Podcasts about pemt

Dr. Deb Muth 00:00:09 Hi there, how are you? Bob Miller 00:00:10 Excellent! Pedaling as fast as humanly possible, but doing okay. Dr. Deb Muth 00:00:14 Good, good. Well, I’m looking forward to our conversation today. This should be amazing. Bob Miller 00:00:20 Yeah, it should be a lot of fun. Dr. Deb Muth 00:00:22 Yeah, anything that’s off-limits for you in, our conversation? Bob Miller 00:00:28 No. Dr. Deb Muth 00:00:29 Okay, anything you want me to make sure we cover for you? Bob Miller 00:00:33 Well, I mean, is it okay if we put a little plug-in for our software? Dr. Deb Muth 00:00:35 Absolutely. Bob Miller 00:00:36 Yeah. Dr. Deb Muth 00:00:37 Absolutely. Bob Miller 00:00:36 Yeah. Dr. Deb Muth 00:00:37 Absolutely. Bob Miller 00:00:38 Hey, can we… can we do a screen share? Yes, we can. Yeah, because I want to show you some maps, and… Dr. Deb Muth 00:00:43 Okay. Things like that, yeah, so… Perfect. So just let me know when you want to do screen share. Bob Miller 00:00:48 Okay. Dr. Deb Muth 00:00:49 And yeah, feel free to plug your software wherever you want to. Bob Miller 00:00:53 Okay, well, good. Let me pull up a, a slide for that, and give me one second, I just want to shut the door to my office to get the noise down. Dr. Deb Muth 00:01:01 No worries. Bob Miller 00:01:16 And, how should I refer to you? Dr. Debb? Dr. Muth, what do you like? Dr. Deb Muth 00:01:18 Dr. Deb is great, or Deb, either way, I’m pretty informal, so… Bob Miller 00:01:22 Yeah, and… Bob is fine for me. Okay. Yeah. Yeah, there you go. Why people feel like they need this, son. Special name, it’s like, seriously. Dr. Deb Muth 00:01:33 Right? I agree. Bob Miller 00:01:35 When I work with my clients, it’s like, Dr. Millison, just, just bop, just, just bop. Dr. Deb Muth 00:01:41 Yep, that’s how I am, too. Just call me Deb, it’s good. Dr. Deb Muth 00:01:44 They feel a little awkward with that, you know? They’re not used to that, but… Bob Miller 00:01:48 Alright. And you’re a naturopath, medical doctor. Dr. Deb Muth 00:01:52 A nastropathic doctor and a nurse practitioner. Oh, nice. Yeah, so I got the best of both worlds, right? Bob Miller 00:01:58 Yeah, damn. Okay. Alright, so here we go… There we go. Alright, so I got that ready, and then I will do a, I will do a screen share. I think you’re gonna really, appreciate what we’ve come up with. We’ve come up with the concept of, Cellular CPR. Dr. Deb Muth 00:02:23 Oh, nice! Bob Miller 00:02:24 And that is, construct the cell membrane, Protect the cell membrane. And restore it if it’s damaged. Dr. Deb Muth 00:02:32 Love that. Bob Miller 00:02:34 I love that. Yeah, so that’s what we’re focusing on, and then how, You know, we want to get to the point that, you know, most people think of genetics, they think of, like, 23andMe or Ancestry. Dr. Deb Muth 00:02:44 Yeah. Bob Miller 00:02:45 And then you have the professional geneticists who are looking at, you know, odd things that could create a disease. We’re looking at functional genomics. Dr. Deb Muth 00:02:54 Which is so much better. Bob Miller 00:02:56 Yeah. Are you familiar with what we do here, or… Dr. Deb Muth 00:02:58 A little bit, a little bit. So, it’ll be new to me, too, so I’m excited. Bob Miller 00:03:03 And how much time do we have? Dr. Deb Muth 00:03:04 We have an hour, give or take a little bit on either side. Do you have a hard stop anywhere? Bob Miller 00:03:10 No, no, I put a, I moved my clients around, and I don’t have anybody till, 3.30, so we’re good. Okay. Dr. Deb Muth 00:03:16 Perfect. Alright. Bob Miller 00:03:18 It’s like we’re getting started early as well, so… Dr. Deb Muth 00:03:19 Yeah, we’re getting started a little bit early, so that’s good. Bob Miller 00:03:22 Yeah, I just got my office cleaned up, so… Dr. Deb Muth 00:03:23 Okay, good. All right, are you all set to get started? Bob Miller 00:03:28 I’m good to go, my friend. Dr. Deb Muth 00:03:29 I’m gonna just record a little intro and a little bit of a, hook for people, and then we’ll get started. I’ll ask you to kind of tell us a little bit about yourself, and then we’ll just take this conversation wherever it’s supposed to go. Bob Miller 00:03:39 Okay, you got it. Dr. Deb Muth 00:03:40 Alright, sounds good. So what if the reason you’re not healing isn’t your diet, your supplements, or your labs, but it’s actually your genes? Dr. Bob Miller is uncovering how genetic variants, when combined with modern toxins, explain why some of us stay sick no matter what we try. Today, we’re talking genetic pathways, detox blocks, and the new science every wellness warrior needs to know. Welcome back to Let’s Talk Wellness Now, the show where we uncover the root causes of chronic illness, exploring cutting-edge regenerative medicine, and empower you to heal from the inside out. I’m Dr. Deb, your medical detective, and today, our guest, Dr. Bob Miller, is a true pioneer in functional genomics. He’s a board-certified traditional naturopath and the founder of Neutrogenetic Research Institute. And he’s the leading groundbreaking research on how genetic variants influence chronic illness, inflammation, and detoxification. His work has been recognized on international stages, uncovering links between genetic expression and conditions like Lyme disease, mast cell activation, or MCAS, and mitochondrial dysfunction. I’m so excited to talk to Dr. Bob today. He is gonna reveal some things that even I don’t know about, so I’m excited to learn alongside of you guys. So… Dr. Bob, let’s get started. Tell us a little bit about yourself, and kind of how you got on this journey. Bob Miller 00:05:04 Well, that’s, that’s interesting. I was sort of like a mid-career coming to the natural health field, because in my early 30s, I found myself with a severe case of ulcerative colitis. Bob Miller 00:05:15 And I was in the hospital for 21 days. probably within hours of death, pleading to death. And they told me I’ve got one option, and that is cut out the colon and wear a bag. Didn’t sound like a lot of fun. Dr. Deb Muth 00:05:27 Not an option I would want. Bob Miller 00:05:29 So, you know, the medical folks wasn’t real happy with me, but I said, yeah, I’d like to explore some alternative things.Never thinking that I’d get into this field, and then I just, you know, worked with some herbalists and things that I found absolutely fascinating. So, that’s how I got into this around 30 years ago. And, haven’t looked back since, and just having a… having a blast as we now move into how our genetics impacts things. So, that’s what we’re gonna… that’s what we’re gonna talk about today. Dr. Deb Muth 00:05:58 I’m excited to talk about this genetic thing. When you started over 30 years ago, what kind of patience and problems first inspired you to dig deeper into that root cause healing and kind of get into the genetic piece of it? Bob Miller 00:06:10 Sure. Well, you know, as a… now, I’m in a part of the country called Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, where there’s a lot of Amish and Mennonite, and they gravitate towards these things.So, this is their first thing to do, and that doesn’t work, then they’ll go other routes. So, you know, back then, we just saw typical, you know, a little tired, constipation. You know, a little bit of fatigue, arthritis, those kind of things. But things have changed dramatically over the years, as people are now getting more chronically sick. You know, it’s worse than it’s ever been. And what we’re finding is the, the culprits Primarily is mold exposure and Lyme disease. When people get those two together, they’re just… it’s an inflammatory cascade that nobody can seem to unravel. So that’s where we spend a lot of our time. And we’re also spending a lot of time looking at mental health, like ADD, ADHD. And, we give… this year I’ll be speaking at three autism conferences. And we can dig into that a little bit as to why we think we’re seeing such a dramatic increase. And aside from autism, that used to be 1 out of 1,000, now it’s 1 out of 33, or 23. You know, we’re also seeing dramatic increases in ADD, ADHD. People are stressed out. And today, I think we’ll have the time to actually go through and show how environmental factors combine with genetics to cause that to happen. So we’ll… we should have a fun visit here today. And today, I think we’ll have the time to actually go through and show how environmental factors combine with genetics to cause that to happen. So we’ll… we should have a fun visit here today. Dr. Deb Muth 00:07:37 This should be a fun visit. We can cover lots of topics. I am so excited. So, you founded Nutri Genetic Research Institute in 2015. What did you hope to accomplish, and what kind of surprised you in your findings so far about that? Bob Miller 00:07:51 Well, you know, let’s back up at what, you know, genetics is used for. Everybody’s familiar with 23andMe and Ancestry that, you know, tells you where your ancestors came from. Then you have your professional geneticists. I mean, these are people with a degree in genetics. And they’ll look for, you know, very odd sort of things that are prone to relate to a disease. So there are disease-related genetics. Well, in functional, we don’t look at either of those. We look at For example, how you’re breaking down your fats and utilizing them. How you’re recycling your glutathione. How you might be handling your iron. And none of those are disease-causing on their own.And none of those are disease-causing on their own. But when they pile up on you, and then combine that with environmental factors, that’s when things start to go south on us. So, that’s what we’re doing, we’re looking at patterns. And our first foray into this was, we did studies on Lyme disease. And our first foray into this was, we did studies on Lyme disease. So, we looked at, like, I think 50 people with Lyme disease. We looked at their genome. So, we looked at, like, I think 50 people with Lyme disease. We looked at their genome. And we found patterns that were more evident in those with Lyme. Now, this doesn’t… these genetics don’t mean you get Lyme, it just means if you get Lyme, you react worse to it. And we found patterns that were more evident in those with Lyme. Now, this doesn’t… these genetics don’t mean you get Lyme, it just means if you get Lyme, you react worse to it. So, as you know, some people get Lyme, they go on a round of antibiotics, and they’re done. So, as you know, some people get Lyme, they go on a round of antibiotics, and they’re done. Others have a little more struggle, and then others are struggling terribly for years. So there’s an old adage of genetics loads the gun, environment pulls the trigger. Dr. Deb Muth 00:09:14 Yeah, that is so true, and I think when we’re talking about Lyme and mold and things like that, we forget sometimes that our genetics can predispose us to be more sensitive to those things, and if we have genetic pathways where we don’t clear things properly, it’s harder for us to get them out of the body. And then you add on that whole rain barrel effect that we’ve always used as a functional medicine term, right? If the barrel’s half full, you’re okay. If it’s full, and now it’s spilling over, it’s a bigger problem. Have you guys found, too, that some of these environmental things actually are changing the genetics of people, or how they’re processing their own genetics? Bob Miller 00:09:53 Well, let’s go back to, Genetics 101. But we’ll go back a little bit further. So, what an interesting mechanism, what a miracle the body is. Bob Miller 00:10:03 Fats, carbohydrates, proteins, drink water, breathe air, expose the sunlight, and somehow everything gets made. I mean, when you just step back and think about that, it’s like, It’s pretty darn amazing. Dr. Deb Muth 00:10:15 I always tell women, you know, the fact that we get pregnant and we have healthy pregnancies and births is a miracle, because if we had to try to control that, that wouldn’t work so well. Bob Miller 00:10:25 Right. Well, that’s another miracle. These microscopic sperm and egg, human being, 9 months later, it’s like. But even inside of us. We are making our hair, our skin, our nails, our blood vessels, our ATP, our energy, it’s all being created. Well, that gets created by enzymes. So, enzymes take one substance, combine it with something else, and make something new. Then another enzyme comes along and does the same thing. Your DNA is the instructions on how to make the enzymes. So, when we are conceived. If it’s a, if it’s a female, of course, it’s the XX, the two chromosomes. You know, we’ve… everybody’s seen those… the genetics that… Listed pair. So, if it’s a female, the father donated the X enzyme. And the mother has no choice but to give the eggs, so that’s female. If the father donates the Y, you have a male that’s in chromosome number 1. Then 2 through 23 is the rest of the instructions on how to make enzymes. So, what can happen? We can get what are called SNPs, single nucleotide polymorphisms. And SNPs just mean that the instructions to make the enzyme’s not quite as good. So, if one parent gives a SNP on the making of an enzyme, The enzyme’s fine. It works. But, general rule of thumb, It may only work at 70-80% of efficiency. Now, a good analogy is think of an 8-cylinder and a 6-cylinder car. If parents give you good information, that’s like having an 8-cylinder car. If one parent gives you that snip, it’s like having a 6-cylinder car. Now, is a 6-cylinder car a fine car? Sure. It’ll get you from point A to point B, but it’s just going to have the power of an 8-cylinder. Then if both parents give you a SNP on the same enzyme, it may be 30-40%, and that’s like having a 4-cylinder car. Sits in the driveway, looks the same, puts gas in it, everything. But if you’ve got a 4-cylinder car. Probably not a good idea to go cross-country pulling a trailer behind you up and down mountains. Dr. Deb Muth 00:12:29 This is true. Bob Miller 00:12:32 So… We can get an 8-cylinder, 6-cylinder, or 4-cylinder enzyme. Now, if it’s not under a lot of stress, if that 4-cylinder car is just taking you to the bank and the grocery store. It’s just as good as an 8-cylinder car. But if you gotta pull that trailer, and there’s a lot of stress on it, being mountains, it’s gonna struggle. Now, there’s one other little caveat to this, and that is some genetic mutations are gain-of-function. They actually work faster. Now, we have enzymes that do all kinds of things. We have enzymes that make and recycle our antioxidants, but we also have enzymes that make inflammation. No, that’s a good thing, because if we get a virus or bacteria, if you didn’t make inflammation to kill it, well, we’d all die of infection. So, you know, we tend to think of free radicals as bad, antioxidants as good. They both play an important role. But interestingly, some of the major enzymes that make inflammation, they can be overactive. They can be turbocharged. And when they’re stimulated by environmental toxins, they overreact. Bob Miller 00:13:40 And therein lies the problem. When they overreact, we have a problem. Bob Miller 00:13:46 So, if we have genes that overreact when stimulated. And then the enzymes that take care of inflammation are underactive. Then you’re gonna be more inflamed. You know, the majority of people that, you know, come for functional medicine Or naturopathic help, or… Inflammation that they can’t seem to get under control. Dr. Deb Muth 00:14:06 Right. Bob Miller 00:14:07 And we will be, you know, during this hour, we’re going to look at some of the pathways that make that happen. So, what we can do then, we can’t change our genetics. When you’re conceived, that’s the hand you’re dealt. When your life would be over, if someone would take some tissue and measure, it’d be exactly the same as conception. Does it change. Bob Miller 00:14:28 The enzyme’s ability to do its job may be compromised. Because remember I said there’s a, the enzyme takes a cofactor. So an enzyme takes substance A, cofactor, make substance B. Well, if that cofactor’s not there, the enzyme’s not going to work either. So, you could have an 8-cylinder car, and if there’s no gas in it, it’s not going anywhere. So… It’s the strength of the enzyme, it’s the cofactor to do the A to B conversion. And that’s what we’re going to get into. So, many people say, well, where did these SNPs come from? Nobody knows for sure. Sometimes they’re what’s just called de novo, when the sperm and egg go together, the instructions get mixed up a little bit. We do believe a lot of it came from a long time ago, when we were almost wiped out by sexually transmitted diseases. And those STDs were altering the genes when the conception, in other words, when the sperm went into the egg, the STDs were interfering. And causing the problem, so… I often joke, if you want to blame somebody. Blame your great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandparents for, being a bit promiscuous, so… Dr. Deb Muth 00:15:31 Yeah, for being… having a little too much fun, right? Bob Miller 00:15:35 So, we don’t know for sure, but, you know, there are some that, But most of the SNPs that we get inherit from our parents. So, if you look at a child. And you look at the SNPs. 99.9% of the time, it came from one of the parents. Dr. Deb Muth 00:15:50 In identical twins, do they have the exact same identical makeup? Bob Miller 00:15:54 Yep, Dr. Deb Muth 00:15:56 But not in fraternal twins, correct? Bob Miller 00:15:59 No, no, those could be different, Jeff. Dr. Deb Muth 00:16:00 It could be different because they have different sacs, they’re not sharing that same genetic makeup. Bob Miller 00:16:04 Yeah, so keep in mind, both your mother and your father have, you know, the two And so you get one from one parent, one from another. Dr. Deb Muth 00:16:13 So… Bob Miller 00:16:14 Interesting situation. I had, 3, 3 boys. And, we were looking at an enzyme related to breaking down oxalates. Now, the mother and father each had one SNP, and that’s called heterozygous. Three boys, and they all come together, they’re Amish boys, they’re a lot of fun. And I looked at their genomes, and the one boy didn’t have any SNPs at all. And one had won. And the other one had two. Dr. Deb Muth 00:16:41 Interesting. Bob Miller 00:16:42 So, we don’t quite know how these things get handed off, but with the parents each having one, you could have a child with none, one, or two. So, the one, his ability to break down oxalates, which is fine. The other one was slightly impaired, and the other one was dramatically impaired. So, you can have 3 children, and it all depends what the parents have. Now, if a parent has a homozygous, or 2 copies. And the other parent has nothing. Every child will have one. Okay. If both parents are homozygous, that they both have two, Every child will have two. Dr. Deb Muth 00:17:19 too. Bob Miller 00:17:20 Yes, so that’s the way it works, but, you know, but it’s somewhat rare that both parents are homozygous on an enzyme, but it can happen. Dr. Deb Muth 00:17:27 Do we think that infections today, like Lyme disease or mold exposure, things like that, if the parent, the woman, primarily, I’m thinking, is pregnant, and she actively has these infections. Can those infections affect the genetics, kind of like a past sexual transmission did where we thought back in the day? Bob Miller 00:17:47 Yeah, I… I mean, I’m not that much of a geneticist to answer that for sure, but my thought would be no, that at conception, the pattern’s made. Dr. Deb Muth 00:17:55 Okay. And then that’s… that’s the hand you’re dealt. Bob Miller 00:17:58 Yeah. So, I tell people we have good news and bad news. The good news is we can compensate for the weakness. The bad news is we can compensate for the weakness. Dr. Deb Muth 00:18:09 That is so very true. Bob Miller 00:18:11 Yeah, we can’t, because I often get asked, so we’ll do some things now, and we’ll check my genes again, and they’ll be better. It’s like, nope. Dr. Deb Muth 00:18:18 Oh, – – Bob Miller 00:18:19 You gotta play the hands you’re dealt, so… Dr. Deb Muth 00:18:21 That’s right. Bob Miller 00:18:22 You can test your genetics… if you’re looking at the same enzyme, you can test it every year. It’s not gonna change. It’s like the blueprint. Dr. Deb Muth 00:18:30 It’s good and bad, right? It’s the one test you only have to do once in your lifetime. Bob Miller 00:18:34 No, unless, you know, like, our. Dr. Deb Muth 00:18:36 All the time. Bob Miller 00:18:37 Yeah, now our test looks at, called the Functional Genomic Analysis Test of your genomic Resource. We look at 220,000 steps. Dr. Deb Muth 00:18:46 Wow, that’s a lot. Bob Miller 00:18:47 That’s not all of them. Dr. Deb Muth 00:18:49 Right. Bob Miller 00:18:50 So, maybe in the next year, we’re gonna come out with our third version of the chip. And then, if someone wants to get those new things that weren’t on it, they’d have to repeat. But whatever we measured is gonna stay the same. Dr. Deb Muth 00:19:03 That’s a lot of SNPs to look at. Bob Miller 00:19:05 Keeps us busy. Dr. Deb Muth 00:19:06 But there’s still, but there’s still SNPs that we. Bob Miller 00:19:09 That we’d like to have that we don’t have, so… Bob Miller 00:19:11 We started out with version 1 on our genetic test, then we worked with version 2, and we’re already compiling a list of what version 3 would look like. So if somebody has our version 2, And we’re saying, you know what, it’d be nice if we could see these, well, then you’d repeat, but it won’t change what you already know, so… Dr. Deb Muth 00:19:29 Got it, got it. So, when you started out, and you started looking at the research of Lyme disease and chronic infections, which detox pathways are most important for people who struggle with those conditions? Bob Miller 00:19:43 Okay. You know what might make sense as we do a screen share, and I’ll actually show you the pathway. Does that make sense? Bob Miller 00:19:48 Alright, so… let’s see if I… let me just press the share… Dr. Deb Muth 00:19:52 Yep, you should just be able to press share. Bob Miller 00:19:54 And… number 2. Okay. Are we seeing the screen there? Bob Miller 00:20:01 Okay. Dr. Deb Muth 00:20:02 So, this is a map that we made. Bob Miller 00:20:05 And by the way, this is not… All-inclusive of all the things we look at, but we believe this is a core issue. So, where we’re going to start here, there’s something called the microglia. And the microglia are glial cells. They’re in the brain and the central nervous system. And they’re very interesting little creatures, because most of the time, and this is just a drawing of what they sort of look like. Most of the time, they’re in what’s called the M2 anti-inflammatory mood. What that means, these little guys pick up dirt, debris, Recycle them. Turns on an enzyme called interleukin-10 that’s anti-inflammatory. And just kind of does general housekeeping. And just kind of does general housekeeping. However, when a trigger comes along. However, when a trigger comes along. They… it’s the same glial cell, but it moves over to a very pro-inflammatory enzyme. A pro-inflammatory glial cell. And it triggers these 3 enzymes, Actually, these four. That are pro-inflammatory. Tumor necrosis vector alpha, Interleukin-6. NF Kappa B, Inos. Now, these create inflammation. So you might think, well, why is that good? Well, if you have some foreign invader, virus, bacteria coming in, parasite. If you didn’t have these guys coming to the rescue, you would just die of infection. So, these guys are your friend unless they’re your worst enemy. Because TNFA, and we’ll show you when we actually do a demo account, TNFA can be overactive. So, in other words, it over-responds. Interleukin-6 can be overactive. And if Kappa-B can be overactive. The INOS, and I’ll explain each of these as we go through a demo, can be overactive. Now, what that means is, you’re very good at killing virus and bacteria. But this is where autoimmune disease comes in, and just inflammatory conditions. Now, this is just speculation, but we think what happened is, as you know. Thousands of years ago, we didn’t have refrigeration, we didn’t have sewer, we didn’t have pure water, and we didn’t have antibiotics. So, if you made it to 40, you were an old-timer, because everybody was dying of infection. So, what we believe happened is, by what’s called natural selection, Having these overactive. A thousand years ago was to your advantage. Dr. Deb Muth 00:22:31 Hmm. Bob Miller 00:22:32 But now… We have pure water, we have refrigeration, we have sewers, we have antibiotics. But now we have environmental factors that are stimulating them. Now it’s to our disadvantage. And we’ll talk about that a little bit as it relates to the hemochromatosis genes and maybe the G6PD. Dr. Deb Muth 00:22:48 Yep. Bob Miller 00:22:49 Now, why are we becoming so inflamed? Let’s look at the triggers. Now, one of my, favorite expressions is. I was born all the way back in 1954. Dr. Deb Muth 00:23:01 And it was a different world back then. Bob Miller 00:23:05 These are some of the triggers. And we’ll get into these, but right now, high fructose corn syrup, And the high-fat diet. High fructose corn syrup only came about in 1968. So now we’re being exposed to high fructose corn syrup. Then… we didn’t have these, these viruses like COVID. Dr. Deb Muth 00:23:26 Yeah. Bob Miller 00:23:27 Now, there’s now pretty strong evidence that COVID Was actually, you know, made as a gain of function. It’s debated, and I’m not taking an opinion on it, but there’s some people who believe Lyme disease was also a part of experimentation. Dr. Deb Muth 00:23:40 Go. Bob Miller 00:23:41 Then we have molds, and it appears as though mold is getting stronger. you know, 20 years ago, when I was seeing folks, mold wasn’t on the radar. I would say 7 out of the 10 folks we speak to today have mold problems. Yeah, 20 years ago, we talked more about mold allergy being an issue versus mold toxicity being an issue. Right. So… I know some folks are, you know, speculating what’s happening, but one of the theories out there is that EMF is strengthening mold. I don’t know if you ever heard that theory, and I don’t… Dr. Deb Muth 00:24:13 I have. Bob Miller 00:24:14 I’m not claiming it’s true, but it’s an interesting theory. Then even, you know, your black mold from water-damaged buildings. Then our air pollution is getting worse. We’re getting more toxic metals. Dr. Deb Muth 00:24:26 You know, if we have a… Bob Miller 00:24:27 You know, we’re gonna look back someday and say, what were we thinking, smearing aluminum into our armpits? The, what were we doing putting mercury in our teeth? Then, you know, glyphosate. When I was a kid, there was no glyphosate. So, all of these herbicides and pesticides. Polychlorinated biphenols, And then EMF. So, we love our cell phones, you know, and I think unless you, or in the middle of the desert, or down in a cave, you’re being exposed to EMF somewhere. So, you know, we have our cell phones with us, we have, We have Wi-Fi, the towers are everywhere. And we don’t know long-term, but we may find that this can… this creates some inflammation. And I don’t know if you get any folks, but do you have any folks that have… are they EMF sensitive? Dr. Deb Muth 00:25:16 Oh yeah, we have a whole bunch of them. Bob Miller 00:25:18 Yeah, and then if you have any TBIs, So, plenty of things here. that will stimulate into the microglia, M1. Now, you could say, well. We’re all pretty much exposed to the same thing. Why do some people get hit harder than others? So here’s where we’re gonna start. There’s an enzyme called Nrf2 and RF2. And Nrf2 is the enzyme that senses when there’s inflammation. And turns on hundreds of anti-inflammatory enzymes. We’ll show when we do the demo, you can have genetic weakness on NERF2. And NERF2 inhibits and slows down microglia M1. supports M2. Now, if it’s not complicated enough, there’s an enzyme called KEEP1. And KEEP1 inhibits NRF2. And you can actually have gain of function on keep 1, that makes Keap 1 stronger. So… A lot of the people who land on my doorstep So… A lot of the people who land on my doorstep Both parents gave a mutation on KEEP1, making it overactive. Both parents gave a mutation on KEEP1, making it overactive. Dr. Deb Muth 00:26:31 Hmm. Dr. Deb Muth 00:26:31 Hmm. Bob Miller 00:26:32 Suppressing Nrf2, nerve 2 might be weak. So, nobody’s putting the brakes on, M1. And by the same token, Nerve 2 supports M2. Then there’s a process called mTOR and autophagy. mTOR stands for mammalian tard of rapamycin, the growth of new cells. And then autophagy, taking our dead cells and recycling them. We need a balance between the two of them. If we didn’t have mTOR, the sperm and the egg would never become the baby, the baby would never become the adult, we wouldn’t make new cells. But our cells are constantly, you know, the old cells dying off. Autophagy is where we take that debris from the cell and recycle it, just like a farmer Plows the crop under at the end of the year. The dead plant then becomes the fuel for the spring, your dead cell becomes the fuel for the spring, and that’s autophagy. So we’re gonna look back someday and say, what were we thinking? We give our animals growth hormones so they get fatter faster. Oh my. So, we consume those animals, and inventory runs faster. Now, for anybody who’s, You know, maybe above 40, 45 years old. Think back when you were 12, and what did girls look like? They were primarily flat-chested little girls. Now they look like 16-year-olds. Because environmentally, we’re jacking up mTOR. So, mTOR stimulates microglia M1, suppresses microglia M2. Probably 80% of the folks we visit with. This is the part of the problem. NRF2 is weak. mTOR is strong. Environmental factors come along. And this guy gets carried away. He doesn’t do that burst and move back. Stays here. We’re calling that How environmental factors create a locked-in, pro-inflammatory. and neurotoxic phenotype. In other words, once it starts, it just keeps… Feeding upon itself. Alright, so what happens now when