House Call With Dr. Hyman

Conventional medicine likes to label disorders, but often labels are meaningless. They tell us what disease we have, but they don’t say why we have it or even more importantly, how we can really treat it – other than prescribing a pill for every ill.

The emphasis on naming diseases is pervasive throughout medicine, and it is the single biggest obstacle to changing the way we do things and finding the answers to our health problems.

The truth is that two brain disorders, with two completely different names, might have a lot more in common than you might think.

We need to revolutionize the way we treat these diseases. This is why my team and I created the 8-part Broken Brain Docuseries. This docuseries goes through major brain disorders such as dementia, autism, depression, and much, much more; offering a different way to approach disease. You’ll hear from over 50 experts who will share the truth about our brains and how we can achieve optimal brain health.

In this docuseries, I’ll guide you through the 7 steps to an UltraMind.

We’ll talk about how to tackle nutritional deficiencies, stress, and gut imbalances. We’ll also talk about how to boost your detoxification systems and how the quality of your relationships can impact your brain health. We’ll dive deep into a brain-healthy diet, and our experts will share their best tips for achieving a calm mind.

You don’t have to suffer from a broken brain anymore. Let’s fix this problem together. Join our movement by signing up for this free series and spread the word to your friends so we can all take back control of our brain health together.

And if you have questions about the brain, tweet me and use the hashtag #housecallwithdrhyman. Maybe next week I’ll make a house call to you.

Wishing you health and happiness,

Mark Hyman, MD

About 20 years ago, at the start of my medical career, I went from being a healthy, thriving physician to becoming a disoriented and terrified version of myself. I woke up feeling like I didn’t even know who I was anymore.

I was depressed, anxious, forgetful. It got so bad that I had a hard time following what my patients were saying during their appointments. I tried to take careful notes and keep track, but I couldn’t focus on our conversations. I couldn’t even remember anyone’s name.

Some doctors, including my colleagues, said that I was depressed and recommended taking anti-depressants. I saw a few psychiatrists who suggested anti-anxiety medication. My family doctor prescribed me sleeping medication, and a neurologist told me that I had ADD and needed stimulants. Other doctors told me that I had chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia. At that point, I was exhausted and I needed answers. All that I knew for sure was that my brain was broken. I was depressed, my memory was failing me, and my body just wasn’t working the way it used to.

These doctors had good intentions, but all of the recommendations for another pill did not sit well with me. So, I decided to go on my own journey to heal my broken brain.

Our brains are our most prized organ, and having optimal brain health is absolutely critical in order to live and thrive in our modern society. Unfortunately, most of us are living with semi to low functioning brains.

This is why I brought together over 50 experts to talk about this epidemic and how we can take steps toward a better brain.

In this docuseries, you’ll learn the seven steps to creating what I call an ultramind. We’ll talk about how our guts, stress levels, toxins, relationships, diets, and much more influence the health of our brains, and we’ll present a six week plan to start taking back your brain health today.

I promise you, that if you watch this free series you’ll walk away with a much better and deeper understanding of our most precious and dynamic organ – the brain!

Throughout this month and next month, you’ll receive more information about this free docuseries, so be sure to stay tuned.

You don’t have to suffer with a broken brain anymore. Let’s fix this problem together. Join our movement by signing up for this free series and spread the word to your friends so we can all take back control of our brain health together.

If you have questions about the brain, tweet me and use the hashtag #housecallwithdrhyman. Maybe next week I’ll make a house call to you.

Wishing you health and happiness,

Mark Hyman, MD

Many doctors would say no. In fact, I’ve had several patients who have received a diagnosis of dementia and are told that there is no treatment that can truly stop or reverse the progression of this brain disorder. Compassionately, they’re told to get their affairs in order.

For so long we believed that the brain is unchangeable and even worse, we thought that once we started to experience cognitive decline, it was all downhill from there.

We now know this is not true.

