Many of us are efficient at storing energy and inefficient at burning it when it comes to our metabolism. For instance, I see lots of frustrated people eating what appear to be healthy salads, yet they continue to gain weight. Two things in our diets harm our metabolic efficiency. At the end of this post, I will explain what they are and why most people have a metabolism stuck in growth mode while a decreasingly small minority can readily burn the calories they consume.
Read MoreI recently heard an interview with Calley and Casey Means that really resonated with me regarding my concerns about the state of health in America. Their message struck a chord with me, and I believe it's crucial for everyone to hear. Casey Means, a physician who left a thriving career in traditional medicine, and her brother Calley, a whistleblower advocating against the corruption in the food and pharmaceutical industries, have joined forces to address what they see as the root cause of America’s health crisis: our toxic food environment.
Casey and Calley have a compelling story. Casey was frustrated with the medical profession's approach to treating illness, as she found herself constantly treating symptoms rather than addressing the underlying causes of her patients' ailments. Calley, on the other hand, was disturbed by the overwhelming influence of big food and big pharma on both doctors and patients. Together, they concluded that our poor health is due to the modern processed foods dominating our diets, and the reason we remain sick is because the pharmaceutical and medical industries benefit from this steady stream of unhealthy patients. This post will discuss their concerns and recommend the solutions.
Read MoreWhen it comes to dental cavities, most of us instinctively point fingers at sugar. We've all heard the warnings about candy, soda, and sweets being the main culprits behind those pesky cavities. But what if I told you that sugar isn't the only player in this game? Enter salivary amylase, a digestive enzyme found in our saliva, plays a significant role in the development of dental caries, particularly through its interaction with starches like those found in bread, pasta, crackers, etc.
Read MoreThis post will discuss six dental care basics that your dentist may not be aware of but you should know about. I want to start by saying that if it was just about brushing twice daily, flossing, having two cleanings per year, and adding fluoride, why do so many patients suffer from cavities, gum disease, crooked teeth, no room for wisdom teeth, breathing problems, obesity, high blood pressure, and GERD? This post will explain it all.
Read MoreThe carnivore diet is a dietary regimen that restricts food intake to animal products, primarily meat, and animal-derived products, while excluding plant-based foods. Advocates of the carnivore diet (I am one of them) claim that it provides numerous health benefits, such as weight loss, improved mental clarity, and relief from various health conditions. One common concern with diets that exclude plant foods, like the carnivore diet, is the potential risk of vitamin and nutrient deficiencies, including vitamin C. A well-rounded carnivore diet, including fatty meat and organs, should contain all of the nutrients we require. However, it is important to understand why people on a carnivore diet that includes organ meat should not need to worry about their vitamin C status.
Read MoreIn my post last week, I jokingly listed seven things that one could do to be unhealthy. However, I didn't want to leave it at that, so I also provided a list of seven things that can be done to maximize our health. All of the recommendations I made were related to lifestyle changes related to the ways our ancestors lived. The concept of incorporating ancestral behaviors such as proper sleep or whole foods diets universally embraced by our predecessors to achieve optimal health is known as the Ancestral Health Movement. Given the option, I would rather follow ancestral wisdom and reduce my chances of needing the care of a physician who may increase my chances of dying through error. This post will cover why I think ancestral medicine is a viable option for good health,
Read MoreLast week, I discussed the importance of taking charge of your own health and promised to provide tips for maintaining your well-being. Now, let's explore some habits that might lead to poor health. If you want to be unhealthy, make sure you…
Read MoreBrushing twice and flossing once daily is a smart idea if your diet contains processed carbohydrates. Toothpaste always comes along for the ride on our brushes. Did you ever stop and wonder how necessary it is? I have. I say no. I will explain my rationale in this post.
Read MoreIt has been dogma that we need eight hours of sleep. Furthermore, the research shows that we don't get nearly that much. In fact, we miss the mark by almost one to two hours each night. Then comes summer, when we typically sleep one less hour than in winter. For those of us trying to maximize sleep, this all sounds disconcerting. I have encouraging news about newer sleep research that has shed some light on how much sleep we should get each night, especially in the summer.
Read MoreAs part of patient care, I have conversations about the introduction of processed grains to our diets about 10,000 years ago and all the detrimental effects that came with it; tooth decay, gum disease, stunted growth, etc. I also discuss the introduction of industrially processed seed oils like corn, canola, and soy and their connection to heart disease, diabetes, obesity, inflammation, and more. A frequent response I hear is the phrase, "everything in moderation." I am unsure what they mean, and I wonder if they do either. I believe seeking moderation has risks. I suggest optimizing as a better approach to health. This post will cover the difference between the two and seven things we should optimize for health.
Read MoreThis post contains the slides for my presentation at The Southwestern Society of Pediatric Dentistry. It is intended for the attendees, but all are welcome to view it and share it. Enjoy.