microglia is overactive. it triggers these 3 enzymes, TNFA, N of kappa B, And interleukin-6. Each one of these can have genetics that make them run stronger. Then it stimulates an enzyme called NLRP3, Which makes what are called inflammasomes. Now, guess what inflammasomes can be? Your best friend or your worst enemy? Because they will, if you’ve got, again, a virus or bacteria, or possibly even some bad cells in the body. They will zap them. Well, that’s good. Unless it’s overactive. Unless it’s overactive. And then what it does, through interleukin-1 beta, makes excess glutamate. And then what it does, through interleukin-1 beta, makes excess glutamate. Anxiety, gut inflammation, OCD, ADD, autism. And, you know, glutamate, we’ll talk about that a little bit, but glutamate makes you intelligent, highly motivated go-getter. but can also be excitatory. And then, look what it does. Let’s see, do I have the drawing tool here? Yes, I do. Okay. So, it comes down through here, Makes the glutamate. Comes back up through here. through the ADORA 2A enzyme, Then we’ve got a feedback loop that feeds upon itself. Then, through interleukin-18, we make histamine. and mast cells. And then through histamine receptor site number 1, we come back and spin it. And now you’ve just got this spinning feedback loop. So, the glutamate will make you anxious, the histamine will give you allergies and make you anxious. And you’re allergic to everything, and you’re feeling horrible. Now, it doesn’t end there, Dr. Dad. It then goes on to make something called gast dermins that creates pyroptosis, where it actually starts punching a hole in the cell membrane. And you’re only going to be as healthy as your cells are. Just a little background. You know, we’re made up of trillions of cells, and each one of them has what’s called a lipid bilayer, made from lipids, which comes from fats. And you’re only going to be as healthy as those membranes are. So that’s why we coined an interesting phrase. Cellular CPR. Construct the cell. Protect the cell. And restore the cell membrane. And we believe that’s going to be revolutionary in the functional medicine world. So… It’s not hard to figure out that if you start punching holes in the cell membrane, that’s not a good thing, okay? Bob Miller 00:31:22 Now… There’s an interesting molecule called NAD. Thicotide adenoside dinucleotide. And anybody who’s in the, you know, listening to the health podcasts and things, they’re… They’re, they’re learning about NAD. And I’m going to show you a chart later, all the good things that NAD does, but For the most part, it helps what’s called sirtuins. And sirtuins are quite interesting. If anybody’s looking at longevity. The sirtuins is where they’re looking at.Because sirtuins turn on good things. Turn off bad things. And I’ll show some charts on that later. So for right here, this sirtuin uses NAD, to slow down NF-kappa-B. CERT 2 uses NAD to slow down an ORP3. So, if we’ve got genetic weakness on these, or we don’t have enough NAD, We don’t hold this pathway back. Make sense? Dr. Deb Muth 00:32:24 Yeah, makes perfect sense. Bob Miller 00:32:25 Now, I’ll show this a little bit later. So, people are like, oh, well, I’m gonna start taking some NAD. Dr. Deb Muth 00:32:31 Right. Bob Miller 00:32:32 And there’s functional doctors who give NAD intravenous. It was just this morning, I was talking to a woman who said, Oh my gosh. I went and got intravenous NAD, and it took me a month to recover from that. Dr. Deb Muth 00:32:45 Hmm. Bob Miller 00:32:46 what happens is, and I’ll show this in a little more detail, there’s an enzyme called CD38, that’s stimulated by NF-kappa-B. And it takes NAD, To make intracellular calcium. that stimulates NLRP3 and actually makes things worse. So, if we have this guy upregulated, and I’ll show a chart what does that. taking NAD will make you worse. Again, when I go into the software, I’ll show you that whole pathway, so… I would encourage people, you know, just don’t go out and start taking massive amounts of NAD, you know, stick your toe in the water, see how you do. Because everything you’ve heard about, how good it is, is true, unless this guy says, oh, thank you very much, let me make more inflammation. Now, this might be part of our innate immune system, that if we have some pathogen that’s gonna kill us. By golly, we want that to happen. But if this is happening by environmental factors, Then it’s detrimental. So the immune system that protected us a thousand years ago now might be turning on us because of the environmental factors that we showed earlier. All right. Then there’s an enzyme called PARP that’s NAD-dependent, and that actually repairs strain breaks in your DNA. Now, the next thing that happens… is there’s an enzyme called NADPH oxidase that gets stimulated. and something called INOS. Now, I’m sure most people know about nitric oxide. It’s a gas that dilates your blood vessels. That’s why sometimes they’ll even give people drugs, nitroglycerin, to boost their nitric oxide. That’s why people are doing beetroots and other things to boost their nitric oxide. But there’s an OS3 enzyme that makes the nitric oxide that’s good for blood flow. But there’s an INOS That makes nitric oxide to kill pathogens. probably might be the third or fourth time I’ve said this. That’s a good thing, unless it isn’t. So, if it’s killing some pathogen, great. It was just misfiring. it combines… With superoxide that’s made by this enzyme, and makes something called peroxynitrite, which is one nasty free radical that chews you up and spits you out. So, the NOx enzyme, NADPH oxidase, uses NADPH, To make this free radical called superoxide. If we have time, we’ll get into it. NADPH is what your body needs to recycle your antioxidants.So, I coined the phrase, the NADPH steel. Where the NOX enzyme takes this very important NADPH, And rather than being useful, makes superoxide. Now, again, is that fine if you’ve got some bacteria to kill? Of course. But if it’s just chronically running, it’s just making all this chronic inflammation. Then it makes something called hydrogen peroxide. And we need to clear hydrogen peroxide by 3 enzymes, catalase, thyroid reduction. And glutathione peroxidase. If we have genetic issues on here, or we don’t have the cofactors. There’s something called the Fenton reaction, discovered in 1895 by Dr. Fenton. Where hydrogen peroxide combines with iron to make what are called hydroxyl radicals. And guess what they do? They create lipid peroxides, That damages your cell membranes. Now, again, the body’s pretty darn amazing. We have glutathione, And here’s where your body’s taking glutathione and recycling it. But look who’s needed to recycle it. NADPH. So, if this guy up here is chewing it up, We don’t recycle our glutathione. And then an enzyme called glufon peroxidase 4, Takes this damaged lipid and repairs it. So, here we’ve got this protecting, we want to protect it by not having this happen. But then we also need this guy to do the restoration. So, there’s a lot that can go wrong in here, Dr. Deb. Dr. Deb Muth 00:37:07 There’s a lot that could go wrong. And I can imagine some of my listeners are thinking that lipid peroxidase, is that the same thing as what they’re thinking of when we talk about lipids and cholesterol? Is that the same process that’s happening there? Bob Miller 00:37:22 Well, no, no, the lipids can be used to make cholesterol, but here we’re talking about where they’re going to build the cell membrane. And they’re being… and they’re being, destroyed. If anybody would like to see a visual representation of this, just go on YouTube. And type in, ferrooptosis Animation. cool little video, it’s about 3 minutes long, and it shows the lipids coming over, being oxidized, and now GPX4 fixes them, so… YouTube, Pharaoptosis Animation, cute little video. It’s just that really… Shows vividly what we’re… what we’re talking about here. Now, this is… Dr. Deb Muth 00:37:59 And so this is very common, too. Like, a lot of people do hydrogen peroxide IVs. Dr. Deb Muth 00:38:04 And so, if somebody doesn’t know their genetics, they could have a problem with doing those, just like they could doing the NADHIVs, correct? Bob Miller 00:38:13 Sure, yeah, yeah, yeah. So, I’ve talked to so many, you know, of course, the hydrogen peroxide kills pathogens. I mean, that’s what it does. So… but I’ve spoken to so many people that said. I had one client that said they’ve never been the same after having one hydrogen peroxide infusion. Dr. Deb Muth 00:38:30 Interesting. Bob Miller 00:38:31 Yeah. So… it can be… I see why people use it, because it. Bob Miller 00:38:36 pathogens, But on the other hand. And now’s a good time to speak about… I don’t have it on here, but there’s a, there’s an enzyme called the HFE gene. And that is what causes you to absorb iron. And there’s mutations in it that cause something called hemochromatosis. Were you overabsorb iron? Now, true hemochromatosis is when both parents give you a mutation. But there’s now growing evidence even a heterozygous can cause a little bit more iron absorption, not to the human chromatosis point, but overabsorption. So, if you overabsorb iron, And you have too much hydrogen peroxide that’s not cleared, All kinds of inflammation. Now, what’s happened is sometimes this inflammation Will damage the red blood cells. And some well-meaning doctor says, oh, you need some iron. And they take iron and it makes it worse. So, can’t tell you how many people I’ve said, you’ve got the overabsorption of iron, and they say, well, that can’t be right, because I’m low in iron. Well, that could be because it’s being chewed up here. Dr. Deb Muth 00:39:40 Sure. GPX1 and TXN turn it into, to water. The, catalase turns it into water and oxygen. Dr. Deb Muth 00:39:58 Now, I see a lot of my clients who have mutations or SNPs on that GPX gene, on that glutathione gene. And they really struggle to clear a lot of their toxins. Bob Miller 00:40:12 Sure. Dr. Deb Muth 00:40:14 Yeah, absolutely. Well, GPX4. Bob Miller 00:40:18 is what, repairs, but you can see GPX1 Is what uses glutathione. To turn hydrogen peroxide. So, but it all depends upon having enough glutathione. Dr. Deb Muth 00:40:30 Yeah. Bob Miller 00:40:31 Well, guess who controls making a glutathione? Dr. Deb Muth 00:40:34 Nerf 2. Bob Miller 00:40:37 So, if you have a keep one weakness, or strength to two… I’m sorry, keep one is too strong. Nrf2 is too weak. You don’t make glutathione. So, when a lot of people do that, it’s like, well, I’m gonna take glutathione. Dr. Deb Muth 00:40:51 Right. Bob Miller 00:40:52 And some do great, and some do poorly. You know, because… and I’ll show this on one of the other charts. You can see here that the, The glutathione has to be recycled. And if we don’t recycle it, it actually turns into superoxide free radical. So… NADPH are the cofactors, For taking the oxidi… here’s oxidized glutathione, here’s reduced. So, this is a good glutathione. After it does its job, you can see it becomes oxidized.We need to recycle it. Well, if we have weakness on the enzyme that does that, or a weakness in Nrf2, or not enough NADPH. The oxidized glutathione never gets recycled. So, I’ve talked to a lot of people who said, oh, glutathione made me so sick, and say, well. Dr. Deb Muth 00:41:43 Yeah. Bob Miller 00:41:44 You need it, but you need to recycle it. Dr. Deb Muth 00:41:46 Can you speak for just a brief moment, too, about MTHFR? That is a very popular gene, it’s all over social media as the major gene, but can you speak to a little bit about that, and how that fits into this whole process of things? Because it is just such a small piece. Dr. Deb Muth 00:42:04 understanding genetics. Bob Miller 00:42:06 Yeah, to be honest, it drives me nuts. Dr. Deb Muth 00:42:08 Me too. Bob Miller 00:42:11 Alright, so… You know, there are people on social media I won’t say what I think, I’ll be kind. But… But the, And, you know, they might mean well. But they talk about, if you have MTHFR and COMT and PEMT, that’s… oh my goodness, that’s horrible, and we’ll fix that for you, and you’ll be fine. Bob Miller 00:42:36 it just irritates me to no end. And it really could get anybody who’s doing this legitimately in trouble. I mean, I’m afraid someday, you know, there might be some cracking down on this kind of nonsense. Now, to answer your question about MTHFR. Dr. Deb Muth 00:42:51 I mean, it really is, but I’ll tell you what, why don’t we hold that thought until I go to another map and I can actually… Okay. Bob Miller 00:42:56 But the real… the cliff notes is the MTHFR puts a methyl group on your folate, which is needed, but it has gotten way, way, way too much attention. And people learn they have MTHFR, and they start taking a multivitamin with methylfolate, then they take a B vitamin with methylfolate. Dr. Deb Muth 00:43:13 And they’re pushing it too hard. Bob Miller 00:43:15 Yeah. So I can’t tell you how many people I’ve helped by saying, stop it. Dr. Deb Muth 00:43:20 Yeah, take less of it. Bob Miller 00:43:21 Take less of it, yeah. So, yeah. Yeah, there’s a… If somebody, say, ranked the enzymes at their level of importance, MTHFR might be 40 or 50 on a scale of 100, you know. Keep one Nerf two. big deals. Dr. Deb Muth 00:43:40 deals. Bob Miller 00:43:41 NQO1 that I didn’t even talk about yet, NQO1, takes your, NA… your NAD goes into NADH, To make electrons for the electron transport chain. you need NQ01 to bring that back. If that’s not working, and I’ll show you on the NAD map how disastrous that can be. Now, the next piece is here, and I think You know, if you talk to any school teachers and say, if you’ve taught for more than 10 years, how are the kids today? Every one of them says, more ADD, ADHD, more autism. Just look at human beings, we’ve never been so agitated. You know, everybody, and it might be a social media thing, but people take a position on something, and if anybody doesn’t share that position, they view them as the enemy. Dr. Deb Muth 00:44:29 And it’s kind of scary what’s happening to us. Bob Miller 00:44:33 So, we can’t agree to disagree anymore. We see anybody who has a differing opinion as the enemy. And, you know, there was… there’s people that didn’t have Christmas dinners together, because they had political differences, like… Dr. Deb Muth 00:44:44 Excuse me. Bob Miller 00:44:45 can’t you put your political differences aside to have Christmas together, you know? Dr. Deb Muth 00:44:49 Right? Bob Miller 00:44:50 become that, you know, no matter what your position is, and I’m not saying anyone’s right or wrong, I’m just saying. You know, in the old days, they used to say that the Republicans and Democrats in Congress would argue policy and then go have dinner together. And now everybody’s all up in arms, angry. Dr. Deb Muth 00:45:05 Yeah. Bob Miller 00:45:06 So… There’s likely multiple reasons for that. But let me show you one of them. That, you know, to what degree this is… very important, we don’t know, but I think We’re beginning to believe this is very important. So, there’s something… there’s a neurotransmitter called GABA. And God buys the don’t worry, relax, be happy. Chill. Okay. Dr. Deb Muth 00:45:31 Nobody has enough of that anymore. Bob Miller 00:45:33 Well, yeah, you’ll be surprised what I’m gonna show you. So, let me see if I can find a, Let me see if I can find the right slide here. Let me look for it here. So, there’s something called a GABA receptor site. And here you can see… This is a neuron, and this is where you, The neuron normally is excitatory. However, there’s normally low chloride in the neuron. Dr. Deb Muth 00:46:09 Hmm. Bob Miller 00:46:10 So, GABA itself is neither relaxing. For excitatory, all GABA does, it opens up what’s called a chloride channel. And then chloride, which has a negative charge, will flow into the neuron. Follow me there? Dr. Deb Muth 00:46:26 Yep. Bob Miller 00:46:27 And as it does, it changes this from a positive charge to a negative charge, And it’s relaxing. and inhibitory. Dr. Deb Muth 00:46:34 Hmm. Bob Miller 00:46:36 Now, on the other hand, there’s enzymes called NKCC1, That will push chloride in. and KCC2 that will bring chlor… oops and bring chloride out. And then there’s a sodium channel. And, sodium has a positive charge. And glutamate will push that in. So, as long as this is happening. And GABA says, receptor sites, open, chloride goes in, Chill. However, If NKCC1 Pushes extra chloride in. KCC2 doesn’t pull it out. and GABA hits the receptor site, the GABA comes flowing out, Sodium comes in, And now it’s excitatory. So Gabba didn’t change. GABA just opened the receptor site, that’s all it does. Dr. Deb Muth 00:47:33 Yeah. Bob Miller 00:47:34 But it’s the chloride balance that’s going to determine whether this is relaxing or not. Now, these are the things that go along with when they lose that KCC2 or gain NKCC1. Pain and sensitivity, burning electrical, neuropathic pain. Normal touch hurts. Sound and light sensitivity. Tinnitus can flare. Headaches and migraines. Seizure tendency. Body jolts. Spasticity, cramps, stiffness, startle reflex. Trouble falling asleep, non-restorative sleep. Anxiety, stress, reactivity, that’s what we have now. Hyperarousal, panic-like surges, irritability, racing thoughts. Brain fog, slowed processing, working memory slip-ups. Mental fatigue. Episodes of racing hearts, sweaty palms, guts on edge. Those are all the things that happen when this GABA switch occurs. Now, here’s what happens, and this is what I’m going to be presenting at an autism conference. When you have a newborn, they need that NKCC dominant to develop. By early childhood, it should… or, sorry, early adulthood. we should move over to the KCC dominant, that’s the taking the chloride out. Nice-looking 25-year-old boys, functioning very well. However, when we get microglia M1 upregulated. Because of environmental toxins, processed foods, Tylenol, aluminum. they stay in NKCC1 dominant, and there’s ADD, ADHD, Autism, the whole spectrum. because… They’ve not moved over to the… They’ve not moved over to the KCC2. And again, this is caused by… Environmental factors. Stimulating the microglia. And then, interleukin-1, interleukin-18 weakens KCC2, interleukin-1 beta, Strengthens NKCC1. high chloride. We open up the chloride channel, In Rebell Excitatory. So, I think when, When the pediatricians get ahold of this, they’re going to be very excited to know that This could be why we’re seeing such a rise, and not just autism, but ADD, ADHD, anxiety, the whole shit mess. Dr. Deb Muth 00:49:58 thing. Bob Miller 00:49:59 Yeah, so… and you can see NF-kappa-B stimulates that. These stimulate it, and I think that’s why everyone’s getting so anxious. Now, there’s a little bit more to it, and we’ll get into this when we look at some of the maps, but… The, the glutamate, Which is excitatory. will stimulate the NMDA receptor, make more glutamate, And glutamate will inhibit KCC2. And then we also need an astrocyte To, take both ammonia And glutamate, and… Turn them back into glutamine. And I’m going to talk to you a little bit about arachidenic acid, and if we have too much arachidenic acid. or TNFA is upregulated, that doesn’t happen. Ammonia goes up, and there may be multiple reasons for this, but this is a reason why some of the autistic kids do flapping. Dr. Deb Muth 00:50:49 Hmm. Bob Miller 00:50:50 Because they’re not clearing their ammonia. And you can tell if somebody has high ammonia by… they get that old person smell, you know. Dr. Deb Muth 00:51:00 Yup. Bob Miller 00:51:01 your vehicle cycle’s not taking out the, the ammonia. Now, last pathway here. There’s growing interest in mast cell activation. So, back here, we talked about peroxynitride. And that will stimulate mast cells, and those are white blood cells that are your best friend, unless they’re your worst enemy. Then it’ll make histamine. And there’s enzymes called histidine decarboxylase that’ll make more. Dr. Deb Muth 00:51:28 I’m sure everybody’s heard of DAO, the enzyme that degrades histamine. Yep. Bob Miller 00:51:31 We can have genetic weakness, we don’t make that. There’s an enzyme called histamine and methyltransferase, That, That breaks down the histamine. Then if we don’t do that, it’ll get stuck in the histamine receptor site. And then it’ll make something called, renin. Which will cause angiotensinogen to turn into angiotensin. One, that turns into angiotensin II,And that’s where people make aldosterone, where they’ll get the, The swollen ankles and high blood pressure. But interestingly, there’s an enzyme called ACE2, that takes this guy and turns it into angiotensin 1-7, Which is anti-inflammatory and also inhibits… TNFA. Now, you can have weakness on ACE2, But… and anybody’s saying, that sounds familiar? Dr. Deb Muth 00:52:25 That’s where COVID comes in, using ACE2. Bob Miller 00:52:28 And now we just found there’s literature that if you get COVID long enough, it can actually make ACE2 not be able to work as well. So look what it does. It comes down here, stimulates the NADPH oxidase, More superoxide. More peroxynitrite. And we’re on a cycle here. We’ve actually named this the Home Cycle Hypothesis, the proposed feed-forward loop. That just keeps feeding on itself. All being caused by… Primarily, The environmental factors. But hitting those who have genetic weakness the hardest. That’s why. Dr. Deb Muth 00:53:08 To the people. Bob Miller 00:53:09 Don’t live in a moldy house. One person is sick as can be, and the other person says, well, you must be imagining things, because I don’t feel anything. Dr. Deb Muth Yeah. Same thing with long haul, right? Two people can both get sick, one gets sick and never seems to recover, and somebody else gets sick, and they have absolutely no problems with it at all. Bob Miller 00:53:30 Sure. Well, think about it, if you get COVID, and ACE2 is weak, and some of this other stuff is going on. This thing just starts feeding upon itself. Dr. Deb Muth 00:53:38 Keep creating more inflammation, more complications, nothing’s calming down. Bob Miller 00:53:43 Yeah. Now, you, you ask about, MTHFR. So, this is the, this is the, the software called Functional Genomic Analysis. There’s a demo report we have. So, let’s talk a little bit about, MTHFR. So, we actually have a map called a methylation map. Now, what happens is, when you do your saliva test, you, you know, you spit, you put some saliva. in a collection kit, goes to a lab, takes out the DNA data, sends it to the computer, and now you can actually see it visually. Okay. So, it’s gonna take a second for this, data to load up, it’s, and each of these Circles, each of these ovals, is an enzyme. And the data gets loaded up to see where it is. So, until it gets loaded up here, I didn’t preload this. There it goes. So… The primary thing about methylation is There’s a nasty substance called homocysteine that, if it’s too high, can really be detrimental. The body takes methylfolate, and combines with methyl B12, To bring this back up to methionine. And then through the MAT genes, we make SAMI, S-adml methionine. Which is involved in so many processes. Then after it does its thing, it turns back into homocysteine. And this thing needs to keep spinning around. That’s why, you know, it’s a good idea to keep homocysteine at, do you have a number that you’d like? 7, 8? What do you like for a number? Dr. Deb Muth 00:55:24 Yeah, I like mine below 7. Bob Miller 00:55:26 Yeah. So if the homocysteine goes too high. It, caused all kinds of problems. So, here’s where you ask about the MTHFR. So, here you can see on this individual. I click on MTHFR, and you can see it comes up here, here’s the C677. And you can see here where it says, variants. I’ll… I’ll draw in case somebody’s having a hard time seeing that. So, you can see there’s nothing in there. That means there’s no genetic mutations. If one parent would have given a mutation, there’d be a 1. If both parents did, there’d be a 2. Now, here’s why Yes, methylation is important, I’m not saying it isn’t important, but look at this MTHFRC677. In my software. Only 42.5% of the population does not have a mutation. 44.7% have won. 12.9 have 2. So, this isn’t some rare, oh my god, I’m gonna die… Kind of thing, yeah. Dr. Deb Muth 00:56:27 Right. Bob Miller 00:56:28 So, And then what happens is that, and again, I’m not dismissing methylation, I… we could do a whole show on methylation. Bob Miller 00:56:36 get it. But I think that what people are doing is they’re, they’re learning about MTHFR, they get it measured, they panic. They start taking massive amounts of methylfolate, which many times is to their detriment. Dr. Deb Muth 00:56:50 Well, it’s… and isn’t it true, too, with MTHFR, like, you have to also look at MTR, MTRR, and the more we stack up of those, the more complicated than MTHFR can be. It’s not… it’s not as simple as just saying MTHFR 677 versus 1298. It’s more complex than that, kind of like what you’ve already shown with some of the other things. There’s more to it than just that one little sliver. Bob Miller 00:57:17 Oh, sure, well, let’s take a look. So, remember I said there’s a cofactor? One of the cofactors is called FAD. Just a Bob Miller observation, that’s all. But when people have trouble with their riboflavin and they don’t have enough FAD, They’re doing much worse than people who have just a C677. So, right here, you could have perfect C677th. And if you don’t have the cofactor, it’s not gonna work, okay? Dr. Deb Muth 00:57:48 And as you said, there’s an MTR enzyme. Bob Miller 00:57:51 that takes methylfolate and methyl B12, to spin it around. So, here on this individual. here’s your… here’s your B vitamins, or I’m sorry, your B12s. There’s an enzyme called TCN1 that takes it from the stomach into the blood. Then there’s other enzymes that take it from the blood into the tissue. And if you’re having trouble here. Well, then you’re not going to have this working, so… Even if you don’t have MTHFR, And you have MTR, like this, no, I’m sorry, this person doesn’t. But they have the MTRR, and then they don’t have enough B12, this isn’t gonna work, aside from that. And then there’s a middle pathway. And then there’s enzymes called the MAT1. they take the methionine to the salmon. If that’s not working, we stick… we get stuck in methionine. So, it’s, it’s not just an MTHFR. And then, one of the things that people forget about. is through these CBS enzymes and CTH, We make cysteine, which is needed to make glutathione. The master antioxidant. So, it really is that… I call it the, The 3D chess game played underwater. Dr. Deb Muth 00:59:07 It really is. I mean, I see people who have CVS, COMT, glutathione, MGHFR genes. And some of them function just fine. Like, they have Like, I look at this person and I’m like, oh my gosh, I don’t know how they’re functioning because they’re double mutated on so many pathways, but yet they don’t have a lot of symptoms, they don’t have a lot of complications. Somehow their body has figured out a way to adapt to what it has so it can stay alive and it can function at a high functioning level. Bob Miller 00:59:36 Yeah, and they may be, you know, eating right? Yeah. Staying out of a moldy house. reducing stress. So, it’s diet, it’s stress, it’s genetics, environmental factors. So, yeah, we can’t just say somebody’s gonna be good or somebody’s gonna be bad. You know, some people get scared, oh, I got all these, it’s like, well… Bob Miller 00:59:56 Are you living in a moldy house? You know, and if you live in a moldy house and your glucuronidation pathway doesn’t do well, or if you’re, you know, a smoker, or you’re constantly eating junk food, I mean, all. Bob Miller 01:00:07 things come together. Although, you know, when we focus on genetics, we’re well aware that this is just a piece of it. You know, you could have identical twins, Genetically, and if one… Is exposed to mold and smokes and drinks and stressed out. They’re gonna be a whole lot sicker than their sibling. Bob Miller 01:00:28 Yep. Dr. Deb Muth 01:00:29 Yeah, it’s that concept of taking twins, and one gets raced with one family, and one gets raced with another family, and they don’t have the same… problems that… that each other have, you know? It’s a very unique situation, we don’t think about that enough. Bob Miller 01:00:44 Alright, so again, genetics loads the gun, environment pulls the trigger. So, if you’ve got a loaded gun, but you don’t have the triggers, you’re okay. Dr. Deb Muth 01:00:53 Yeah. Bob Miller 01:00:54 Yeah. So, remember I said I was going to talk about NAD? So, here’s NAD, and what it does, it turns into NADH. And what NADH does, it, Comes down this pathway, what’s called the electron transport chain. And that makes your ATP, that’s your energy. So, if this wasn’t working, we wouldn’t be alive, because we wouldn’t have energy. So it donates an electron, that’s why it’s called electron transport chain. So, we need NAD, To make this, to make the energy. But remember I said that NQ01, this would probably be, like, on my top 10 list of… Bob Miller 01:01:36 Much more important than MTHFR. This one takes NADH back to NAD. If we’re stuck over here, We’re low in this NAD+, But what happens is, NQO1 also provides CoQ10. And CoQ10 Is what’s needed for the electron transport chain to flow. So if we get too many electrons up here. And they don’t turn them into energy. They make a nasty free radical called superoxide. Okay. Now, NAD plus also makes NADPH, And that is needed. Remember I said we need to recycle our antioxidants. So, if we have a problem with FAD from riboflavin. Yeah, we don’t have enough NADPH, Glutathione’s not getting recycled, and you’re gonna be inflamed. And you take glutathione, you’ll feel worse. There’s another enzyme called thimoredoxin. Same thing, needs NADPH and FAD. And same way with your nitric oxide, there’s an enzyme called NOS3, That makes the nitric oxide that dilates your blood vessels. And if we don’t have enough NADPH or fat, You’re gonna make superoxide. Rather than nitric oxide. Now, remember

