pass through more easily, and you feel it as bloating, digestive upset, skin flares, or brain fog. If you're a shift worker, a frequent traveler, a late-night snacker, or someone who scrolls under bright screens after dark, you sit in the highest-risk lane. Add alcohol or ultraprocessed foods and the stress on that barrier spikes further.

Your daily choices flip the switches. Light in the morning, consistent sleep, predictable healthy meals, and fewer midnight scrolling sessions tell your gut to renew on time. By understanding how this clock links to stem-cell-driven repair and what routines reinforce it, you can use that knowledge to steady digestion, mood, and energy without guesswork.

Your Circadian Rhythm Directs Gut Stem Cell Renewal

A review article published in Genes & Diseases explores how the body's circadian rhythm, the 24-hour internal clock, directs intestinal stem cells to repair and renew the gut lining.¹ Researchers wanted to understand how timing systems inside cells coordinate with the cell cycle, essentially determining when cells divide, rest, or become specialized.

• Circadian rhythm decides what your gut cells become — The research showed that circadian rhythms control whether gut stem cells become absorptive cells, mucus-secreting cells, or other specialized intestinal cells. This means your digestive lining isn't just renewing — it's renewing on a schedule, with each type of cell created at the right time to keep your gut barrier strong.

• Off-schedule days weaken your gut barrier — When your circadian rhythm and cell cycle fall out of sync, your gut barrier weakens and repair slows. That translates to greater risk of intestinal permeability, or "leaky gut," inflammation, and digestive disorders. By keeping your daily routines aligned with natural light and dark cycles, you directly support these repair systems.

• Certain proteins act as timekeepers in this process — These proteins regulate when stem cells should divide and when they should pause. Think of them as managers making sure construction crews work on schedule. If they're disrupted — through irregular sleep or late-night eating, for instance — the entire system falls behind.

• Enzymes decide where energy goes — The study also highlighted enzymes that act as bridges between the circadian clock and the cell cycle. These enzymes help cells decide how to use energy — whether to focus on repair or other functions. This ensures that your body doesn't waste resources and that gut renewal happens efficiently.

• Protect your circadian rhythm to prevent long-term problems — If these processes are disrupted, your intestines don't heal as quickly or as thoroughly. Over time, this raises your risk for chronic inflammation, autoimmune reactions, and even metabolic diseases. Understanding these findings empowers you to take control — by supporting your circadian rhythm, you improve not only digestion but also long-term resilience against disease.

Disrupted Daily Rhythms Worsen Digestive Health

In a podcast published by Northwestern Medicine, Dr. Keith Summa, assistant professor of gastroenterology and hepatology at Northwestern Medicine, explored how sleep and circadian rhythms directly shape gastrointestinal health.² The discussion centered on how irregular sleep patterns, shift work, and lifestyle habits disturb your gut's natural timing, making it more vulnerable to disease.

• Who pays the highest price for lost rhythm — The insights were particularly directed at people living with disrupted schedules — such as night-shift workers, frequent travelers, and those with inconsistent sleep routines. These groups face higher risks for digestive problems ranging from constipation and diarrhea to more serious conditions like inflammatory bowel disease and metabolic disorders.

• Everyday red flags in your digestion — When circadian clocks in your gut and brain fall out of sync, you feel the effects in everyday symptoms. Constipation, bloating, and unpredictable bowel movements become more frequent. For many, nutrient absorption declines, meaning the food you eat doesn't fuel your body as effectively.

• Circadian disruption makes your gut barrier leaky — This means toxins and bacteria slip through your intestinal wall into your bloodstream, triggering inflammation. This isn't just a digestive issue — it fuels systemic problems such as autoimmune conditions, fatigue, and brain fog.

• Lifestyle triggers make the damage worse — Factors like alcohol intake and a highly processed Western diet were highlighted as "second hits" that intensify circadian disruption's damage. These foods and drinks multiply the stress on your gut lining, making it harder to heal.

• The long-term toll of ignoring your daily rhythm — People with long-term circadian disruption face higher risks of obesity and Type 2 diabetes. Digestive inflammation also sets the stage for more severe illnesses, showing why even common sleep problems like insomnia, which disrupt your circadian rhythm, deserve attention.

Microbes Set the Tempo for Stress and Sleep

A review in The FEBS Journal examined how your gut microbes influence stress responses and daily body clocks, and how those two systems talk to each other to shape brain and gut health.³ It pulled together animal and human evidence on the microbiota-gut-brain axis — a two-way communication network — covering nerves, hormones, immune signals, and microbe-made chemicals that affect mood, sleep, and digestion.

• Your microbes fine-tune your body's stress thermostat — The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis — your core stress system — rises and falls across the day, and gut microbes tune those hormone waves; germ-free mice show exaggerated cortisol-like spikes after stress that normalize when microbes are restored, highlighting how flora steady stress output. In simple terms, a stable microbiome smooths your stress thermostat.

• Your gut's fast track to your brain — The vagus nerve — your gut-to-brain express lane — relays microbial signals in real time; several probiotic benefits disappear when the vagus is cut, which shows how live gut signals reach mood and behavior centers without delay. That means breath, meal timing, and microbiome support give you rapid routes to calm the system.

• Gut bacteria coach your immune system to calm inflammation and influence mood — The microbes in your gut send signals that help your immune cells know when to calm down. Without them, even your brain's cleanup cells don't fully mature. Certain bacteria that make butyrate — a beneficial compound fueled by fiber — are especially good at reducing inflammation and helping you handle stress more smoothly.

Studies also show that moving gut bacteria from stressed or depressed people into germ-free mice makes the animals anxious and depressed, with stress hormones running high. On the flip side, diets rich in "psychobiotics" or specific strains like Lactobacillus helveticus and Akkermansia muciniphila reduce stress and improve mood in both animals and people.

• Microbial fuel acts like time signals for your body clock — Your gut bacteria create substances such as butyrate and indoles that work like little clocks inside you. Butyrate helps reset liver timing genes, while indoles cool down immune overreactions and even aid nerve repair. In plain terms, the food your microbes produce keeps your body's signals running on schedule.

• Your gut bacteria run on a daily schedule too — Different groups of bacteria rise and fall at set times of the day, and your eating pattern drives those swings. When you eat during your active hours instead of late at night, you help your microbes stay on track, which keeps your metabolism and weight more stable even on a high-fat diet.

How to Support Your Gut's Natural Rhythm

Your gut thrives on timing. The research makes it clear that when your internal clock and gut repair systems fall out of sync, the barrier that protects you from toxins and bacteria starts to break down.

That means your daily routines are not just about convenience — they're the switch that tells your gut when to heal, when to rest, and when to defend. If you've been struggling with bloating, unpredictable digestion, or even fatigue that feels like it never goes away, it's time to reset your rhythm and give your body the structure it needs. Here are five steps to start with today:

1. Protect your sleep-wake cycle — Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day — even on weekends. Your gut cells follow your brain's clock, and when you keep a steady routine, you tell your digestive system exactly when to repair itself. If you're a night-shift worker, use blackout curtains and consistent sleep windows to anchor your body.

2. Eat meals at regular times — Space your meals consistently throughout the day instead of eating at random hours. When you eat late at night, you throw off the signals that tell your gut when to absorb nutrients and when to rebuild. Choose a set eating window that matches your lifestyle and stick to it — and stop eating at least three hours before bedtime.

3. Align with natural light — Spend time outside in the morning daylight to reinforce your internal clock. Bright light in the first few hours of the day tells your body it's time to be alert, while dimming lights at sunset in the evening helps you wind down. This light exposure trains both your brain and gut clocks to stay in sync.

4. Avoid foods that stress your gut — Ultraprocessed foods and alcohol act like accelerants for gut damage. If you're already off rhythm from travel or poor sleep, these foods multiply the stress. Avoid vegetable oils and other ultraprocessed foods, and replace them with whole, unprocessed meals that support repair — like vegetables, fruits, and grass fed beef.

5. Build rhythm into your routine — Think of your day as a cycle, not a checklist. Add small anchors — like morning movement, midday sunlight, and an evening wind-down ritual. These daily cues make it easier to stay consistent, and over time, your gut learns to expect stability. That consistency is what keeps your gut health strong and inflammation under control.

FAQs About Your Circadian Rhythm and Gut Repair

Q: How does my circadian rhythm affect gut repair?

A: Your circadian rhythm acts like a timer for your intestines, deciding when stem cells should divide and what type of gut cells they should become. When your rhythm is disrupted by late nights, irregular meals, or travel, your gut lining repairs more slowly, raising the risk of leaky gut, inflammation, and digestive issues.

Q: What everyday habits throw my gut rhythm off balance?

A: Shift work, frequent travel, late-night snacking, and exposure to artificial light at night all disturb your circadian rhythm. Alcohol and ultraprocessed foods make the damage worse by weakening your gut barrier and fueling inflammation.

Q: How do my gut microbes influence stress and sleep?

A: Your gut bacteria interact with your stress system, immune system, and brain through nerves, hormones, and chemical signals. Healthy microbes smooth out stress hormone spikes, send calming signals through your vagus nerve, and even help regulate sleep and mood. Disruptions in your microbiome increase anxiety, fatigue, and poor sleep quality.

Q: What are the warning signs my gut rhythm is off?

A: Common red flags include constipation, bloating, unpredictable bowel movements, poor nutrient absorption, fatigue, and brain fog. Over time, disrupted rhythms are linked to obesity, diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, and autoimmune flare-ups.

Q: What practical steps restore my gut's natural timing?

A: Protect your sleep schedule, eat meals at regular times, get morning sunlight, avoid ultraprocessed foods and alcohol, and create daily anchors like morning movement and evening wind-down routines. These habits give your gut structure, strengthen your gut barrier, and reduce long-term risks of chronic disease.

How Magnesium Helps Relieve Overactive Bladder

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Overactive bladder touches nearly every part of daily life, from how well you sleep at night to how confident you feel leaving the house. It interrupts routines, pulls you away from work or social activities, and leaves many people anxious about the next time they’ll need a bathroom. For millions of adults, it isn’t just about urgency — it’s about the ripple effects that drain energy, focus, and peace of mind.

At the same time, magnesium is one of your body’s most important minerals, regulating more than 600 different processes that keep your muscles, nerves, and immune system steady.¹ When your supply runs low, the effects show up in surprising ways. What’s concerning is that depletion is far more common than most people realize, fueled by modern farming practices, processed foods, and medications that strip away your reserves.

When you put these two realities together — the burden of bladder problems and the widespread lack of magnesium — it becomes clear that the connection between them deserves attention. Recent research has done just that, uncovering how deeply your magnesium status influences bladder control and why restoring balance is a key to relief.

Magnesium Depletion Tied to Bladder Dysfunction

Researchers analyzed data from 28,621 U.S. adults who took part in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) between 2005 and 2018.²

The goal of the study, which was published in Scientific Reports, was to find out whether low magnesium status, measured through a magnesium depletion score, was connected to overactive bladder symptoms like urgency, frequency, and nighttime urination. The magnesium depletion score factored in medication use, kidney function, and alcohol intake, making it a more accurate way to assess long-term deficiency than a simple blood test.

• Adults with lower magnesium levels had a greater chance of having bladder problems — For every single point increase in the magnesium depletion score, the odds of having overactive bladder jumped by 9%.

When grouped, those in the middle range had a 17% higher risk, and those with the highest depletion scores faced a 20% higher risk compared to those with low scores. This shows a clear dose-response effect: the more depleted you are, the greater your likelihood of suffering bladder control problems.

• Magnesium helps regulate muscle contractions and nerve signaling — One of the reasons for this connection is that magnesium acts as a natural calcium blocker inside your cells. When you don’t have enough, calcium floods into muscle cells unchecked, causing your bladder muscle to contract too often and too strongly. This translates into sudden urges, leaks, and nighttime bathroom trips. By restoring magnesium, you give your bladder muscles the minerals they need to relax.

• Inflammation also plays a major role — Low magnesium ramps up inflammation in your body, which irritates bladder tissue and makes nerves more sensitive. The study highlighted how magnesium deficiency drives the release of inflammatory proteins and oxidative stress that further aggravate bladder symptoms.

• Real-world impact is meaningful even if the percentages sound small — While a 9% increase per point on the depletion score sounds modest at first, overactive bladder already affects 1 in 6 U.S. adults, and the costs of treatment are more than double for those with the condition compared to those without it. This means even small improvements in magnesium status could have a big effect at the population level and a noticeable improvement in your personal quality of life.

• The evidence is strong and consistent across the board — The link between magnesium depletion and bladder dysfunction held true even after adjusting for age, race, education level, income, smoking, alcohol, diabetes, heart disease, and other factors.

