Stay Sick or Eat Meat? Facing a Vegan Crisis – Monica Hershaft : 897

In this episode of Bulletproof Radio, my guest is an entrepreneur, a visionary who seeks to solve some of our world’s biggest obstacles through creative innovation and collaboration, and also my good friend—Naveen Jain.Naveen has an interesting perspective that’s changing a lot of minds and a lot of microbiomes: He believes science is asking the wrong questions about gut health, especially in relation to the chronic diseases that are plaguing so many people. The focus on “what organisms are in the gut “is stalling us; the focus on “what those organisms are producing”—now that gets us closer to real answers.“The body doesn't care who is doing it, what it cares about is what is being done to it,” Naveen says. “And if you can figure out what these organisms are producing that's being absorbed in the human body, we will be able to actually do something about it. Because then, it becomes math and chemistry. Once you know the biochemical activities of the chemicals that are there, you can adjust those chemicals.”We’re going to get into some new science about how people can change their gut bacteria and know what's going on. You’ll learn that you actually want more species—and a more diverse set of species—in your gut. It will improve your health and will probably make you live a lot longer. And by the way, Naveen’s a regular on Bulletproof Radio, most recently on episode: #541: From Inside Your Gut to Outer Space: Moonshots with Naveen Jain. You can hear my other conversations with him on episode #452: Listen to Your Gut and Decide Your Own Destiny and episode #382: The Microorganisms in Our Body That Keep Us Alive. I always get great feedback from listeners about our conversations, so I’m always happy to talk to him again about more gut health.A Bit More About Naveen:He is the founder of several successful companies, including Viome (that I talk about a lot), Moon Express, Bluedot, TalentWise, Intelius and InfoSpace. He’s also a trustee of the board at the X PRIZE Foundation, an organization that since 1994 has designed and launched 17 prizes for industry changing technologies in the domain areas of Space, Oceans, Learning, Health, Energy, Environment, Transportation, Safety and Robotics. Naveen is the title of the Women’s Safety X PRIZE, that empowers women around the world. He just launched a brand-new podcast called Moonshots with Naveen Jain. “Intellectual curiosity is what moves humans forward and humanity forward,” he says—and he’s hosting conversations with the world’s leading thinkers and entrepreneurs to bring their insights and ideas to you.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

25 Jul 201958min

In this episode of Bulletproof Radio, I’m welcoming back Wade Lightheart and Matt Gallant. They are the “we fix digestion” guys who co-founded BiOptimizers.Wade is a former three-time Canadian natural bodybuilding champion. Matt is an experienced strength and conditioning coach for professional athletes, a self-defense instructor, and has been formulating supplements for more than a decade. Last summer, we discussed enzymes and digestive health. You’ll definitely want to catch episode #515—How to BiOptimize Your Gut & Digestion. And today, we’re going to talk more about the power of enzymes and their role in a ketogenic diet.“Well, the thing with enzymes,” Matt says, “is if you take them empty stomach, they become metabolic. If you take them with food, they're digestive. … When we're eating, the food needs to be broken down either into glycogen, amino acids, or fatty acids. That's what we need, and that’s what our bodies run on. And if we can't do that, then we can have health issues.”So, take a listen as the conversation touches on how essential enzymes are to your microbiome. We talk bile, poop, stomach acid, glucose absorption, fat cells and inflammation. Activated charcoal, probiotics and carbs get a mention, too. I’m convinced that enzymes matter for making you who you are.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

23 Jul 20191h 12min

In this episode of Bulletproof Radio, I asked Dr. Michael Platt to come on the show to discuss all things adrenaline.Dr. Platt is board certified in Internal Medicine and has nearly four decades of experience working with patients in varied clinical settings from medical groups to elder care medicine to health research. He’s currently the president of Platt Wellness Center in Rancho Mirage, California, where he specializes in bio-identical hormones, hormone balancing and the causation of illness.We talk about his focus on treating health conditions caused by excess adrenaline, which can include fibromyalgia, autism, ADHD, bipolar disorder, depression, anger, weight gain, and addictions, among others—and how progesterone plays a major role in the solution.“What people don't understand is that the primary reason why the body releases adrenaline is to provide fuel to the brain,” says Dr. Platt. “You can see from a survival standpoint, the body always wants to make sure the brain has enough fuel. It's normal for people to release adrenaline at certain times, but I use the term adrenaline dominance to indicate where those people have excess amounts of adrenaline, to the point that it actually has clinical consequences.”Our conversation covers an assortment of questions, such as:Is adrenal fatigue real?Can post-partum depression be eliminated with progesterone?Is fibromyalgia pain a build-up of lactic acid in the muscles?Is ADHD really about interest, rather than focus?Should you be intermittent fasting if you have excess adrenaline?Can you control adrenaline by controlling insulin?Does blocking adrenaline prevent or eliminate stress?Listen on to find out some interesting answers to these and many other questions during our discussion. Enjoy the show!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