This episode of the Everyday Epigenetics: Raw. Real. Relatable. podcast takes a hard look at one of the biggest trends in the wellness world: detox culture. Susan Robbins shares a raw and deeply honest perspective on the fear-based messaging surrounding parasites, mold, heavy metals, cleanses, and “toxic overload,” while explaining what true detoxification actually looks like inside the body. From harsh protocols and supplement overload to the nervous system's role in health, this conversation challenges the idea that more detoxing always equals better wellness.Susan also dives into the genetics behind detox pathways, including MTHFR, COMT, PEMT, GST genes, inflammation markers, bile flow, and histamine responses. She explains why personalized health matters, why one-size-fits-all detox programs can backfire, and how stress, sleep, nutrition, circadian rhythm, and emotional safety often play a much bigger role in how the body functions than another cleanse ever will. This episode is a reminder that the body already knows how to detox when it has the right support, nourishment, and stability.In this episode:Why the detox industry often profits from fearThe difference between true toxic overload and depletionHow the body naturally detoxifies through the liver, kidneys, gut, skin, and lymphatic systemWhy harsh cleanses can create more stress on the bodyThe truth about parasite cleanses, binders, colonics, and juice detoxesHow chronic stress impacts detox pathways and hormone balanceWhy genetics like MTHFR, COMT, GST, PEMT, IL6, and TNF-alpha matter in personalized healthThe connection between histamine, sulfur pathways, glutathione, and detox symptomsHow nervous system regulation impacts healing and detoxificationWhy lifestyle rhythms, sleep, meal timing, and stress management matter more than most people realizeHow Susan uses epigenetics and PH360 health types to personalize detox supportThe importance of building resilience instead of living in fear around healthRESOURCES:Find all of Susan's Resources and links in the show notes: Shop the products: http://healthygut.com/healthyawakenings (this link will provide you a special discount!)https://healthyawakening.co/2026/05/18/episode124/Connect with Susan: https://healthyawakening.co/Visit the website: healthyawakening.co/podcastFind listening links here: https://healthyawakening.co/linksP.S. Want reminders about episodes? Sign up for our newsletter, you can find the link on our podcast page! https://healthyawakening.co/podcast

If you have brain fog, fatigue, or fatty liver even though you eat well this one gene might explain everything.In this episode of The Natural Health Podcast, Mihaela Raguz explores the PEMT gene a critical but often overlooked gene involved in fat metabolism, liver function, brain health, and methylation.You'll learn how low PEMT gene activity can contribute to symptoms like fatigue, brain fog, mood changes, digestive issues, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) even in lean individuals. Mihaela explains why choline demand increases when PEMT function is reduced, how this impacts bile production and neurotransmitters, and why diet plays a key role in supporting genetic expression.This episode breaks down the science behind PEMT, its connection to methylation pathways, and practical dietary strategies including eggs, liver, and choline-rich foods to support optimal liver and cognitive health.If you're interested in genetics, functional medicine, holistic health, or unexplained fatigue and brain fog, this episode is essential listening.00:00 Introduction to The Natural Health Podcast01:00 Transitioning to DNA and Genetic Health01:58 Understanding the PEMT Gene04:33 Lipid Health and Brain Function08:26 Liver Function and Fat Metabolism11:49 Symptoms of Low PEMT Function13:44 Dietary Considerations for PEMT Gene16:52 Research Insights on PEMT Gene22:15 Conclusion and Future TopicsTakeawaysThe PEMT gene is crucial for fat metabolism and liver functionLow PEMT function can lead to cognitive issues and fatigueDiet plays a vital role in managing genetic healthCholine is essential for neurotransmitter production and brain healthBile production is necessary for fat digestion and absorptionSymptoms of low PEMT function include digestive issues and mood swingsResearch links PEMT gene insufficiency to non-alcoholic fatty liver diseaseEggs and liver are excellent sources of choline for those with PEMT issuesMethylation is critical for the proper functioning of the PEMT geneLet's Connect on✅Instagram https://www.instagram.com/TheNaturalHealthPodcast✅Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheNaturalHealthPodcast--------------------Music Song: Joakim Karud - Thank You (Vlog No Copyright Music)Music provided by Vlog No Copyright Music.Video Link: https://youtu.be/o4RybjThnEo --------------------The content and information provided here is the opinion of Mihaela Raguz and is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice or take the place of medical advice or any current treatment you are undertaking. It is advised that you consult your doctor or health professional in relation to any health concerns you may have. Mihaela Raguz does not take responsibility for any health consequences which occur from a person viewing or reading this content. Please note if you are taking prescription do not stop your medication or start any new protocol including but not limited to supplements, diet, lifestyle changes without consulting your doctor or health professional.--------------------

Have you ever felt like you're doing everything right—eating clean, taking your supplements, exercising, sleeping—and yet, something still feels off? In this episode, I'm diving deep into one of the most overlooked but essential processes in your body: methylation. It might sound like something from chemistry class (and technically it is), but it affects everything—from your energy and hormones to detox, mental health, and even how your genes show up in real life. If you've heard of MTHFR or suspect there's something going on under the surface that no one has been able to explain… this is for you. Here's What I Cover in This Episode: What methylation actually is—and why it matters for your overall health The connection between methylation and your detox, mood, hormones, and energy Signs you might be struggling with methylation (hint: it's way more common than you think) Why the phrase “genetics load the gun, lifestyle pulls the trigger” applies to your health journey What MTHFR, COMT, PEMT, MTRR, and other gene variants mean for your body Why some supplements might not work for you—and how to choose the ones that actually do My personal experiences with poor methylation (including that dental numbing story

Choline may not be a nutrient you think about every day — but it's one of the most powerful players in your body's energy production, brain performance, and detoxification system. In this episode, we break down why choline is like a “master ingredient” in your body's recipe book. It's used to create two vital compounds: Phosphatidylcholine (PC) — the special fat that makes up your cell walls and keeps them strong, flexible, and able to communicate. Acetylcholine — a neurotransmitter that powers your memory, focus, muscle control, and vagus nerve function. You'll learn how chronic illness, mold exposure, and toxin load can quickly deplete your choline stores, forcing your body to choose between repairing cell membranes or keeping your vagus nerve running at full capacity. That imbalance can lead to constipation, bloating, brain fog, hormone recirculation, and sluggish recovery. We'll also cover why certain genetic variations (like PEMT and MTHFR) make you more vulnerable — and how testing, targeted nutrition, and the right supplements can help rebuild these pathways so your energy, digestion, and cognition can come back online. If you've been feeling like you're running at half-speed, this episode will help you understand why — and what you can do to turn it around.

Let's talk about something that gets tossed around a lot in the world of women's health — MTHFR. You might have heard it mentioned in conversations about fatigue, fertility struggles, anxiety, or detox issues… but what is it really? And how do you know if it's affecting you? Let's break it down together.

Today, we're talking with The Gene Queen Sarah Morgan about … Unlocking the Choline Connection: A Key to Alzheimer's Puzzle in Women - Decoding Its Impact, Genetic Factors, and Vital Strategies for Optimal Brain Health. Key Points Women may go into pregnancy choline deficient and have huge demand in pregnancy and lactation.  In perimenopause. Estrogen levels decline. PEMT activity declines. Why? Estrogen is an inducer of PEMT activity. Low estrogen = Low choline production  Memory declines, sleep worsens. We may increase the risk of Alzheimer's over decades through choline deprivation.  Key gene = PEMT (rs7946 and rs12325817)

Join us on an exhilarating journey into the intricate world of choline and the PEMT gene. Delve into the significance of choline and how it impacts cellular health, brain function, and beyond, and how PEMT plays a role in choline production. Discover the intricate genetic variants within PEMT, unravelling how certain alleles influence susceptibility to choline deficiency and associated risks. Plus, learn how estrogen stimulation plays a crucial role, posing unique challenges for different demographics. Tune in to 'SNPits' on The Joe Cohen Show to grasp the genetic intricacies impacting our health and explore how personalized nutrition can be your shield against genetic vulnerabilities. - Check out SelfDecode: https://selfdecode.com/- Join Joe's online community: https://thejoecohenshow.com/

Today's episode is part 2 of my 3-part series on estrogen, where I'll be covering the nuts and bolts of how we properly eliminate estrogen from the body, what's needed to do so and some reasons for why that process may become suboptimal. I also discuss the timing of testing as well as how and why that detail can render greater value for some people. 2:58 - Does the day of the month you test for estrogen matter? If so, when should you test and why 4:52 - Mid-luteal phase of the menstrual cycle and its importance with estrogen testing 6:24 - Estrogen clearance 101 6:52 - The gallbladder's, liver's and bile's impact on estrogen clearance 7:53 - Bile production, bile flow, bile acids vs. bile salts and glycine/taurine and how they all impact estrogen clearance 9:50 - Phosphatidylcholine, PEMT gene and their impact on bile and the gallbladder 11:13 - Gut dysbiosis 14:11 - Calcium D-glucarate 15:29 - Some potential reasons for high estrogen in men

If I had to pick one mutation that was AS pivotal as MTHFR is, it would be PEMT. This mutation affects literally EVERY cell in your body - all 37.2 trillion of them. We'll talk about: The one well studied polymorphism (and the legions of other ones) Signs and symptoms that may point to a PEMT problam How to ease the burden on your PEMT And why it's important to love your liver. Enrollment for the Beta group of MTHFR for Life is now open and it's 75% off the usual price. We'll get started on July 11th and spots are limited for the Beta group so enroll now. For the complete show notes, click here. To join Genetic Rockstars, click here. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/tohealthwiththat/message

Detox Pathways and Protocols (Youtube)Free 15-min phone consult!Website and Supplement Store So - yup, toxins are a big problem. We are exposed to tons of them, and if our bodies aren't detoxifying properly, they can accumulate or cause damage to our cells, organs, and systems and wreak havoc on our lives. So how do you make sure you aren't overflowing your bucket? Here are 10 Important Concepts:Bucket Theory explains everything - keep this in mind if things are NOT getting better. SOMETHING is still filling the bucket from somewhere if you are actively trying to detoxify and leading a non-toxic life and you aren't improving. You have to empty the bucket faster than you are filling - you either aren't emptying it well, or you are still exposed somewhere.Breathing - There are only a few "exits" for things to get out of the body, breath is one of them. Think about a roadside alcohol test - you breathe out toxins to get rid of them.Peeing - this one is more obvious that you are "getting rid of waste", but the kidneys filter toxins and toxic metabolites, and you pee them out, so that system has to be working well too. Pooping - This one is the most obvious - - waste is bad so you want to get it out of you!! Your poop is how you get rid of MANY MANY toxins, and if your gut is not moving well, everything else backs up. Sweating - You are slightly limited on how much you can speed up your breathing, peeing, and pooping, but you can always open the other exit - sweat. Many toxins have been found excreted in the sweat - mycotoxins, BPA, parabens, metals, etc, so sweating is crucial for detoxification.Liver/Bile Flow - The liver filters toxins (through many processes - phase I and II, cytochrome P450 enzymes, glutathione, conjugation, glucuronidation, methylation, etc). These toxins are then put into bile, which is stored and released by the gallbladder. You have to have good liver function to filter the toxins, and then you have to have good gallbladder function and bile flow for the toxins to get into the gut, then you have to be pooping for them to get out.Lymph Drainage - The lymphatic system is one way that toxins and waste products are transported around the body to be excreted, and your lymphatic system has to be moving, it can't be stagnant. Cell Membranes - Toxins damage your cell membranes (including mitochondrial membrane), causing lipid peroxidation, stiffening, and poor membrane fluidity. Then toxins can also STORE in the cell membranes, so you need good healthy cell membrane support - this can be really important for detoxification.Mitochondria - THEY DO IT ALL!!!! Toxins store in the mitochondria, they damage the mitochondria, they affect fatty acid beta oxidation, Kreb's Cycle, Oxidative Phosphorylation, all the things - and mitochondria power detoxification in the liver, organs, cells, etc. It's all mitochondrial!Relevant Genes - There are a lot of relevant genes in detoxification, and it's super important. Many of them relate to "methylation", like MTHFR, COMT, PEMT, HNMT, but there are many others that regulate processes like glutathione recycling, cytochrome P450 activity, and many many more. 

A recently published study by Klatt and colleagues examined the impact of choline supplementation alongside DHA supplementation, versus DHA supplementation alone, on DHA status in pregnancy. It is known that DHA is a critical nutrient at this time for healthy development of the child. And through a number of mechanisms discussed later, it has been hypothesized that choline could lead to greater DHA status. We discuss: What is the connection between choline and DHA? What is the PEMT pathway? Study design for the choline + DHA trial Are there risks of high-dose choline? Main findings of the trial How DHA status is not just a function of DHA intake, but also methyl metabolism too Issues with omega-3 trials; e.g. not taking baseline status into account Pragmatic recommendations for health professionals and patients Different forms of choline supplements Choline supplementation vs. food-derived choline Access the show notes here   Subscribe to Premium here

@michaelsalzle. GST, NOS3, and PEMT

Diego Cresceri, CEO of Creative Words, joins SlatorPod to talk about his journey in the language industry, from founding the language service provider (LSP) to becoming President of Elia.Diego recounts his beginnings as a Translator, Project Manager, and eventually branching off on his own to create Creative Words. He also shares the motivation behind the founding of Creative AI for multilingual data services and how it functions alongside Creative Words.The CEO discusses the evolution of post-editing machine translation (PEMT) and the LSP's approach to pricing PEMT by the word. He also shares their marketing strategy through social media, Google SEO, and partnerships with associations such as GALA, ATC, and Elia.Diego talks about his new role at Elia and their aim for members to actively grow through visibility and engagement. He reflects on the uncertain future of the language industry but says he expects it to remain fertile with innovation.First up, Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week, with popular American YouTuber MrBeast tweeting about the success of his dubbed videos and foreign language channels.Esther talks about EGA's latest research project on the impact of media and entertainment localization on consumers in France, Italy, Germany, and Spain. Meanwhile, KUDO announces an integration with Microsoft Teams, where users will be able to access on-demand multilingual interpretation from their current platform.Florian gives an update on AMN Healthcare's Q3 2021 results, which saw revenues surpassing expectations at USD 878m, 59% more than Q3 2020.