That means the effect is not explained away by these other health issues — it’s magnesium status itself that stands out. Addressing magnesium depletion directly is a worthwhile and evidence-backed strategy for improving bladder health.

Second Study Confirms Magnesium’s Role in Bladder Control

In a similar study published in the Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition, researchers examined 32,493 adults from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to evaluate whether magnesium depletion scores were tied to overactive bladder symptoms.³

• Adults with the highest magnesium depletion faced significantly higher risks — Those with the most depleted scores had over a 40% increased likelihood of experiencing overactive bladder compared to individuals with no depletion. For someone living with bladder urgency and frequency, this means the degree of magnesium loss plays a direct, measurable role in how severe the problem becomes.

• The study revealed dose-response consistency across all levels — In other words, risk did not just jump at the extremes — it built steadily with every incremental rise in magnesium depletion. This pattern suggests that even modest improvements in magnesium intake or absorption could steadily reduce your risk. Instead of feeling like you need a dramatic overnight fix, you can take small, achievable steps and still expect measurable improvements.

• The strength of the data shows magnesium as a modifiable factor — Unlike genetic risk or age, magnesium depletion is something you can act on directly. This reinforces your sense of control — if you improve your diet or address sources of magnesium loss, you shift the odds in your favor. This is where the research offers empowerment: the risk is not fixed, but changeable, and it responds to what you do day by day.

Practical Steps to Restore Magnesium Balance and Ease Bladder Symptoms

If you’re struggling with overactive bladder, addressing magnesium depletion is a direct way to take back control. Food, lifestyle, and supplements all play a role, but focus on restoring your true magnesium balance — not just adding more of one thing and hoping for the best. Here’s how to do it in a way that’s both practical and personalized.

1. Use food as support, but don’t rely on it alone — Even if you eat organic vegetables, today’s soil is far more depleted in magnesium than it was decades ago. While nuts and seeds are often promoted as magnesium-rich, I don’t recommend them because they’re packed with linoleic acid (LA), a polyunsaturated fat that blocks energy production and drives inflammation.

Think of food as your supportive base but not typically enough by itself to correct a true deficiency or maintain optimal levels. Most people need supplementation to fully replenish their levels.

2. Identify what’s draining your magnesium — If you’re taking acid reflux drugs, water pills, or drinking alcohol regularly, these habits are silently pulling magnesium out of your body. Kidney stress has the same effect. Write these factors down and track them like a scorecard. Seeing the depleting factors in black and white gives you something tangible to work on, and every time you reduce one, you’ve just improved your score.

3. Find your true magnesium threshold — Your body has its own “sweet spot,” and it’s not the same as someone else’s. Start with magnesium citrate — it’s well absorbed but will trigger loose stools when you’ve taken too much. Slowly raise your dose until that happens, then back off slightly. That’s your personal threshold. Once you know it, switch to forms that give you the benefits without upsetting your digestion, like glycinate, malate, or L-threonate.

4. Choose the right magnesium form for your needs — The three forms I most often recommend are magnesium L-threonate, magnesium glycinate, and magnesium malate. Magnesium glycinate is excellent if you’re dealing with stress, anxiety, or trouble sleeping because it’s calming and easy on your stomach.

Magnesium malate helps recharge energy production and is especially useful if you’re battling fatigue, brain fog, or sore muscles. Magnesium L-threonate is unique for brain health and is often used to support memory, focus, and deeper sleep. Picking the right type of magnesium for your situation means you’re not just guessing — you’re targeting your problem directly.

5. Pair magnesium with other bladder-friendly habits — Magnesium gives your bladder a solid foundation, but pairing it with bladder-support strategies makes the improvements even stronger. Consider reducing caffeine and alcohol, both of which overstimulate your bladder and undo the calming effect of magnesium. It could also mean practicing timed bathroom visits or pelvic floor exercises that retrain bladder control.

Even staying hydrated matters — when urine is too concentrated, it irritates your bladder lining and increases urgency. By combining magnesium restoration with these bladder-specific tips, you multiply the relief and make daily life easier.

FAQs About Magnesium and Overactive Bladder

Q: How common is overactive bladder and why does it matter?

A: Overactive bladder affects about 1 in 6 adults in the U.S. It disrupts sleep, drains energy, and lowers confidence in daily life. Beyond urgency and frequent bathroom trips, it triggers anxiety and depression, making it far more than just an inconvenience.

Q: What role does magnesium play in bladder control?

A: Magnesium helps regulate muscle contractions and nerve signals. When levels are low, bladder muscles contract too often and too strongly, leading to urgency, leaks, and nighttime trips. Magnesium also calms inflammation, which reduces irritation in bladder tissue and nerve sensitivity.

Q: What did the research show about magnesium depletion and bladder problems?

A: Two large U.S. studies found a clear, dose-dependent link between low magnesium status and overactive bladder. Even a small drop in magnesium significantly increased risk. Adults with the highest magnesium depletion scores had up to a 40% higher chance of bladder dysfunction compared to those with healthy levels.⁴

Q: What’s the best way to restore magnesium levels?

A: Food should be your foundation, but it’s not typically enough on its own because today’s soil is depleted. I don’t recommend magnesium-rich foods like nuts and seeds, as they contain LA, which interferes with energy and increases inflammation. Supplementation is often necessary. Start with magnesium citrate to find your personal threshold, then switch to forms like glycinate, malate, or L-threonate depending on your specific needs.

Q: What other steps support magnesium in improving bladder health?

A: Pair magnesium with bladder-friendly habits for stronger results. Reduce caffeine and alcohol, practice timed bathroom visits, strengthen pelvic floor muscles, and stay well-hydrated to prevent concentrated urine from irritating your bladder. These strategies, combined with restoring magnesium, give you more control and long-lasting relief.

The Role of Lithium Homeostasis in Alzheimer’s

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Alzheimer’s disease strips away memory, independence, and identity, leaving families to watch their loved ones fade before their eyes. It’s one of the leading causes of death in older adults, yet conventional treatments fail to change its relentless course once it begins. The scale of the problem is staggering. Millions of people live with Alzheimer’s today, and the numbers are climbing as populations age.

This isn’t just about memory loss — it’s about losing the ability to manage daily life, make decisions, and stay connected to the people who matter most. Researchers around the world are searching for answers beyond symptom control. One surprising direction has emerged from studies of a trace mineral — lithium — that has long been overlooked outside of psychiatry.

Instead of focusing only on drugs designed to mask memory problems, scientists are uncovering how nutritional levels of lithium could influence brain resilience and the very biology of cognitive decline. This line of research points to a shift in how we think about prevention and protection, suggesting that the story of Alzheimer’s is not only about what goes wrong in your brain but also about what’s missing.

The first findings I’ll share focus on what happens when lithium levels drop and why that matters for memory and long-term brain health.

Lithium Loss in the Brain Drives Alzheimer’s Decline

Research published in Nature analyzed brain tissue from people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer’s disease to measure how different metals were distributed in the brain.¹

The investigators discovered that lithium stood out from all other metals, because its levels were consistently reduced in a key area of the brain involved in decision-making, memory, and personality. This wasn’t a random occurrence. Lithium was being drawn into amyloid plaques, the sticky clumps of protein that accumulate in Alzheimer’s disease, locking it away and making it unavailable for normal brain function.

• Lithium deficiency linked to faster memory loss and brain damage — In animal experiments, removing lithium from the diet sped up the disease process. Mice developed more amyloid plaques, more tau tangles (twisted fibers that choke brain cells), and higher levels of inflammation in the brain. Their memory also declined faster compared to mice that received adequate lithium.

• Key brain functions worsened without lithium — Researchers noted that lithium deficiency caused the connections that allow brain cells to talk to each other to weaken. Myelin, the protective sheath around nerve fibers, also became thinner, impairing communication between neurons.

These are the same changes that underlie the forgetfulness, confusion, and personality shifts seen in Alzheimer’s. When lithium was restored, these damaging processes slowed down, offering hope that preserving lithium balance could help keep your memory and thinking sharper as you age.

• The main biological switch was identified — The researchers pinpointed a specific enzyme as the central player. When lithium levels fell, this enzyme went into overdrive. In simple terms, the enzyme is like a switch that turns on tau buildup and inflammation. Overactivation of this enzyme sped up Alzheimer’s pathology. By restoring lithium levels, the activity of the enzyme was brought back under control, reducing both tau tangles and brain inflammation.

• Lithium orotate offered greater protection than standard forms — When scientists compared different types of lithium, they found lithium orotate was more effective at restoring lithium balance in brain tissue compared to lithium carbonate, the standard drug form used in psychiatry. Lithium orotate bypassed the problem of being trapped in amyloid plaques and delivered usable lithium directly to the brain.

Low-Dose Lithium Shows Consistent Brain and Mood Benefits

In a study published in Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, researchers examined dozens of studies exploring how low-dose lithium — doses far below psychiatric treatment levels — affects brain health and emotional stability.² The analysis included both clinical trials and observational studies, offering a wide view of how trace lithium interacts with human cognition and mood across different populations.

• Findings showed cognitive preservation and mood support — Low-dose lithium supported brain function, especially in people facing early memory problems such as MCI.

Improvements were not only seen in memory performance but also in daily functioning, suggesting that even small amounts of lithium were meaningful for protecting independence. Another key benefit was mood stabilization. Individuals with depression or mood disorders experienced greater emotional steadiness and fewer severe episodes when trace lithium was part of their regimen.

• Evidence pointed to specific improvements in cognition — Several of the studies in the review found that patients receiving low-dose lithium had better scores on cognitive function tests compared to those not receiving it. These results matter because they suggest that you don’t need high doses to notice a difference in daily cognitive abilities — trace amounts were enough to create measurable improvements.

• Benefits were seen without harmful side effects — Standard lithium medications used in psychiatry are known to strain the kidneys and thyroid at therapeutic doses, which often limits their long-term use. In contrast, the low-dose studies reviewed showed no such risks. Participants tolerated the nutrient-level doses well, which makes lithium in this form an option for long-term brain support without the baggage of organ damage.

• Lithium acted as a micronutrient for brain resilience — The authors of the review emphasized that lithium should be considered not just as a drug, but as a trace element that supports resilience against neurological decline.

They noted that in populations where natural lithium levels in drinking water were higher, rates of dementia and mood disorders were lower. This suggests that your everyday exposure to lithium, even in tiny amounts, influences how well your brain holds up under stress and aging.

Long-Term Lithium Slows Progression from Memory Loss to Alzheimer’s

In a paper published in The British Journal of Psychiatry, researchers evaluated whether long-term lithium treatment could delay or slow the transition from amnestic MCI — a condition marked by significant memory loss but not yet full dementia — into Alzheimer’s disease.³ MCI is a high-risk stage, with many patients progressing to Alzheimer’s within a few years. By targeting this stage, the study tested whether lithium could act as a disease-modifying therapy instead of just treating symptoms.

• Participants showed improved test scores and brain health markers — The trial enrolled adults diagnosed with amnestic MCI and randomly assigned them to receive either low-dose lithium or placebo for 12 months.

Those who received lithium demonstrated better results on cognitive tests that measured memory, attention, and mental flexibility. In addition, their spinal fluid showed lower levels of a protein that builds up in Alzheimer’s and serves as a biological marker of disease progression.

• Lithium led to meaningful improvements in daily functioning — Patients on lithium were better able to concentrate, stay attentive, and process information more efficiently compared to those on placebo. For individuals living with early memory problems, this translates into maintaining independence longer — keeping the ability to manage daily activities, remember conversations, and participate in social and family life without the rapid decline typically expected at this stage.

• Disease progression slowed — Fewer participants in the lithium group progressed from MCI to full Alzheimer’s compared to placebo, although the difference did not reach statistical significance due to the relatively small number of patients enrolled. Despite that limitation, the pattern was encouraging because it suggested that even at low doses, lithium slowed or even prevented the onset of Alzheimer’s in people at highest risk.

• Lithium showed disease-modifying properties — Unlike current Alzheimer’s drugs, which mainly address symptoms like memory loss or agitation, lithium appeared to alter the biology of the disease itself. By lowering tau buildup, improving test performance, and reducing the rate of decline, lithium functioned as more than a bandage — it influenced the trajectory of Alzheimer’s.

