Dr. Casey Means, Chief Medical Officer of Levels speaks with Dr. Richard Johnson about his book, "Nature Wants Us to Be Fat," as well as his insights on the "survival switch" that drives our body to store fat in response to certain conditions like high fructose, dehydration, umami flavors, and more, and how this all relates to our current metabolic disease epidemic.

Sign Up to Get Your Free Ultimate Guide to Glucose: ⁠⁠https://levels.link/wnl⁠⁠

Levels helps you see how food affects your health, empowering you with the tools needed to achieve health goals and improve healthspan. Levels Members gain access to the Levels app and continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), providing real-time feedback on how diet and lifestyle choices impact your metabolic health.

Look for new shows every month on A Whole New Level, where we have in-depth conversations with thought leaders about metabolic health.

🎙 What Dr. Casey Means & Dr. Richard Johnson discuss:

(04:25) - The fat switch

(11:39) - Metabolic syndrome is linked to survival

(13:36) - The switch is good for short term survival, bad for long term

(17:40) - Sugar triggers the switch

(19:39) - Sugar leads to metabolic syndrome, not extra calories

(23:40) - Fructose depletes energy

(31:28) - Vitamin C is protective against obesity

(35:12) - High glycemic foods help our bodies make fructose

(44:29) - Whole fruit is healthy because of the fiber

(53:48) - Salt can trigger fructose production

Transcripts & Show Notes

🔗 Helpful links:

Find us on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/levelshealth?sub_confirmation=1

The ketogenic diet is a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet that has proven benefits for brain health. Research shows that the keto diet helps ease symptoms of some mental health conditions, including depression and bipolar disorder. But no diet, even keto, is one-size-fits all. Dr. Georgia Ede and Dr. Dominic D’Agostino discuss how diet and brain health are connected, how diet and gut health affect brain health, and how a ketogenic or other low-carbohydrate diets can be tailored to people’s specific needs.

Sign Up to Get Your Free Ultimate Guide to Glucose: ⁠https://levels.link/wnl⁠

Levels helps you see how food affects your health, empowering you with the tools needed to achieve health goals and improve healthspan. Levels Members gain access to the Levels app and continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), providing real-time feedback on how diet and lifestyle choices impact your metabolic health.

Look for new shows every month on A Whole New Level, where we have in-depth conversations with thought leaders about metabolic health.

🎙 What Georgia Ede, MD & Dominic D’Agostino, PhD, discuss:

(06:51) — Dr. Georgia Ede describes her interest in nutritional science for mental health

(16:45) — Metabolic health is tied to brain health

(23:16) — A ketogenic diet vs medications for mental health

(27:19) — A ketogenic diet can be tailored to prevent side effects

(32:51) — Gut health and mental health are connected

(39:00) — Diet is highly individual

(42:02) —CGM can teach people how foods and diet strategies affect their health

(44:57) — Following a low-carbohydrate diet will generally reduce insulin levels and triglycerides

(47:40) — Some psychiatric symptoms have links to higher C-reactive protein levels

(48:42) — Dr. D’Agostino summarizes one of Dr. Ede’s studies on the ketogenic diet and mental health

(56:59) — A ketogenic diet may also help ease some menopause symptoms

Transcripts & Show notes

🔗 Helpful links:

Watch the conversation: ⁠https://youtu.be/kBjBEjV0vqU

Find us on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/levelshealth?sub_confirmation=1

From gallbladder issues to tinnitus to fatty liver disease and more, many chronic conditions have links to high blood sugar and insulin resistance. Dr. Ben Bikman and Dr. Casey Means discuss the connections between insulin resistance and ear-nose-and-throat conditions, how insulin resistance increases the risk for gallbladder stones, what non-alcoholic fatty liver disease does to the body, and how you can mitigate these chronic health conditions for improved quality of life.

Sign Up to Get Your Free Ultimate Guide to Glucose: https://levels.link/wnl

Levels helps you see how food affects your health, empowering you with the tools needed to achieve health goals and improve healthspan. Levels Members gain access to the Levels app and continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), providing real-time feedback on how diet and lifestyle choices impact your metabolic health.

Look for new shows every month on A Whole New Level, where we have in-depth conversations with thought leaders about metabolic health.

