Q&A with Leyla, Part 1: Are diets containing meat dangerous?

• I’m confused by information presented on diets containing meat as being dangerous. Could you shed some light?
• Assisted living models that would be of benefit to older adults

Q&A with Leyla, Part 2: Nattokinase for blood pressure?

• A comment on Medicare coverage of the hs-CRP blood test
• Are butyrate supplements beneficial to take?
• Is iron overload a risk factor for heart attack?
• Nattokinase lowered my blood pressure!
• Is there a danger of clot relocation when taking systemic enzymes?

Integrative rheumatologist Dr. Aly Cohen combines conventional rheumatology medications with lifestyle and environmental health approaches to manage autoimmune disease, emphasizing nutrition, sleep, exercise, the gut microbiome, and reducing exposure to synthetic chemicals, pesticides, and contaminated water. They discuss how immunosuppressive drugs can be lifesaving but carry infection risks, and how “risk mitigation” and anti-inflammatory dietary patterns can support resilience. Cohen highlights vitamin D’s importance in autoimmunity and COVID outcomes and lists four foundational supplements: a clean multivitamin (including iodine), vitamin D3 guided by blood levels, a quality probiotic, and omega-3 fish oil with adequate EPA+DHA; they also cover cautious use of curcumin, limited enthusiasm for glucosamine/chondroitin, and a measured view of collagen. Cohen promotes her hybrid Smart Human Health Summit on women’s health (Saturday, April 25), featuring clinicians speaking on menopause/HRT, dementia, cardiology, endocrinology, GLP-1s, and toxins, with in-person, virtual, and recorded access.

Bioethicist and psychiatrist Dr. Aaron Kheriaty, author of “Making the Cut: How to Heal Modern Medicine,” discusses declining public trust in healthcare. Kheriaty describes his medical training and argues medicine has become an industrial, bureaucratic “turnstile” system that dehumanizes care, turns physicians into data-entry clerks, and relies on reimbursement-driven “guidelines” and narrow evidence-based medicine that favors costly pharmaceuticals. He proposes creating “parallel” grassroots medical institutions—such as direct primary care—analogous to homeschooling and Eastern European dissidents’ “parallel polis,” since systemic reform from within is difficult. Kheriaty recounts opposing COVID vaccine mandates at UC Irvine, being fired after suing, and participating in Missouri v. Biden and Ho v. Newsom, which challenged government-influenced social-media censorship and California’s physician “misinformation” law. He also discusses informed consent, assisted suicide opposition, and advocating opt-in organ donation.

Part 1: Muscle as Promoter of Overall Health

Expect a renewed push to take a statin at your next doctor’s visit; PREVENT online calculator skews decisions to prescribe cholesterol reduction as early as 30; American Heart Association discourages at-risk patients from taking fish oil and garlic supplements—REALLY? Renewed interest in muscle as promoter of overall health and metabolism; The key role of urolithin A (Mitopure®️) for supporting muscle function. Is DHEA a reasonable supplement for post-menopausal women?

Part 2: Tattoos Carry Long-Term Health Risks

CEO of large hospital system makes controversial call to replace radiologists with AI; Inclusion Body Myositis—is it curable? New worries over flame retardants in recycled black plastic utensils; Scientists discover link to toxic microbiome byproducts in causation of ALS, frontotemporal dementia; When depression-sufferers lose all interest in food; Eating plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables incurs risk of bio-accumulation of pesticide residues; Tattoos carry long-term health risks.

Q&A with Leyla, Part 1: The Take Back Your Health Tour

• The benefits of sauna
• The Take Back Your Health Tour
• A follow-up on milk thistle interactions with drugs
• What are your thoughts on low-dose saw palmetto for hair growth?
• Is monk fruit a safe sweetener to use?

Q&A with Leyla, Part 2: Are there any drawbacks to eating canned fish?

• Would strontium help in the healing of lumbar fractures?  How about as a preventive?
• How valuable is the hs-CRP test?  
• Are there any drawbacks to eating canned fish?
• What are your thoughts on Arterosil for cardiovascular health?