My friend and scientist Dr. Dale Bredesen is at the forefront of changing the way we approach neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Dr. Bredesen’s research has led to new insights that explain the erosion of memory seen in Alzheimer’s disease and has opened the door to a new therapeutic approach which uses the power of Functional Medicine.

This interview is just the first part of an entire month and a half focused on brain health. For the next few weeks, my team and I will be sharing cutting edge information about how to protect your brain and how to treat brain disorders. This is all leading up to my brand new 8-part docuseries called Broken Brain. Stay tuned in the next couple of weeks to hear more about it.

I hope you enjoy this interview. If you have any questions about the brain, tweet me using the hashtag #housecallwithdrhyman, and maybe next week I’ll make a House Call to you.

Wishing you health and happiness,

Mark Hyman, MD

I’ve done a lot of meditation over the years. In fact, I used to be really passionate about meditation, and then the stress of trying to do it all interfered with my time for self-care. “I don’t have enough time to meditate,” I would say to my coach, and myself. The truth is that meditation is one of the most important tools I have to help me manage stress. I didn’t realize how stressed or anxious I’d become until I started meditating again.

With so much going on, meditation helped me have this place to go where I can disconnect from all the busyness and find a state where I can be present. It’s why I meditate every day.

So, why should we meditate? And what actually works?

Why do you meditate? Share how meditation has benefited your life on social media with the hashtag #whyimeditate.

Wishing you health and happiness,

Mark Hyman, MD

“I have heard a lot of talk about mitochondria,” a reader tweets. “ What is it and why is it so important?”

I love telling people about mitochondria. Discovering the importance of mitochondria and how to optimize their function was a huge part of my personal healing journey.

Mitochondria are key energy sources for our bodies. They are tiny factories housed within our cells that take the foods we eat and the oxygen we breathe and convert them into energy.

Taking care of your mitochondria can make you leaner and smarter. It can help prevent aging and increase your energy.

If you liked this video, be sure to share it with your friends and family on Facebook and Twitter.

Don’t forget to tweet me your questions, using “#housecallwithdrhyman” and maybe next week I’ll make a house call to you!

Today is Part 2 of our discussion around reasons for hitting a weight loss plateau.

One of my followers tweeted me saying, “I Lost 30 lbs on The Blood Sugar Solution. I am doing Eat Fat, Get Thin for another 30 days. NO sugar/carbs – all veggies, proteins, and good fats, but much slower weight loss this time.”

Last week, we talked about four important reasons why someone might be having difficulty losing weight.

With Pastor Rick Warren and Daniel Amen, I created The Daniel Plan, a faith-based wellness program that helped 15,000 people from Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church lose 250,000 pounds collectively, in 10 months, by doing it together. Rick says, “every body needs a buddy!”

So together, we wrote the #1 best-selling book, The Daniel Plan that details a practical plan to get healthy together because we found that getting healthy is a team sport.

Using the power of peer pressure for good can make it easier to do the right thing. Even if I don’t say a word, when people eat out with me, they choose healthier foods because they know it matters to me. I don’t care what they eat and I don’t prompt them, but their internal compass shifts.

So, you can see it’s important to surround yourself with healthy people if possible or join a community of healthy, like-minded people.

Those are my top tips for addressing a weight loss plateau. There is always something you can do. We can always dig a little deeper. And, if you feel like you’re doing everything right and still not losing the desired weight, I highly encourage working with a Functional Medicine practitioner – like one of the practitioners at The UltraWellness Center, where we dig deep to get to the root cause of the issue.

If you liked this video, be sure to share it with your friends and family on Facebook and Twitter. Also, don’t forget to tweet me your health questions using #housecallwithdrhyman, and maybe next week, I’ll make a House Call to you.

Wishing you health & happiness,

Mark Hyman, MD

A reader tweets, “I lost 30 lbs. on The Blood Sugar Solution program. Now, I am following the guidelines from Eat Fat, Get Thin for the next 30 days. NO sugar/carbs – all veggies, proteins, good fats – but seeing much slower weight loss this time.”