🎙 What Dr. Ben Bikman & Dr. Casey Means discuss:

(00:00) – Intro

(07:16) – A ray of hope in declining health

(09:25) – Metabolic connections for tinnitus, vertigo, and hearing loss

(11:57) – Undiagnosed metabolic disorders later surface in disease

(13:13) – Insulin resistance and GERD

(20:37) – How insulin resistance contributes to gallblader stones

(27:39) – NAFLD and clearing the liver of fat buildup

(33:47) – Two types of fat cell disorders: hypertropy and hyperplasia

(40:42) – Two foods to avoid for optimized health

(46:16) – When a low carb diet spikes blood glucose

(48:12) – The data power that a CGM gives you

(50:32) – A unique perspective on healthy glucose levels

Transcripts & Show notes

🔗 Helpful links:

Watch the conversation: https://youtu.be/szGl8F1zl6I

Find us on YouTube: https://youtube.com/levelshealth?sub_confirmation=1

How hearing loss relates to metabolic health | Blog post: https://www.levelshealth.com/blog/how-hearing-loss-relates-to-metabolic-health

Why too many focus on glucose, but not insulin | Blog post: https://www.levelshealth.com/blog/why-too-many-focus-on-glucose-but-not-insulin

Medications, such as Ozempic, Wegovy, and more, have become increasingly popular for weight loss. These drugs are glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, and they mimic a hormone that, among other things, tells the brain a person is full so they eat less. But are they safe, and do they help improve metabolic health? Dr. Rob Lustig and Dr. Casey Means discuss these weight-loss drugs and their effects on the body, and why such medications likely won’t solve the obesity crisis, for which the food industry is culpable.

Sign Up to Get Your Free Ultimate Guide to Glucose: https://levels.link/wnl

🎙 What Rob Lustig, MD, & Casey Means, MD, discuss:

(06:10) — The mechanisms of action for weight-loss medications

(09:01) — Dr. Casey Means shares her perception of the popularity of GLP-1 medications

(13:12) — GLP-1 RAs lead to fat loss but also muscle loss

(18:05) — Do GLP-1 RAs improve metabolic health?

(20:43) — Dr. Lustig discusses the high cost of GLP-1 RAs

(27:47) — Dr. Lustig makes the case for fixing the food problem

(35:46) — How can patients use GLP-1 RAs as a jumpstart?

(44:20) — Dr. Lustig shares his concerns about the use of GLP-1 RAs in children

Transcripts & Show Notes

Levels helps you see how food affects your health, empowering you with the tools needed to achieve health goals and improve healthspan. Levels Members gain access to the Levels app and continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), providing real-time feedback on how diet and lifestyle choices impact your metabolic health.

Look for new shows every month on A Whole New Level, where we have in-depth conversations with thought leaders about metabolic health.

🔗 Helpful links:

Watch the conversation: https://youtu.be/AKNnxKAaONc

📲 Connect:

Find us on YouTube: https://youtube.com/levelshealth?sub_confirmation=1

We know sugar is bad for kids, so why do parents continue giving it to them? Sugar damage kids’ health and drives behavioral issues. Infants get introduced to sugar early through commercial baby food, and the problem continues with school and birthday treats, soda, and the ultra-processed foods that have taken over the family pantry. Austin McGuffie & Dr. Robert Lustig discuss the rising rates of Type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in children, sugar addiction in kids, the problems with the food industry, and what parents can do to revamp their kids’ diets and promote a lifelong healthy relationship with nutritious food.

Sign Up to Get Your Ultimate Guide to Glucose – https://levels.link/wnl

(00:00) – Intro

(07:18) - Sugar is damaging kids’ mitochondria

(16:48) - The more dangerous fat

(21:50) - Kids need better nutrition education

(25:36) - Infants get introduced to sugar early

(27:48) - Fat was removed, but sugar was added

(32:51) - Sugar causes behavioral issues

(36:08) - Kids can have sugar addiction

(38:34) - Diet soda is bad too

(44:48) - Educate the child and the parents

(48:47) - Get rid of sugary drinks

Transcripts & Show Notes

Watch the Video – https://youtu.be/I3d7zCHFW2c

The ketogenic diet may help reduce depression and other symptoms in bipolar disorder. The ketogenic diet also helps metabolic health and reduces the risk for cardiometabolic diseases. The risk for cardiometabolic diseases is elevated in people with bipolar disorder when compared to the general population. Dr. Iain Campbell, Dr. Bret Scher, and Dr. Dominic D’Agostino discuss how the state of ketosis has beneficial effects on brain neurotransmitters and how those benefits have been life-changing physically and mentally for Dr. Campbell, who has bipolar disorder.

