What was fascinating is that I mentioned that 58% of participants, the people who had these carotid artery plaques removed, they had plastic in it.

And for people who had plastic in their plaques, they had a 4.5 fold rise in the risk of a very bad outcome, like a heart attack, a stroke, or just all cause mortality in the follow-up.

So basically if plastic was present, there was a 4.5 fold higher chance of having a very bad cardiovascular outcome.

So we got to take this seriously, especially because this is another thing we talked about how processed food is like a brand new invention in human history.

We've normalized it, but it's really new.

So is plastic.

And you sound like a conspiracy theorist when you're like, "The powerful forces are silencing him." No, they actually were, because they really do have financial skin in keeping him, and probably you, and Callie quiet.

Yeah.

Yeah, I, I mean, it really, this all comes back to money, unfortunately.

And when you realize that around 60% of mainstream media's advertising funding is coming from the pharmaceutical industry, I mean, you can't watch five minutes of commercial on TV without seeing a medication commercial.

And you realize that the funny thing is that these companies that are paying that much to, to have the ad spots on mainstream media, they're not actually really trying to advertise to you, the consumer.

They're trying to get a direct line of communication to the media companies so that they can have an impact on the message that goes out that makes our news.

That's a key point, is that it's not about getting you to talk to your doctor about Ozempic.

But put in your own words in terms of the massive overhauls to eating that are required.

[laughs]

I think it hit a chord at, at a, a really interesting time where like it was putting voice to what a lot of people were feeling at a moment in time where it kinda got a lot of traction, you know? And so, you know, the whole Make America Healthy movement again was starting, and it was just an interesting confluence of events, and very grateful, um, for all of that.

But it was, you know, book came out and then it was like Jay Shetty and Tucker Carlson's podcast, and then Rogan, and then boom, silent.

Like you cannot speak.

And that, so that was actually, you know, I, I think a lot about, and this kinda gets back to longevity and, you know, thinking about...

I talk a lot and I think a lot about the relationship between human health and, and environmental health and, and how really a- on the atomic level, it's all just one unified system that's constantly transmuting back and forth.

And I think that recognition of humans as a part of this much larger ecosystem of matter and energy and, and that we are in dynamic flow, um, with all of that, like I think something about that brings me a lot of awe and a lot of sense of just like, just mes- I'm mesmerized by the human body and how dynamic it is, and I wanna honor that beautiful process that's so miraculous by living a healthy life.

Yes

How would you recommend they approach their doctor and say, "Doc..." What should they say?

Mm.

I think there's a couple pathways here.

One is in many cases, I hate to say it, it's scary to say, but you probably in many cases need to find a new doctor.

Because there are going to be a large handful of doctors that are, that are not ready to come around to the food is medicine approach, and are so indoctrinated in this system that has so many trillions of dollars of, of force behind it that literally underwrote their medical education, 'cause it's paying the bills of so many medical schools, that it's really hard to get that across.

And so one, just prepare yourself that you might get sort of like patronized, you know, when you tell them about your success, and that's fine.

You know, ultimately you know your body best, and I really encourage people so much to, to remember two really important things, especially about nutrition.

What, what about the American Diabetes Association and the American Heart Association? What's your take on what they're doing? Is the American Diabetes Association, are they ever gonna come out and start actively promoting a low-carb diet for people with diabetes?

We have to be extreme in virtually everything we do relating to our health practices.

Oh my goodness.

Yeah, it's interesting.

It's interesting because I think, yeah, I'm with you on the sort of like, pushing back against all good things in moderation.

I think that that is such a ploy from so many different industries to get us to just, you know, nod like, Oh, that sounds great.

That sounds right.

And it sounds good, but you really think about it.

So they're messing with your satiety mechanisms and they have the chemical agents in the food the food industry flavoring to spike appetite, is it also the case that you're going to be compelled to overeat processed foods because you are poor at manufacturing energy internally because you have mitochondrial dysfunction? So a vicious circle where you get tired in the afternoon and so you're going to have to go reach for a soda because your fat burning is so screwed up by all the processed food that you consume.

Let's talk about what you call very ill American body.

Well, 74% of Americans now are overweight or obese.

Of that 74%, 42% are obese, and in some ethnic groups, that number of obese is over 50% of the population.

And about 52% of American adults have essentially completely preventable prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, and of note, 90% do not know that they have it, okay? I think it's worth doing a brief science tangent to kinda just, like, set the stage for what these words mean, because I think it's very easy to gloss over.

I've seen this happen a million times at dinner parties, you know, "Oh, diabetes, eh, it's so- not sexy, don't wanna talk about it.

Also, like, I'll get a medication if I have it.

Like, is it really that big a deal?" So let's just understand a little bit about what diabetes means, because it's actually more likely than not the physiology of this process is affecting you and causing problems in your life, even if you don't have an overt diagnosis.

Is a good rule of thumb to, I don't know if this was a Michael Pollan line or someone else, but just to stick the, to the periphery of the grocery store? In other words, don't go to the aisles in the middle with what I think of as the fun stuff, I gotta train myself to not think of that as the fun stuff, but go to the produce department, go to the fish and meat department, and that's basically it.

So h- how do people make sense of what to do with those 200 biomarkers?

The first thing I wanna say is that the system, again, benefits off you thinking it's really complicated.

It is not that complicated.

Everything I learned about how to interpret lab testing I learned after medical school.

I learned it doing my own research, and I think that every, every American adult is totally capable of understanding their basic biomarkers, and in fact, we must.

And so what I would say is start simple and start free.

Every year if you go to the doctor, they're gonna order a very basic set of tests that usually involves a cholesterol panel and a fasting glucose test.

Yeah

So h- how do people make sense of what to do with those 200 biomarkers?

The first thing I wanna say is that the system, again, benefits off you thinking it's really complicated.

It is not that complicated.

Everything I learned about how to interpret lab testing I learned after medical school.

I learned it doing my own research, and I think that every, every American adult is totally capable of understanding their basic biomarkers, and in fact, we must.

And so what I would say is start simple and start free.

Every year if you go to the doctor, they're gonna order a very basic set of tests that usually involves a cholesterol panel and a fasting glucose test.

Yeah