A 55-year-old female who has been living with IBS since her early twenties. She had possible food poisoning around 7-years ago. She is eating a whole foods diet yet still has regular exposure to gluten and dairy. The patient adores running, however, is experiencing frequent injuries.     Patient's top objectives  1. IBS 2. Mood 3. Energy 4. Weight 5.) Recurring Injuries      Vitamins/Minerals/Omega 3s: ·       PEMT (rs7946)           (Choline) ·       BCMO1(rs12934922) (Vit A) ·       BCMO1(rs7501331    (Vit A) ·       CYP2R1(rs10741657)    (Vit D) ·       GC(rs2282679)               (Vit D) ·       DHCR7(rs12785878)      (Vit D)   Gastrointestinal Panel: ·       FUT2 (rs601338)        (Microbial Diversity in Small Intestine) ·       MCM6(rs4988235   (Lactose Intolerance)   Cognitive Panel: ·       COMT (rs4680)        (Executive Function) ·       TPH2                        (Serotonin)   Exercise and Fitness Panel: ·       COL1A1(rs1800012)  (Tendon and Ligament Injury) ·       COL5A1(rs12722)      (Tendon and Ligament Injury) Resources Nutrigenomics Case Study Events 2021  GMOTG Events Line-up PureGenomics PureGenomics Trait Tutorials Schedule a complimentary 1:1 Welcome to PureGenomics coaching session

A 45-year-old female who is inquiring about bio-identical hormones for depression, anxiety, and weight gain.  Patient's top objectives  1. Hormones 2. Mood 3. Weight   COMT Val/Val (wild type) COMT met/met (homozygous)   Cognitive Panel: ·       COMT (rs4680)   Detox Panel: ·       COMT (rs4680) (Estrogen Metabolism) ·       GSTP1 (rs1695)  (Glutathione Peroxidase) ·       SOD2 (rs4880) (Antioxidant Enzymes)   Vitamins/Minerals/Omega 3s: ·       PEMT (rs7946) (Choline)   Resources Nutrigenomics Case Study Events 2021  GMOTG Events Line-up PureGenomics Schedule a complimentary 1:1 Welcome to PureGenomics coaching session

Dr. Ben Lynch discusses more about histamine, gut health and why gallbladder issues are so common and tips to optimize. We also look at gene testing and why considering clusters of interrelated genes and their associated networks instead of myopically focusing on one good or bad gene variant is much more useful for determining your health weaknesses and strengths. Support your Sleep and Electrolyte levels with Myo Relax by MYOXCIENCE Nutrition: http://bit.ly/2HgCPOs Save with code: Podcast Test your genes with StrateGene: http://bit.ly/strategene Save with code HIH Link to Books and Full Notes: https://bit.ly/3B8reeE Key Takeaways: 06:23 Genetic testing identifies a potential susceptibility to health and mental health complications. It is one of many tools. 06:50 Dirty Genes book is full of quizzes which identifies genetic issues without doing genetic testing. 07:45 Lifestyle habits are passed down through generations, so issues may not be caused by genes. 08:35 Less than 5% of cancers are heritable. Only 1% of Parkinson's is genetic. 09:25 Conventional medicine using pharmacological interventions are by force. Naturopathic and functional medicine is nurture and restorative, with an appreciation for the biochemical network. 10:50 Look at genes in a wholistic way. There are about 18,000 genes in our bodies. 12:10 A single variant is minuscule compared to the other 18,000 genes communicating. And there are many other variables that make studying a single variant complicated. For example, is the study subject sleeping in a hot or cold room, mouth breathing, has a sleep partner snoring, and loaded with stress? It appears as though epigenetics overrides the majority of other provocations. 13:40 You must look at the research with a wholistic view. Look at many studies. 14:35 You do not need genetic testing. Listen to how your body is feeling and give those areas in need more love, attention, and protection. 16:12 Some genes are highly influenced by epigenetics and others are not. Sometimes is it a matter of workload for the gene. 18:00 If you have the MTHFR variant, you are less likely to die from malaria. You may have a reduced ability to methylate folate, but methylfolate can be found in leafy green vegetables and animal livers. 20:40 At some point, mutated genes helped your ancestors survive. Our genes are adapting to our new environment, and we are passing this on to our kids. 23:20 Dr. Lynch had to choose 7 genes out of 18,000 for the book. He chose MTHFR because it effects the entire genome. Two glutathione genes were chosen because oxidative stress effects the entire genome. 24:00 CMT and MAOA were chosen for their impact upon brain function. 24:30 DAO works on histamine metabolism in the gut, which can cause leaky gut. 25:00 PEMT: Solid cell membranes create cell membranes and create storage for histamine and your neurotransmitters. This phosphatidyl choline synthesizing gene highly polymorphic. 26:45 Nitric oxide is important for emergent heart issues. 26:50 By focusing on supporting these 7 genes, you are positively influencing all of your genes. 28:45 Phosphatidyl choline keeps your bile from being thick and sludgy. You need 10 parts phosphatidyl choline to one part cholesterol to have your bile flow. 30:23 If you are an obese woman in your 40s and still fertile, you will struggle with a gallbladder issue, especially if you have a PEMT variant. The primary stone in the gallbladder is formed from cholesterol. It stems from fatty liver. 32:44 The phosphatidyl choline supplement is used to improve bile flow, but since it is a lipid, it cannot be fully absorbed to improve bile flow. With PEMT variant, reduce consumption of fats and reduce the workload on that gene. 33:45 Visceral manipulation is a near instant fix for bile flow. It is massage to compress your liver. You will have an amazing bowel movement. Support with herbs that stimulate bile flow and production, like glycine, taurine, bitter herbs, ginger, and artichoke. Then supplement with phosphatidyl choline. 36:00 There is data about bile acids and dysfunctional bile acid signatures in the brain and heart. 36:50 Bile has antimicrobial properties. Taking ox bile at meals to help with fat metabolization. Ox bile taken between meals gets into your small intestine to kill off overgrowth bacteria. Maybe take it with a little charcoal. Bacteria release gasses and compounds that cause issue when they die and break open. Binding these is important. 38:28 Acid reflux is bile coming through a leaky pyloric sphincter. 39:10 The StrateGene test for neurotransmitters looks at the reduction, transport, binding to the receptor and the synthesis/metabolism of key neurotransmitters. 41:20 Pesticides slow the HTR1B gene. They bind to the serotonin receptor. 42:00 The metabolism of neurotransmitters can be fast, typical or slow. Many medications target the reuptake of neurotransmitters to keep it in the brain, rather than have it reabsorbed. 43:00 Many of us who take SSRIs get no effect because they have no or too little serotonin in the brain for the medication to work with. 43:30 5-HTP is a primary precursor to serotonin. The DEC gene converts 5-HTP to serotonin, uses vitamin B-6. 48:20 Sleep is associated with serotonin. Serotonin is converted to your melatonin. Taking supplemental melatonin may mean that serotonin is still in your brain, producing a “wired and tired” feeling. 50:55 Adderall and Ritalin are addictive amphetamines. Amphetamines block the reuptake of dopamine. Harm can be done with higher doses of amphetamines when we already have a slow ability to remove dopamine from the brain. 53:50 Medications can be useful as an intermittent intervention. Many times, non-pharmaceutical interventions can be used strategically with genetic testing. 55:05 Ritalin is toxic to the brain because it keeps so much dopamine in the brain, making dopamine quinone. Three toxic compounds are produced when you break down dopamine. 58:40 We think that Parkinson's is a low dopamine state, so patients are prescribed L-dopa. L-dopa may have been the reason their brain was toxic to begin with from a messed up MTHFR. 59:15 Supplementing with dopamine hastens the destruction of the Parkinson's brain. Parkinson's is a damaged state due to a pro-oxidative environment in the brain, possibly due to more elevated dopamine or a trapping of some of the toxic metabolites of dopamine in the brain. 01:01:17 Quinones are highly reactive and hard to calm and neutralize. Glutathione does not neutralize a reactive quinone. PQQ is helpful. Carnosine is also helpful and rapidly metabolized by carnosinase and converted into histamine and histidine. N-acetyl carnosine keeps carnosine in circulation longer. It is protective of the brain and is also used in eye drops for cataracts. 01:05:20 Eye health/function is an indicator of brain health. Your eyes contain the most mitochondria per density of any organ or body part. Eyes use a lot of oxygen and requires a lot of glutathione and other antioxidants for support.    

Why You Should Listen: In this episode, you will learn about lipid therapy in optimizing health. About My Guests: My guest for this episode is Dr. Kelly McCann. Kelly McCann, MD, MPH & TM is on staff at Hoag Memorial Hospital in Newport Beach, California and has been in private practice in Costa Mesa since 2008. She founded Partners in Health at the Spring Center in August 2009. Dr. McCann received a B.A. in Music from Brown University and a Master’s in Library Science from University at Albany. She went on to receive her Doctor of Medicine degree (MD) and simultaneously earned a Master’s in Public Health (MPH) in Tropical Medicine (TM) at Tulane University in New Orleans. She completed both an Internal Medicine residency at Banner Samaritan Medical Center and a Pediatrics residency at Phoenix Children’s Hospital in Phoenix, AZ. Dr. McCann completed a Fellowship in the Program of Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona where she worked with Dr. Andrew Weil. She is one of only 35 physicians world-wide to participate in this Residential Fellowship.  Dr. McCann became certified in medical acupuncture through the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture. She is certified by the Institute of Functional Medicine and also Board Certified in Integrative Medicine by the American Board of Physician Specialties. Dr. McCann completed a Masters in Spiritual Psychology at the University of Santa Monica in 2010. She is a Board Member of the International Society for Environmentally Acquired Illness. She lectures internationally on mold, Lyme disease, and environmental toxins. Key Takeaways: - What symptoms or conditions might benefit from lipid therapy? - When might lipid therapy be appropriate in the overall timeline of a chronic illness protocol - Which fats are the most health-supporting? - Are fish oils helpful or harmful? - Can there be an imbalance with too much Omega-3 and too little Omega-6? - How can lipid balance be explored? - What are VLCFAs and "renegades"? - What are DNA adducts? - What is PC? How is it different from choline? - Do lipids impact our ability to create energy or ATP? - How does PEMT impact the need for PC? - What is TMAO? Is it a concern when supplementing PC? - Is soy-derived or sunflower-derived best? - What is the role of ox bile, TUDCA, and butyrate in a lipid replacement protocol? Connect With My Guest: http://TheSpringCenter.com Related Resources: BodyBio - Get 15% off with code BETTERHEALTH Interview Date: March 26, 2021 Transcript: To review a transcript of this show, visit http://BetterHealthGuy.com/Episode142 Additional Information: To learn more, visit http://BetterHealthGuy.com. Disclosure: BetterHealthGuy.com is an affiliate of BodyBio.com Disclaimer: The content of this show is for informational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or cure any illness or medical condition. Nothing in today's discussion is meant to serve as medical advice or as information to facilitate self-treatment. As always, please discuss any potential health-related decisions with your own personal medical authority.

Could there come a day when an optimal diet could be recommended not just for the population overall or for people with special conditions such as diabetes but a diet that would be unique for you? A diet based on your genetics let's say on the condition of your microbiome perhaps? Or on your environmental exposures or other factors? This futuristic possibility may be closer than you think. Thanks to the work of researchers, including today's guest Dr. Steven Zeisel, Director of the Nutrition Research Institute and Director of the Nutrition Obesity Research Center at the University of North Carolina. Interview Summary I would like to lead off by asking what you mean when you use the term precision nutrition. Precision nutrition is really the use of modern day science to be more precise about our diet recommendations for any given individual. In the last decade, we've realized that people vary greatly in their metabolism and many people have roadblocks that certain steps of metabolism. How far along is the science with us? Well, I think that in terms of the roles of genetic misspellings on your metabolism, we're really quite far along. Now when I say gene misspelling, each of us has a genetic code and it's constructed of four letters. We inherit our genes from our ancient ancestors and during many thousands of years we have developed alternative spellings in some of the genes I'm going to call the misspellings called SNPs. And these alternative spellings sometimes are in genes that are critical for steps in metabolism and cause us to be more or less efficient at the steps. Steve, can you give us an example, perhaps even a hypothetical one, of how such information might get harnessed in order to help a certain person? Would a person have a biological deficiency in some way that could be learned from genetic tests that then could be turned into recommendations for specific foods? Yes, so again from my own research on the nutrient choline - choline is really important during pregnancy to build a healthy baby with optimal brain function. Women were designed to be able to turn on the production of choline in their liver when estrogen levels the hormone that rises markedly during pregnancy. When estrogen rises, they turn on their production to make this choline and therefore are less dependent on their diet. And what we've discovered is that women who come European backgrounds have very commonly a misspelling in the gene that needs to be turned on and the switch for estrogen isn't working right. And so they like men don't turn on this gene. And this is really important because these are the women who have to be really careful about getting a good source of this nutrient during pregnancy, because they don't have the backup insurance of being able to make it by themselves There are other things like environmental exposures that might lead to specific nutrition recommendations for particular individuals, or maybe the condition of the microbiome, what other sort of factors might be relevant other than just pure genetics? Genetics is the most ready to go to market because we know so much about these tools but we differ in our metabolism for other reasons than having genetic mistakes. For instance, our microbiome, which are the bacteria and fungi and other microbes that live in our gut sees our food often before we do. And if you have a microbiome that is destroying some of the nutrients you need then you have to eat more in your diet. Alternatively, the microbiome can make some of the nutrients that you need. For instance, vitamin K very important for normal blood clotting, vitamin K is made by the microbiome as is folate. And if your microbiome isn't working well to make it then you must eat more in your diet. Microbiome is another area in which people can differ and that can make them need more or less of other nutrients. Environment probably also can change your requirements. We know for instance that there are environmental agents that emulate, simulate, exposure to estrogen and this can change genes that depend on estrogen and thereby change metabolism. And other foods you eat obviously can be manipulating your metabolism. Grapefruit changes the metabolism of many drugs because it turns on the liver's metabolism system. And what is changing drug metabolism is likely also changing metabolism of the normal components of food that these systems were meant to degrade and excrete. So this work is very sophisticated and extremely interesting and promising. How do you see as commercial applications for this kind of work? Right now, on the market, there are a number of gene tests for instance that tell you how fast you metabolize a component of your diet caffeine and there are fast metabolizers and slow metabolizers and it turns out that the fast metabolizers chew up caffeine quickly and therefore the person has to stand in line the coffee shop to get a second coffee while the slow metabolizers after drinking some coffee keep their caffeine levels up for a longer time and don't crave more caffeine so rapidly. That's an example of a gene test you can have to find out if you're a fast or slow metabolizer of caffeine. Of course, most of us know that by how much shaking we do as we stand online at the coffee shop. So let's turn back to the issue you mentioned earlier, your own work on choline. So you mentioned that it was particularly important during pregnancy. Is it important other times of life let's say for children? Kelly when I started out in my science career we thought that people didn't require choline in the diet, all the textbooks said that. And in fact, we weren't giving it to people when we fed them intravenously in the hospital and those people got sick. And when I first started out, I thought it was strange that animals required choline in their diet, but people didn't. And so I put people in the hospital, I took choline away and what I discovered was is that most men and most post-menopausal women when deprived of choline developed liver problems, fatty liver and liver damage or develop muscle problems with breakdown of their muscles. And I found that premenopausal women in North Carolina, only about a little less than half of them got sick when deprived of choline. And so choline is really important for maintaining normal liver function and for maintaining your muscle. The premenopausal women that got sick all had gene misspellings that made them unable to turn on choline formation in their liver with estrogen. And so they were reduced to the sad state of men and had to eat choline in their diets at all times or get sick. So that work prove that humans required choline and it led to a recommendation by the US National Academies of Science that all humans get it and we set dietary requirements which are now on food labels. People should eat half a gram of choline a day and as adults a little more when you're pregnant because you use a lot of choline to deliver it to the baby. The choline is used to build a baby's membranes that surround their cells and to build and drive normal development of the brain. What foods provide choline? Choline is found in fatty foods often that also contain cholesterol, it's in the membranes of the foods. So eggs and meats are excellent sources of choline. Plant-based sources are harder to find and you have to choose those plants sources that have lots of membranes like wheat bran. For people who want to find out what foods that they eat are the best for getting choline, the US Department of Agriculture maintains a database with thousands of foods in it and tells you what the choline content of those foods are. In the 1970s and '80s we recommended that everybody cut back cholesterol in their diet to prevent heart disease. The bad part is that we thought we were very smart as nutritionists and nutrition scientist when we did that. But we also cut back choline in the diet without knowing about it. We discouraged people from eating foods with it. And now choline intake is a problem nutrient in the United States. And every year the US government conducts a national health and nutrition survey, and they find only 7% of women who are a pregnancy age are eating the recommended intake of choline and at least a quarter are eating half the recommended and that's true for men. The only group that seems to be eating an adequate amount of choline are young children who are drinking lots of milk. You mentioned muscle function. Could you tell us more? So in the adults, when they're deprived of choline about 10% of people develop breakdown to their muscles every time they exercise. And we see that by looking at an enzyme that's released from muscle into blood when the muscle breaks down. This breakdown can be quite severe in some people who were fed a low choline diet. And we find that all of these people have a genetic of variance spelling difference in the gene that transports choline into the muscle cell and in the gene that first uses choline to make the products needed to help the muscle function normal. We can do a genetic test, predict who those people are and when we feed them adequate amounts of choline they do not break down their muscle when they exercise. And this has been of interest in the armed forces where they find that up to 25% of war fighters who are in training have to stop training because muscle breakdown is excessive. And they are wondering whether some of this breakdown is due to these people who have this genetic difference and a higher need for choline. So thinking of the general public, are there groups of people do you think it would make sense from a public health point of view to be tested for choline and how would people know what their optimal levels are? What would you see happening with that? I think that in women who are going to get pregnant, who are pregnant, where choline is so important for building a normal baby's brain. In mouse models we can show that the stem cells that are going to form the nerves within the brain, don't divide properly if choline isn't available at a critical time during pregnancy. And the mouse baby is born with many fewer nerve cells in their brain and don't function as well. They are worse at running mazes and at doing cognitive testing. In humans, a group at Harvard School of Public Health looked at women's intake during the first and second trimester of pregnancy and found that women in the lowest choline intake versus women in the highest intake when their children are studied at seven years of age for how well their brain performs cognitive function they find that the women in the lowest intake had children who perform worse at seven years of age than women in the highest intake. In addition, neural tube defects and other birth defects that are fairly common during pregnancy increase among the children of women who were on the lower choline intake. And in a study in Berkeley, California they reported that these neural tube defects, defects of formation of the spinal cord and brain were increased fourth fold in the women who were in the lowest group for intake of choline and this is after correcting for the vitamin folic acid that we know is so important during pregnancy as well. Women during pregnancy I think should have a test looking for these gene differences. And if they have them they should eat a diet more carefully that contains foods that are rich in choline. Because such a test is not been available, I work with a company that's trying to spin out a gene test. We also are working on fatty liver. About a third of the population in the United States as they gain more weight, develop excess fat in their liver that seems to interfere with how they use insulin and makes them insensitive to insulin and this is called metabolic syndrome. And again, people when deprived of choline developed fatty liver, and we find that this is because they have a problem sending fat outside of the liver to feed the other organs in the body. And so fat packs up in the liver whenever they make more of it because they're slow to mail the fat out of the liver. And this is related to having trouble making the envelope needed to mail the fat from the liver because that envelope is made of a choline and some other constituents. And so people deprived of choline develop this, people who have metabolic roadblocks in the metabolism of choline and related nutrients have the same roadblock and problems in exporting fat. And when they gain weight they develop fatty liver more rapidly. We're hoping to develop a genetic test that identifies who these people are and then we can give the nutrients beyond their roadblocks and metabolism and try to return them to normal. Bio Dr. Zeisel and his research team focus on the essential nutrient choline and why there are individual differences in nutrient metabolism, using new approaches in nutrigenomics and in metabolomics. The team works with humans, mice and cell culture model systems. Using our human studies we discovered that there are very common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs; gene misspellings) that make humans require more dietary choline and that one of these is in the gene PEMT and prevents estrogen from inducing the gene. We are collaborating in a number of epidemiology studies that examine the relationship between diet, these gene SNPs, and risk for disease. After identifying a SNP of interest in humans we make a mouse model and now have three such knockouts. One of them develops mitochondrial abnormalities and has immotile sperm. We are conducting studies in humans on this SNP. In another study, we examine choline's role in brain development and discovered that choline is critical for cortical and hippocampal development. We study mouse models and neural progenitor cells in culture to identify the molecular mechanism for choline's effect on brain.    