Weight loss plateaus are a very common and frustrating issue. When I am working with someone who is having trouble losing weight, despite doing everything right, there are a few things I look at, to see if we can uncover why they are hitting a weight loss plateau.

Today, we’ll discuss four of the most common reasons for a resistance to weight loss.

When I work with my patients who are experiencing a weight loss plateau, these are the first four things I immediately take into consideration. Remember, Functional Medicine assesses the root cause of the problem and treats the whole system to quiet and cool the flames of inflammation, leading to weight loss and overall good health.

Next week, I’ll cover four more reasons behind a weight loss plateau, so stay tuned. If you liked this video, be sure to share it with your friends and family on Facebook and on Twitter.

Also, tweet me your questions, using the hashtag #housecallwithdrhyman, and maybe next week I’ll make a house call to you.

Wishing you health and happiness,

Mark Hyman, MD

In this week’s House Call, a reader asks, “How do I go about finding answers or the underlying root causes if conventional doctors won’t/can’t, but you can’t afford a Functional Medicine doctor?”

This is not only a great question, but it’s an important one. For a variety of reasons, many of you are not able to work with a Functional Medicine practitioner. I am here to tell you that you still have the power to work with your doctor to get the tests that you need.

A big part of my work is helping patients who are dealing with what I call “diabesity”. Diabesity is the continuum of abnormal biology that ranges from mild insulin resistance to full-blown diabetes.

I’ve put out tons of material about the importance of getting the right tests. In fact, I’ve created a companion guide to go along with The Blood Sugar Solution called, How to Work with Your Doctor to Get What You Need for anyone who is concerned about insulin resistance, pre-diabetes, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and more.

Now I want to hear from you. Were you able to take charge of your health without the help of a Functional Medicine practitioner or integrative doctor? Comment on my Facebook Page, and if you liked this video, be sure to share it with your friends and family on Facebook and Twitter. Also, tweet me your questions, using the tag #housecallwithdrhyman, and maybe next week I’ll make a House Call to you.

Wishing you health and happiness,

Mark Hyman, MD

In this week’s House Call, a reader asks, “If one is lactose intolerant, but has no other intolerance to dairy, (e.g. casein and whey) is it OK to consume dairy products while having Hashimoto’s?”

By now, most of my readers probably know how I feel about dairy — it’s nature’s perfect food — but only if you’re a calf. We have no biological requirement for this food, and yet, we’ve been told over and over again that dairy is a great source of calcium, milk makes healthy bones and we should drink it daily. I’m here to tell you that this is not true.

Based on research and my experience practicing medicine, I typically advise most of my patients to avoid dairy products completely.

Personally, when I eat little to no dairy, I feel much, much better. Give it a shot, what’s to lose? Besides all the miserable symptoms and a little weight, that is…

Now, I want to hear from you. Do you consume dairy? Have you given it up? Leave your comments on my Facebook page, and if you liked this video, share it with your friends and family on Facebook and Twitter. Also, tweet me your questions @MarkHymanMD using the tag #housecallwithdrhyman, and maybe next week I’ll make a House Call to you.

Wishing your health and happiness,

Mark Hyman, MD

If you want to avoid stress, you’ve been born in the wrong era. Chronic stress has become an epidemic in our society where faster is better, and we attempt to pack more obligations into our ever-expanding schedules.

Luckily, there are experts out there who have come up with ways that we can achieve calm in the middle of chaos. One of those experts is Pedram Shojai, A.K.A. The Urban Monk.

Pedram Shojai has studied Kung Fu, Tai Chi, Qi Gong, Yoga, Meditation, and medicine diligently for the past 20 years. He is a doctor of Oriental Medicine, the author of two books – including The Urban Monk, and he is the founder and president of Well.Org.

I don’t know about you, but I would like to be an urban monk, too! So, I sat down with Pedram during The Fat Summit 2 to talk about managing stress in our modern world. In this interview, Pedram shares his top tips for a happier and healthier life.

We had a great time talking about Pedram’s way of being, and I hope you enjoy this interview as much as I did.

Wishing you health and happiness,

Mark Hyman, MD