How to Protect Your Brain by Supporting Lithium Balance

Your brain depends on a steady supply of trace nutrients to keep memory sharp, mood stable, and aging in check. The research you’ve just learned about makes it clear that lithium isn’t just a psychiatric tool — it’s a natural element that influences how your brain ages.⁴

If you’ve ever worried about losing your memory, forgetting names, or slipping into confusion as you get older, protecting your lithium balance is one simple step you can take.⁵ Think of this as an investment in your future independence and quality of life. Here are five ways to take action right now:

1. Focus on whole foods that supply trace lithium — Drinking water in some regions naturally contains small amounts of lithium, and diets rich in unprocessed foods help you support your lithium levels more consistently. If you rely heavily on ultraprocessed foods, your intake is likely lower than it should be. Start by including more fresh fruits and vegetables in your meals — your body gets not only lithium but the full spectrum of minerals your brain depends on.

2. Limit ultraprocessed foods that strip minerals — Every time you reach for fast food, packaged snacks, or sugary drinks, you rob your body of trace minerals like lithium. These foods often lack the natural mineral balance found in whole ingredients. Shifting away from this pattern helps restore the trace elements your brain requires to fight off memory loss and decline.

3. Support brain-protective nutrients that work with lithium — Magnesium and zinc are two minerals that keep your brain resilient and interact with lithium to reduce inflammation and oxidative stress. Most people don’t come close to getting enough magnesium for optimal health. Even if you eat well, soil depletion and food processing strip magnesium from your diet.

I recommend using magnesium citrate first — increase slowly until you get loose stools, then back off a little. Once you know your threshold, switch to magnesium glycinate, malate, or threonate for better absorption without digestive issues. For zinc, your best bet is to focus on animal-based foods, which provide highly absorbable zinc. Oysters are the most zinc-rich food on the planet, followed by grass fed beef, crab, and dairy like cheddar cheese.

These sources beat plant-based options hands-down because they don't contain phytates, which block zinc absorption. By optimizing magnesium and zinc, you give lithium the support team it needs to slow down the brain changes tied to Alzheimer’s.

4. Consider low-dose lithium supplementation if you’re at risk — If you have a family history of Alzheimer’s, signs of mild cognitive decline, or are simply concerned about preserving your memory, low-dose lithium orotate has been studied as a safer, more effective option than standard lithium carbonate. Research shows it restores lithium levels in your brain, reduces harmful proteins, and preserves memory without the kidney or thyroid issues tied to higher doses.

5. Remove vegetable oils and address excess iron — Lithium is just one part of keeping your brain healthy. Excess iron in your brain causes oxidative damage by reacting with fats and proteins in brain cells. The danger is even greater when iron interacts with unstable fats like linoleic acid (LA) from vegetable oils like canola, soy, corn, sunflower, and safflower, which break down easily and fuel this destructive process.

Replace these oils with stable fats such as grass fed butter, ghee, coconut oil, or tallow to stop feeding the fire. You can also boost your antioxidant defenses by eating garlic, onions, and pasture-raised eggs. These foods give your body the building blocks to produce glutathione, your brain’s main defense system against iron-triggered damage.

At the same time, test your ferritin and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) — a key marker of oxidative stress — to assess iron burden and oxidative stress. If your body is holding onto more iron than it can safely manage, donate blood two to four times a year. This simple act pulls iron out of storage and lowers your levels gradually. If donation isn’t an option due to your health history, ask for therapeutic phlebotomy to achieve the same result.

FAQs About Lithium and Alzheimer’s Disease

Q: What role does lithium play in Alzheimer’s disease?

A: Research shows that lithium levels drop in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s and mild cognitive impairment. When lithium gets trapped inside amyloid plaques, it becomes unavailable for normal brain function. Restoring lithium helps slow memory decline, reduce harmful proteins, and protect neurons from inflammation and damage.

Q: Is low-dose lithium safe for long-term use?

A: Yes. Reviews of clinical studies confirm that trace or nutritional doses of lithium support memory, mood, and daily functioning without the kidney or thyroid risks tied to psychiatric-level prescriptions. Participants tolerated low-dose lithium well, making it a safer option for long-term brain support.⁶

Q: Does lithium actually slow the progression of memory loss?

A: A clinical trial found that adults with amnestic mild cognitive impairment who took low-dose lithium had better memory scores, stronger attention, and lower Alzheimer’s biomarkers in their spinal fluid.⁷ Fewer progressed to Alzheimer’s compared to placebo, suggesting lithium has disease-modifying effects.

Q: How can I support lithium balance naturally?

A: You can increase your intake by focusing on whole foods and drinking mineral-rich water if available in your area. Supporting nutrients like magnesium and zinc also work hand in hand with lithium to protect brain cells. For those at higher risk, low-dose lithium orotate supplementation has shown promise in research.

Q: Are there other steps I should take alongside lithium?

A: Yes. Addressing excess iron and cutting out vegetable oils are key. Iron buildup fuels oxidative damage in your brain, especially when it reacts with unstable fats like LA in vegetable oils. Replace them with stable fats such as grass fed butter or coconut oil, donate blood if your iron is high, and eat sulfur-rich foods like garlic and onions to boost glutathione — your brain’s main defense system.

Test Your Knowledge with Today's Quiz!

Take today’s quiz to see how much you’ve learned from yesterday’s Mercola.com article.

Why is Tylenol linked to chronic illness and autism risk during pregnancy and infancy?

It affects the immune system, which triggers allergic reactions in developing infants

It creates toxic byproducts that deplete liver antioxidants and damage developing brain tissue
Tylenol produces NAPQI (N-acetyl-p-benzoquinone imine), a toxin that drains liver glutathione and can harm fetal brain and organ development. Learn more.

It interferes with calcium absorption, which affects fetal bone and brain growth

It reduces body temperature too much, weakening the immune system against infections

How sleep, nutrition, and exercise restore physician well-being [PODCAST]

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 23:00:29 +0000

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes! Physical therapists Kim Downey, Ziya Altug, and Shirish Sachdeva discuss their article “How physicians can reclaim resilience through better sleep, nutrition, and exercise.” In this episode, Kim, Ziya, and Shirish explain how the triad of sleep, balanced nutrition, and physical activity

Read more…

How sleep, nutrition, and exercise restore physician well-being [PODCAST] originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

The physician mental health crisis in the ER

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 21:00:51 +0000

The numbers are staggering. Americans made 139.8 million emergency department visits in 2024, that is 42.7 visits per 100 people, with behavioral health issues driving an unprecedented surge. Behind these statistics lies a harsh reality: depression, a leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide, is overwhelming our emergency departments with cases they were never

Read more…

The physician mental health crisis in the ER originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Is mental illness the root of mass shootings?

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 19:00:43 +0000

(Author’s note: This article has been a year in the making. Each time another mass shooting makes headlines, I think, this is the moment to speak, and then life intervenes. The opportunity to contribute meaningfully feels missed. But the cruelest irony is this: Wait ten more days, and there will be another tragedy to make

Read more…

Is mental illness the root of mass shootings? originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

How new physicians can build their career

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 18:00:13 +0000

Introduction In a recent episode of the Wealth Planning for the Modern Physician podcast, host David Mandell, JD, MBA, welcomed Dr. Michael Ast, an orthopedic surgeon specializing in adult reconstruction and joint replacement surgery. Beyond being an accomplished clinician at the Hospital of Special Surgery in New York, Dr. Ast also lectures often on business

Read more…

How new physicians can build their career originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Moral distress vs. burnout in medicine

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 17:00:26 +0000

“To practice medicine,” a mentor once told me, “is to live with the tension between what you can do and what you should do.” I didn’t understand him then. I do now. It is two in the morning in a Chicago hospital. The unit hums with fluorescent fatigue. A man in his fifties lies gasping

Read more…

Moral distress vs. burnout in medicine originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Why doctors make bad financial decisions

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 16:00:30 +0000

Doctors, I like to think, are fairly intelligent people. We worked hard in school, extremely hard in residency, and continue to refine our skills decades into practice. In addition to being intellectual, we are often experts in our fields. We enjoy more respect and higher salaries than most professions. Our work can be humbling and

Read more…

Why doctors make bad financial decisions originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Is your medical career a golden cage?

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 15:00:31 +0000

What if the career you spent your life building, the one filled with achievement, purpose, and prestige, is now the cage you cannot escape? That question did not just haunt me; it held me back for years. I was a successful urologist, specialized in advanced prostate cancer detection, robotic surgery, and men’s health. From the

Read more…

Is your medical career a golden cage? originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Medicine fails its working mothers

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 13:00:43 +0000

As I sit breastfeeding a newborn and hastily switch to pump while the newborn (my fourth child) dozes, I have some thoughts that I think are particularly timely given concerns that are facing millions of families of young children in our country. Maternal and infant mortality continue to be worryingly high in the U.S., especially

Read more…

Medicine fails its working mothers originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Diagnosing the epidemic of U.S. violence

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 11:00:59 +0000

As a physician, I am trained to diagnose not just the presenting symptom but the underlying pathology. This is the same lens through which many of us in the medical community view the epidemic of American violence. For years, organizations from the AMA to the CDC have called it a public health crisis. This is

Read more…

Diagnosing the epidemic of U.S. violence originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Why Does Tylenol Cause Chronic Illnesses Like Autism?

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The Presidential Announcement

September 22, 2025, President Trump held a press conference about the potential causes of autism. Shortly beforehand, the press became aware that Trump would focus on the link between Tylenol and autism, resulting in the national media collectively ridiculing that link immediately before the press conference.

In that press conference, Trump stated he had felt very strongly about bringing attention to vaccines and autism for 20 years, that he felt we were giving too many shots too quickly, and that they needed to be spaced out. There was no reason to give the hepatitis B vaccine prior to children being 12 (which, as I showed here, is true), and Tylenol increases the risk of autism, so if possible, it should be avoided during pregnancy, and you should not give it to infants.

Secretary Kennedy added that some 40% to 70% of mothers who have children with autism believe a vaccine injured their child, and that President Trump believes we should be listening to these mothers instead of gaslighting them.

Note: Regrettably, to show they believed in “Science,” pregnant mothers began quickly posting videos of themselves taking large amounts of Tylenol (which I compiled on

Knee and Groin Pain Could Signal Hip Problems

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Have you ever felt a stubborn ache in your groin, thigh, or knee and chalked it up to a pulled muscle or the result of daily wear and tear? You’re not alone — and you might be missing the real culprit. Pain can be like a faulty GPS, sending you in the wrong direction and making it hard to pinpoint the true source. A sore knee might not indicate a joint issue, and groin discomfort may not stem from overexertion.

Surprisingly, these aches can signal trouble with one of the body’s most important weight-bearing joints — the hip. The hip is a powerful central joint that powers nearly every movement. When it starts to wear down, the pain starts to spread to unexpected areas in the body. And because discomfort doesn’t always start in the hip, the pain often leads to misinterpretation.

Public Misunderstanding of Hip-Related Pain

To understand how common this misunderstanding is, researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center recently launched a national survey¹ to reveal just how people commonly misread their body’s pain signals.

Their goal is to identify the link between hip health and pain in other areas of the body by assessing the participants’ ability to recognize the signs of hip problems. Their findings suggest that many Americans are misinterpreting symptoms, which could lead to delays in proper diagnosis and treatment.²

• The survey involved a sample size of 1,004 adults aged 18 and above — It revealed that 72% didn’t know knee pain could signal a hip issue, while 69% overlooked groin pain, and 66% missed thigh pain as a possible sign of hip-related problems.

• Signs of hip problem that are often underrecognized — While some participants did recognize indicators such as clicking in the hip, difficulty bending, or tying shoes, others overlooked symptoms such as lower back pain, night pain, and trouble sleeping. The researchers advise consulting a medical expert to correctly diagnose any unexplained pain.

• Many people try to manage their discomfort on their own — Four in 10 people push through the pain, while 52% rely on over-the-counter medications instead of seeking a proper diagnosis. This highlights a cultural tendency to ignore discomfort until it becomes severe.³

“Patients will be referred to me for knee pain. When I examine the patient, I will rotate their hip, and the patient will feel pain. We'll also do X-rays to determine arthritis in the hip and if a replacement would be beneficial,” says Dr. Matthew Beal, orthopedic surgeon and associate professor at Ohio State.

The survey findings underscore how easily hip issues can masquerade as pain elsewhere in the body. This disconnect is rooted in a medical phenomenon known as “referred pain.”

Demystifying Referred Pain

The Pennsylvania Pain and Spine Institute describes referred pain as a misunderstood condition where pain is felt in one area of the body, even though the source is elsewhere. This can lead to treatments being ineffective by targeting the wrong area, leaving the root cause unresolved and prolonging discomfort.⁴

• How it happens — Referred pain occurs when the brain misinterprets signals from the body regions that share similar nerve pathways. Because these multiple body regions send signals to the same spinal segment, the brain may “project” pain to a more familiar or superficial area.