We're a very sick population and if we keep thinking that we need to kill and hunt down these sicknesses, viruses, and bacteria, that will forever put us at the mercy of the government or other organizations claiming to try and save us vs. us putting the actual work and effort in to become the healthiest versions of ourselves. It's all about choices vs being manipulated and basically lied to in my opinion. - Dr. Ben Lynch   Do you have symptoms of Dirty Genes?   Get 15% off your CURED Nutrition order with the code WELLNESSFORCE   ---> Get The Morning 21 System: A simple and powerful 21 minute system designed to give you more energy to let go of old weight and live life well.   JOIN THE FACEBOOK GROUP | *REVIEW THE PODCAST*   Wellness Force Radio Episode 353 Best-selling Author of Dirty Genes, Naturopathic Physician, and President of Seeking Health, Dr. Ben Lynch, explains how to overcome genetic dysfunction, the difference between making our own health choices vs. being manipulated by the system, why any face mask that isn't N95 certified is useless, what the Super 7 Genes are and how they can be supplemented with products from Seeking Health.   Discover the connection between dirty genes, how to clean them, and how to protect yourself from COVID-19 as well as all viruses out there.     Listen To Episode 353 As Dr. Ben Lynch Uncovers:   [1:30] Making Our Own Health Choices vs Being Manipulated By The System Dr. Ben Lynch Seeking Health Dirty Genes by Dr. Ben Lynch 297 Mike Mutzel His statement and medical perspective on May 22nd, 2020 of where we were at with COVID-19. The negative impact of relying on external things compared to taking action on our own health. How suppressing with antibiotics, antacids, antidepressants, and focusing on "killing" the coronavirus, cancer, disease etc. is the mentality that keeps us digging a hole for humanity. What steps we can take to make our own health choices that support our wellbeing vs relying on the systems of the government or the healthcare industry to "fix us." Fear-mongering platforms that the mass media and government are creating around face masks and hand sanitizer. Judy Mikovits Dr. Ben Lynch & Judy Mikovits Facebook Live "People Are Brainwashed by The Big Pharma" - Judy Mikovits Leave You Speechless Why lifestyle change should be considered first before giving a patient a new medication.   [11:00] Questions We Should Be Asking Now About COVID-19 Questions we should be asking ourselves about COVID-19 before creating so much pandemonium around it. Asking the question, Why are we making a big deal about the coronavirus now and not with influenza, H1N1, or measles? Unpacking why there are specific times in history when people with agendas are pushing for vaccines. Comparing control through COVID-19 to looking closely at how Nazi Germany took meticulous records and statistics of all of their prisoners to keep their soldiers busy which then encouraged them to forget how awful their actions were towards people and hijack their conscious thinking. 345 Dr. Zach Bush 350 Greg Anderson Why educating people about the truth doesn't mean we have to keep them in constant fear and busywork. Miseducation about COVID-19 testing, what it actually is, what it does for us, and how it "keeps us safe" or not. What he can tell us about COVID-19 antibodies, vaccines, PCR, and the actual testing that matters for us right now. Why the influenza vaccine, according to one study, will not prevent the spread of it, the severity of it, nor prevent infecting other people; all it did was just shorten the duration of the sickness. Testing for Coronavirus Antibodies and Coronavirus Vaccine Status Report   [20:30] Becoming A True Seeker Of Health Why a true health seeker is someone who just wants to explore it with an unbiased lens. His approach to looking at health with a Socratic lens, taking his time, and really dig into the paperwork. Dr. Ben Lynch's Facebook page Exploring what is it about our microbiome and disconnection to it that are driving more people to be susceptible to any virus let alone COVID-19. Why illness like chronic sinusitis has a higher chance of occurring when there is less diversity in the nasal microbiome. What it actually takes to have a good, diverse microbiome beyond eating fermented foods like kefir, kimchi, and sauerkraut. Different forms of good bacteria that can be found all of the body - our eyes, nose, cheeks, armpits, etc. and why they're so important for our overall health The devastation we are creating for good bacteria, our food, and our own health as we are blasting COVID-19 with sprays, chemicals, disinfectants, sanitizers, and UVs Why antibiotics and antacids are not the first solutions we should go to when we get sick as our healthy bacteria will fight them off on their own. How swollen tonsils actually work as a line of defense to let us know if we're intolerant to certain foods.   [27:00] Why Any Face Mask That Isn't N95 Is Useless Why Mother Nature is very resilient as she has backup systems for backup systems to repair what we're trying to do to this planet with pesticides, pollution, COVID-19, and natural resource drilling. How to tell whether or not our soil is actually healthy. Why we're actually destroying ourselves when we destroy the environment. His views as face masks and why he's 100% confident that it's actually hurting us as it's used as a governmental tool to maintain the fear and submission. Why face masks are useless unless they're N95 because the size of the holes are not sufficient, they're not properly sealed, and you're just exhaling and inhaling the old, toxic air. Unpacking the fact that people with respiratory symptoms such as COPD cannot wear a face mask as it will kill them. The Model Health Show - Can A Mask Really Keep Us Safe? How the coronavirus is proving that we are a sick population and a vaccine is not going to fix that.   [34:00] Making Our Own Conscious Health Decisions How we can use our time in quarantine to pause, start thinking about things and look at what's really going on with COVID-19. Taking a close look at people's personal agendas that are out in plain sight for us all to see including Bill Gates with the WHO as he funds and controls it. Unpacking Washington state governor Jay Inslee's agenda as his daughter works for Gates and he is supported by Big Pharma and the Bill And Melinda Gates Foundation. The new awakening as we pause and actually take a look around us to see what is truly going on in the world and who's ruling it with their wealth power. Exploring the narrative of true health freedom during COVID-19 and beyond. What vitamins such as A, B, C, D, K as well as iron and zinc we should be adding to our diet. Standing by what you know is right for your health and the health of your family rather than allowing the government to control your decisions. Is a vaccine truly the answer to the coronavirus pandemic? With Dr. Ben Lynch and Dr. Paul Saladino on Fundamental Health Podcast Why it's natural that you will have a much more severe reaction to an infection or a virus like a coronavirus if your primary body's antioxidant, glutathione, is low. What the coronavirus actually is: A whole-body hypoxia of the blood vessels as they break and are unable to transport oxygen everywhere. Why putting people on ventilators is not working to help patients with COVID-19 as it increases oxygenated stress and kills 90% of the people.   [20:30] Taking Back Control Of Your Health From The Government How to take back the responsibility of your health rather than the government control it for you. What the government should actually be focusing on instead of what we can and can't do about our health. Why he feels that former President Obama's choice for Minister of Agriculture, the former head of Monsanto, was the wrong choice. Unpacking what he knows about campaign finance reform. The story behind Seeking Health and their hummingbird logo plus what they stand for especially during COVID-19.   [53:00] How To Clean Your Dirty Genes What steps you can take today to get back to the root of your personal health practices. Exploring the concept of Dirty Genes and how to get well again by making good choices focused on living our healthiest lives. How to make your genes clean with a good diet, movement, sleep, and even your wellness tribe. What steps you can take to bring in the stress you feel each day or in specific situations and let them go as you clean your genes. Why you are not your anxiety, depression, or mental health disorder but your own person and that condition is a dirty gene that can be washed depending on what it is. Type 1 Diabetes Expert Dr. Jody Stanislaw How to use the Dirty Genes book as a guide and refer to it when you need it during your wellness journey. Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek The power of starting small when working towards implementing change in your life.   [1:06:00 ] The Super Seven Genes Unpacking what methylation defects are, how we can notice them, and where the process of healing begins. The impacts of certain genes being methylated at various times and their impact on our health. Breaking down how methylation can be a good way for our body to expel toxins from the body. Why he chooses not to consume rice, rice drinks, and rice-based supplements due to them being very high in arsenic. How he chose the Super 7 Genes when there are 19,000 genes in the human body including MTHFR, COMT Fast, COMT Slow, DAO, MAOA Fast, MAOA Slow, GST/GPX, NOS3, and PEMT. The map provided in Dirty Genes to help you along your wellness journey. The Millionaire Messenger by Brendon Burchard The power of giving people what they really need to help them without any expectations. Defining what success actually is: the happiness and gratefulness that you feel. Gary Vaynerchuk How reducing the things you don't need from useless belongings to toxic people to junk food will optimize your life. Why you actually need electrolytes to stay properly hydrated. BREATHE M21 Wellness Guide Wellness Force Community   Power Quotes From The Show   Are Face Masks Hurting Us? "I'm 100% confident that being enforced to wear face masks is hurting us. Face masks are a tool used by the government to maintain the fear and submission. In addition, if a face mask isn't N95 qualified, then when you speak or cough, they will do nothing for the person that is standing next to you. The size of the holes and seal in non-N95 masks are insufficient." - Dr. Ben Lynch     Cleaning Our Dirty Genes "For me, Dirty Genes is a culmination of all of the things that I have learned; how our genes function, what makes them function the best, what prevents them from functioning, and how to optimize their functioning through other outlets than nutrition, lifestyle, and behavior but targeted supplementation and genetic variations." - Dr. Ben Lynch     Unlocking Our Health Freedom "It's great that we can take this moment in quarantine and have time to start thinking about things and really start to look at what is actually going on. Just like prey when facing their predator, they will give it their all to fight back. So, this moment is really a blessing because it is pissing off the world; not just the American public, this quarantine is making the world fight back for its health freedom. It's causing a lot of people to really stop, look, listen, think, and really start understanding what's going on in a big way and none of this is hidden. The government and people with money who have an agenda like Bill Gates who funds WHO are in plain sight." - Dr. Ben Lynch       Links From Today's Show  Dirty Genes by Dr. Ben Lynch 297 Mike Mutzel Judy Mikovits Dr. Ben Lynch & Judy Mikovits Facebook Live "People Are Brainwashed by The Big Pharma" - Judy Mikovits Leave You Speechless 345 Dr. Zach Bush 350 Greg Anderson The Model Health Show - Can A Mask Really Keep Us Safe? Dr. Ben Lynch - We're NOT fighting a virus.  Is a vaccine truly the answer to the coronavirus pandemic? With Dr. Ben Lynch and Dr. Paul Saladino on Fundamental Health Podcast Dr. Ben Lynch on Air Filtration Fear Unmasked: Discover The Truth About The Coronavirus Shutdown by Clay Clark Type 1 Diabetes Expert Dr. Jody Stanislaw Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek The Millionaire Messenger by Brendon Burchard Dr. Ben Lynch - Protests are increasing. Here are my thoughts about how to protest in a safe and respectful manner. Gary Vaynerchuk Testing for Coronavirus Antibodies and Coronavirus Vaccine Status Report Dr. Ben Lynch - Scientists are baffled. They don’t know why coronavirus (or any virus) greatly impacts the elderly population. Leave Wellness Force a review on iTunes BREATHE M21 Wellness Guide Wellness Force Community Dr. Ben Lynch Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube Seeking Health Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube   About Dr. Ben Lynch Dr. Ben Lynch is the best-selling author of Dirty Genes and President of Seeking Health, a company that helps educate both the public and health professionals on how to overcome genetic dysfunction. He received his doctorate in naturopathic medicine from Bastyr University. He lives in Seattle, WA with his wife and three sons.   Try Seeking Health Today Get 10% off all Seeking Health products throughout July 2020 with the code: JOSH10 At Seeking Health, we believe there is a fundamental step missing, almost 100% of the time, in today’s healthcare system. A consistent focus on treating symptoms, rather than building health, can mean that you cycle in and out of symptoms and “treatment” over and over, sometimes for years. The root cause for many health conditions and symptoms stems from ineffective digestion and poor diet, along with other issues like environmental exposures, sleep issues and even a lack of community. Supporting you to optimize your digestion, reduce environmental exposure and toxic burden, and optimize your diet so nutrients can flood in, is our path to increasing energy and helping your immune system and overall health.     About Seeking Health Supplements Seeking Health provides supplements out of the belief that in order to remain healthy in our toxic, high stress environment, with our nutrient-depleted soils, one must supplement with pure, scientifically-formulated nutrients. Most of our products are GMO-free Most of our products are free of common allergens such as milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, gluten, corn, yeast, and soy Most of our products are free of magnesium stearate Certificates of Analysis on our products are available by request   Build Immunity. Breathe Deeply. A simple, powerful 21 minute morning system designed to give you more energy to let go of old weight and live life well. Get Your Calm Mind + Immunity Building Guide  *6 science based morning practices guaranteed to give you more energy and less weight in 21 Minutes. *7 day guided B.R.E.A.T.H.E breathwork included.   More Top Episodes 226 Paul Chek: The Revolution Is Coming (3 Part Series) 131 Drew Manning: Emotional Fitness 129 Gretchen Rubin: The Four Tendencies  183 Dr. Kyra Bobinet: Brain Science 196 Aubrey Marcus: Own The Day 103 Robb Wolf: Wired To Eat Best of The Best: The Top 10 Guests From over 200 Shows Get More Wellness In Your Life Join the #WellnessWarrior Community on Facebook Tweet us on Twitter: Send us a tweet Comment on the Facebook page

Joe Cohen won the lottery on bad genes. From childhood he suffered from all kinds of inflammation, fatigue, digestive problems, anxiety, depression, and many other issues his doctors couldn’t seem to sort out. Frustrated by the lack of good information and tools, he threw himself into experimentation and self-learning to improve his health like many of us have. He’s now a self-made “biohacker” and he created the ultimate biohacking resource, a website called SelfHacked. All this led to his next venture, a biotech software platform for DNA-based health research called SelfDecode. We go deep today into how you can use your personalized genetics to understand how to meet your health goals. There’s so much to cover here I bet we’ll need to have Joe back for round two, but for now let’s get started! Episode Highlights With SelfDecode A helpful analogy for how our immune system works The role of genetics in our personal health Why all MTHFR mutations aren’t equal (it depends on your genes) How knowing your genetic information can help you figure out the right path to overcome depression Ways to counteract your “bad” genes Why COVID affects some people more than others Diet considerations for someone with the PEMT (fatty liver) gene And more! Resources We Mention SelfDecode Longevity DNA Report (get 10% off with code WELLNESSMAMA) SelfHacked More From Wellness Mama 514: Teri Cochrane on How Genes, Viruses, Emotions, and Stress Impact Health 356: How to Improve Your Health Based on Genetics With Joe Cohen From SelfDecode 256: Chris Masterjohn on Decoding What Your Body Really Needs 329: How to Slow Aging, Fight Inflammation, & Improve Cellular Signaling With Brian Dixon 337: Science-Backed Strategies for Happiness Even During Stressful Times (With Yale Professor Dr. Laurie Santos of The Happiness Lab) Have you ever had genetic testing done? What did it do for your health? Please drop a comment below or leave a review on iTunes to let us know. We value knowing what you think and this helps other moms find the podcast as well. Read Transcript Child: Welcome to my Mommy's podcast. This podcast is brought to you by Wellnesse, my new personal care company that is based on the recipes I've been making at home in my kitchen for decades. Many “clean” products simply don't work and this is why I have spent the last decade researching and perfecting recipes for products that not only eliminate toxic chemicals but contain ingredients that work better than their conventional alternatives and that nourish your body from the outside in. I'm so excited to finally share these products with you and w

Many of us believe our genes doom us to the disorders that run in our families but today’s guest, Dr. Ben Lynch argues that with the right plan in place, you can eliminate symptoms, optimize your physical and mental health—and ultimately rewrite your genetic destiny. Dr. Lynch is the author of Dirty Genes, and in it, he discusses eight genes whose correct functioning our health depends on and how to optimize their functioning. Dr. Lynch starts by talking about how he got interested in the field of epigenetics before giving listeners an idea of what this field of research entails. He talks about the concept of translational epigenetics next, according to which our decisions and experiences affect our children and even grandchildren. We spend a great deal of time on the topic of dopamine too, and Dr. Lynch sketches out how people either have less or more of it overall thanks to the functioning of their COMT gene. People with higher or lower dopamine respond completely differently to stressors, and dopamine can become addictive, but the good news is that it can be managed to help accommodate an abundance or scarcity. From there, we talk about the body’s microbiome and its effects on health as well as ways to test it and regulate it, before Dr. Lynch shares about the importance of methylation for the body’s healthy functioning. Dr. Lynch then runs listeners through the eight genes he discusses in his book, talking about the effects they have on our bodies of not functioning correctly and also touches on some of what we can do to optimize them, including healthy eating, good sleep, stress relief, and environmental detox. In addition, today’s conversation covers parenting practices in relation to TV game and fast food addictions, the idea that genes work communally with each other, Dr. Lynch’s awesome line of supplements, and a whole lot more! This episode of the podcast is brought to you by Billings, Eating well, and conveniently, is more important now than ever, so we're excited to have a new sponsor: High quality seafood delivered straight to your door From Billing's Seafood Guys. Choose from one of the pre made boxes (5lbs each) or make your own, with options like salmon, cod, halibut, and a range of other seafood options, all sourced directly from Alaska. Use the promo code ben when you visit wildalaskanseafoodbox.com/ben and you'll receive $20 off your first order, plus a free half pound bag of scallops in every box with your membership.   Timestamps Introducing today’s conversation with Dr. Ben Lynch. [0:17] What epigenetics is and how Dr. Lynch got into it. [4:20] Research questioning how much genetics really is responsible for different health conditions. [7:28] Protecting children from events that cause negative epigenetic shifts. [10:12] Understanding translational epigenetics: passing genetic programming onto offspring. [11:30] Preparing for a predisposed weakness using epigenetic knowledge. [16:11] The problem of dopamine addiction from things like computer games. [19:45] How a genetic susceptibility can result in dopamine addiction. [21:27] Connections between dopamine crashes and other addictions. [21:50] The connection between COMT, dopamine, and addictive/successful personalities. [22:56] Supplementing to accommodate for the inheritance of a typical COMT gene. [26:17] The danger of only supplementing one gene who relies on others to do its work. [26:54] Effects of having naturally high dopamine levels and how to accommodate that. [28:06] The connection between high dopamine and Parkinson’s. [30:30] Coping mechanisms to help accommodate naturally high or low dopamine. [31:10] Different stimulation resistance and career suitability according to dopamine levels. [34:28] The necessity of being aware of processed food’s effects on dopamine. [36:44] Dr. Lynch’s perspectives on ‘good-tasting alternatives;’ are they any better? [41:57] Treatments for acne and odor and food’s effect on the microbiome. [45:30] How to test your microbiome. [49:34] Initial steps for self-diagnosis and treatment for dysbiosis. [51:10] What methylation is and its use as a component of health. [53:31] Checking methylation status by measuring homocysteine levels. [56:18] The first four dirty genes Dr. Lynch speaks about in his book: MTHFR and more. [57:20] Different effects of a riboflavin deficiency and how to treat it. [1:01:01] Dr. Lynch’s histamine issues and how he overcame them using probiotics. [1:05:35] The last four dirty genes in Dr. Lynch’s book: PEMT, phosphatidylcholine, etc. [1:07:00] Final thoughts on the methylation status of the cell and Dr. Lynch’s contact details. [1:08:46]

Question: Can PEMT genetics cause fat malabsorption, mineral deficiencies, and oxalate problems? First of all, saponification of minerals, the point here is that if you have malabsorption of fat, the fatty acids are going to bind to any positively charged minerals in your diet. This has been particularly well studied in preterm infants where the poor absorption of fatty acids causes the fatty acids to bind to the calcium that have lower bioavailability. Yeah. If you surpass your ability to absorb the fat, the fatty acids can bind minerals and induce mineral deficiencies. I agree with this. PEMT polymorphism is a marker of poor synthesis of phosphatidylcholine. That will impair export of fat from the liver. Low phosphatidylcholine synthesis due to PEMT. I was thinking of it as a direct marker. It's not a direct marker, but it could theoretically impact. This is probably especially true if you have a low phosphatidylcholine intake. Probably eating phosphatidylcholine protects against this. But yeah, low phosphatidylcholine levels in the liver partly as an interaction between low activity in the PEMT enzyme and low intake of phosphatidylcholine from food could cause bile acid issues, which could in turn cause fat malabsorption. If you have fat malabsorption and you have enough digestion of the fat to release the free fatty acids from triglycerides, but you don't have enough absorption of those fatty acids, the fatty acids will bind calcium. They won't bind oxalate, they can't. Binding the calcium will lower the calcium absorption, and it will also prevent the calcium from binding oxalate. Calcium binding oxalate is what prevents oxalate absorption, so yes, I would think that would increase oxalate absorption. This Q&A can also be found as part of a much longer episode, here: https://chrismasterjohnphd.com/podcast/2019/09/06/ask-anything-nutrition-march-8-2019 If you would like to be part of the next live Ask Me Anything About Nutrition, sign up for the CMJ Masterpass, which includes access to these live Zoom sessions, premium features on all my content, and hundreds of dollars of exclusive discounts. You can sign up with a 10% lifetime discount here: https://chrismasterjohnphd.com/q&a