Dr. Jeffrey Bland, Founder and President of the Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute and President of Big Bold Health, is described as the “godfather of functional medicine.” He details the origins of functional medicine as a systems-biology, root-cause approach emphasizing diet, lifestyle, and supplements alongside conventional allopathic care, especially for chronic disease. Bland contrasts medication “number needed to treat” examples (statins and TNF-alpha blockers) with personalized lifestyle interventions, noting adherence challenges. He discusses GLP-1 weight-loss drugs as a major pharmacologic advance but raises concerns about long-term effects, discontinuation rates, side effects, and inadequate nutrition if food intake drops. Bland describes research on bitter compounds and gut “taste” receptors influencing GLP-1 and related hormones, links to Blue Zone diets, and introduces Big Bold Health’s Himalayan Tartary Buckwheat and minimally processed, sustainably sourced fish oil products, the Omega-3 index, and targeted formulations with lutein/astaxanthin, plus ongoing clinical trials on immune aging and gene expression.

Dr. Sina McCullough, author of “Hands Off My Food! How to Defend Your Food, Health, and Freedom,” argues that bureaucrats, multinational biotech corporations, and regulatory loopholes have helped adulterate the U.S. food supply. McCullough describes nearly dying from rheumatoid arthritis after years of worsening symptoms despite a “clean” organic, paleo-style diet, then recovering through functional testing that revealed 15 nutrient deficiencies, food sensitivities, and arsenic poisoning; she says she healed without pharmaceuticals. She explains that nutrition training often ignores food adulterants and claims the FDA facilitates markets rather than ensures safety, highlighting the GRAS loophole, voluntary notification, lack of long-term and cumulative testing, and industry influence via the revolving door. Examples include trans fats, glyphosate formulation issues, gene-edited crops, and recombinant bovine growth hormone approvals and labeling. She discusses organic loopholes and emphasizes solutions: read labels, “feed the good and starve the bad,” vote with purchasing, seek third-party certifications, and know your farmer; she also promotes her Beyond Labels podcast with farmer Joel Salatin.

Part 1: A New, Enhanced Form of Fish Oil

Social media and AI—the digital equivalents of ultra-processed junk food–are undermining our brain power; Are natural non-caloric sweeteners—erythritol, xylitol and stevia—safe? A pig’s brain has been flash frozen, and reanimated, signaling new prospects for cryopreservation after death; Dr. Jeffrey Bland weighs in on a new, enhanced form of fish oil from Big Bold Health.

Part 2: The Ultimate Weight Loss Plan—The Boring Diet

Heart Association clashes with RFK, Jr., doubles down on recommendation for low-fat diets; Why the evidence for meat and full-fat dairy avoidance is weak; What are the health benefits of circumcision? The ultimate weight loss plan—the Boring Diet; Substituting famotidine for PPIs for reflux; Midlife vitamin D curbs Alzheimer’s risk; Natural support for polymyalgia rheumatica; What teens eat could be affecting their mental health.

Q&A with Leyla, Part 1: Dr. Hoffman’s New Zealand Bike Trip

• Highlights from Dr. Hoffman’s New Zealand bike trip
• Do you prefer whey protein isolate or concentrate?
• My liver enzymes went up taking a statin drug. My doctor recommends I take milk thistle. What are your thoughts?
• If any supplement protocols are out of stock, should we make substitutions?

Q&A with Leyla, Part 2: Farmed v. Wild Caught Seafood

• What are your thoughts on peptides?
• So it’s not possible to get enough protein from plants only?
• What about the downsides to animal protein?
• Are there any negative reports on the usage of extra virgin olive oil?
• Is it true that the nutritional value of farmed seafood is the same as wild caught?

Dr. David Clarke, president of the Psychophysiologic Disorders Association, details the link between stress and chronic pain and the scope of brain-generated symptoms. Clarke says many patients have symptoms not explained by disease or injury, estimating about 20% of U.S. adults (about 50 million) live with chronic pain, with costs estimated at $650 billion, and notes clinicians are often not trained to evaluate psychosocial stressors. He describes clues that pain is brain-generated (e.g., multiple long-lasting or shifting symptoms, lack of objective nerve damage) and a broad symptom spectrum from migraines and IBS to pelvic pain and rashes. Clarke discusses adverse childhood experiences, triggers, personality traits, and repressed emotions, cites randomized trials showing “pain relief psychology” can reduce pain and change MRI findings, and shares resources including a clinician directory, self-assessment quiz, and the Curable app.