• Hip-related referred pain — The hip joint, due to its proximity and shared nerve connections with the lower back, groin, buttock, thigh, and knee, can cause pain in these areas even when the hip doesn’t feel sore. This is common in cases of degenerative osteoarthritis. Common signs of hip-related referred pain include:

◦Groin pain

◦Limping or changes in gait

◦Pain that worsens at night after prolonged sitting

◦Discomfort radiating to the thigh or knee

Other hip conditions that can cause referred pain include:

◦Sacroiliac joint issues

◦Piriformis syndrome

◦Avascular necrosis of the hip

◦Hip impingement syndrome

• Mapping out solutions and treatments — Careful evaluation is essential, especially for those with chronic lower back pain, to ensure the hip is not overlooked. Once the hip is confirmed as the source of referred pain, treatment options may include physical therapy to correct imbalances and advanced therapies like platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections. Anti-inflammatory drugs are also often prescribed, but they don’t address the root cause and often come with side effects.

Doctors may use X-rays or MRI scans to help confirm a hip diagnosis. In some cases, diagnostic injections are performed — if the injections relieve both hip and referred pain, it confirms the hip as the source. This helps guide treatment so patients can avoid unnecessary procedures that target the wrong area.

Other Causes of Knee and Groin Pain

While hip-related referred pain is the common culprit, an article in Health Central emphasizes that knee and groin pain stem from a variety of overlapping conditions, including:⁵

• Muscle strain — Overuse or injury to the iliopsoas muscle, the primary hip flexor responsible for bending and rotating the hip, can cause groin-to-knee pain. Activities like weight training, sports, or running often trigger this type of strain. Treatment usually involves rest and physical therapy, with most cases resolving in two to six weeks.⁶

• Hip arthritis — Especially common in adults over 50, hip osteoarthritis can trigger pain that radiates down the leg. “It can be a surprise to most people when they learn this type of pain most often comes from the hip,” says Dr. Ettore Vulcano, chief of the Columbia University Division of Orthopedics at the Mount Sinai Medical Center.⁷

Hip arthritis also affects younger adults with preexisting conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and lupus.⁸ While corticosteroid injections are often used for treatment, recent studies show no statistically significant long-term benefit compared to placebo. Repeated injections can worsen joint damage, making physical therapy and PRP therapy safer alternatives.⁹

• Other hip and joint issues — These include conditions like hip impingement, which occurs when extra bone growth causes abnormal contact between the hip bones, as well as labral tears, which involve damage to the ring of cartilage that cushions and stabilizes the hip socket.

According to Harmony Wellness, labral repair surgery has a success rate of 70% to 90%, with most patients reporting improved function and pain relief. Arthroscopic procedures such as these are minimally invasive and often performed on an outpatient basis.¹⁰

• Nerve compression — Pinching of the femoral and sciatic nerve can cause pain to radiate from the lower back or pelvis down to the groin and knee. Vulcano says, “A pinched nerve can be a result of factors such as a herniated disk in the lower back, arthritis, or just age-related wear and tear on your spine.”¹¹

If the pain persists for weeks, your doctor may recommend a corticosteroid shot as a temporary fix to reduce inflammation. But in more extreme cases, surgery options such as anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) or artificial disc replacement (ADR) can be considered.

• Pregnancy pain — Increased levels of relaxin, a reproductive hormone,¹² and added weight during pregnancy can shift the body’s center of gravity and compress the sciatic nerve. A cross-sectional survey found that 22.1% of pregnant women in their third trimester experienced sciatica.¹³ Gentle stretching, yoga, and exercises targeting the lower back and hamstrings are recommended.

If the pain persists for more than four to six weeks despite rest, consider consulting with an orthopedist (However, if you’re pregnant, you may need to consult with your OB-GYN first).¹⁴ In many cases, this prolonged pain is referred pain from an underlying issue that is not related to your thigh muscle.

Declining Bone Health in Young Adults

Strong bones are the foundation of hip health. But today, poor skeletal health has become a concern not just for the elderly — it’s increasingly affecting young adults as well, causing bone density loss, joint degeneration, and early signs of osteoarthritis.¹⁵ A combination of lifestyle and environmental factors is fueling the trend:

• Sedentary lifestyle and poor nutrition — Long hours of sitting, minimal physical activity, and deficiencies in nutrients like calcium, magnesium, and vitamins D and K2 make the problem worse.

• Poor sleep and chronic stress — Lack of restorative sleep disrupts the body’s natural bone-building cycle, while chronic stress raises cortisol levels, triggering calcium loss. These factors accelerate degeneration and lead to the earlier onset of hip and joint pain.

• Lack of weight-bearing workouts — Weight-bearing activities, such as walking, running, and resistance training, stimulate bone growth and strength. Without them, bones weaken and become more prone to injury. Modern desk jobs and the popularity of low-impact workouts have led to reduced stimulation, causing bones to become more fragile over time.

• If left unaddressed, declining bone health increases the risk of hip problems, knee pain, and other joint issues later in life — Regularly screening for bone density and joint health helps catch issues before they worsen. To strengthen your bones and protect your long-term hip health, I recommend techniques like blood flow restriction (BFR) training and vibration therapy, alongside weight-bearing movements.

To learn more about how to build bone strength through purposeful movement without overtraining, check out “How Exercise Can Help Promote Stronger Bones.” Later on, we’ll also discuss exercise movements to help ease hip pain.

There Are Safe and Natural Ways to Manage Pain

Pain is complex, and treating it effectively requires more than just masking the symptoms. A natural approach to pain management focuses on identifying and addressing the root causes which often lie deeper.

• The role of physical therapy and posture correction — Targeted movement, stretching, and strengthening exercises can help restore balance, reduce inflammation, and improve joint function.¹⁶ Therapists often use diagnostic techniques to pinpoint imbalances and tailor interventions that support long-term healing.

• Herbal options — The following herbal remedies help reduce inflammation, modulate pain signals, and support overall joint health. For a deeper dive into how these herbs work, check out my article “An Herbal Guide to Natural Pain Relief,” where I discuss in detail how these herbs can help ease your symptoms:

◦Willow bark

◦Ginger

◦Turmeric (Curcumin)

◦Rose hips

◦Devil’s claw

◦Boswellia (Frankincense)

◦Feverfew

◦Ashwagandha

◦Black cohosh

◦Corydalis

◦Rosemary

◦Thunder God vine

Just remember that some herbs can interact with prescription drugs, so consult a healthcare provider, naturopathic doctor, or herbalist before adding these to your regimen. The same applies if you're pregnant, breastfeeding, or considering use in children.

• Nutritional support — Certain nutrients play a key role in reducing inflammation and supporting musculoskeletal health, including:

◦Magnesium — Helps regulate muscle, supports nerve function, and reduces pain sensitivity.

◦Vitamin D — Crucial for bone health and immune regulation; deficiency is linked to increased pain perception.

◦Choline — A precursor to acetylcholine, which plays a role in pain modulation. Many people are deficient, especially vegans, athletes, and post-menopausal women.

• Stress-reducing practices — Chronic stress triggers your fight-or-flight response, which leads to muscle tension, inflammation, and body aches.¹⁷ Doing mindfulness meditation, breathing techniques, yoga or tai chi, and visualization or guided imagery can help lower stress and ease pain.

Other effective stress-relief tools include biofeedback, which helps you control your body’s reaction to pain by monitoring physiological responses like heart rate and muscle tension,¹⁸ and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which teaches strategies for reframing negative thoughts and managing pain more effectively.¹⁹ Aromatherapy, particularly with orange essential oil, has been shown to ease pain and anxiety while promoting a sense of calm.

• Patient empowerment works wonders — Understanding your body and actively participating in your care can significantly improve pain outcomes. Research shows that when patients are empowered — through education, self-management strategies, and collaborative decision-making — they experience better symptom control and quality of life.²⁰

Try These Exercises to Relieve Hip-Related Pain

Strengthening the muscles that support your hips helps shift stress away from the joint and onto surrounding tissues. This improves alignment, reduces pain, and retrains your hips to function properly, easing tension and restoring balance throughout your body. Health Central outlines 11 simple exercises that can help restore hip mobility and function — below are six of them. For the rest, see Health Central’s slideshow.²¹

• Hip extension

1. Stand tall and hold onto a stable surface like a countertop or wall for balance.

2. Keeping your knee straight, slowly lift one leg behind you without leaning forward. Pause briefly, then lower your leg back down.

3. Do 8 to 10 reps on each leg. This activates your glutes and supports upright posture.

• Side-leg snow angel

1. Lie on your back with legs straight and arms relaxed at your sides.

2. Slowly slide one leg out to the side while raising the opposite arm overhead in a wide arc, like making a snow angel. Keep your limbs straight and your movements controlled.

3. Bring your arm and leg back to center, then switch sides. Do 8 to 10 reps on each side.

• Glute bridge

1. Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor.

2. Press through your heels to lift your hips, engaging your glutes and hamstrings. Hold for a few seconds, then lower slowly back to the floor.

3. Do 8 to 10 reps. This helps stabilize the pelvis and strengthen the posterior chain.

• Side-lying hip adduction

1. Lie on your right side with your left knee bent and pointing up, left foot flat on the floor slightly behind you.

2. Keeping your right leg straight, lift it a few inches off the floor.

Why the FDA Still Allows a Carcinogen in Pork Products

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Cancer remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide, with new cases rising steadily each year. That reality makes it all the more alarming when carcinogens are knowingly allowed to enter the food supply. In the U.S., one example involves a feed additive used in pig farming that experts have already determined is unsafe at any level of exposure.

The concern is not limited to pork on your plate. Farm workers handling animal feed are directly exposed, and surrounding communities face contamination as waste from large-scale operations seeps into waterways. When a compound carries risks for consumers, workers, and the environment alike, the failure to act quickly carries consequences far beyond the farm.

Many countries already responded by banning the additive outright, while American regulators have delayed meaningful action for decades. That leaves U.S. consumers vulnerable to a hazard others deemed unacceptable long ago.

This gap between science and policy has sparked closer investigation. Researchers and advocacy groups have examined how the additive persists in the food system and why regulators have been unwilling — or unable — to remove it. Their findings reveal how ongoing delays keep you at risk.

FDA Delays Put Your Health at Risk

A report from Food Animal Concerns Trust (FACT) explains that carbadox, a feed additive used in U.S. pig farming, was determined by the United Nations Codex Committee on Residues of Veterinary Drugs in Foods to have "no safe level."¹

This means even the smallest trace is dangerous for humans because it leaves behind carcinogenic byproducts that damage DNA.² Despite this, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has kept it on the market for years, acknowledging the risk but failing to act.

• The drug is still given to millions of pigs each year — Over half of pigs raised for food in the U.S. are exposed to carbadox. This happens in concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) that rely on the drug for two main reasons: to make pigs grow faster and to suppress gut infections that spread in crowded, unsanitary conditions. This means pork products from these facilities carry residues linked to cancer, creating a direct food safety risk.

• Carbadox threatens not only consumers but workers and the environment — People who handle pig feed inhale carbadox dust, exposing their lungs to carcinogenic particles. Waste from pig operations also contaminates lakes and streams, spreading the compound far outside the farm. This isn’t just about what ends up on your dinner plate — it’s about how your environment is being seeded with a chemical tied to cancer.

• The FDA’s stall is tied to industry pressure and red tape — Even though the agency admits carbadox causes cancer, regulatory action has been delayed for more than 20 years. Pushback from industrial farming interests, lobbying from drug companies, and bureaucratic slowdowns have all been blamed for why the ban hasn’t gone through. This means your safety is being sacrificed to protect profits.

• Other countries acted years ago, but the U.S. has lagged — Canada, Brazil, the U.K., Australia, and the entire European Union banned carbadox long before the U.S. even considered withdrawing approval. The U.S. remains an outlier, exposing its citizens to risks other nations judged unacceptable.

The FDA even proposed withdrawing carbadox in November 2023, but the process stalled again, and the drug is still being sold and fed to pigs.³ This is a real-time example of how inaction at the regulatory level translates into ongoing exposure for you and your family.

• Safer farming practices prove carbadox is unnecessary — Farmers who raise pigs in healthier environments — avoiding overcrowding, allowing proper weaning, and providing balanced diets — do not need carbadox to control disease or promote growth. As the report emphasizes, "Humanely raising these animals results in healthier pigs and healthier people without the cancer risk carbadox introduces."