Gorilla Mode Nitric Pre-Workout is the most potent and comprehensive stimulant free pre-workout on the market in ALL aspects. All angles of saturating the muscle with blood and hydration have been addressed in this formula and are quite literally maxed out. https://youtu.be/iFlmwQXBs6U Gorilla Mode Nitric Supplement Facts Per Full Daily Dose: L-Citrulline – 10,000 mg Creatine Monohydrate – 5000 mg Betaine Anhydrous – 4000 mg GlycerPump™ (65% Glycerol Powder) – 4000 mg Malic Acid – 3000 mg Agmatine Sulfate – 1500 mg Nitrosigine® (inositol-stabilized arginine silicate) – 1500 mg Sodium Nitrate – 1500 mg VasoDrive-AP® (isoleucyl-prolyl-proline (IPP) and valyl-prolyl-proline (VPP) isolated from hydrolyzed milk casein) – 254 mg Gorilla Mode Nitric Vs. Other Pre-Workouts On The Market This is the most maxed out stimulant free pre-workout formula on the market in all aspects. It is also the most comprehensive formula that targets nitric oxide (NO), vasodilation and intracellular hyper-hydration from multiple angles, while maintaining top end dosages across all of those pathways. We completely saturate the traditional Arginine–eNOS–nitric oxide (NO) pathway with a massive 10 gram dose of L-Citrulline, 1.5 grams of Nitrosigine and 1.5 grams of Agmatine Sulfate. The often neglected nitrate–nitrite–nitric oxide (NO) pathway is also topped out with a 1500 mg dose of Sodium Nitrate. A high level of intracellular hyper-hydration is achieved with 5 grams of Creatine Monohydrate, 4 grams of Glycerpump and 4 grams of Betaine Anhydrous. We also addressed the enzyme angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) with VasoDrive-AP®, which acts as an ACE inhibitor and significantly increases vasodilation.  Finally, we have 3 grams of Malic Acid added in on top of the 10 grams of pure L-Citrulline to act as a Krebs cycle intermediary and counter lactic acid buildup during training. Some of these pathways are so maxed out that we could have easily just chosen one of them and sold the product for $39.99 and still had one of the most potent pre-workouts in the industry. Instead, I packed it all into one absurd product that clocks in with over 30 grams of efficacious active ingredients per full dose. It was incredibly expensive to create, but I am very happy with how it turned out, and I am not exaggerating when I say that this pre-workout is absolutely unmatched. Basically, I just included exactly what I would want to see in a stimulant free pre-workout, even at the obvious detriment of our margins. This product is even more potent than Gorilla Mode when it comes to pure pump and performance. The full daily dose is 2 scoops. Even a half dose (1 scoop) is still far more potent than the majority of other pre-workouts out there at their max dosages. This is another product I wanted to be head and shoulders, clear as day, superior to everything else in the industry. Just like in my description of how Gorilla Mode stacks up to other products in this industry, we can actually back up why our product is better than the rest. When (insert fitness influencer name here) launches their own supplement line, they will regurgitate the same story about how their products are effectively dosed, only use the highest quality ingredients, blah blah blah. They don't even know what they're selling half the time, let alone what combinations of ingredients work synergistically, or how to dose a product properly. They employ others to manufacture their products, or use a pre-made formula their manufacturer uses for every company where they just slap a different label on it and sell it for a huge margin. At the end of the day, most fitness influencers have no idea what goes into making an effective product. They don't know how their products work, they probably wouldn’t even use them if they didn’t sell them, they didn't formulate them, and they have to pay the overhead involved with having a team under them who is responsible for all of that. As you’ve already experienced with Gorilla Mode and Gorilla Mind Nootropics, it is me formulating the products, and they work because I actually put in them what I would want in a product and buy myself if I didn’t have a company. The same applies with Gorilla Mode Nitric. If I didn’t have this product, for an effective stim-free pre-workout I would probably be mixing up 6000-10,000 mg of L-Citrulline for vasodilation (with 6000 mg being the bare minimum of pure L-Citrulline, not Citrulline Malate, and would be dependent on my budget at the time), a saturation dose of Creatine Monohydrate (5000 mg), 3000-4000 mg of Glycerpump to hyper-hydrate the muscle with water, and maybe a quarter teaspoon of Himalayan Pink Salt. The fact that a significant amount of supplement companies will skimp out on Creatine Monohydrate and either not include it at all, or only include a subpar dosage, really sheds light on how scammy this industry can be. That is the cheapest ingredient they could easily dose properly, and even that they won't shell out the money for in their formulas. It’s not hard to put 5 grams of Creatine in a pre-workout, and it is actually pretty cheap to put in there. The reason is, they want you to go buy their creatine product, and will intentionally manipulate their ingredient profile to be deficient in several areas to make you buy more stuff from them. With my products, everything is turnkey. You don’t need to go buy a separate Creatine product from us, you don’t need to stack extra stims on top of our stim-based products, you don’t need to go buy something else to get the max dose of a certain ingredient in any of our formulas, everything you need is in each product at an efficacious dosage. Flavor And Mixability The flavor we chose to start with for Nitric was Mango Peach as it is a more mainstream appealing flavor than Tiger's Blood. Tiger's Blood and a fruit punch flavor will probably be next in the pipeline of flavor releases. Mango Peach is easily a 9 or 10/10 flavor, even for the pickiest of tongues. As there’s such a high concentration of ingredients in this formula we were really happy with how the flavor systems turned out. We were expecting something this potent to be nearly impossible to avoid tasting like ass. Fortunately, that wasn’t the case. It also mixes very well considering the concentration of L-Citrulline, GlycerPump, and all of the other ingredients in this product. There is some grittiness, but that just comes with the territory with putting out a 35 gram serving size product with 10 grams of L-Citrulline and 4 grams of Glycerpump. You will just have to use a bit more water than you would with your standard pre-workout because there are simply more active ingredients in this product that will require more liquid to mix well. How To Dose Gorilla Mode Nitric Mix 1-2 scoops of Gorilla Mode Nitric in 12-14 ounces of water and consume 30 minutes prior to training. Vary the amount of water to achieve your desired flavor level. First time users should begin use with 1/2-1 scoop or less to evaluate tolerance. DO NOT EXCEED 2 SCOOPS IN ANY 24 HOUR PERIOD. Gorilla Mode Nitric Ingredients Breakdown L-Citrulline – 10,000 mg L-Citrulline is the most effective supplement you can use to boost nitric oxide (NO) in the body. Why Nitric Oxide (NO) Is Important Nitric oxide (NO) is made naturally in our bodies and plays a significant role in cardiovascular health. It dilates blood vessels (vasodilation), which lowers blood pressure and increases oxygen in the blood. https://youtu.be/EoYhQIHmKoE Nitric oxide (NO) acts as a messenger to signal blood vessels to dilate, or contract and relax. Sufficient nitric oxide is needed to signal blood vessels to contract or relax to ensure blood is able to flow to and from the heart effectively. Nitric oxide production decreases with age, consequently reducing the elasticity of the cardiovascular system, and impairing the body's ability to ensure sufficient amounts of oxygenated blood are reaching vital organs. Eating enough nitrates and/or supplementing with nitric oxide precursors is very important to ensure that your cardiovascular system maintains optimized function as you get older. In addition, maintaining optimal nitric oxide levels will make you more vascular, allow you to get a much better pump, increase muscle volume, enhance the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to working muscles, support recovery and improve overall physical performance. Increased Muscular Endurance Citrulline has also shown to significantly increase muscular endurance, with one study finding that compared to placebo, a single 8000 mg dose of Citrulline Malate increased the number of reps performed per set, on every set after set 2 [R]. The impact Citrulline had on performance increased the more sets were performed. During the last set performed, the group that took Citrulline had a 52.92% increase in the number of reps they could perform relative to placebo. It also decreased muscle soreness by 40% at 24 and 48 hours after the training session compared to placebo. Effect On Body Composition There isn’t much data on the direct effect Citrulline has on muscle growth and fat loss in humans. However, a rodent model assessed the effect Citrulline had on body composition and found that 20 month old rats that were given a diet that included the human equivalent dose of 160 mg/kg per day for 12 weeks had 13% less body fat and 9% more lean body mass relative to the rats fed a standard diet without Citrulline supplementation [R]. Visceral fat mass was also reduced by 32%. The mortality rate of the rats taking Citrulline was 0%, while the standard diet fed rats had a mortality rate of 20%. L-Citrulline is one of the most promising supplements on the market and has significantly more upside above and beyond its increase in vascularity and pumps in the gym. The Maximum Effective Dose Of L-Citrulline Citrulline is found in watermelons. You would need to eat 1.5 kg of watermelon every day to get 3 grams of L-Citrulline though, which is the minimum effective dose [R]. To get the maximum effective dose of L-Citrulline from your diet, you would need to eat 5.0 kg of watermelon per day to get 10 grams (10,000 mg) of L-Citrulline [R]. Obviously, nobody is going to eat that much watermelon, nor is it a good idea to begin with in my opinion when there are far better ways to allocate your macronutrient/micronutrient intake allotments. This is why L-Citrulline supplementation could actually be worthwhile. The Problem With Citrulline Malate In The Supplement Industry While L-Citrulline is a great supplement to have in your daily regimen, there is a red flag around L-Citrulline supplementation that you need to know about. I'm sure you've seen that some supplements have L-Citrulline in them, and some have Citrulline Malate. Some even say "L-Citrulline Malate". This is a cheap trick companies use to deceive customers. Citrulline Malate is composed of 50% Malic Acid, unless the ratio states otherwise. Authentic Citrulline Malate is produced by chemically bonding free-form L-Citrulline to DL-Malic Acid. When L-Citrulline is chemically bonded to DL-Malic Acid, the end result is Citrulline Malate, which has unique properties. But the problem with the Citrulline Malate in the supplement industry is that it doesn't have this chemical reaction. It's just Citrulline mixed with malic acid in a big mixing vat in the manufacturing facility. There is no chemical bond like there should be to create authentic Citrulline Malate. It's just the two ingredients being mixed together in a cheap blend, and it's sold as "Citrulline Malate", or "L-Citrulline Malate". The reality is that it's just Citrulline stirred up with malic acid. While this isn't a huge deal in itself, the problem lies in the labeling practices companies use to artificially inflate the perceived potency of their product. 6-8 grams is seen as the max clinically proven efficacious dosage in the supplement industry in general. At least, that's what companies will tell you in their marketing. First of all, we already know that the actual maximum efficacious dosage of L-Citrulline is 10 grams per day [R]. In addition, the main issue is that the "L-Citrulline" in their product is actually as low as half of the stated label claim. As mentioned, Citrulline Malate is just a mixture of Citrulline and malic acid. Somehow, companies are getting away with labeling their products with the chemically bonded form Citrulline Malate and claiming they have 6-8 grams per serving in their pre-workout, when they actually just have 3-4 grams of Citrulline and 3-4 grams of malic acid per serving. Instead of labeling the following: L-Citrulline - 3 grams Malic Acid - 3 grams These companies are labeling their products like this: Citrulline Malate - 6 grams Or like this: L-Citrulline Malate - 6 grams Making you think you are getting a high dose, when in reality you are getting the bare minimum efficacious dose per serving of 3 grams. Sometimes, companies will tweak the ratio to be a bit more in favor of a higher Citrulline content relative to malic acid, but this is rarely higher than a 2:1 ratio. So, if you see the following: Citrulline Malate (2:1) - 6 grams That just means that the company has 4 grams of L-Citrulline and 2 grams of malic acid per serving. This is the exact manufacturing process involved in producing the L-Citrulline and "Citrulline Malate" you get in pre-workouts in the supplement industry: As you can see, the Citrulline Malate manufacturing flowchart on the right literally just says, "mix". If this was authentic Citrulline Malate, you wouldn't need to mix L-Citrulline with malic acid, it would be chemically bonded together by the end of the manufacturing process. You're not really getting what you're paying for, and most don't realize this is a tactic in the industry to get better margins and artificially inflate a products perceived efficacy. Even if a pre-workout had what on paper appears to be a top end efficacious dose of 8 grams per serving, how much L-Citrulline are you actually getting out of that serving? 4-6 grams at most. I have yet to see a pre-workout formula actually hit a top end L-Citrulline dosage, and of the ones that get close, they use Citrulline Malate to inflate their label. In addition, even if you had the bonded version (which supplements don't), reacted Citrulline Malate will break apart into L-Citrulline and malic acid right away after its mixed in water. It's all just a trick to artificially inflate a products perceived potency on a label, as each ingredient should be listed separately. Most supplements have malic acid anyways in the "other ingredients" section, which is still an active ingredient that does have some potential performance benefits that you would get from the “Malate” portion of Citrulline Malate. L-Citrulline and malic acid work via a different mechanism of action. Citrulline bypasses the liver and gets converted to arginine, which increases NO levels in the body. Malic acid is a Krebs cycle intermediary that counters lactic acid buildup. How much do you need of each though? With Citrulline, we know where the top end data lies. Malic acid, we don't. There is research on Citrulline and Citrulline Malate, but not much data on supplementing with malic acid to replenish depleted levels as a Krebs cycle intermediary. I don't think we can make a generalized overview on how effective the malic acid component was in the Citrulline Malate research either because we can't determine if the results were derived from the malic acid, the L-Citrulline, or both. Considering this, I included an additional 3000 mg of malic acid separately in the Gorilla Mode Nitric formula as an active ingredient in the main ingredients panel. As mentioned, malic acid is most commonly used as a filler in supplements, and will be found in small amounts in many product "other ingredients" sections. The only other time it is used is by companies artificially inflating their perceived L-Citrulline dosage via Citrulline Malate. No companies are including a maxed out dose of pure L-Citrulline as well as malic acid separetely though. It is always a subpar amount of each. So, if there is some sort of performance enhancing benefit to having a high dose of malic acid, you are also getting it via Nitric on top of the maximum efficacious 10,000 mg dose of pure L-Citrulline. At the end of the day, for vasodilation you should concern yourself with is how much pure L-Citrulline is in your pre-workout supplement. I have yet to see a product with more than 6000 mg of PURE L-Citrulline. I have only seen a handful of products with 6 grams of L-Citrulline, and another handful of products with 8 grams of Citrulline Malate (which only yields 4-5 grams of actual L-Citrulline, with the remainder as malic acid). I put 10 grams of PURE L-Citrulline in Gorilla Mode Nitric, as well as 3 grams of malic acid separately, so you can get the full benefits of the max dosage of each ingredient and transparently see exactly what you are actually getting in the product. Even if you decide to only use a half dose of this product you will still get 5000 mg of pure L-Citrulline, and the formula is still top notch even when cut in half. Citrulline Vs Arginine One of the most well-known pump ingredients is Arginine. The problem with L-Arginine is that it is very ineffective at increasing Nitric Oxide synthesis. Logically, you would assume that taking Arginine would be the most effective way to increase Arginine levels in the body. However, this is not the case. Oral L-Arginine is taken up and metabolized by the liver so much that it does not actually effectively increase Arginine levels, and it may even be unsafe to use because of how much excessive urea it yields [R]. L-Citrulline bypasses the liver and passes freely to the kidneys where it is metabolized to Arginine [R]. The most effective supplement that can be used to increase Arginine levels in the body to improve cardiovascular and metabolic health outcomes is L-Citrulline [R]. L-Citrulline supplementation has shown to lower blood pressure and provide atherogenic-endothelial protection [R]. When it comes to NO precursors that significantly improve pumps, nothing beats an efficacious dose of pure L-Citrulline. Creatine Monohydrate – 5000 mg Creatine is the best studied and most effective performance enhancing supplement outside of exogenous hormones and drugs. Creatine’s Effect On Muscle Size And Strength Supplementing with creatine has shown time and time again to significantly improve strength, power output and muscle size [R]. Creatine’s effect on strength is facilitated by increasing the body’s stores of phosphocreatine, which is then used during high intensity exercise to produce ATP [R, R]. Creatine’s effect on muscle size is facilitated by drawing water into the muscle via osmosis, consequently increasing body weight and muscle size. In addition, with the increased strength creatine provides, heavier weights can be used in the gym which provide more stimulus for growth, consequently increasing muscle accrual in the long-term. Creatine supplementation also appears to increase the number of myonuclei that satellite cells will donate to damaged muscle fibers, which increases the potential for growth of those fibers [R]. A typical omnivorous diet provides about 1 gram of creatine per day, which isn’t enough to get the benefits you would from supplementation, and also isn’t nearly enough to support health status and methylation in those with genetic polymorphisms. Creatine’s Effect On Methylation And Health Status About 1 gram of creatine is endogenously produced in the body naturally in young healthy adults [R]. Most of the human body's total creatine and phosphocreatine stores are found in skeletal muscle, while the remainder is distributed in the blood, brain, and other tissues [R]. While there are a host of processes in the body that rely on creatine to be carried out optimally (and are often completely neglected), one of the most notable functions of creatine is neurological support [R]. In addition, the endogenous synthesis of creatine relies on a process called methylation. Arginine and Glycine are combined by an enzyme to form guanidinoacetate, which is then methylated into creatine. The problem is that this process is dependent on a mechanism of action that is commonly inhibited in the general population via endogenous Arginine deficiency, Glycine deficiency, or MTHFR polymorphisms. The MTHFR gene codes for an enzyme called methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase or MTHFR. This enzyme is needed for the production of DNA and methylation pathways that are essential for all bodily functions. Genetic variations in this gene results in reduced activity of the enzyme and has been associated with cardiovascular disease, neurological defects, some forms of cancer, and a myriad of other diseases and disorders [R, R]. Personally, I am homozygous for C677T of MTHFR, which results in a 80-90% decrease in my efficiency in processing folic acid. The direct reflection of that in blood biomarkers can be high homocysteine and low B12 and folate levels. I determined this via a simple 23andMe genetics test. Upwards of 45% of your body’s methylation demands are used to synthesize creatine. For someone with a MTHFR polymorphism, you can put a significant amount of stress on your methylation pathway and deplete far more methyl groups than you should be just to create the 1 gram per day that you endogenously synthesize. We lose up to 2-3 grams of creatine per day because it converts to creatinine and is then passed out of the body via urine. As you can see, adequate replenishment of creatine is probably not being accomplished if you aren’t consistently eating a fair bit of meat or fish. And for those with impaired methylation pathways, supplementing with exogenous creatine is likely the only way creatine replenishment can be achieved. One study found that supplementing with 5 grams of creatine per day lowered plasma homocysteine levels by almost 50% in the subject who is homozygous for C677T of MTHFR [R]. Creatine supplementation can significantly lower the body’s demands for methylation and prevent the depletion of methyl groups. This is why I personally supplement with 5 grams of creatine per day. Do You Need To Cycle Off Of Creatine? No, you do not need to cycle off of creatine. Your body does not get used to it, and long-term use has shown to be safe in healthy adults [R]. Betaine Anhydrous – 4000 mg Betaine, also called Trimethylglycine, acts as a methyl donor and an osmolyte in the body. Earlier in the creatine breakdown, I briefly outlined the importance of having a sufficient amount of methyl donors available for methylation processes in the body, including the endogenous synthesis of creatine. For some individuals (depending on PEMT gene variations) Betaine can substitute for folate and B12 in the regeneration of methionine and can be choline sparing via this mechanism. It can also provide additional needed methyl donors when over-depletion occurs in genetically predisposed individuals that do not supplement with creatine, or have other deficiencies. As an osmolyte, Betaine helps balance fluid levels inside and outside of cells. The main reason I included Betaine in this formula is for its ability to induce intracellular hyper-hydration. By improving hydration status in cells, Betaine increases the pump you get in the gym, and can help prevent dehydration during exercise. Research has also shown that Betaine supplementation may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, as well as improve digestion and liver function [R, R, R, R]. In a performance enhancing context, Betaine supplementation has also shown to increase power, endurance, muscle growth and fat loss [R, R, R]. How significant will this effect on body composition be in practical application? Negligible in my honest opinion, but the enhanced pump made this ingredient worthwhile to add into the formula. GlycerPump™ (65% Glycerol Powder) – 4000 mg Glycerol significantly enhances pumps and performance by hyper-hydrating the muscle with water. Glycerol’s Effect On Hydration, Pumps And Endurance If you drink a lot of water with nothing else in hopes of hyper-hydrating your muscles, the fall in osmolarity in your body stimulates the kidneys to remove most of the excess water within an hour. If you add glycerol to the water, this prevents the drop in osmolarity and can extend the hyper-hydration of your muscles by up to four hours. By adding Glycerol to your pre-workout, you can hold upwards of an extra liter of water via this hyper-hydrating effect. Hydration is one of the most critical factors when it comes to performance. Aside from massive pumps, Glycerol use has shown to increase endurance by as much as 24%, as well as improve aerobic and anaerobic power and performance [R, R]. Only a 2% loss in fluids can result in as much as a 20% decrease in exercise performance. GlycerPump™ Vs Other Forms Of Glycerol We chose the trademarked GlycerPump because it doesn’t clump up nearly as much as other forms of Glycerol powder and it’s more stable. Glycerol is normally a liquid at standard temperature and pressure, and many supplement companies have attempted to create a powder form of Glycerol that is stable. Glycerol products get clumpy, have horrible viscosity and have a short shelf life. Because of this, most companies avoid this ingredient entirely, as it can cause severe clumping within just a couple months of being manufactured. Regular glycerol containing products only yield as low as 10% glycerol, which makes them ineffective, and higher yielding glycerol products can be unstable within complex formulas like ours and result in a clumpy product, or complete product failure. GlycerPump™ is created using unique spray drying technology, yielding a stable powder form of glycerol standardized to 65%. It is MUCH better than other alternatives and won't result in the powder turning into a rock. Keep in mind, while it is manageable, this is not a clump-free product, and there’s nothing I could do about that if I wanted to include the high concentration of ingredients that I did in Gorilla Mode Nitric. Store Gorilla Mode Nitric in a cool dry place, and if it clumps, that’s just what comes with the territory with a product dosed like this. If it clumps, just get out a knife or spoon and chop it up, and it will still mix fine once it hits the water in your cup. Agmatine Sulfate – 1500 mg Agmatine has shown to induce NO production via the same processes as arginine, but does it far more effectively [R]. This results in even bigger pumps in the gym and improved overall performance. Agmatine has also shown to be neuroprotective against excitotoxicity and stroke, and also has anti-anxiety and anti-depressant effects that may enhance state of well-being and mood elevation with supplementation. Agmatine has also shown to manipulate pain receptors, which may result in an increased pain tolerance during intense training. Agmatine is a very misunderstood compound and is believed by some to antagonize other vasodilators. Agmatine works in a more selective way than other vasodilators, as it only increases one of the three Nitric oxide synthase (NOS) isoforms. It also decreases the other two NOS isoforms, which is where the hypothesis about it being vasoconstricting was raised as a legitimate concern. The three NOS isoforms include iNOS, nNOS and eNOS. They each play their own role in certain tissues to regulate vasodilation. iNOS (inducible) produces high concentrations of NO via an immune system response to kill harmful bacteria. In excess, iNOS can be inflammatory. nNOS (neuronal) regulates neurological health and facilitates communication in the brain across neurons. In excess, nNOS can inhibit the growth and repair of neurons. eNOS (endothelial) facilitates vasodilation in the lining of blood vessels to improve blood flow. eNOS is the main isoform that most are familiar with that increases blood flow and lowers blood pressure. It is also the main isoform that facilitates massive pumps in the gym. While NO is great for the gym and vascular health, it can be inflammatory in excess. NO production by eNOS has shown to play a protective role in cerebral ischemia by maintaining vascular permeability, whereas NO derived from nNOS and iNOS is neurotoxic and can enhance the neuronal damage occurring in ischemia [R]. This is where the selective activity of Agmatine shines, as data suggests that Agmatine's mechanism of action is facilitated by inhibiting iNOS and nNOS and increasing eNOS [R, R]. Agmatine has shown to selectively increase eNOS levels while simultaneously decreasing iNOS and MMP-9 protein expression [R, R]. Anecdotally, Agmatine does not seem to inhibit any of the positive effects of L-Citrulline or other vasodilators. On the contrary, it seems to complement other "pump" compounds very effectively. On paper, Agmatine sounds like the perfect ancillary compound to add to a pre-workout as it increases expression of the NOS isoform we want, while simultaneously inhibiting the isoforms that can be more inflammatory in excess. Nitrosigine® (inositol-stabilized arginine silicate) – 1500 mg Nitrosigine got some hype behind it when independent researchers from the University of Arkansas presented data suggesting that 1500 mg of Nitrosigine was almost as effective as 8000 mg of Citrulline Malate 2:1 (5333.33 mg L-Citrulline and 2666.66 mg Malic Acid) at increasing flow mediated dilation (FMD) [R]. FMD refers to dilation of an artery when blood flow increases in that artery. Because the primary cause of FMD is release of nitric oxide by endothelial cells, we can use FMD as a proxy for NO levels. To circumvent the lackluster efficacy of plain oral Arginine, Nutrition 21 (the developers of Nitrosigine) created a complex of bonded arginine and silicon. The inositol acts as a stabilizer and increases the bioavailability of the complex, consequently resulting in a potent NO boosting compound. Remember that the main issue with Arginine is poor bioavailability. The inositol stabilizer helps circumvent that issue [R]. Unlike plain Arginine, Inositol-stabilized Arginine silicate (Nitrosigine) has shown to kick in within 15 minutes and elevate blood Arginine levels for up to six hours after ingestion [R, R]. Nitrosigine has some impressive data reinforcing its efficacy, and it is purported to be much more effective milligram for milligram than other common vasodilators at increasing NO levels. On top of the increase in vasodilation and pumps, the developers claim that after a single dose Nitrosigine can increase mental acuity and focus by 33% within 15 minutes, with a compounding effect over time. In addition, they claim that Nitrosigine supports enhanced recovery by reducing markers of muscle damage [R]. Nitrosigine Vs. L-Citrulline Vs. Agmatine Sulfate In Vitro An in vitro study was designed by Nutrition 21 to compare the cellular production of NO of several sports nutrition ingredients. These ingredients included Nitrosigine, L-Arginine, L-Arginine AKG, L-Citrulline, Citrulline Malate and Agmatine Sulfate. Nitrosigine was dosed at a concentration of 1.0 g/L. Cell culture concentrations of the other compounds were dosed relative to a 1500 mg dose of Nitrosigine using the following doses: L-Arginine - 1500 mg L-Arginine AKG - 4000 mg L-Citrulline - 3000 mg L-Citrulline Malate - 3000 mg Agmatine Sulfate - 1000 mg As NO is unstable and rapidly converts to nitrites or nitrates, nitrite levels were measured as a proxy for NO production. At the doses used in this study, Nitrosigine significantly increased NO production over each of the five other compounds tested. There was a greater than 5X increase in NO production with Nitrosigine compared to the other tested vasodilators. In addition, of the compounds tested, only Nitrosigine significantly increased NO production versus control. While this looks very impressive for Nitrosigine, you have to consider that this is an in vitro study conducted by Nutrition 21 themselves. The results basically indicate that every single clinically proven vasodilator that we know works is useless as it couldn't increase NO production above control, meanwhile Nitrosigine somehow cranked it through the roof over 5x higher than the rest. While the results are certainly interesting, I would take this data with a grain of salt. Nitrosigine Vs. Citrulline Malate - Vasodilation Study On Young Adults Unlike the in vitro study comparing Nitrosigine to Citrulline Malate, another study in 2019 was apparently conducted independently from the company without their knowledge whatsoever [R]. This study was conducted on young, healthy, physically active adults, and provides more acceptable parameters for us to take seriously when it comes to evaluating Nitrosigine's efficacy in humans relative to a decent dose of the most widely used vasodilator in the industry, Citrulline Malate (assuming that the study was actually unbiased as is implied) [R]. 16 healthy young men and 8 healthy young women participated in the study. Each subject either received 1500 mg of Nitrosigine, 8000 mg of Citrulline Malate 2:1, or dextrose placebo. Keep in mind, this is Citrulline Malate 2:1, so the subjects are only actually getting 5333.33 mg of L-Citrulline. The study was randomized, double-blind, within-subjects design where participants reported for three trials, each preceded by a 7-day washout period. Baseline flow mediated dilation (FMD) measurement was obtained for each visit, followed by consumption of one clinical dose Citrulline Malate (8 grams), Nitrosigine (1.5 grams), or dextrose placebo (8 g). Following a 60-min digestion period, FMD was repeated. Supplementation order was randomized controlling for potential order effects. Basically, the subjects would show up, get their FMD evaluated, take one of the three options, and then get their FMD checked again to see how well the random compound they ingested increased their NO production. They would then take a week off, and come back and repeat, where they would then receive one of the remaining two compounds, with the same measurement process. This would be followed by another week off, and then a third visit where the subjects would receive whatever the third ingredient was that they hadn't yet tried, and the same measurement process was conducted. Nobody knew what they were ingesting during each trip, but by the end of the experiment every single subject had tried each ingredient, and their vasodilation response was evaluated for comparisons. Expectedly, Citrulline Malate and Nitrosigine yielded a greater improvement in FMD response than placebo. Citrulline Malate increased FMD by 34%. Nitrosigine increased FMD by 31%. Placebo decreased FMD by 2%. Allometric scaling of the FMD values was required afterwards to adjust the results to account for the body size of males relative to females. After allometric scaling of the FMD values, Citrulline Malate was shown to increase FMD by 25%, Nitrosigine increased FMD by 23%, and placebo increased FMD by 0.6%. Clearly Citrulline Malate isn't as useless as the Nutrition 21 funded in vitro data would lead you to believe. The results from this study suggest that the clinically efficacious 1500 mg dose of Nitrosigine is almost equally effective to 5333.33 mg of L-Citrulline mixed with 2666.66 mg of Malic Acid. Clearly Nitrosigine has a lot of promise as a pre-workout ingredient, which is why I included it in our formula alongside the massive dosages of other potent vasodilators we already have. Every single effective vasodilator we felt was worthwhile is in here at topped out dosages. While it would be nice if there was data we could refer to evaluating if there is a synergy between Nitrosigine and Citrulline, or Nitrosigine and Agmatine, regardless if the end result is 1+1 = 2 or if it's 1+1 = 3, my goal was to make sure this formula was air tight and ensure you are getting the maximum possible performance enhancing benefit from each and every ingredient. Sodium Nitrate – 1500 mg Sodium is one of the most critical and overlooked components of a diet designed to optimize exercise performance. But, keep in mind, you’re not going to get enough sodium in a pre-workout without it tasting terrible. Other companies will put a tiny dose of sodium in their product and then claim you will get all of the benefits of it. Personally, I just toss and wash a quarter teaspoon of a high quality salt 30 minutes pre-workout with Gorilla Mode or Gorilla Mode Nitric, and I take another quarter teaspoon with my post-workout drink. The reason I included sodium nitrate in Gorilla Mode Nitric is not for the sodium, it is for the nitrates. The nitrate–nitrite–nitric oxide (NO) pathway is a series of oxygen-independent and NO synthase–independent single-electron transfer reactions that ultimately facilitate vasodilation. The traditional Arginine–eNOS–nitric oxide (NO) pathway is what most NO precursors focus on. The nitrate–nitrite–nitric oxide (NO) pathway often goes completely neglected though, and is another pathway we can leverage to amplify NO levels to an even greater level. Nitrates found in food can be converted into nitrites in the body, and then reduced to NO via nitrite reductase [R]. Several studies have shown that nitrate supplementation can increase plasma nitrite concentrations, and consequently Nitric Oxide, which then enhances pumps, endurance, and all of the other benefits we use NO precursors for [R]. Nitrate Dosage - Sodium Nitrate Vs. Beet Root Powder Pre-Workouts Beet root is a very popular ingredient that has started to get a lot of attention over the past few years. The reason why beet root works is because it is a densely concentrated source of nitrates. However, despite it being densely concentrated relative to other foods, beet root still only contains 1-2 percent of nitrates per gram of raw material. This would require you to ingest an absurdly high amount of beet root to get the same amount of nitrates that you can get from the 1500 mg of sodium nitrate in Gorilla Mode Nitric. To put it in perspective, your standard beet root powder pre-workout supplement has around 4.3 grams of Beet root juice powder in it. The amount of nitrates in that 4.3 grams is about 43 mg. That means that you would need to chug the entire tub at one time to get the same amount of nitrate as you would get out of a 1500 mg dose of sodium nitrate. There is no feasible way to get a high dose of nitrates from beet root powder without ingesting massive quantities far higher than what you would get in a dietary supplement. By weight, sodium nitrate is the most highly concentrated source of nitrates among any dietary ingredient. Nitrates comprise 73 percent of the total weight of sodium nitrate [R]. The optimal dosage of nitrate supplementation appears to be between 6.4-12.8 mg/kg [R]. That equates to the following dosage protocols: 440-870 mg for a 150 lb person 580-1,160 mg for a 200 lb person 730-1,450 mg for a 250 lb person For every gram of sodium nitrate, 730 mg is from nitrate. The 1.5 grams of sodium nitrate in Gorilla Mode Nitric yields 1095 mg of nitrate. There are other nitrate based supplements in the industry like Arginine Nitrate, Creatine Nitrate, Betaine Nitrate that operate via this same nitrate–nitrite–nitric oxide (NO) pathway, however, none of them have as high of a nitrate composition gram for gram as Sodium Nitrate does. VasoDrive-AP® (isoleucyl-prolyl-proline (IPP) and valyl-prolyl-proline (VPP) isolated from hydrolyzed milk casein) – 254 mg VasoDrive-AP consists of 2 lactotripeptides: isoleucyl-prolyl-proline (IPP) and valyl-prolyl-proline (VPP) which are clinically proven to inhibit Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) and significantly increases vasodilation.  Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) controls blood pressure by regulating the volume of fluids in the body. ACE facilitates this process by converting the hormone angiotensin I to the active vasoconstrictor angiotensin II. Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACE inhibitors) inhibit ACE, consequently reducing angiotensin II production. Reducing angiotensin II results in the dilation of blood vessels and a reduction of blood pressure. Bradykinin is also a vasodilator in the body that is degraded by ACE. Clinical data suggests that individuals who genetically have lower levels of ACE respond better to training and are at an advantage in endurance sporting events [R, R]. The more blood flow you have, presumably the more oxygen and nutrient carrying capacity you will have during exercise. VasoDrive-AP has shown in 30 clinical studies to date a potent effect on vasodilation and blood pressure reduction via this mechanism completely independent from the traditional Arginine–eNOS–nitric oxide (NO) pathway [R].  Ingredients I Didn’t Include In The Formula And Why Vitamin C Vitamin C is a very potent antioxidant and plays a crucial role in lowering blood pressure and regulating health blood flow. Supplementing a Vitamin C deficient diet can be very beneficial, except when you're dosing it pre-workout. Vitamin C is inexpensive and has tons of clinical data to back its efficacy, so it is often thrown in pre-workouts. The problem with this is that using Vitamin C pre-workout can blunt the hormetic response to the workout itself and hinder your results [R]. The point of working out is to damage the muscle, which then results in the body signaling repair processes to start that will help you recover and ultimately get bigger and stronger to adapt to the workload. If you manually decrease that hormetic response to exercise by ingesting Vitamin C pre-workout, you will reduce the damage done and ultimately prevent your body from stimulating as much growth. Personally, I don't take any vitamins, anti inflammatories, or powerful antioxidants for several hours before or after my workout to be safe. Antioxidants And Vitamins As mentioned, one of the worst things you can do is take antioxidants before your workout. The stress and damage induced by weightlifting or exercise is needed to facilitate muscular recovery and progress. The reactive oxygen species and inflammation produced during intense training assists with that process, and is also why drugs like Ibuprofen can inhibit muscle growth so severely. The inflammatory response to training is what we want in order to recover, and by inhibiting that with antioxidants, vitamins or anti-inflammatory drugs, you prevent your body from breaking down and recovering the way it needs to in order to grow [R, R]. A pre-workout formula with a bunch of vitamins and antioxidants in it is more likely to hinder your gains than help. Potassium I advise reaching your recommended daily intake of 4,700 mg through diet rather than through supplementation. It is not legal to sell Potassium in high amounts, and you will usually find that supplements have no more than 100 mg or so per serving because of this. For this same reason, supplementation isn't cost effective, and pre-workouts with potassium in them are including it solely to claim the benefits of potassium all the while knowing the dose in their product is next to useless. The amount of potassium in pre-workout supplements does next to nothing for you when it comes to helping you hit the RDA. S7™ S7™ is a blend of green coffee bean extract, green tea extract, turmeric extract, tart cherry, blueberry, broccoli and kale that has gotten some hype in pre-workouts recently. I was considering including it in our formula until I saw that the blend was comprised entirely of potent antioxidants and anti-inflammatories. Turmeric is one of the most potent anti-inflammatory spices known to man, which is why it also shows such therapeutic promise via supplementation. However, the last thing you want to use pre-workout is a potent anti-inflammatory compound. Inflammation is what we are striving for during a workout, and using anything that significantly impairs this inflammatory response to training is something that should not be used pre-workout, and should be saved for taking far away from the peri-workout window. Beta Alanine Beta Alanine is the ingredient that makes your skin itchy and has you sitting there scratching your face between sets. I assume it is included in pre-workouts because you can blatantly feel something when you take it, so people associate feeling something with the product being potent. Personally, I can’t stand the itchy skin effect it has, and it can be bad enough that it ruins a pre-workout just based on that. In addition, it doesn’t have more than a negligible effect on performance at best. Acute sporadic bumps in Beta Alanine will do next to nothing if you are only getting your Beta Alanine dosage from your pre workout supplement a few times per week. If you were to take it correctly, dosing it multiple times per day, for weeks on end, at a high enough dosage, the impact on performance is notable, although still fairly insignificant at the end of the day. “The median effect of β-alanine supplementation is a 2.85% (-0.37 to 10.49%) improvement in the outcome of an exercise measure, when a median total of 179 g of β-alanine is supplemented” [R]. 179 grams (an amount nobody would end up getting in) for a 2.85% improvement in performance, and a ton of itchiness… “Although some laboratory-based studies show an ergogenic effect with beta-alanine supplementation, there is a lack of field-based research in training and competition settings.” “There was an unclear effect (0.4%; ± 0.8%, mean, ± 90% confidence limits) of beta-alanine on competition performance compared to placebo with no meaningful changes in blood chemistry. While there was a transient improvement on training performance after 4 weeks with beta-alanine (-1.3%; ± 1.0%), there was an unclear effect at ten weeks (-0.2%; ± 1.5%) and no meaningful changes in blood chemistry. Beta-alanine supplementation appears to have minimal effect on swimming performance in non-laboratory controlled real-world training and competition settings” [R]. Leucine Taking Leucine post-workout promotes muscle growth. However, taking Leucine in your pre-workout has shown to diminish muscular performance via the inhibition of glycogen to glucose conversion within muscle cells and insulin signaling. On top of that, Leucine can prevent the uptake of Tyrosine into the brain, consequently inhibiting dopamine production, which is the opposite of what we are trying to accomplish pre-workout. Should You Ever Cycle Off Of Gorilla Mode Nitric? Despite Nitric being stimulant free, I would still advise cycling your use of Gorilla Mode Nitric every once in a while. In general, I advise cycling your use of any supplement that isn't being used daily to replace a dietary deficiency. Interfering with balancing mechanisms in the body chronically long-term is almost always going to build up to some unintended negative side effect, and redlining your Nitric Oxide levels and vasodilation on a daily basis for long uninterrupted spans of time will probably be no different. How often you cycle it is ultimately up to your discretion as there is no tolerance build up with the ingredients in Nitric, and some of them actually have accumulative benefits. Personally, I use pre-workouts 4 days per week because I workout 4 times per week. Every month or two I will also take a full week off of everything except for my daily health supplements. How To Combine Gorilla Mode Nitric With Gorilla Mind Rush Gorilla Mode Nitric has no stimulants in it, so if you want the most potent combination of performance, energy, focus and drive pre-workout you can combine Nitric with Gorilla Mind Rush. Dose each product as you would normally dose them on their own, as there is no overlap between the two formulas. How To Combine Gorilla Mode Nitric With Gorilla Mode Gorilla Mode can be combined with Gorilla Mode Nitric to achieve a more middle road level of stimulants but with the maxed out vasodilation and hyper-hydration. The instance in which mixing the two would make the most sense is if you don't want to use a high dose of Gorilla Mode because the stimulant dosages are higher than you prefer or can tolerate, but still want to max out the benefits of the ingredients included for pump and performance. For example, if 2 scoops of Gorilla Mode contains too high of a dose of stimulants for you, you could use 1 scoop of Gorilla Mode with 1 scoop of Gorilla Mode Nitric. Or, a 1/2 scoop of Gorilla Mode with 1.5 scoops of Gorilla Mode Nitric. Alternatively, if you are using Nitric and want a little bump of stimulants but are too sensitive to the stimulant complex in Gorilla Mind Rush, then you might want to add a bit of Gorilla Mode to your Nitric dose as the blend of stimulants in Mode is a notch less aggressive than the stimulants in Rush. Mix and match at your own discretion based on your own stimulant tolerance and exactly what you are looking to get out of your pre-workout. Personally, I love combining Rush and Nitric pre-workout. Sometimes I will use Mode with Nitric instead though as the Kanna and N-Phenethyl Dimethylamine Citrate hits differently than the stimulants in Rush. It all depends on what I'm training, how well rested I am, and the effects I am shooting for. Conclusion - What To Expect From Gorilla Mode Nitric In general, you can expect a massive increase in nitric oxide (NO) levels, vasodilation, intracellular hydration and as significant of a boost in muscle strength and endurance as you can get from a legal non-hormonal pre-workout. This product is maxed out from all angles. The traditional Arginine–eNOS–nitric oxide (NO) pathway is completely saturated with an unheard of dose of L-Citrulline, as well as topped out doses of Nitrosigine and Agmatine Sulfate for good measure. Over a gram of nitrates also ensures that the nitrate–nitrite–nitric oxide (NO) pathway is taken care of. Intracellular hyper-hydration is best-in-class too with a huge dose of Creatine Monohydrate, Glycerpump and Betaine Anhydrous to volumize the muscle and support performance and pumps. Inhibiting the enzyme angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) with a clinical dose of VasoDrive-AP® also checks off another pathway to push the boundaries on supraphysiological levels of vasodilation.  Finally, a high dose of Malic Acid was included for good measure to act as a Krebs cycle intermediary and support greater levels of muscular endurance. Try Gorilla Mode Nitric for yourself here and let me know what you think.