Read MoreYou may have heard that a piece on the TV program called 60 Minutes recently sparked some controversy. A doctor stated that obesity is a brain disease, and the largest contributor to obesity is genetics. To quote her, "That means if you were born to parents that have obesity, you have a 50-85% likelihood of having the disease yourself even with optimal diet, exercise, sleep management, [and] stress management..." She tells us that lifestyle won't make a difference for genetically flawed people.
The 60 Minutes Program then segues into the new weight-reducing medications, stressing how effective they are, potentially leaving the audience with four takeaways: 1) Obesity is a brain disease. 2) Obesity is genetic 3) Lifestyle changes won't work for the genetically flawed. and 4) Drugs are better than lifestyle changes, especially for the genetically flawed. This post will address these issues and more.
Read MoreEvolution takes place because we successfully adapt to changes in our environments over vast amounts of time, leading to the false belief that evolution occurs only when the environmental change is stable over time so that the adaptive changes can take hold and the species can flourish. After all, if the adaptative pressure goes in one direction and then reverses course, the adaptive changes might never happen or become maladaptive and cause extinction. But the climatic record during human evolution has been extremely variable, especially in the recent past, so it does not support the idea that environmental stability produced our adaptation. This post will discuss the accepted definition of ice ages, glaciations, interglacials, and their effect on human evolution.
Read MorePoor sleep is often caused by poor breathing, which, in turn, is often caused by poor jaw development. In 2016, the American Heart Association released a "scientific statement" on the connection between poor sleep and heart disease; you can find it here. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine states that severe sleep apnea doubles one's chance of dying from heart disease. I have spoken at length about the connection between facial development and obstructive sleep apnea before. In my post today, I am going to focus on the pressure changes to the body that sleep apnea causes and their consequences.
Read MoreI have been on the carnivore diet for almost three years. From the start, raw eggs have been a big part of my diet. My go-to recipe is one dozen yolks mixed with bone broth. It fits in a tall glass that I drink down each morning. Another way I consume my raw egg yolks is to mix them with water and honey. If this sounds strange, this post will clarify why I consider it an important part of my diet.
Read MoreWelcome to The Incredible Human Part 4. We usually consider animals' diets carnivorous, herbivorous, or omnivorous. However, within the distinction of herbivores, we see further specializations. For example, frugivores eat fruits primarily, granivores eat grains and seeds, and folivores eat leaves. Humans are omnivores. But there is more to our dietary story. Just as herbivores can specialize as frugivores, granivores, folivores, or a combination, omnivores also specialize. And we have the most specialized diets in the animal kingdom. This post will discuss why our diets are so special.
Read MoreIn 1990, Bruce Ames, Margie Profet, and Lois Swirsky Gold found that Americans consume an average of 1.5 grams of natural pesticides produced by plants themselves daily. They noted that 52 of them had been analyzed in animal cancer tests, in which rodents are fed exorbitantly high doses to see if they developed tumors. 27 were found to be carcinogens! To repeat, I am speaking exclusively about the natural chemicals plants produce to avoid being eaten, not sprayed-on synthetic pesticides. Should we be concerned?
Read MoreA few weeks ago, I was interviewed on The Carnivore Cast, which is a podcast focused on the carnivore diet and lifestyle with practical advice from successful carnivores, citizen scientists, and top researchers answering your burning questions and meaty topics. The episode is now out. On it, we talk about my previous health problems, how I got into Paleo, functional medicine and dentistry, and finally, the carnivore diet. I also talk about why we don’t really need toothpaste and why we all have crooked teeth.
The site is the brainchild of Scott Myslinski, a really cool guy promoting optimal health through proper movement and, of course, the carnivore diet. He has tons of really good podcast guests, so check them out. Enjoy!
Read MoreI enjoyed talking to Cavin Balaster on his Adventures In Brain Injury Podcast. Cavin is a survivor of a terrible traumatic brain injury who has a book called How to Feed a Brain: Nutrition for Optimal Brain Function and Repair and a podcast about all things health related, especially how to have a healthy brain. We met in Austin at a charity for the Farm To Consumer Legal Defense Fund and immediately hit it off. When He asked me to do it, I was skeptical that I could contribute much to the subject of brain injury, but after speaking with Cavin for a few minutes, I was convinced I had something to offer. Cavin and I understand that good health has more to do with things like breathing, nutrients, sunshine, and connecting with one another, not pharmaceuticals and surgeries. Although the latter two items have their place, they should be rare, whereas lifestyle practices should be constant. We had a blast and could have spent all day talking about health.
Read MoreIn my daily practice, I often find infected teeth that the patient is entirely unaware of. Most often, I find asymptomatic infections on radiographs (x-rays). Sometimes, I can see what appears to be a pimple on the gums adjacent to the tooth, usually at the level of the root tip. The pimple is usually on the cheek side (buccal). However, they are occasionally found on the tongue side (known as the palatal on the upper and lingual on the lower). Technically a pimple around a tooth is known as a dentoalveolar fistula. I will talk about what they are, how they form, what to do if you have one, and how to prevent them.
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