Sign Up to Get Your Free Ultimate Guide to Glucose: https://levels.link/wnl

🎙 What Iain Campbell, MD, PhD, Bret Scher, MD & Dominic D’Agostino, PhD discuss:

(05:40) — Dr. Iain Campbell explains how a ketogenic diet improved his mental health

(09:02) — Dr. Campbell explains his pilot trial on the ketogenic diet and bipolar disorder

(16:20) — The ketogenic diet is often misunderstood

(18:10) — Elevated lactate is a biomarker in bipolar disorder

(24: 37) — Circadian rhythm disruption affects bipolar disorder

(30:33) — Morning exercise can help blunt the dawn glucose rise

(38:48) — The ketogenic diet has effects on brain neurotransmitters

(43:34) — Dr. Campbell explains ketosis helps him combat depression

(46:42) — Dr. Campbell describes why he went on the ketogenic diet

Transcripts & Show notes

👋 WHO WE ARE:

Levels helps you see how food affects your health. With real-time, personalized data gathered through biosensors like continuous glucose monitors (CGM), you learn which diet and lifestyle choices improve your metabolic health so you can live a longer, fuller, healthier life.

🔗 LINKS:

Watch the conversation: https://youtu.be/SAI6qeBMJFo

Find us on YouTube: https://youtube.com/levelshealth?sub_confirmation=1

📲 Connect:

Connect with Iain Campbell, MD, PhD, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/IainCampbellPhD

Connect with Bret Scher, MD, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bschermd/

Connect with Bret Scher, MD, on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drbretscher/

Connect with Dominic D’Agostino, PhD, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DominicDAgosti2

Connect with Dominic D’Agostino, PhD on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dominic.dagostino.kt/

What you think you know about keto and ketones might be wrong. Keto can be great for weight loss, but there’s a better way to do it by focusing on more diverse plant food, protecting your mitochondria through mitochondrial uncoupling, and focusing on fiber.

Sign Up to Get Your Free Ultimate Guide to Glucose: https://levels.link/wnl

🎙 What Dr. Steven Gundry, author of Unlocking The Keto Code, and Levels Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Casey Means discuss:

(07:55) - A career change

(11:57) - Keto Code

(15:25) - Efficient fat burner

(17:05) - The connection of seizure to the fall of ketogenic diet

(21:11) - The beauty of mitochondria

(23:38) - The benefits of Ketones

(25:49) - Uncoupling mitochondria

(30:13) - Instead of keto diet go for mitochondrial uncoupling diet

(30:58) - What are other ways to stimulate mitochondrial uncoupling

(42:03) - MCT oil

⁠Transcripts & Show Notes⁠

Levels helps you see how food affects your health, empowering you with the tools needed to achieve health goals and improve healthspan. Levels Members gain access to the Levels app and continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), providing real-time feedback on how diet and lifestyle choices impact your metabolic health.

Look for new shows every month on A Whole New Level, where we have in-depth conversations with thought leaders about metabolic health.

🔗 Helpful links:

Watch the conversation: ⁠⁠https://youtu.be/rRSHO2j3e0Q⁠⁠

Find us on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/levelshealth?sub_confirmation=1

Read about the Levels diet philosophy: ⁠https://www.levelshealth.com/blog/the-levels-dietary-philosophyRead Unlocking the Keto Code: https://amazon.com/Unlocking-Keto-Code-Revolutionary-Deprivation-ebook/dp/B092DKKXS3⁠

📲 Connect:

Connect with Casey on Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/drcaseyskitchen⁠

Connect with Casey on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/drcaseyskitchen⁠  

Connect with Steven on Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/drgundry⁠  

Connect with Steven on Instagram: ⁠https://instagram.com/drstevengundry

The United States government subsidizes ultra-processed foods and sugar, and the healthcare system focuses on treating diseases rather than preventing them. These issues are harming kids’ health and leading to crisis-level rates of prediabetes and diabetes in both adults and children. Siblings Calley Means and Casey Means discuss problems with the food industry, government funding, and healthcare, and they propose possible solutions, while also offering suggestions for parents wanting to set their kids up for better metabolic health right now.

Sign Up to Get Your Free Ultimate Guide to Glucose: https://levels.link/wnl

🎙 What Calley Means & Casey Means, MD, discuss:

(4:01) — Kids are developing prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes at alarming rates

(5:33) — The government subsidizes ultra-processed foods

(13:05) — Ultra-processed food companies incentivize trusted institutions

(21:48) — We only get one life to live

(25:42) — The metabolic health crisis is problematic for the economy

(27:09) — Giving kids ultra-processed foods sets them up for metabolic health issues

(36:48) — Three ingredients make up the problematic foundation of ultra-processed foods

(42:49) — Parents have a lot of control over what their kids eat—especially when they’re young

(46:49) —You can’t control other adults in your family

(1:02:59) — The healthcare industry isn’t incentivized in the correct ways

(1:07:54) — Calley Means describes, TruMed, his tech startup

Transcripts & Show notes

Levels helps you see how food affects your health, empowering you with the tools needed to achieve health goals and improve healthspan. Levels Members gain access to the Levels app and continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), providing real-time feedback on how diet and lifestyle choices impact your metabolic health.