On March 8, members of the CMJ Masterpass joined me in a live Zoom meeting to ask me anything about nutrition, and here’s the full recording! We talk about things like: What to do if zinc causes nausea?  When on a ketogenic diet, it is a problem if ketones are going up to 5 to 6 millimoles per liter? What if I'm on a ketogenic diet, and I can't get my ketone levels up higher than 1 millimole per liter when my primary reason for being on the ketogenic diet is that I'm trying to control blood glucose better? Advice for what to do after suffering a transient ischemic attack. Nutrients important for neuroregeneration. What causes sinus congestion, and what can help? Nutrition for children with ADHD. Nutritional recommendations for MTR and MTRR polymorphisms. Why the main problem with hyperglycemia is not glucose but rather advanced glycation end products, and why the main determinant of advanced glycation end products is low insulin signaling. Does the difference between cyanocobalamin, hydroxocobalamin, and methylcobalamin matter, and does the difference between sublingual, oral, and intramuscular injection matter? Could fat malabsorption be driven by genetic polymorphisms that lower activity the PEMT enzyme? And could fat malabsorption in general be causing not only mineral deficiencies but also hyperabsorption of oxalate from foods? Why am I always sneezing first thing in the morning? What if I cannot get my ferritin up and supplementing iron actually raises my serum iron well above the normal range? A rant on why many people use “MTHFR” to slap a label on their health problems. All this and much more! If you’d like to participate in the next Q&A, consider joining the CMJ Masterpass. Use this link to get a 10% lifetime discount: https://chrismasterjohnphd.com/masterpass/masteringnutrition  This episode is brought to you by Ample. Ample is a meal-in-a-bottle that takes a total of two minutes to prepare, consume, and clean up. It provides the right balance of nutrients needed for a single meal, all from a blend of natural ingredients. Ample is available in original, vegan, and keto versions, portioned as either 400 or 600 calories per meal. I'm an advisor to Ample, and I use it to save time when I'm working on major projects on a tight schedule. Head to https://amplemeal.com and enter the promo code “CHRIS15” at checkout for a 15% discount off your first order.” This episode is brought to you by Ancestral Supplements' "Living" Collagen. Our Native American ancestors believed that eating the organs from a healthy animal would support the health of the corresponding organ of the individual. Ancestral Supplements has a nose-to-tail product line of grass-fed liver, organs, "living" collagen, bone marrow and more... in the convenience of a capsule. For more information or to buy any of their products, go to https://chrismasterjohnphd.com/ancestral  This episode is brought to you by Ample. Ample is a meal-in-a-bottle that takes a total of two minutes to prepare, consume, and clean up. It provides the right balance of nutrients needed for a single meal, all from a blend of natural ingredients. Ample is available in original, vegan, and keto versions, portioned as either 400 or 600 calories per meal. I'm an advisor to Ample, and I use it to save time when I'm working on major projects on a tight schedule. Head to https://amplemeal.com and enter the promo code “CHRIS15” at checkout for a 15% discount off your first order.” This episode is brought to you by Ancestral Supplements' "Living" Collagen. Our Native American ancestors believed that eating the organs from a healthy animal would support the health of the corresponding organ of the individual. Ancestral Supplements has a nose-to-tail product line of grass-fed liver, organs, "living" collagen, bone marrow and more... in the convenience of a capsule. For more information or to buy any of their products, go to https://chrismasterjohnphd.com/ancestral  In this episode, you will find all of the following and more: 00:43 Cliff Notes 11:13 Introduction 13:23 Should blacks and whites have different normal ranges for their HDL cholesterol? And general principles we should keep in mind when thinking about interracial differences or differences between groups. 17:24 Are there any solutions to getting nauseated from zinc supplements even at low doses and even when the zinc comes as oysters? 22:35 When on a ketogenic diet, it is a problem if ketones are going up to 5 to 6 millimoles per liter? 26:17 Advice for what to do after suffering a transient ischemic attack 35:57 Nutrients important for neuroregeneration 39:26 What causes sinus congestion, and what can help? 42:36 Do MTHFR polymorphisms other than the famous C677T and A1298C matter at all? 44:54 Nutrition for children with ADHD 57:07 How to address orthostatic hypotension 58:53 Nutritional recommendations for MTR and MTRR polymorphisms 01:10:54 Do you know anything about the value of lithium for ADHD? 01:11:08 Information about my free Vitamins and Minerals 101 class 01:13:30 Why the main problem with hyperglycemia is not glucose but rather advanced glycation end products, and why the main determinant of advanced glycation end products is low insulin signaling. 01:24:19 Thoughts on nutrition and breast health 01:33:03 Is it useful to measure urine pH? 01:39:57 What would be a high dose of iodine? 01:41:29 Recommended dose of glycine 01:43:31 Does the difference between cyanocobalamin, hydroxocobalamin, and methylcobalamin matter, and does the difference between sublingual, oral, and intramuscular injection matter? 01:53:10 Are bilirubin and uric acid useful markers of antioxidant defense and oxidative stress? What are better markers? 01:58:25 Could an elevated BUN indicate protein malabsorption and low stomach acid? 02:03:31 What if I'm on a ketogenic diet, and I can't get my ketone levels up higher than 1 millimole per liter when my primary reason for being on the ketogenic diet is that I'm trying to control blood glucose better? 02:04:39 Could fat malabsorption be driven by genetic polymorphisms that lower activity the PEMT enzyme? And could fat malabsorption in general be causing not only mineral deficiencies but also hyperabsorption of oxalate from foods? 02:08:18 How to manage blood levels of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids 02:09:57 Why am I always sneezing first thing in the morning? 02:12:03 Follow-up to question about ketone levels 02:12:48 What if I cannot get my ferritin up and supplementing iron actually raises my serum iron well above the normal range? 02:19:25 What about pyroluria and measuring kryptopyrroles? 02:22:51 Are there safety concerns in supplementing cyanocobalamin rather methylcobalamin in those with MTHFR polymorphisms? And a rant on why many people use “MTHFR” to slap a label on their health problems. 02:34:14 Advice for patient with hypercholesterolemia, elevated fasting glucose and insulin, ferritin of 194, and iron saturation of 33% 02:45:31 What to do about high fasting glucose that only seems to improve with long sleep 02:48:00 What should the upper limit of fatty fish intake be?

Shawn Bean is a Clinical Nutritionist who has a mind for putting the puzzles pieces of complex cases, like mold and Lyme, together. His unique ability to see the big picture and link symptoms to genetic expression is forward-thinking. Moving away from a specialist mentality to offer more generalist type care, says Shawn Bean, is the way we’ll begin to repair our health. Using specialized tests like the Organic Acids Test, he dives into each one for connections that can't be made with a typical glance of “normal”/”not normal” lab results. With a Bachelor of Science degree in Clinical Nutrition from West Chester University, Shawn Bean continues to further his own education through PubMed articles, genetic studies and more to help clients, practitioners and doctors to put the pieces of these complex puzzles like mold or Lyme exposure together to begin the healing for their bodies.  Together with Michael McEvoy, Shawn Bean runs a mentorship — Metabolic Healing –where they teach other practitioners how to utilize these tools, like the Organic Acids Test, to take their clients and patients toward health and healing. He also sees clients in his private practice at Matrix Health. Shawn believes that AI and self-tracking can open up insights for individuals that would never have been able to access these insights. He also offers support for those who need help understanding what will take them the 60-100% of the way that tracking alone and self-investigation may not be able to take you. Listen in iTunes! This podcast is brought to you by Heads Up, a web app designed to help you centrally track all of your vital health data. Instantly synchronize your medical records, connect your favorite health devices and apps and use your data to optimize your health! Click on the button below to start your free 30-day trial. Or, read on for more information about our latest podcast episode! [maxbutton id=”5″ url=”https://headsuphealth.com/” ] In this podcast you'll learn: About Shawn Bean’s role models: Arnold Schwartzenegger and Frank Zane. How he learned to change his body from a pretty in-shape guy to a pre-contest guy in 16 weeks, doing it with a healthy mindset [4:10]That Shawn Bean's health journey really began after his last bodybuilding show. After years of exposure to mold, it was a gradual decline. He found himself with an out-of-sync circadian rhythm which led to weight gain [6:07]How he used to train in a basement that would flood with water in the 1980s where he was initially exposed to mold. Later, exposed to black mold, everything went down from there [8:02] How he lost 100 lbs lean muscle tissue in 9 months and got depressed. Then after a GI test, discovered he had infections in his gut. This led to hormone replacement therapy, including testosterone and thyroid hormones [9:00]After looking online for answers, he found himself in PubMed articles where he realized he could put patterns together fast [10:20]What looked to be a curse turned into a blessing. Diagnosed around age 40 with Aspergers, Shawn has been able to bring his body back to a better balance through genetic support and other supports [12:50]“There are too many specialists out there and not enough generalists.” [15:15]How Shawn Bean doesn't ask his clients to fill out questionnaires. He knows it's hard to fill out paperwork when you’re chronically ill. Instead, he asks them to use a timeline and describe what they think is wrong with them [17:02]He breaks health issues down into three pillars: environmental, emotional and pathogens [18:00]What trans-generational issues encompass and how they can show up in children and their parents based on family experiences including autism [18:40]Why focusing on the parent’s preconception risks will reduce genetic expression in future generations by addressing nutrient deficiencies, emotional traumas, and toxicities, gene expression, etc. [20:04]The Organic Acids Test (OAT) has markers that can help tell if you have stored or active mold in your system through a marker for cell permeability off of the phosphatidylcholine pathway. If you're heterozygous or homozygous for MTHFD1 or PEMT the cell will lock up and go into a danger response and will hold onto that material and not let it go. You store toxins in the tissues, as the body is trying to protect you from the damage [21:15]Trans-generational stress can go back 16 generations according to some studies. For example, if Shawn tracks a person's heritage back and finds that they're Native American they are going to have a higher rate of PTSD, as well as descendants of Holocaust survivors [22:30]How quantum healing allows one person to do the spiritual/emotional/energetic work and affect multiple generations positively [24:05]Shawn and Dave discuss Ayahuasca, mushrooms and other plant-based modalities to help heal trans-generational traumas [24:45]Shawn utilizes the Organic Acid Test by Great Plains, DUTCH Complete hormone test, and general bloodwork to narrow down if clients are dealing with pathogens, toxins, gut dysbiosis, fungal, mold, yeast, candida, h. pylori, etc. The Organic Acid Test helps to show genetic expression, rather than to test genes specifically which he finds most useful over standard genetic testing like 23 and Me [28:02]The problem with functional medicine is that it’s still not looking at the whole big picture, but focusing instead on a specialty. “Mast cell activation is becoming the new MTHFR” [32:15]“The issue I'm seeing with these complex cases is that they fall into what is called protocols or Standards of Care.” Hear more about why these are important, but also how they are also limiting in the complex cases [34:25]AI is phenomenal but there has to be human interaction to take you the last 60-100% [36:50]How Shawn can find Lyme with a probability of 70%, for less than $16 [40:42]How Michael McEvoy and Shawn Bean run a mentoring group for practitioners where they teach these concepts [46:10]The testosterone-estrogen ratios and how they have affected Shawn Bean for years and how he works to support it, and why the sub-ratio patterns matter [48:50]One of the first things you can do is to look at your water source. Are you drinking good water? Visit www.scorecard.org to find out more about your water supply and what toxins are in it [54:00]Having a gene doesn't necessarily set you on a certain fate like mold toxicity or Lyme disease, but looking at the gene expression and the presenting symptoms is where you heal [54:30]Why Facebook groups for chronic illness can either be a blessing or a curse [57:00]“The more we move away from nature, the sicker we become.” [58:30]Those with NAT gene expression are more EMF sensitive as it fuels the adrenal pathway [58:50] References Metabolic Healing Institute – Metabolic Healing Practitioner Mentoring  matrixhealthwell@gmail.com www.scorecard.org Our Partners: Learn more about LEVL, a clinical-grade ketone breath meter, which measures your level of fat-burning and ketosis through a simple breath. Find out more at HeadsUpHealth.com/LEVL. You can learn more about the Oura ring, a state of the art ring that can track sleep cycle analysis, activity, and recovery at HeadsUpHealth.com/Oura. Learn more about Keto-Mojo, a highly accurate and affordable device for testing blood sugar and blood ketones. Check it out at HeadsUpHealth.com/Ketomojo. All of these amazing products are integrated with Heads Up. They all allow you to quantify your health in novel and powerful ways. Thank you to our partners! About Heads Up Heads Up is a website designed to empower individuals who want to take a self-directed approach to managing their health. Instantly centralize your medical records, connect your favorite devices and apps (e.g., Oura, MyFitnessPal, Keto-Mojo, FitBit, Apple Health, MyMacros+, Withings and many more) and use your data to optimize your health. Click on the button below to start your free 30-day trial now! [maxbutton id=”4″ url=”https://headsuphealth.com/” ] The post How to Piece Together the Puzzle of Chronic Illnesses Like Mold and Lyme Exposure with Shawn Bean appeared first on HeadsUp Health.