18 Jul 20191h 11min

In this episode of Bulletproof Radio, you’ll meet tennis phenoms Bob and Mike Bryan, aka The Bryan Bros. Born three minutes apart, the twins have been in sync ever since—both on and off the court. They are American professional doubles tennis players, gold-and bronze-winning Olympians, and are the most successful tennis duo of all time.The two have won a record number of tour titles (118 at the time this episode airs) and have been finalists on 58 other occasions. They have a career Super Slam and 16 Grand Slam titles overall, which is more than any men's team in the Open Era.The twins’ parents began coaching them at the age of two. The brothers turned pro in 1998 after attending Stanford University and winning two NCAA championships. Since then, they have amassed 118 ATP Tour Titles together, including a record 18 Grand Slams. Their Gold Medal win the 2012 Olympic games made them the only team in ATP history to hold all four Grand Slam titles and an Olympic Gold medal. The Bryans also have achieved the ATP Tour year-end No. 1 ranking for a record 10 years, and Mike recently celebrated his 500th week at No. 1 on the ATP Tour doubles rankings.Their success is the result of a combination of hard work, mutual respect, and a passion for the game of tennis. (It also helps that one of the twins has a 140 mph lefty serve!)But both Mike and Bob have suffered injuries that threatened to end their careers, including Bob’s recent hip surgery. At the age of 40, no one thought they would come back and continue to win, but they have—several times over. They’ve changed up their training regimen and put serious focus on recovery.“You've got to set these goals and really work every day to do it,” Bob says. “It's being professional in every aspect of your life. I'm trying just to dial on the health as best as I can because when I'm done, I want to be able to play with my kids. I want to be able to walk down the street and not be limping or needing metal on every joint. That's my goal: to retire healthy but keep playing as long as we can.”Today’s episode is going to be a good one as we talk about all the ways these professional athletes biohack to their advantage, how music keeps them in sync, and how they are helping at-risk kids.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

16 Jul 201949min

In this episode of Bulletproof Radio, I take a deep dive into my favorite topics—anti-aging and longevity—with James Clement, who is leading research and groundbreaking developments in these areas from a particularly personal perspective.A self-described transhumanist, he’s now is the president and director of Betterhumans, the world’s first specifically-transhumanist bio-medical research organization. James’ view of longevity is focused on healthspan and the humane aspect of being human over the long haul. He doesn’t want to cheat death, he wants to extend life in the best way possible.James has an interesting backstory as a former international tax lawyer who became an entrepreneur and then a scientist. He’s currently running anti-aging clinical trials and engaged in anti-aging molecular biology research with top science researchers. He participates in the clinical trials, too.Join us as we talk about the current science biggies: senolytics, NAD, exosomes and rapamycin, and what makes supercentarians so super.“There are two simultaneous things that we have to do to live longer,” James says, “and I divide it up as first we have to get to 100. Getting to 100 is, for those of us who weren't lucky enough to inherit supercentenarian genomes, it means doing everything we can in our lifestyle to live longer.”“And then the idea of ‘how are we going to live beyond 100?’” he continues, “There's going to be a lot more that we have to do and that's going to be where more radical therapies, which include nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, lifestyle changes, but also genome editing, will all be necessary to get us far beyond the 100 threshold.”See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

