Dr. Pierre Capel on the Power of the Mind & the Science of Wim Hof

Dr. Rhonda Patrick interviews Dr. Pierre Capel, professor emeritus in experimental immunology at the Utrecht University in the Netherlands where he researched a wide range of topics from genetic modification to cancer immunotherapy. Pierre also works with Wim Hof, otherwise known as the iceman (guest on the last podcast) who is especially well-known for some of his amazing physical feats, like staying in a tub with direct contact to ice for over an hour and fifty three minutes. Pierre explains some of the science behind how Wim is able to withstand cold temperatures for prolonged periods of time. The explanation comes down to what the 2014 PNAS study on Wim's technique showed: that reductions in carbon dioxide temporarily increased blood pH. The missing piece to the puzzle that Pierre brings in is the simple fact that pain receptors that are critical to feeling cold temperatures actually rely on what are known as "acid sensing ion channels", which have been shown in other studies to become inactive within

the pH ranges Wim and his trainees are able to increase their blood to.

In addition to talking about some of the thermo- and pain- receptor stuff, Pierre and Rhonda also discuss other cool literature he's familiar with, including:

1.) Good stress and bad stress and how meditation affects the expression your genes.

2.) Meditation and the speed with which it affects fMRI changes.

3.) How even loneliness can change gene expression, including some involved in metabolism, inflammation, and the endocrine system.

4.) The effect of social isolation in mice on cancer metastasis, and conversely how wound healing can be affected in mice just by changes in their environment.

5.) What affects the stress hormone cortisol has on gene expression.

6.) What the inflammasome is and how its activation can be linked to the central nervous system.

7.) How the limbic system regulates emotions (and this is not easily controlled) but meditation has been shown to help control the limbic system.