FACT urges consumers and food companies alike to demand change. Large buyers like McDonald’s and Tyson could tell suppliers to drop carbadox, eliminating it from the food chain. On an individual level, your choices — whether you support farms that avoid such drugs or sign petitions pushing regulators to ban them — make a measurable difference.

New Testing Method Reveals Important Gaps

In a study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, researchers introduced a laboratory method designed to detect both carcinogenic and noncarcinogenic residues left behind by carbadox.⁴

• No residues were detected in the retail pork samples tested — Scientists analyzed 33 pork products from 13 different producers in the Baltimore region and found no trace of either residue. On the surface, this sounds reassuring, but the absence of detection does not mean carbadox is not being used nationwide. It simply means that the specific samples tested did not contain measurable residues at the time of purchase.

• Most pork producers refused to disclose whether they used carbadox — Out of the 13 pork producers contacted, seven did not respond at all, one admitted to using carbadox, one confirmed they did not, and four gave unclear answers. This lack of transparency leaves you in the dark as a consumer. Without consistent disclosure, you can’t know whether the pork on your plate originated from carbadox-treated pigs.

• The study stresses the need for stronger monitoring systems — Even though residues were not found in these particular samples, the researchers emphasized that widespread monitoring with sensitive tools is essential to protect consumers. This underscores the fact that safety depends not only on testing but also on consistent oversight across the entire pork industry.

• The findings reveal a disconnect between use and detection — The reality is that carbadox is still approved for use in the U.S., and yet retail testing didn’t find residues in the limited samples analyzed. This suggests two possibilities: residues might degrade before pork reaches the store, or contaminated batches might slip through without being tested.

• Consumer empowerment is part of the solution — Scientific tools exist to detect residues, but without accountability from producers, the risk remains. Choosing suppliers who reject carbadox entirely or demanding transparency from food companies puts pressure on the system. When you support producers who commit to clean and safe practices, you contribute to building a safer food supply.

Practical Steps to Protect Yourself from Carbadox Exposure

You don’t have to sit back and accept that a known carcinogen is part of the food supply. While the FDA drags its feet, you can take real steps to protect yourself and your family. The most important thing is addressing the root cause — CAFOs that rely on drugs like carbadox to mask unhealthy, crowded conditions. By shifting your choices, you reduce your own risk and support safer food systems.

1. Avoid pork altogether — I recommend steering clear of pork not only because of carbadox but also because pork contains linoleic acid (LA), a polyunsaturated fat that disrupts cellular energy production. Reducing or eliminating pork from your diet lowers both carcinogen exposure and the metabolic damage tied to this fat.

Consider rotating in other clean protein sources like pasture-raised beef and eggs from hens not fed industrial feed. This reduces the risk that your diet relies heavily on meat raised with harmful additives. Think of it as diversifying your safety net while still enjoying a variety of nutrient-dense foods.

2. If you do eat pork, choose responsible sources — While I don’t recommend eating pork, if you choose to do so, look for farmers or brands that raise pigs without feed additives like carbadox. If you buy pork regularly, ask your butcher or supplier directly how their pigs are raised. This step alone helps you avoid hidden residues and supports farms that use safer methods.

Also stay alert to labels and certifications. While pork labels are not always transparent, some certifications show better oversight. Look for organic pork, which by rule does not allow carbadox, or animal welfare certifications that signal safer practices. If you’re unsure, ask questions — your persistence helps keep producers accountable.

3. Support humane and sustainable farming — If you have access to local farmers markets or community-supported agriculture, get to know the farmers and ask about their practices. Pigs that are given space, proper weaning, and balanced diets don’t need carbadox to stay healthy. By buying from farms that embrace regenerative agriculture, you send a message that healthier pigs and healthier people are worth paying for.

4. Put pressure on big food companies — As a consumer, you have more influence than you realize. Large buyers like McDonald’s and Tyson Foods hold enormous sway over farming practices. If you use your voice — whether through petitions, direct feedback, or choosing alternatives — you encourage these companies to demand pork that’s free of carbadox.

5. Sign the FACT petition — FACT has called for a complete ban on carbadox. Adding your name to their petition strengthens public demand for change and pushes regulators to finish what they started. Your voice matters in holding agencies accountable for protecting public health.

FAQs About Carbadox in Pork

Q: What is carbadox and why is it dangerous?

A: Carbadox is a feed additive used in U.S. pig farming to make pigs grow faster and suppress gut infections in crowded facilities. International experts determined over a decade ago that no amount of exposure is safe because the drug breaks down into compounds that damage DNA and increase cancer risk.

Q: Has carbadox been banned in other countries?

A: Yes. Nations including Canada, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Australia, and all members of the European Union banned carbadox years ago. The U.S. remains an outlier, keeping it on the market despite acknowledging its carcinogenic risks for more than 20 years.

Q: What did researchers find when testing retail pork for carbadox residues?

A: One study tested 33 pork products from 13 producers in Baltimore and found no detectable residues.⁵ However, most producers refused to disclose whether they used carbadox, and the researchers stressed the need for broader, ongoing monitoring.

Q: How does carbadox exposure affect people beyond just eating pork?

A: Carbadox poses risks for farm workers who inhale feed dust and for communities near pig operations, where waste runoff contaminates lakes and streams. This makes it not just a food safety issue but also an occupational and environmental hazard.

Q: What steps can I take to protect myself and support change?

A: You can reduce risk by avoiding pork altogether due to both carbadox and its high LA content. If you do eat pork, choose organic or responsibly sourced products, support humane and regenerative farms, pressure major food companies to reject carbadox, and sign the FACT petition calling for a complete ban.

A neurosurgeon’s fight with the state medical board [PODCAST]

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 23:00:49 +0000

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes! Neurosurgeon Jeffrey Hatef, Jr. discusses his article “Guilty until proven innocent? My experience with a state medical board.” In this episode, Jeffrey shares the shocking story of how his medical license was summarily suspended without a hearing and how incomplete records,

Read more…

A neurosurgeon’s fight with the state medical board [PODCAST] originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Traveling with end-stage renal disease

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 21:00:31 +0000

My wife, Kathy, had stage 4 end-stage renal disease. She was slowly dying, but never stopped living. Her resilience in managing peritoneal dialysis made travel possible, even with the logistical complexities involved. Ireland had long been on our bucket list, inspired by Kathy and Stephanie’s earlier visit while we lived in Peoria. With careful planning,

Read more…

Traveling with end-stage renal disease originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

The high cost of PCSK9 inhibitors like Repatha

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 21:00:22 +0000

When the FOURIER trial was published in 2017, cardiologists and lipidologists everywhere hailed it as proof that lowering LDL with PCSK9 inhibitors “saves lives.” But when you actually read the data, not the press releases, it’s hard not to shake your head. Over a median of 2.2 years, evolocumab (Repatha) reduced nonfatal heart attacks by

Read more…

The high cost of PCSK9 inhibitors like Repatha originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Why non-work stress fuels burnout

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 19:00:52 +0000

While work-related stress continues to be a major cause of burnout, new research shows that non-work stressors like caregiving demands, financial instability, and personal life conflicts also greatly increase the risk. Yet, the dominant narrative has not caught up, and many still believe burnout is only a workplace problem, overlooking the deeper, life-wide imbalance it

Read more…

Why non-work stress fuels burnout originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Why wellness programs fail health care

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 18:00:37 +0000

Jodie Green and I have been following each other on social media for a couple of years, and we finally had a conversation a few months ago. We discussed our appreciation for the work each of us is doing to support doctors and all other health care professionals, including my efforts and Jodie’s with her

Read more…

Why wellness programs fail health care originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Canada’s 2025 health care crisis explained

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 17:00:10 +0000

In 2025, Canada’s universal health care or Medicare system confronted a stark wake-up call. Many high-visibility service disruptions exposed the health care delivery model’s fragility and stress points. There were emergency room (ER) closures and specialty service interruptions. In British Columbia, many hospitals repeatedly and increasingly closed their ERs for hours or days due to

Read more…

Canada’s 2025 health care crisis explained originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

First physician employment agreement mistakes

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 16:00:20 +0000

I have been representing physicians for over 30 years, and I am still amazed by the attitude of most young physicians going into their first attending position. These are smart, accomplished, fully qualified physicians who have received some of the best clinical training in the world. And yet, many of these highly trained individuals in

Read more…

First physician employment agreement mistakes originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Treating chronic pain in older adults

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 15:00:02 +0000

For decades, I treated patients with chronic pain. One truth became evident early: most older adults prescribed narcotics use them responsibly. My clinical acumen, shaped over more than forty years, intuitively knew this to be true. Still, I understood that intuition and opinion alone are insufficient. Compassion in medicine must be paired with objectivity. Now

Read more…

Treating chronic pain in older adults originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

A nurse’s story of hospital bullying

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 13:00:10 +0000

An 18-year-old was admitted to our ICU with a questionable diagnosis. The drug screen did not reveal what he had taken. Our ICU intensivist speculated he ingested bath salts. Bath salts came to the U.S. around the 2010s. It was cheap and, even better, considered a “legal high” as it was not detectable in drug

Read more…

A nurse’s story of hospital bullying originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Confronting the hidden curriculum in surgery

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 11:00:15 +0000

“It is, I think, not easy to exaggerate the importance of the informal social element in the promotion of science and learning.” – Abraham Flexner, 1930 As stated by Mr. Flexner, the importance of the informal social element of science and learning is one of the key fundamentals of the hidden curriculum, a well-understood but

Read more…

Confronting the hidden curriculum in surgery originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

The Link Between Vitamin D Deficiency and Fatty Liver

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has quietly become one of the most widespread health issues of our time, yet most people have no idea they’re living with it. What begins as silent fat buildup in your liver often goes undetected until it’s too late, when damage has already advanced. This condition is now a central driver of cirrhosis, liver failure, and even the need for transplants.

What makes this so dangerous is how easily fatty liver slips under the radar. You might feel perfectly fine while your liver is already under heavy strain, and by the time symptoms surface, permanent scarring has often set in. That’s why understanding the root causes — and how to reverse them before the damage is locked in — is so important.

My own research is deeply tied to this problem. I’m currently in the process of publishing a scientific paper that takes a deep dive into liver health, revealing how choline and reducing mitochondrial toxins can help. However, another nutrient also stands out as a key factor in whether your liver recovers or declines: vitamin D. Its role extends far beyond bone health, influencing how your body handles blood sugar, inflammation, and fat storage.

This brings us to a new line of research that explored what happens when vitamin D is optimized in people already struggling with fatty liver. The results reveal how changing this one factor shifts the entire trajectory of liver function — a discovery that reshapes how we think about both prevention and recovery.

Vitamin D Supplementation Leads to Measurable Liver Improvements

Research published in Frontiers in Pharmacology pooled findings from 16 randomized controlled trials to examine how vitamin D supplementation influences people with NAFLD.¹ By combining data across multiple studies, the researchers were able to see clear trends in how this nutrient affected both body composition and key blood markers.

• Vitamin D supplementation lowered multiple risk markers — Across the pooled trials, vitamin D supplementation consistently led to improvements compared with placebo. People taking vitamin D saw reductions in body weight, body mass index, and waist circumference, pointing to shifts in fat distribution and metabolic balance.

In addition, fasting blood sugar levels and HOMA-IR — a measure of insulin resistance — improved, indicating better blood sugar control. Liver enzymes also decreased, suggesting less active damage within the liver.

• Protective effects reached beyond the liver — The review showed that vitamin D increased HDL cholesterol, the “good” cholesterol that helps clear fats from the bloodstream. This means the benefits extended into heart health, reducing the load on the cardiovascular system at the same time that liver health improved.

Beyond bone health, vitamin D helps regulate blood sugar, calm inflammation, and keep fat metabolism in balance. When levels run low, your liver takes a hit — inflammation gets worse, fat piles up, and scarring speeds along.²

• Consistency emerged across different trials — While individual studies had mixed findings, this large-scale analysis confirmed that the benefits were not isolated results but part of a broader pattern. Improvements were seen regardless of study duration or location, with especially strong effects in trials lasting longer than 12 weeks or using higher vitamin D doses.

• Overall, the review positioned vitamin D as a low-cost, effective strategy — By addressing weight, blood sugar, cholesterol balance, and liver enzymes at once, vitamin D created a ripple effect across multiple systems. For people with fatty liver disease, this means that restoring vitamin D status is more than a supportive step — it directly influences the disease process.

Vitamin D Deficiency Strongly Linked to NAFLD Severity

Research published in Cureus examined 100 adults with NAFLD and found that vitamin D deficiency was both widespread and directly tied to how severe the condition became.³ Nearly half of the patients (45%) were vitamin D deficient, and another 16% had insufficient levels. That means more than 6 in 10 participants fell below what’s considered healthy. This wasn’t a side finding — it emerged as a central feature of NAFLD in the group studied.