11 Jul 20191h 2min

In this episode of Bulletproof Radio, we get into the pros and cons of mind-wandering—why it’s good for you, when it’s too much, and how to use it to your advantage.My guest is Jonathan Schooler Ph.D., a professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences at the University of California-Santa Barbara. He has studied mind-wandering extensively, and his research includes mindfulness, cognitive psychology, memory, and consciousness. “The idea is that when people are mind-wandering, it's basically sort of stirring the pot and allowing unconscious associations to reorganize and consolidate, and allowing new things to come to mind,” Dr. Schooler says.He explores topics that intersect philosophy and psychology, such as how fluctuations in people’s awareness of their experience mediate mind-wandering and how exposing individuals to philosophical positions alters their behavior.Our conversation goes deep into mind-wandering, why we often have a deficit of it, and why it’s vital to human performance.Listen on to find out:How to identify four types of mind-wandering;How meta-awareness helps you realize when you’re mind-wandering instead of paying attention;Why mind-wandering is important to the creative process; andWhy the most effective techniques for helping with mind-wandering and focus are mindfulness and meditation. Stick with this episode all the way through because I’ve added a special feature and a bonus topic. Enjoy the show!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

9 Jul 201955min

In this episode of Bulletproof Radio, I’m interviewing a guy I just met at the Consumer Health Summit in Scottsdale, Ariz.Kyle Cease is a well-known comedian who has two No. 1 Comedy Central specials to his credit. He’s also a “New York Times” best-selling author of “I Hope I Screw This Up” and a transformational speaker who helps people release anxiety and fear on stage. Kyle comes from an extended family of entertainers. He started asking to do stand-up routines for his classmates in second grade. By 18, he was on a wild ride more than 250 nights a year headlining comedy shows. He did this for years at the expense of his physical and mental health. A bout of pneumonia took him down after a particularly brutal touring schedule; he developed crippling stage fright out of nowhere; and he was disparaged by the comedian community of which he’d been such an integral part. After that, he reassessed everything about himself and the life he’d been living.I did not know who Kyle was until I met him at the summit. I sat next to him at dinner and thought “This guy has an amazing brain where we can talk about humor, and we can talk about how that turns into letting people really talk about what's going on.” His wit is sharp, and his improv is hands-down amazing. Prepared remarks? Nah. Bullet points on a presentation? Nope. He’s the master of riffing and creative flow in the moment. And while he may be spontaneous, he’s deeply grounded in self-awareness. He believes strongly and says so. So instead of jokes, he shares insights about our all-so-common human condition during our interview. (As well as his foray into raw veganism and tuning into his body vibrations.) Here are some of his zingers:Happiness: “I find that one illusion that every human is in, is the illusion of when something happens, I'll be happy.”Expectations: “I have a belief that no one can break your heart, but they can break your expectations.”Creativity: “I believe if you're not continually creating, your mind will creatively sabotage you.”Life: “A lot of us spend a lot of our life trying to protect a life that we're not living.”You’re going to learn a lot today from this interview, because Kyle uses humor in a way that gets way underneath what's really going on with you.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

4 Jul 20191h 1min

Peter Sullivan, CEO and founder of Clear Light Ventures, is a major environmental health funder who focuses on two things that I care a lot about: one is toxins and the other one is wireless safety. I actually really like my wireless devices. I think they're really useful, but I also know that they are not without a dark side.In this episode of Bulletproof Radio, Peter shares how he recovered from the effects of high levels of wireless and EMF exposure, as well as mercury poisoning. He’s also spent the last 15 years successfully recovering his two sons from autism and sensory issues.His efforts are now focused on raising awareness about the known health effects of wireless radiation and EMF (electromagnetic fields), both of which are listed as group 2B carcinogens by the World Health Organization. Peter is one of the leading funders in the country in this area of research, funding work at Harvard, Stanford, University of California-Berkeley and several leading environmental health non-profits.“What we need to talk about in this area in general—and this goes for autism and chronic disease—is that it's total load, that it's never one thing.” Peter says. This is a mistake I made. This is a mistake everybody makes. You start out thinking it's genetic. Then you do diet and you start stuff. You try to find the one thing.The human body, unfortunately, is so much redundancy that by the time you see a symptom you've had a cascade of failures.”“We're pretty awesome beings, but we're not above the laws of physics,” he says.The magnetic fields that are in our houses surround us but come from different angles and different frequencies. They create an interference pattern and can really disrupt sleep and many other biological functions. Peter and I talk through many examples of health issues disrupted by tech and how to take safety measures to reduce your exposure. We’re both convinced that in the future, safe technology is going to be a requirement—think seat belts in automobiles. We’re not there yet, but we're going to continue working toward making our now-omnipresent tech and devices safer.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

2 Jul 201954min