Look for new shows every month on A Whole New Level, where we have in-depth conversations with thought leaders about metabolic health.

🔗 Helpful links:

Watch the conversation: https://youtu.be/pIUwZb2jfco

Find us on YouTube: https://youtube.com/levelshealth?sub_confirmation=1

📲 Connect:

Connect with Calley Means on Instagram: https://instagram.com/calleymeans

Connect with Calley Means on Twitter: https://twitter.com/calleymeans

Connect with Calley Means on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/calley-means-a29b5512/

How might a keto diet transform not only your metabolic health but may also manage symptoms of mental health disorders like depression, anxiety, PTSD, schizophrenia, and more? Dr. Chris Palmer outlines the principles from his book “Brain Energy” with Ben Grynol in this episode and discusses his journey toward the revolutionary idea that might change how we view mental health care moving forward.

Sign Up to Get Your Free Ultimate Guide to Glucose: https://levels.link/wnl

🎙 What Dr. Chris Palmer & Ben Grynol discuss:

(00:00) — Intro

(07:57) — How Chris Palmer started his research for Brain Energy

(10:49) — Painting a picture of the mental health crisis through numbers

(20:17) — Discussing the biopsychosocial model and existing research on the roots of mental disorders

(30:38) — The bidirectional relationship between metabolic and mental health

(34:37) — The real power of the mitochondria and the role it plays in fostering mental and metabolic health

(46:08) — Medication for mental disorders and their long-term effect on patients’ metabolic health

(01:07:10) — Insulin resistance and its impact on mental disorders

(1:11:39) — Food addiction, stress-eating, and why Chris doesn’t sugarcoat the realities of the ketogenic diet

(1:28:38) — It’s not too late to start taking charge of your metabolic health now

(1:38:45) — Chris touches on the factors that hinder better mental healthcare today and what we can do to advocate for the mentally ill

Transcripts & Show notes

Levels helps you see how food affects your health, empowering you with the tools needed to achieve health goals and improve healthspan. Levels Members gain access to the Levels app and continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), providing real-time feedback on how diet and lifestyle choices impact your metabolic health.

Look for multiple new shows per week on A Whole New Level, where we have in-depth conversations about metabolic health and how the Levels startup team builds a wellness movement from the ground up in the health and wellness tech industry.

🔗 Helpful links:

Find us on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/levelshealth?sub_confirmation=1⁠

Order Brain Energy: ⁠https://amazon.com/Brain-Energy-Revolutionary-Understanding-Health/dp/1637741588/⁠

📲 Connect:

Connect with Chris on Instagram: ⁠https://instagram.com/chrispalmermd⁠

Connect with Chris on Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/ChrisPalmerMD⁠

Connect with Chris on LinkedIn: ⁠https://linkedin.com/in/christopher-palmer-01713032

Continuous glucose monitoring can be a powerful tool for gaining real-time insights into how diet, lifestyle habits, and the many decisions we make daily affect our health. Retired astronaut Scott Kelly tried a CGM for a month and shares his personal insights. Scott Kelly and Josh Clemente discuss how CGM can be used to effect habit change, what Kelly’s participation in the unique NASA Twins study was like and what was learned, and insights Kelly gleaned about society and the environment while viewing Earth from space.

Sign Up to Get Your Free Ultimate Guide to Glucose: https://levels.link/wnl

🎙 What Scott Kelly & Josh Clemente discuss:

(03:55) — CGM provides insight into eating and lifestyle habits

(06:06) — Our hundreds of daily actions have an impact on our health

(13:28) — The “normal” range for various biomarkers isn’t necessarily the optimal range

(17:07) — How CGM can help change eating habits

(18:12) — Menu items labeled “healthy” aren’t always healthy

(23:56) — The epidemic of Type 2 diabetes and obesity

(30:49) — NASA’s Twins Study

(34:30) — Being in space can lead to muscle and bone atrophy

(40:17) — Gravity plays a role in our physiology

(48:20) — Looking at Earth from space can provide an interesting perspective

Transcripts & Show Notes

Levels helps you see how food affects your health, empowering you with the tools needed to achieve health goals and improve healthspan. Levels Members gain access to the Levels app and continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), providing real-time feedback on how diet and lifestyle choices impact your metabolic health.

Look for new shows every month on A Whole New Level, where we have in-depth conversations with thought leaders about metabolic health.

🔗 Helpful links:

Watch the conversation: https://youtu.be/5i2T-s61yLw

Find us on YouTube: https://youtube.com/levelshealth?sub_confirmation=1

📲 Connect:

Connect with Scott Kelly on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stationcdrkelly/

Connect with Scott Kelly on Twitter: https://twitter.com/StationCDRKelly