• Worse deficiency meant worse disease — The more severe the vitamin D deficiency, the more advanced the liver problems. Patients with the lowest levels were significantly more likely to have enlarged liver, enlarged spleen, and fluid buildup in the abdomen. These conditions signal progression beyond simple fat accumulation toward more serious stages of liver dysfunction.

• Obesity and deficiency overlapped — Among overweight participants, 91.7% were deficient in vitamin D compared to 39.1% of those with normal body weight. This points to a strong interplay between excess body fat, vitamin D status, and the worsening of fatty liver disease.

• Liver fat and vitamin D were directly correlated — Ultrasound findings showed that patients with more severe fatty liver consistently had lower vitamin D levels. The statistical link was strong, confirming that deficiency isn’t just present in NAFLD patients but tied to how much damage is visible inside the liver.

• Vitamin D deficiency linked to insulin resistance — Patients with low vitamin D also had higher levels of insulin resistance, one of the main drivers of NAFLD. This means deficiency could worsen not only liver outcomes but also the broader metabolic problems that often travel with fatty liver disease, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

• Liver enzymes reflected the same pattern — Vitamin D-deficient patients were more likely to have elevated enzymes that signal liver injury. This shows the deficiency wasn’t just linked to structural changes on imaging but also to active, ongoing liver damage.

Taken together, this study highlights vitamin D deficiency as a powerful predictor of NAFLD severity. Rather than being an incidental finding, low vitamin D was consistently tied to worse liver outcomes, greater metabolic dysfunction, and faster progression of disease.

How to Address What’s Really Driving Liver Dysfunction

If your liver isn’t working the way it should, the goal isn’t just to manage symptoms — it’s to remove the stressors that caused the damage in the first place. Your liver is your body’s central detox organ, and when it’s overloaded with harmful fats, toxins, or nutrient gaps, it struggles to process everything else. The following steps target the root causes of liver dysfunction so you can restore balance and help your body heal from the inside out.

1. Eliminate vegetable oils and alcohol — If you’re eating packaged foods made with soybean, canola, corn, sunflower, or generic “vegetable oil,” your liver is under nonstop attack. These oils are high in linoleic acid (LA), a polyunsaturated fat that oxidizes and turns into toxic byproducts that damage your mitochondria — the “engines” of your cells.

Alcohol is just as destructive, since it breaks down into a substance that injures your liver cells. The fastest way to give your liver breathing room is to cut both alcohol and vegetable oils right now. For cooking, switch to grass fed butter, ghee, tallow, or coconut oil.

2. Eat choline-rich foods to support liver health — Think of choline as traffic control for your liver. Without it, fat builds up inside your liver cells, leading to dysfunction and damage. Choline helps package up fats and ship them out so your liver doesn’t become clogged. The best food sources are pastured egg yolks and grass fed beef liver. If you regularly skip these foods, there’s a good chance your liver isn’t getting the support it needs.

3. Use a choline supplement if your diet falls short — If you don’t eat eggs or meat, reaching adequate choline intake through food alone is a challenge. In that case, supplementation is not optional — it’s required. Citicoline is one of the most effective forms, and doses between 500 milligrams (mg) and 2,500 mg per day have been shown to help your liver export fat while also boosting brain function. If you’re noticing brain fog, low energy, or signs of fatty liver, this is a simple but powerful step.

4. Repair with sunlight and smart vitamin D use — Your skin is designed to make vitamin D from sunlight, and daily exposure supports not only your bones and immune system but also your liver’s ability to metabolize fat. But here’s the catch: if you’re still using vegetable oils, the LA stored in your skin increases your risk of sun damage.

Eliminate those oils for at least six months before getting peak sun exposure (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.). When sunlight isn’t an option, supplement with vitamin D3.⁴

5. Test and track your vitamin D to stay on target — Instead of guessing, check your vitamin D levels with a simple blood test at least twice a year. Aim for 60 to 80 ng/mL (150 to 200 nmol/L). This range supports healthy liver function, balanced immunity, and energy production. Testing gives you a clear starting point and a way to measure progress over time.

FAQs About Fatty Liver and Vitamin D

Q: What makes fatty liver so dangerous if I don’t feel any symptoms?

A: Fatty liver often develops silently, with little to no warning signs. By the time symptoms appear, your liver likely already has permanent scarring or advanced damage. That’s why catching it early — and addressing the root causes — is key.

Q: How is vitamin D connected to liver health?

A: Vitamin D isn’t just for strong bones. It regulates blood sugar, reduces inflammation, and helps manage how fat is stored and used in your body. Low vitamin D levels make liver damage worse, speeding up fat buildup, scarring, and inflammation.

Q: Do people with fatty liver usually have low vitamin D?

A: Yes. Studies show that vitamin D deficiency is common in people with fatty liver, and the worse the deficiency, the more advanced the liver problems tend to be. In fact, over 60% of patients in one study had low vitamin D levels, and those with the lowest levels also had the worst liver outcomes.⁵

Q: Besides vitamin D, what else should I do to heal my liver?

A: The biggest step is removing what damages your liver in the first place. Cutting out vegetable oils and alcohol, adding choline-rich foods like pastured egg yolks and grass fed beef liver, and using sunlight or supplements, if necessary, to restore vitamin D are all powerful ways to reduce stress on your liver and help it recover.

Q: How do I know if I’m getting enough vitamin D for my liver?

A: The best way is to test your blood levels twice a year. Aim for a range of 60 to 80 ng/mL (150 to 200 nmol/L). This ensures you’re supporting your liver, your metabolism, and your overall health without relying on guesswork.

Test Your Knowledge with Today's Quiz!

Take today’s quiz to see how much you’ve learned from yesterday’s Mercola.com article.

How do egg yolk compounds help protect against osteoporosis and bone loss?

Egg yolks contain all nutrients needed for bone strength, replacing the need for vitamin D

They slow bone breakdown and stimulate new bone growth, strengthening bones and lowering the risk of fractures
Egg yolk compounds calm bone-destroying cells and activate bone-building ones, helping prevent fractures and maintain strong bones as you age. Learn more.

They lubricate joints to prevent stiffness and reduce cartilage wear that can lead to bone pain or swelling

Egg yolk compounds break down damaged bone directly, rebuilding new tissue without outside nutrients or sunlight

How to Spot Fake Grass Fed Beef and Find the Real Thing

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

When buying meat for their pot roasts or burgers, many people who consider themselves smart shoppers would often check the label and grab the brand that has the words "grass fed" stamped on it. After all, when you think of grass fed, you usually envision a cow roaming around in an open pasture, eating nothing but its natural diet of grass.

But the truth is that the label doesn’t always tell the whole story. In fact, there are some stealthy beef producers that call their product "grass fed" — even if the animal was given pellets or placed in confinement before slaughter, marking a big difference in both quality and nutrition.¹ This is why it’s important to know how to spot the difference between real grass fed beef and the fake versions that rely on clever marketing.

What Does ‘Grass Fed’ Really Mean?

When you see the words "grass fed" stamped on a package of beef, it’s natural to picture cattle grazing peacefully on open pastures from birth to harvest. That image sells, but the reality is far more complicated.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), which is responsible for approving meat labels in general, "considers Grassfed, Grass Fed and Grass-Fed synonymous terms." They state that these claims can only be used on meats that were "derived from cattle that were only (100%) fed grass (forage) after being weaned from their mother’s milk."²

• However, FSIS verifies claims only by reviewing documentation and records at federally inspected establishments/plants — not by routine on-farm inspections — It does strongly encourage independent third-party certification to validate on-farm practices. However, they only review the paperwork to ensure it is not "misleading."³

Since the agency only relies on documentation provided by the producer, inspectors do not travel to farms to confirm feeding practices, nor do they verify whether cattle consumed forage throughout their entire lifespan. This leaves producers with significant leeway in how they present their beef, and consumers often end up paying premium prices for meat that doesn’t match the pastoral picture in their minds.

• Historically, the USDA had a formal definition for grass fed beef — However, that standard was withdrawn in 2016, shifting the responsibility for verification onto private companies and certifiers. Since then, the marketplace has become a patchwork of claims, some meaningful and others little more than marketing.⁴

• Without strong oversight, the phrase "grass fed" can cover a wide range of practices — These can cover anywhere from cattle raised almost entirely on pasture to animals fed grain in confinement during their final months. That finishing period is actually vital, as switching to grain before slaughter alters the nutritional profile, reduces beneficial fatty acids, and compromises the integrity of the label.

• For anyone trying to make informed choices, two label distinctions matter above all else — First, "100% grass fed" indicates the animal consumed forage for its entire life, with no exceptions. In contrast, a label that simply says "grass fed" could describe an animal that grazed early on but was grain-finished in a feedlot.

Second, the phrase "grass-finished" explicitly guarantees that the final stage of feeding was also forage-based, closing the loophole many producers use to market beef as grass fed while still relying on grain to accelerate fattening before harvest.⁵

• Independent certification adds weight to these claims — The American Grassfed Association (AGA) has set the most rigorous standard in the U.S. To carry the AGA seal, cattle need to be raised on a 100% forage diet for their entire lives, remain on pasture without confinement feedlots, and never receive antibiotics or added hormones. Audits confirm compliance, and farms that fail to meet the standard cannot use the logo.

This level of transparency is rare, which is why AGA certification is considered the strongest assurance that "grass fed" actually means what consumers believe it does.⁶

Without the clarity of "100%," a "grass-finished" designation, and third-party verification, the term "grass fed" can mean very little. That’s the uncomfortable truth — unless you know exactly what to look for, you may be paying for an image rather than the reality behind your beef.

Quick Checklist — 10 Ways to Verify Real Grass Fed Beef

Choosing beef labeled "grass fed" is not as simple as grabbing the first package that catches your eye. Marketing terms are designed to look reassuring, but without digging into the details, you could end up buying fake grass fed beef that was grain-finished or raised under practices that don’t align with what you expect. This 10-point checklist helps you cut through the noise and confirm authenticity before you spend your money.

1. Look for "100% grass fed" — A label that only says "grass fed" without additional details is not enough. As TruBeef Organic points out, the animal could have grazed early on and then been grain-finished before slaughter. The phrase "100%" signals a lifetime diet of forage and is the strongest starting point for trust.

2. Confirm "grass-finished" or "finished on forage only" — The finishing period is where most of the deception occurs. Producers sometimes feed grain in the final months to boost marbling and weight, but this undermines the nutritional profile and integrity of the beef. Seeing "grass-finished" means the animal stayed on forage right up until harvest, without that last-minute switch.

3. Check for third-party certification and a cert ID — The American Grassfed Association (AGA) certification is the most reliable U.S. standard. To qualify, cattle need to live on pasture their entire lives, eat a 100% forage diet, and never receive antibiotics or added hormones. Audits confirm compliance, and certification IDs allow you to cross-verify with the AGA registry. If there’s no certification, the claim is weaker by default.

4. Find the ranch or farm name — Transparency matters. Legitimate programs usually include the producer’s name, sometimes even the specific lot or batch number. This allows you to trace the beef back to the farm and verify practices directly. If a package gives no clue about the source, it’s worth questioning why.

5. Visit the brand’s "feeding" or "finishing" page online — Most credible producers publish their feeding standards and finishing practices on their websites. If you see specific details about forage, grazing, and independent audits, that’s a good sign. On the other hand, vague copy full of buzzwords without specifics is often a red flag.

6. Ask the butcher directly — A simple question — "Was this animal grain-finished?" — can reveal more than any label. If the program is legitimate, the butcher should be able to give you a clear answer or point you to the documentation. FSIS rules require establishments to substantiate claims, so if the staff can’t answer, it’s a signal to be cautious.

7. Watch for empty buzzwords — Terms like "natural," "farm-raised," or "pasture-inspired" sound wholesome but don’t actually define the animal’s diet. TruBeef Organic warns that these phrases often appear on products designed to look higher quality than they are. Always look for specifics instead of being swayed by marketing fluff.

8. Sanity-check the price — Authentic grass fed and finished beef usually costs more because pasture-based farming takes more land, time, and resources. If the price looks dramatically cheaper than competitors with real certifications, there’s a reason. Bargains in this category often mean shortcuts or misleading claims.