Have you tried the keto diet and struggled with getting your ketones high enough? Did you feel terrible eating a lot of fats, or tired and sluggish? Did you suffer from hypoglycemia, while trying to fix your high blood sugar problems?  Or just feel like your body needed more vegetables? These are all common issues that can be avoided by understanding nutrigenomics and how your body responds to different foods. Grab your Nutrition Genome (or another genetic SNP test) results and follow along as Sarah Morgan takes you through the top 11 SNPs you’ll want to know about for personalizing the keto diet based on your genes. Pairing Nutrition Genome testing with functional lab bio-marker testing and tracking it all within Heads Up Health, can help you monitor your health and see how your diet is working for you or against you. It's true, your genes don't change, but don’t assume there’s nothing you can do to avoid disease. How you live your life and what you eat is directly responsible for switching your genes for a disease on or off.  Dave Korsunsky, Founder of Heads Up Health interviews Sarah Morgan, aka “The Gene Queen”, on the top 11 genetic SNP's that affect how you may react to a ketogenic diet, and what to do if you do have those SNP's. This episode is packed full of useful information, especially for those of you who have not achieved the results you wanted with a ketogenic diet.  It may just need a bit more personalization for you, which is where genome testing for nutrition comes in. Make sure to check out our podcast with Alex Swanson of Nutrition Genome on how to obtain your own test kit and what information you'll find within the results. Sarah Morgan, aka “The Gene Queen” has worked in the field of genetics for the last 13 years, connecting the dots on how your genes interact with your diet and lifestyle. She has a Bachelor's degree in Biology and Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire. She holds a Master of Science in Functional Nutrition from the University of Bridgeport. Currently, she runs several companies after taking a step back from her clinical practice. Her new company Even Health (coming soon) creates supplements to help replenish the nutritional cost of the medications you may have to take, such as birth control pills, and even statins. She has also written a children's book Buddies in My Belly to help kids understand the importance of a healthy gut microbiome. Listen in iTunes! This podcast is brought to you by Heads Up Health, a web app designed to help you centrally track all of your vital health data. Instantly synchronize your medical records, connect your favorite health devices and apps and use your data to optimize your health! Click on the button below to start your free 30-day trial. Or, read on for more information about our latest podcast episode! [maxbutton id=”5″ url=”https://headsuphealth.com/” ] In this podcast you'll learn: When the Human Genome Project was completed in 2003 we thought we'd find at least 50,000 genes but we found only 20,000-25,000 [2:40] That the microbiome has genes also and can impact our human genome expression [3:10] SNP's (single nucleotide polymorphisms) sometimes don't do anything, but other times they affect things like detox, how we handle inflammation and what types of diets we tolerate best. These are not inborn errors that children are sometimes born with [4:30] Your genes and genome are always going to be the same, but your genetic expression is changing all the time based on the inputs you give your body – diet, stress, water, sleep etc. [6:25] How tracking your data through HUH you can figure out what inputs (diet, stress, sleep) are connected to health for you [8:20] Order Your Nutrition Genome Kit! #1 – PEMT gene (located in the methylation section) allows you to make choline which is crucial for liver function. The liver converts your fats to ketones, so this is important for a ketogenic diet [12:40] Normal- usual presentation, heterozygous – one copy of the gene, homozygous – two copies of the gene [14:50] Choline is really important for gallbladder function which helps break down fats for our body to use them [15:20 ] # 2 – FADS-2 (located in the digestion section) [20:35] Has to do with metabolic or neurologic issues on a keto diet. These are omega 3 status indicators. This gene has to do with taking shorter chain omega 3 fatty acids (alpha-linolenic acid) like flaxseed and walnuts and converting it to the longer chain fatty acids like EPA and DHA which are found in higher amounts in fish. You can check your blood levels of EPA and DHA levels and cross-reference how these genes are working for you in your body [23:15] # 3 – FUT2 (located in the digestion section) How well you feed your microbiome [23:35] The microbiome plays a part in how well you absorb your fats based on the type of bacteria living in your small intestines. The more dysbiosis (bad bugs) bacteria you have living in your gut, you can have more of an inflammatory response to an increase in fats. If you have heterozygous or homozygous, you should emphasize your prebiotics (food for gut bugs) because if you have changes in this gene you're not actually feeding your microbiome as well and can have more issues with lower levels of bifidobacteria (anti-inflammatory bacteria that also makes B vitamins like B12 and folate). Needs a good variety of diverse plant fibers in the diet. 25 different plant species per week (this can be hard in a traditional keto diet -carnivore would not be a good option for someone with this gene). CAUTION- very extreme restricted diets can be detrimental so use caution if you don't have all of the information on how it will affect you before beginning a very restricted diet if you don't know what you're doing. Test, don't guess.  #4 – ACAT (located in the digestion section) How your body converts protein and fat to cellular energy [30:04] We make our body weight in ATP (cellular energy) every day! We want to make sure someone has the ability to get good energy from protein and fat and has to do with cholesterol balance in the cell if eating a high fat/protein diet. Example of symptoms: Someone who is homozygous may go on a higher fat diet and consume more protein and have their cholesterol go up. Eating more fat and you feel exhausted. You never feel good, because it's lowering your ability to make energy due to your lack of ability to properly use fat and protein for fuel Watch your cholesterol and liver enzymes when doing a high-fat diet as they can go up if your liver can't handle all the fat processing (see PEMT gene info). #5 -ADIPOQ The Red Meat Gene – Adiponectin (located in the digestion section) [33:50] This is a hormone released in the intestinal tract when we eat foods and it has to do with how much insulin is secreted- affecting blood sugar, type 2 diabetes, etc. These are people that are predisposed to metabolic disease. Things that help this function better Exercise Intermittent Fasting Omega 3's to increase adiponectin secretion Turmeric Berries Ginger People that are low secreters are at a higher risk for insulin resistance, heart disease, and colon cancer – especially important to know before doing a high meat keto diet with a lot of red meats Homozygous- make sure you exercise and check body composition. Insulin resistance starts in the muscle -so get your muscles moving and lift some heavy stuff!   #6 – SLC22A5 Fat Taxi Cab Gene – (located in the digestion section) [40:20] Picks up our fats and shuttles them to mitochondria to be burned as an energy source. Fat goes through the digestive tract and is absorbed across the gut barrier and then L-carnitine shuttles to the mitochondria. Low levels of L-carnitine could compromise your ability to shuttle fat to your mitochondria and contribute to lowered energy in your mitochondria which can have neurological implications. You can consume L-carnitine in red meat, but your body also makes it. Vitamin C is very helpful and making sure you're methylating well as L-carnitine is a byproduct of methylation. #7 PPAR Alpha – Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Alpha (located in the digestion section) [42:20] This is the “ketone gene” – especially if homozygous this can make it difficult to get into ketosis. This plays a role in fatty acid metabolism – how our fats are actually utilized in ketosis. Symptoms: Changes in cholesterol panel like triglycerides, HDL, LDL in people that are poor responders. May not feel as well when trying to go into ketosis and feel poorly on a keto diet. They could potentially have ketogenic hypoglycemia because their ketone production is low and they're not bringing in enough carbs to keep blood sugar normal – they essentially have no fuel to run on.   Needs exogenous ketones to stay keto since your body can't make them well. If you're homozygous and taking exogenous ketones, you need to really watch your cholesterol well. #8 – ACSL1– How well you metabolize saturated fats from animals – bacon, fat bombs from dairy, etc. (located in the digestion section) [44:25] These people will have higher issues with higher fasting glucose and insulin resistance. If homozygous or even heterozygous -focus from getting your fats from plant sources rather than animal sources. More Mediterranean keto diet. Coconut is okay. #9 – APOA2– Eat fat, get fat gene (located in the digestion section) [44:25] An enzyme that regulates appetite. People who eat more fat tend to be more hungry and tend to consume more calories in a day. You can mitigate this through movement. Don't have a desk job where you sit 8 hours a day, especially if you eat a lot of fat. #10 FTO – The Hangry Gene (newly added to report in last 6 months or so -located in the digestion section) [47:00] Has to do with the hunger hormone ghrelin. People who have this, especially homozygous, are the people that are just hungry all the time. Balance blood sugars.  Don’t consume high glycemic foods (you're already doing that if on keto). Pay attention to hunger signals as well even if not eating high glycemic foods regularly. # 11 TCF7L2 – The carb Gene (located in the digestion section) [49:40] Incretin hormone that has to do with insulin sensitivity.   The biggest indicator of type 2 diabetes, across the board in terms of studies. If heterozygous – be careful with your carbs, homozygous be REALLY careful with your carbs.   Symptoms: weight gain dysregulated insulin carb cravings Wild type can have more metabolic flexibility of being able to use carbohydrates and not have negative consequences. Beta cells in pancreas very sensitive for these people. Ancestrally they probably ate more carbs and are more efficient at it.   References EVEN Health Supplement Company Buddies In My Belly Gene Queen Nutrition Genome Our Partners: Learn more about LEVL, a clinical-grade ketone breath meter, which measures your level of fat-burning and ketosis through a simple breath. Find out more at HeadsUpHealth.com/LEVL. You can learn more about the Oura ring, a state of the art ring that can track sleep cycle analysis, activity, and recovery at HeadsUpHealth.com/Oura. Learn more about Keto-Mojo, a highly accurate and affordable device for testing blood sugar and blood ketones. Check it out at HeadsUpHealth.com/Ketomojo. All of these amazing products are integrated with Heads Up Health. They all allow you to quantify your health in novel and powerful ways. Thank you to our partners! About Heads Up Health Heads Up Health is a website designed to empower individuals who want to take a self-directed approach to managing their health. Instantly centralize your medical records, connect your favorite devices and apps (e.g., Oura, MyFitnessPal, Keto-Mojo, FitBit, Apple Health, MyMacros+, Withings and many more) and use your data to optimize your health. Click on the button below to start your free 30-day trial now! [maxbutton id=”4″ url=”https://headsuphealth.com/” ] The post Personalizing the Keto Diet Based on Your Genetics | Sarah Morgan “The Gene Queen” appeared first on HeadsUp Health.

On February 17, members of the CMJ Masterpass joined me in a live Zoom meeting to ask me anything about nutrition, and here’s the full recording! We talked about lots and lots of things: using the Oura ring to measure HRV and optimize athletic performance and recovery, what to do in the context of diabetes if T3 doesn’t increase your heat production, whether keeping warm with clothing has health benefits if you can’t get your body temperature up, what to do about high morning glucose, how to get rid of heavy metals, how to repair bone, what vegans should do to get arachidonic acid levels up, zinc and copper supplementation, kale and spinach smoothies, blood donation when your transferrin saturation is high but your ferritin is low, dealing with a high resting heart rate, lots of questions on organic acid markers, how estrogen can mess up vitamin B6 markers even in men and when that means you should lower your protein intake, whether combining carbs and fat makes people fat, how many eggs to eat a day, how the nutritional needs of children are special, vitamin A toxicity in and out of pregnancy, creatine non-responders, intermittent fasting hurting sleep… This episode is brought to you by Ample. Ample is a meal-in-a-bottle that takes a total of two minutes to prepare, consume, and clean up. It provides the right balance of nutrients needed for a single meal, all from a blend of natural ingredients. Ample is available in original, vegan, and keto versions, portioned as either 400 or 600 calories per meal. I'm an advisor to Ample, and I use it to save time when I'm working on major projects on a tight schedule. Head to https://amplemeal.com and enter the promo code “CHRIS15” at checkout for a 15% discount off your first order.” In this episode, you will find all of the following and more: This episode is brought to you by Ancestral Supplements' "Living" Collagen. Our Native American ancestors believed that eating the organs from a healthy animal would support the health of the corresponding organ of the individual. Ancestral Supplements has a nose-to-tail product line of grass-fed liver, organs, "living" collagen, bone marrow and more... in the convenience of a capsule. For more information or to buy any of their products, go to https://chrismasterjohnphd.com/ancestral …. and much more! If you’d like to participate in the next Q&A, consider joining the CMJ Masterpass. Use this link to get a 10% lifetime discount: https://chrismasterjohnphd.com/masterpass/masteringnutrition 8:24 What to do, in the context of diabetes, if T3 supplementation does not increase heat production? 17:03 If you can't get your body temperature up to normal, will wearing more clothing to keep warm improve health? 19:40 What to do about elevated morning blood glucose in the mid 90s. 21:38 What are my thoughts on detoxing heavy metals? 23:36 What nutrients are needed to break down old, damaged bone and build new, healthy bone? 28:06 What should an ethical vegan with low delta-6 desaturase activity do to bring low arachidonic acid levels up to normal? 30:20 How to manage the zinc-to-copper ratio and what to do if zinc and copper are both low-normal when supplementing with 15 mg of zinc and 1 mg of copper. 34:20 How to lower a resting heart rate in the 80s or 90s. 37:00 Is a daily green smoothie with spinach or kale a risk because of thallium, goitrogens, oxalates, or other concerns? 39:20 For someone who is homozygous for the H63D allele of the iron- and hemochromatosis-related HFE gene, if ferritin is low but transferrin saturation is high, should they still donate blood? 48:20 For someone who is taking 45 mg of vitamin B6 as P5P but has xanthurenate, kynurenate, and quinolinate high in the urine as markers of vitamin B6 deficiency, and who is a man with high estrogen, what should they do? 56:18 What to do if taking biotin and yet beta-hydroxyisovalerate is elevated. 57:17 What to do if gamma-tocopherol levels are low-normal while taking 100 IU/d of alpha-tocopherol. 59:30 Does mixing carbohydrate with fat cause people to get fat because of the Randle cycle? (continued at 1:21:00) 1:03:35 Do children need less nutrients than adults because they have lower body weights, or do they need more nutrients than adults because they are growing faster? ( 1:07:12 What to do for a five-year-old who is unusually exhausted, and how to assess their nutritional needs. (Brief followup at 1:35:50) 1:09:30 Concerns about vitamin A intake during pregnancy. 1:12:24 How to use an Oura ring to monitor HRV and optimize recovery and performance. 1:15:40 What are "parent essential oils"? Should we get these instead of cold-water fish oils? Response to Brian Peskin’s theory. 1:21:00 More on whether the combination of carbs and fat makes people fat as a result of the Randle cycle. 1:29:00 Matt stone and the "overdeification" of vitamin A. Or, are there many people who are vitamin A deficient? Hypersensitivity reactions, fatty liver, overzealous use of cod liver oil, and other concerns. 1:35:50 How to deal with the fact that blood tests for nutritional status aren't adapted to children. 1:37:05 How much fatty fish to eat. 1:38:05 Nutritional strategies for glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) deficiency. 1:42:58 If berberine lowers LDL-C and total-to-LDL-C but raises ApoB, what does this mean? 1:45:50 How to interpret the pattern of high citrate, low cis-aconitate, low glutamate, and high glutamine. (Followup at 1:53:05) 1:47:20 What do I think about Loren Cordain, his views on salt and dairy, and his opinion of Chris Kresser? 1:53:55 What to do about acne that gets worse with stress and better with cardio? 1:55:37 For MTHFD1, PEMT and MTHFR, should I be supplementing choline? 1:56:13 How to bring up low levels of arachidonic acid. 1:57:17 Using blood tests to determine whether you should increase your calcium intake. 1:57:45 Alex Leaf answers a question about creatine non-responders and methylation. 1:59:22 Could neurotransmitter levels be artificially low on the Genova ION panel if you fasted for 24 hours before having samples taken? 2:00:07 When to take tryptophan on a ketogenic diet. 2:00:52 When should you take creatine, if you don't have an MTHFR SNP? 2:01:30 My thoughts on PQQ and CoQ10 supplements. 2:02:02 What to do when high selenium levels won't come down, even if you've stopped supplementing. 2:02:24 Is four eggs a day too much? 2:03:05 Are low total omega-6 levels on the ION panel a cause for concern? 2:03:50 What to do about high arsenic. 2:04:24 What to do about fungal infection suggested by elevated D-arabinitol. 2:05:33 Migraines and twitching caused by coffee that responds to electrolytes. 2:09:55 What to do if signs and symptoms of zinc deficiency persist despite taking 75 mg zinc gluconate per day. 2:11:35 What to do if intermittent fasting beginning before 3:00 PM hurts sleep. 2:13:55 What to do about high-normal TSH and no diagnosis of a thyroid disease.    

Dr. Ben Lynch is a genetics expert and the author of the bestselling book, Dirty Genes. He’s here to explain why your genes are not your destiny and how you can influence gene expression to optimize your health. Listen as Dr. Ben talks about common factors that can impact your genes, as well as the "Super Seven Genes" that are vitally important to your wellbeing. Dr. Ben also talks about “dirty genes” and how they can impair your body’s ability to burn fat and wreak havoc on your health. Find out Dr. Ben’s top strategies for cleaning up your genes so you can lose weight and feel better again!   Freebies From Today’s Episode Get Dr. Ben Lynch’s free secret chapter from Dirty Genes by going to JJVirgin.com/dirtygenes   Main Points From Today’s Episode The "Super Seven Genes" from Dr. Ben's book are vitally important to your overall health. If just one of the Super Seven Genes is acting "dirty," you can have a myriad of symptoms, including weight loss resistance. Factors that can impact your genes include nutrient deficiencies, stress, infection, inflammation, lack of sleep, and exposure to toxins. Dr. Ben’s book helps you identify which of your genes are dirty so you can clean them up and feel better again. If your mitochondria are dirty, you won’t be able to burn fat efficiently. Adding in glutathione, the master antioxidant, can help your mitochondria function better so they can start burning fat again.   Episode Play-By-Play [1:21] How JJ became interested in weight loss resistance [3:00] Dr. Ben’s career briefing [5:06] The “Super Seven Genes” [6:38] What are genes and why we should care about them? [7:55] Certain genes can be influenced by our lifestyle choices. [10:16] Genetics and weight loss [11:15] Factors that can impact your genes  [12:11] If your mitochondria are dirty, you won’t be able to burn fat efficiently  [13:30] The importance of the GST and GPX genes in weight loss  [15:35] The vicious cycle of weight gain [17:00] The connection between the MAO-A and COMT genes and carb cravings [17:49] Your reptilian brain vs. your modern brain [19:01] Bloating can occur when your liver isn’t working well. [20:00] The link between the PEMT gene and SIBO [22:11] Why you should eat plenty of leafy greens [23:22] The many crucial roles of the MTHFR gene [24:18] Why mouth breathers tend to be more overweight [25:30] Get Dr. Ben’s secret, unpublished chapter from his book, Dirty Genes. [27:40] Your breakfast sets the pace for your entire day! That’s why JJ created the All-In-One Protein Shakes to start your day out right. [29:27] Listener’s question: I know I need to lose weight, but I just can't seem to find the motivation. Help! [30:42] Start with the “why”, not the “how”.   Mentioned in this episode: Dirty Genes: A Breakthrough Program to Treat the Root Cause of Illness and Optimize Your Health, by Dr. Ben Lynch All-In-One Protein Shakes The Virgin Diet: Drop 7 Foods, Lose 7 Pounds, Just 7 Days, by JJ Virgin 7-Day Stop, Drop & Swap Challenge Jjvirgin.com JJ Virgin Official Facebook page JJ Virgin on Instagram JJ Virgin on YouTube

Dr. Haylee and Kristin discuss how certain single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in our DNA can affect how well we can utilize specific nutrients, such as choline, folate and vitamin D, in our body. The top three SNPs discussed are MTHFR, PEMT, and VDR due to their significant impact on fertility and long term health of baby.

In this episode, Dr. Elana interviews Dr. Ben Lynch, Naturopathic Physician and expert in the field of epigenetics. We discuss how lifestyle factors play an important role in mitigating health complications and genetic predispositions. We identify practical strategies to set your family up for success. Topics Discussed What is epigenetics and how does it impact our pregnancy and babies What does it mean to have genes that are acting dirty An in-depth look at MTHFR specifically for mamas and mamas to be. What everyone must know! Dr. Lynch’s advice on how to optimize your child’s vaccine outcomes How to eliminate adverse reactions to vaccines How parent’s genes impact their children’s genes How to help “clean” our “dirty genes” MTHFR and the role it plays in postpartum mental health An in-depth look at what methylation is and the role it plays in so many functions of the body PEMT and the role this gene plays in choline production and gallbladder health Why choline is so important for pregnant women and the dosing and product Dr. Lynch recommends every pregnant woman to take Genetic testing and analysis And more!  Dr. Benjamin Lynch's Bio  Benjamin Lynch, ND received his Cell and Molecular Biology, BS from the University of Washington and his doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine (ND) from Bastyr University. His passion for identifying the cause of disease directed him towards nutrigenomics and methylation dysfunction. Currently, he researches, writes and presents worldwide on the topic of MTHFR, methylation defects and genetic control. You may learn more about Dr. Lynch and his work at www.drbenlynch.com. Dr. Lynch is the President of www.SeekingHealth.com, a supplement company oriented towards disease prevention and health promotion. He lives in Seattle, WA with his wife, Nadia, and three boys, Tasman, Mathew and Theodor. Enjoy the listen! Click here to listen or find the podcast on iTunes or Stitcher! Shownotes: Free Dirty Genes Bonus Chapter  Dr. Ben Lynch's Website StrateGene  Dr. Ben Lynch's Supplement Line: Seeking Health Dirty Genes on Amazon  Follow Dr. Ben Lynch on Facebook and Instagram Great video interview of Dr. Lynch talking more about vaccines "Do Vaccines Cause Autism" with Dr. Paul Thomas MD Nourish Kids Medicine Kit and Ebook Steph’s Healthy Mama, Happy Baby Virtual Pregnancy Handbook Dr. Elana’s Medical Center: Nourish Medical Center   Disclaimer Please remember that the views on this podcast and website are not meant to be substituted for medical advice, shouldn’t be used to diagnose, treat or cure any conditions, and are intended for general information purposes only.

Mammalian DNA cytosine-5-methyltransferase (MTase, EC 2.1.1.37) is an essential component for establishing and maintaining cell-type specific methylation patterns in the genome. The cDNAfor the murine enzyme was previously cloned in segments. We have reconstructed the entire gene, encoding a protein of 1517 amino acids, from a set of overlapping CDNA clones. We report the assembly of two expression constructs in bacterial/mammalian shuttle vectors. Transcription in the first construct (pEMT) is driven by the cytomegalovirus enhancer/promoter and encodes a fusion protein with 15 additional aa at the N terminus, while the second construct (pJMT) is driven by the simian virus 40 early promoter/enhancer upstream from the natural ATG codon. Immunofluorescence microscopy and immunoblot analysis have shown that both constructs direct the synthesis of MTase in COS-1 cells. Enzyme activity in whole-cell lysates of transfected COS-1 cells transfected with pEMT and pJMT are on average tenfold and fivefold higher than in control, respectively. The specific activities of the recombinant and endogenous mouse-cell enzyme are similar. These expression constructs will be of use in studies of DNA methylation in mammals.