9. Notice fat color and texture — Grass-finished beef often has a slightly yellow hue to the fat, a result of carotenoids from forage.⁷ In contrast, grain-finishing usually produces fat that looks stark white and uniform year-round. While fat color is not definitive proof, it can serve as a supporting clue when combined with other checks. It’s also important to check the marbling and the redness of the meat. According to TruBeef Organic:

"Real Grass-fed Beef is going to have an almost solid red color on the lean part of a steak. A Grain-fed steak on the other hand will be riddled with fat marbling. This is a big 'tell' straight away …

The lean meat on Real Grass-fed Beef will be a dark crimson red color. Grain-fed will have a much lighter color."⁸

10. Confirm antibiotics and hormone policies — AGA certification prohibits the use of both, but the organic label is less specific. While organic beef cannot involve antibiotics or synthetic hormones, it does not guarantee the diet was 100% forage. Always check that the label’s promises align with recognized standards (American Grassfed Association).

Taken together, these steps give you the power to verify what’s real and avoid being misled by fake grass fed beef. The more points on this list that a brand or butcher can meet, the higher your confidence should be in the product.

10 Fast Checks for Real Grass Fed Beef

1. Look for "100% grass fed" — Not just "grass fed."

2. Confirm "grass-finished" — No grain feeding at the end.

3. Check for certification — AGA logo + cert ID.

4. Find the farm name — Traceable source = trustworthy.

5. Read the brand’s feeding page — Clear details, not vague claims.

6. Ask the butcher — "Was this animal grain-finished?"

7. Ignore buzzwords — "Natural" or "pasture-inspired" mean little.

8. Compare price — Real grass fed beef usually costs more.

9. Notice fat and lean meat color — Yellowish fat and less marbling suggest forage feeding.

10. Check antibiotics/hormones — AGA prohibits both.

How to Decode Grass Fed Labels

Meat labels are often designed to sound wholesome, but the truth is, many of the terms are vague or outright misleading if you don’t know what they actually mean. Understanding the differences can save you from paying premium prices for beef that doesn’t live up to your expectations. The table below summarizes the differences between these labels:^9,^10,¹¹

Label What it means What it doesn’t guarantee Best way to verify

100% grass fed Animal ate forage for its entire life, no grain at any stage. Strongest claim when paired with AGA certification. Without certification, it’s based only on producer documentation. Look for "100% grass fed" + American Grassfed Association seal.

Grass-finished Final stage before slaughter was forage-only, no grain finishing. Early-life feeding may not be disclosed unless also labeled "100% grass fed." Seek labels that say both "100% grass fed" and "grass-finished."

Pasture-raised Animal had outdoor or pasture access. Does not mean exclusive grass diet; grain supplements are often included. Treat as a living-conditions label, not a diet label.

Organic Raised on certified organic land, fed organic feed, no antibiotics or synthetic hormones. Does not require 100% grass diet; organic grain finishing is allowed. Combine with "100% grass fed" to ensure lifetime forage feeding.

Watch Out for Red Flags and Greenwashing Tactics

When it comes to beef labels, the gap between marketing and reality is wide — and brands know that most shoppers don’t have the time or knowledge to question what’s on the package. This confusion gives food companies room to stretch the truth. By learning to recognize the most common tricks, you can avoid paying premium prices for beef that isn’t what it claims to be.

• Front-of-package claims vs. fine print — One of the most common tactics is the "grass fed" banner on the front of the package, paired with vague or contradictory information on the back. A closer look at the label may reveal a grain-finishing period or no finishing details at all.

• Fake or misleading certification marks — Another trick is the use of logos that resemble official certification seals but lack any verifiable registry. Some brands create their own "standards" and slap a professional-looking icon on the packaging to create the illusion of oversight.

The AGA warns that unless a logo can be traced back to an independent, third-party certifier with published criteria and audits, it’s not proof of anything. If you can’t confirm the certification on the certifier’s website, assume the claim is hollow.

• Feel-good but empty language — Words like "natural," "pasture-raised," "farm fresh," or "from family farms" are designed to appeal emotionally but say nothing about what the animal actually ate. According to FSIS, "pasture-raised" only refers to outdoor access — it does not guarantee a 100% forage diet.

"Natural" is even weaker, as it only means the product contains no artificial ingredients or added colors and was minimally processed. Neither of these terms ensures that the animal was grass fed or grass-finished.

• Price points that don’t add up — Extremely low prices can be another red flag. Raising cattle entirely on pasture is more expensive and time-consuming than finishing them on grain in feedlots. If a package of "grass fed beef" is dramatically cheaper than certified alternatives, it’s wise to question what corners were cut to get there.

• Visual imagery that hides the truth — Marketers also lean on rustic packaging with images of barns, rolling hills, and grazing cattle — even when the beef inside came from feedlots. Without clear feeding and finishing details, these visual cues are nothing more than storytelling designed to make you feel good about the purchase.

The bottom line — Unless a beef label says "100% grass fed" and "grass-finished," backed by a credible certification, you cannot assume the claim reflects reality. Greenwashing thrives on assumptions, and the only defense is knowing which terms are enforceable and which are just marketing fluff.

Nutrition Snapshot — Why Real Grass Fed Beef Is Different

The difference between real grass fed beef and grain-finished beef shows up in the nutritional profile. Multiple studies have documented that beef raised and finished on forage tends to contain higher levels of nutrients. For example, groundbreaking research from Dr. Stephan Van Vliet at Utah State University, in collaboration with the Bionutrient Food Association, has shown that grass-finishing cattle produces meat with far more health-promoting compounds than conventional grain finishing.^12,¹³

• Metabolomic analysis revealed that grass-finished cattle had a more impressive nutrient density than grain-finished cattle — Phytochemicals are plant-derived compounds that act as antioxidants, anti-inflammatory agents, and metabolic regulators in the human body, and their presence in beef is directly linked to what the animals eat.

In grass-finished beef, polyphenols, carotenoids, and tocopherols were significantly higher, offering consumers benefits that grain-fed beef simply cannot match.

• Compared to grain-finished cattle, grass fed animals displayed healthier metabolic profiles — They had improved mitochondrial energy metabolism, lower markers of protein breakdown, and stronger cardiovascular markers. Grain-fed cattle, by contrast, showed elevated triglycerides, impaired glucose metabolism, and muscle tissue resembling early signs of metabolic disease.

• Specific compounds tell the story even more clearly — Grass fed beef was shown to contain nearly double the levels of Hippurate, a marker tied to improved gut microbial diversity and lower risk of metabolic syndrome in humans. Other plant phenolics such as catechol sulfate, cinnamic acid derivatives, and N-methylpipecolate were far higher in grass-finished beef, each contributing anti-inflammatory, cardioprotective, or even anticancer properties.

• Vitamin profiles were also stronger — Alpha-tocopherol (vitamin E) was three times higher, vitamin C was 1.5 times higher, and B vitamins such as niacin were elevated as much as ninefold compared to grain-fed beef.

• The fatty acid profile reinforces the same pattern — Grass fed beef contained 10 times more eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and three times more docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), both essential omega-3 fats linked to heart, brain, and liver health. Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), known for its anticancer and antiobesity effects, was two to four times higher.

Even saturated fats — often unfairly maligned — took on a beneficial profile in grass fed beef, with long-chain saturated fatty acids like arachidate and behenate linked to lower risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

The report is clear — grass fed and grass-finished beef do not just improve animal welfare; they offer an array of compounds that directly support human health. Every bite of authentic grass fed be

Why Men and Women Experience Differences in Immune Function

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Autoimmune conditions like lupus, characterized by fatigue, joint pain, and organ inflammation, or multiple sclerosis, which damages your brain and spinal cord leading to weakness and numbness, disproportionately strike women compared to men. The numbers are staggering: women are 2.5 times more likely to develop multiple sclerosis and nine times more likely to develop lupus than men.¹

Every cell in your body carries either XX chromosomes if you're female or XY chromosomes if you're male, and this genetic blueprint directly influences your immune system. Erica Ollmann Saphire, Ph.D., at La Jolla Institute, explains that the X chromosome carries many immune-related genes, and women effectively have a "double palette" of immune instructions.²

This double dosage strengthens defenses against viruses like SARS-CoV-2 but also raises the risk of the immune system turning against the body itself. Hormones are another key factor. Estrogen, testosterone, and progesterone do far more than regulate reproduction — they act directly on immune cells, dictating which genes turn on or off.

For example, estrogen amplifies antibody production, boosting your defense against pathogens, but at certain levels it also sparks inflammation that drives autoimmune conditions. Testosterone, by contrast, tends to dampen immune activity, reducing inflammation but leaving men more vulnerable to infections. Such differences explain why men are more likely to face severe outcomes from viral diseases like COVID-19, while women live with higher rates of chronic autoimmune disorders.

A scientific review published in Science underscores this point by showing how sex-based differences extend down to the tissue level, shaping responses in organs such as your lungs and brain.³ These findings set the stage for understanding why the immune system works differently in men and women and why those differences matter when you think about disease risk.

Video Link

Sex Differences Shape Tissue Immunity

In a review published in Science, researchers examined how genetics, hormones, and environmental exposures alter immune responses in tissues such as the lungs, brain, and skin.⁴ The review highlighted that these differences are not abstract — they explain why men and women experience organ-specific infections, autoimmune diseases, and cancers in distinct ways.

• Women carry double the immune-related genetic material — Because females have two X chromosomes, they inherit a broader set of immune-related genes compared to males with one X and one Y chromosome. This means a woman's immune system is equipped with a "double dosage" of immune defenses, giving her stronger protection against infections but also increasing the risk of autoimmune conditions like lupus and multiple sclerosis.

• Female immune cells show a mosaic effect — Unlike males, women's cells randomly switch which X chromosome is active, creating a patchwork of immune cells that respond in slightly different ways. This mosaic adds resilience because pathogens face a more diverse defense system, but it also raises the chances that some of those immune cells overreact, triggering autoimmune disease.

• Sex hormones tell immune cells how to behave — Hormones such as estrogen and testosterone act directly on immune cells, influencing which genes turn on or off. Estrogen boosts the strength of immune responses, improving defense against bacteria and viruses, while testosterone suppresses immune activity, lowering inflammation but leaving men more prone to severe viral infections.

• Environmental factors further shape these immune differences — Nutrition, chemical exposures, and differences in the skin and gut microbiomes between men and women all influence how immune systems function. The review emphasized that lifestyle and environmental choices interact with sex-linked biology, which means factors like diet quality or toxin exposure affect men and women differently.

• The future of precision medicine — By understanding these differences at the tissue level, scientists argue that treatments for cancer, autoimmune disorders, and infections should be tailored by sex. As Sonia Sharma, Ph.D., co-author of the review, noted, "When it comes to medicine, one size doesn't fit everybody."⁵ This points toward therapies designed not just for the disease itself but for how your sex shapes immune responses to that disease.

How Men's and Women's Immune Systems Differ

Disease risks look very different for men and women. Scientists at the La Jolla Institute for Immunology point out that while women make up the majority of autoimmune disease cases, men are more likely to develop heart disease and brain disorders like Parkinson's. This shows why your sex plays a big role in what health problems you're more likely to face over time.

• Immune cells switch on different genes in men and women — Using advanced cell-mapping tools, researchers studied thousands of immune cells and saw that "helper" T cells activate different sets of genes depending on whether the person is male or female. These differences influence how strongly your immune system reacts and how it handles disease risk.

• Errors in X chromosome control raise autoimmune risk for women — Women have two X chromosomes, but one is normally shut down in each cell to prevent overload. When this process fails, the cells that are supposed to keep the immune system calm — called regulatory T cells — stop working properly. This makes women more likely to develop autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and Sjögren's syndrome.

• The brain is also affected by sex-based immune changes — In Parkinson's disease, harmful immune cells attack clumps of abnormal proteins in the brain. La Jolla scientists discovered that these attacks differ in strength and number between men and women, showing that immune function helps drive sex-based differences in how Parkinson's develops.

• Pregnancy creates unique immune challenges — The placenta does an excellent job of shielding a baby from infection, but viruses like Zika sometimes get through, causing brain damage. Studies show that during pregnancy, women's killer T cells react differently to infections, which explains why certain viruses are especially dangerous at this time.

• Inflammation chemicals vary by sex — Researchers found that special fat-based signaling molecules that drive inflammation are present at very different levels in men and women. These differences help explain why conditions like heart disease, Alzheimer's, and certain autoimmune illnesses progress differently depending on sex.

In addition, buried in your DNA are fragments of old viruses from human evolution. Scientists discovered that these genetic remnants interact with the immune system differently in men and women. In some cases, such as breast or ovarian cancer, this interaction could shape disease risk and guide new treatments.

Sex Hormones Change How Your Immune System Works

An editorial paper in Frontiers in Immunology explained that hormones like estrogen, progesterone, prolactin, and testosterone act directly on immune cells.⁶ They decide whether your body turns up inflammation or turns it down, which affects your risk for autoimmune disease, infection severity, and allergies.

• Each hormone influences disease differently — Estrogen plays both sides: at low levels it sparks inflammation, but at higher levels — such as during pregnancy — it calms the immune system. Prolactin, known for helping with milk production, boosts antibodies and drives inflammation. Testosterone and progesterone, on the other hand, work more like brakes, slowing down immune activity.

• Hormones help explain why some autoimmune diseases hit harder — In lupus, estrogen pushes T cells and antibody production into overdrive, which worsens the disease. Researchers also found that certain drugs that raise dopamine block prolactin's stimulating effects, offering new ways to treat conditions linked to high prolactin.

• Infections and allergies shift with hormonal changes — Testosterone makes neutrophils — cells that fight bacteria — less effective, which drags out infections in men. Female mice given influenza produced more antioxidants in their lungs and blood, giving them better protection than males. Fluctuations during puberty, menstruation, pregnancy, and menopause also change asthma and allergy risks, which is why women often notice symptom changes during these life stages.

• Hormones interact in complex ways — Steroid drugs called glucocorticoids were found to cross-talk with sex hormones, creating overlapping pathways that influence how autoimmune diseases progress. This means your overall hormone balance matters more than just one hormone acting alone.

Big-Picture Immune Science Makes Sex Differences Useful for You

A review published in Oxford Open Immunology explains that "systems immunology" pulls together huge amounts of data — genetics, cell mapping, protein profiles — to reveal how male and female biology shape immune responses. In simple terms, it gives you concrete signals for prevention, treatment, and recovery instead of leaving things to chance.

• Transplant and post-viral recovery differ by sex — Men who receive organs from female donors often have worse outcomes, and women given bone marrow from previously pregnant female donors have higher risks of graft rejection. Long COVID is more common in women, highlighting the need for closer monitoring if you're female after a viral infection.

• Genes and aging add another layer — About 54 immune-related genes live on the X chromosome, and women sometimes express both copies, boosting immune activity. In men, loss of the Y chromosome with age has been tied to severe COVID-19, Alzheimer's, and prostate cancer. For older men, this makes infection control and anti-inflammatory habits especially important.

• Hormones shift your immunity through life — Estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone rise and fall at different ages — fetal life, puberty, pregnancy, menopause, and andropause — and each phase alters immunity. If you're going through puberty, perimenopause, or age-related testosterone decline, planning medical procedures during steadier hormone periods reduces complications.

How to Balance Your Immune System Based on Sex Differences

Your immune system does not work the same way if you are male or female. Hormones, genetics, and even environmental exposures change how your body fights infection, inflammation, and autoimmune disease. That means the way you care for yourself should take those differences into account. You have more control than you think, and simple daily steps lower your risks and help you work with your biology instead of against it.

1. Pay attention to hormone balance in daily life — If you're a woman, estrogen and prolactin push your immune system toward stronger activity, which is useful against infection but raises your risk of autoimmune flare-ups. If you're a man, testosterone suppresses your immune system, leaving you more vulnerable to severe infections.

Keeping your hormones balanced through healthy routines — like consistent sleep, avoiding alcohol and endocrine-disrupting chemicals, and managing stress — keeps your immune system steady.

2. Support your X chromosome advantage without triggering autoimmunity — Women have two X chromosomes, giving them double the immune-related genes, but this double dosage raises the chance of autoimmunity.

To lower the risk, focus on reducing triggers of mitochondrial damage and chronic inflammation such as processed foods, vegetable oils, and chemical exposures. Improving your mitochondrial function to increase cellular energy is key to preventing and managing autoimmune diseases.

3. Protect your brain and nerves with anti-inflammatory habits — Men are more prone to Parkinson's, and women face higher Alzheimer's risk. These diseases involve misfiring immune cells in the brain. Supporting brain health through regular walking, sun exposure, and nutrient-dense food gives your nervous system the steady energy it needs to stay resilient.

4. Strengthen your defenses during pregnancy or hormonal changes — If you're pregnant or going through major hormonal shifts like puberty or menopause, your immune system will act differently. During these times, be extra intentional with what you eat, your toxin exposure, and your sleep. These lifestyle anchors help stabilize the swings in immunity caused by changing hormones.

5. Use precision strategies that fit your sex-specific risks — If you're a woman with autoimmune tendencies, improving mitochondrial function is a top priority. If you're a man, preventing severe infections is worthy of focus.

Tailor your daily choices — what you eat, how you move, and how you recover — depending on whether your body benefits from dialing the immune system down or turning it up. Studies show that blanket recommendations fall short, which is why it's important to follow strategies that match your own biology.

FAQs About Sex-Based Differences in Immunity

Q: Why are women more likely to develop autoimmune diseases than men?

A: Women have two X chromosomes, which means they inherit a double set of immune-related genes. This makes their immune system stronger against infections but also increases the risk of it attacking the body, leading to conditions such as lupus and multiple sclerosis. Hormones like estrogen also play a role by amplifying immune activity, which fuels autoimmunity.

Q: Why do men face more severe infections and higher cancer risks?

A: Testosterone naturally suppresses the immune system, lowering inflammation but making men more vulnerable to severe viral infections and some cancers. In addition, aging men lose Y chromosomes in certain immune cells, a change linked to worse outcomes in conditions like COVID-19, Alzheimer's, and prostate cancer.

Q: How do hormones shape immune function at different life stages?

A: Hormone levels rise and fall across life — during puberty, pregnancy, menopause, and andropause — and each shift changes how the immune system behaves. For example, high estrogen in pregnancy calms inflammation, while low estrogen removes that protection, altering disease risks.

Q: What role does environment play in sex-based immune differences?

A: Diet, chemical exposures, and even gut and skin microbes interact with genetic and hormonal differences to change how men's and women's immune systems function. This means lifestyle choices like eating nutrient-dense foods, managing stress, and limiting toxin exposure directly affect disease risks differently by sex.

Q: How can I use this information to protect my health?

A: Tailor your habits to your biology. If you're female, focus on keeping inflammation in check to reduce autoimmune flare-ups. If you're male, strengthen defenses against infections and cancer with anti-inflammatory routines. Timing major health interventions around steadier hormone phases also improves outcomes.

Protecting physicians when private equity buys in [PODCAST]

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 23:00:01 +0000

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes! Veteran attorney Dennis Hursh discusses his article “Private practice employment agreements: What happens if private equity swoops in?” In this episode, Dennis explains how private equity acquisitions of medical practices complicate the traditional path for employed physicians who expect eventual ownership.

Read more…

Protecting physicians when private equity buys in [PODCAST] originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Why faith and academia must work together

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 19:00:13 +0000

Ten years. That’s how long I carried around this idea I just couldn’t seem to put into action. I wanted to speak openly about this tension I felt as both an academician and an ordained minister. Yes, this false notion that my academic life and my spiritual life had to run on separate tracks. Not

Read more…

Why faith and academia must work together originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Pancreatic cancer racial disparities

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 17:00:59 +0000

The names read like a roll call of Black excellence: congressman John Lewis, the civil rights icon who walked across the Edmund Pettus Bridge and helped change America; congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, the tireless advocate for justice who represented Houston for nearly three decades; Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul whose voice defined generations; reverend

Read more…

Pancreatic cancer racial disparities originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

What AI can never replace in medicine

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 16:00:55 +0000

When I opened my dermatology practice 25 years ago, I used paper charts, a prescription pad, and a Dictaphone. Today, I use AI daily: for transcription, charting, and even reviewing complex labs. It’s certainly made my work more efficient. But I’ve also seen something else: the erosion of trust between patients and physicians. I’m fortunate

Read more…

What AI can never replace in medicine originally appeared in KevinMD.com.

Label	What it means	What it doesn’t guarantee	Best way to verify
100% grass fed	Animal ate forage for its entire life, no grain at any stage. Strongest claim when paired with AGA certification.	Without certification, it’s based only on producer documentation.	Look for "100% grass fed" + American Grassfed Association seal.
Grass-finished	Final stage before slaughter was forage-only, no grain finishing.	Early-life feeding may not be disclosed unless also labeled "100% grass fed."	Seek labels that say both "100% grass fed" and "grass-finished."
Pasture-raised	Animal had outdoor or pasture access.	Does not mean exclusive grass diet; grain supplements are often included.	Treat as a living-conditions label, not a diet label.
Organic	Raised on certified organic land, fed organic feed, no antibiotics or synthetic hormones.	Does not require 100% grass diet; organic grain finishing is allowed.	Combine with "100% grass fed" to ensure lifetime forage feeding.

europe.tianmedical.com blogger

Celebrating internal medicine through our human connections with patients

The debate on English tests for immigrant nurses

The FQHC model and medicine’s moral promise

AI companions and loneliness

The frustrating bureaucracy of getting a vaccine

Who profits from medical malpractice lawsuits?

Healing from the pandemic’s mental toll

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Defends His Health Policies to the US Senate

A Vision for a Healthier America

Keeping Rural Hospitals Alive and Well

The Clash Between Following the Science and Public Trust

Taking Aim at High Drug Costs Set by Big Pharma

The Organ Donation Problem Reaches the Senate

The Battle Between Costs and Cuts of Health Care Expenditure

Other Big Issues on the Table

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Senate Finance Committee Hearing

The Underappreciated Role of Carbon Dioxide in Health

Proper Breathing Is Important for Optimal CO2 Levels

Forgotten Truths

Mitochondrial Dysfunction Inhibits CO2 Production

The Bohr Effect

A Note on Oxygen Saturation

How CO2 Can Combat Cancer

Respiratory Alkalosis and Cancer

CO2 Benefits Your Entire Body

Exogenous CO2 Delivery Methods

Unlocking Optimal Health — The Science Behind Low-PUFA Diets and Sustainable Eating

Energy Production Is at the Heart of Health

Fats Inhibit Optimal Metabolism

Ashley’s Personal Experience

Simplify, but Remember That the Devil’s in the Details

Patent-Pending Personalized Health Tutoring Under Development

Energy Production and Gut Health Go Hand-in-Hand

4 Key Contributors to Poor Mitochondrial Energy Production

Suboptimal Energy Is the Root Cause of Leaky Gut

How to Rebalance Your Body

Support Traditional Farmers

Choosing the right doctor: How patients can take control of their care [PODCAST]

The infectious hypothesis of Alzheimer’s disease

A pediatrician on the lead contamination crisis

Physician burnout as a relationship crisis

The making of a rested healer

The decline of the doctor-patient relationship

The secret illnesses of U.S. presidents

A psychiatrist’s scarlet letter of shame

How Circadian Rhythm Shapes Gut Repair and Digestive Health

Your Circadian Rhythm Directs Gut Stem Cell Renewal

Disrupted Daily Rhythms Worsen Digestive Health

Microbes Set the Tempo for Stress and Sleep

How to Support Your Gut's Natural Rhythm

FAQs About Your Circadian Rhythm and Gut Repair

How Magnesium Helps Relieve Overactive Bladder

Magnesium Depletion Tied to Bladder Dysfunction

Second Study Confirms Magnesium’s Role in Bladder Control

Practical Steps to Restore Magnesium Balance and Ease Bladder Symptoms

FAQs About Magnesium and Overactive Bladder

The Role of Lithium Homeostasis in Alzheimer’s

Lithium Loss in the Brain Drives Alzheimer’s Decline

Low-Dose Lithium Shows Consistent Brain and Mood Benefits

Long-Term Lithium Slows Progression from Memory Loss to Alzheimer’s

How to Protect Your Brain by Supporting Lithium Balance

FAQs About Lithium and Alzheimer’s Disease

Test Your Knowledge with Today's Quiz!

How sleep, nutrition, and exercise restore physician well-being [PODCAST]

The physician mental health crisis in the ER

Is mental illness the root of mass shootings?

How new physicians can build their career

Moral distress vs. burnout in medicine

Why doctors make bad financial decisions

Is your medical career a golden cage?

Medicine fails its working mothers

Diagnosing the epidemic of U.S. violence

Why Does Tylenol Cause Chronic Illnesses Like Autism?

The Presidential Announcement

Knee and Groin Pain Could Signal Hip Problems

Public Misunderstanding of Hip-Related Pain

Demystifying Referred Pain

Other Causes of Knee and Groin Pain

Declining Bone Health in Young Adults

Proper Breathing Is Important for Optimal CO₂ Levels

Mitochondrial Dysfunction Inhibits CO₂ Production

How CO₂ Can Combat Cancer

CO₂ Benefits Your Entire Body

Exogenous CO₂ Delivery Methods