Mind & Matter
Whether food, drugs or ideas, what you consume influences who you become. Learn directly from the best scientists & thinkers alive today about how your mind-body reacts to what you feed it.
The weekly M&M podcast features conversations with the most interesting scientists, thinkers, and technology entrepreneurs alive today.
Not medical advice.
At M&M, we are interested in trying to figure out how things work, not affirming our existing beliefs. We prefer consulting primary rather than secondary sources and independent rather than institutional voices. If we encounter uncomfortable truths or the evidence suggests unfashionable ideas may be valid, so be it.
As the host, my aim is to help you better understand how the body & mind work by curating & synthesizing information in a way that yields science-based insights that you can choose to use or disregard in your own life. Taking ownership of your health starts with taking ownership of your information diet.
I am motivated to connect the dots and distill general principles from what I learn, preferring to ask questions and play devil’s advocate to debating or incessantly pushing my own viewpoint.
My beliefs:
- Taking ownership of your health starts with taking ownership of your information diet.
- All knowledge is provisional and we must work hard to prevent ourselves from becoming attached to our favorite ideas & preferred conclusions.
- Wisdom comes from an iterative, trial-and-error process of learning and unlearning. Letting go of pre-conceived notions can be painful, but pain is information.
Sometimes modern discoveries teach us we must unlearn received wisdom. Other times, modern information overload & historical chauvinism cause us to forget ancient wisdom which stills applies. The framework for learning that I embody is inspired by three Ancient Greek maxims inscribed in the Temple of Apollo at Delphi:
- “Γνῶθι σεαυτόν” (Know thyself)
- “Μηδὲν ἄγαν” (Nothing in excess)
- “Ἐγγύα πάρα δ Ἄτα” (Certainty brings insanity)
Episodes
294 episodes
Omega Polyunsaturated Fats in Inflammation | Philip Calder | Episode 291
How dietary fatty acids regulate the initiation, propagation, and resolution of inflammation.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Parenteral nutrition history: IV nutrition evolved from soybean oil alone in the 1960s to complex ble...
Reversing Alzheimer's & Neurodegeneration: Latest Science | Andrew Pieper | Episode 290
A metabolic view of Alzheimer's disease & the recent discovery of compounds that reverse advanced disease symptoms in mouse models by restoring mitochondrial health.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Classic Alzheimer’s pathology...
How Parental Exercise Effects Offspring Health | Kristin Stanford | Episode 289
How exercise in parents can improve the metabolic and cardiovascular health of their offspring through epigenetic mechanisms.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Parental exercise & offspring metabolic health: exercise before a...
Vagus Nerve Stimulation & Inflammation | Kevin Tracey | 288
How the vagus nerve regulates inflammation; bioelectronic therapies to treat inflammatory conditions.Nick speaks with Dr. Kevin Tracey about inflammation as a major driver of modern diseases, the vagus nerve’s role in balancing immune re...
Light, Hunger & Mitochondria: Non-Image Forming Effects of Sunlight | Alexis Cowan | Episode 287
How light regulate circadian rhythms, mitochondrial function, hormones, and appetite.Nick & Dr. Alexis Cowan discuss non-image-forming effects of light on the body, from melanopsin-driven circadian signaling in the eye to UV-stimulat...
Sleep, Brain Fat & Oxidative Stress | Amita Sehgal | Episode 286
Is the fundamental purpose of sleep to remove oxidized fats from the brain?Nick & Dr. Amita Sehgal talk about the latest science on why animals sleep. Using fruit flies, her lab shows that waking generates oxidized lipids in neurons ...
Peptides for Tissue Repair: BPC-157, TB-500 & the "Wolverine Stack" | Episode 285
The science, hype, and unknowns surrounding popular peptides like BPC-157 & TB-500 ("Wolverine stack") for injury recovery & tissue repair.Nick & Dr. Flynn McGuire discuss the surge in peptide use for injury recovery. They co...
Obesity Resistance & Leanness | Episode 284
Biology of obesity resistance and factors influencing weight gain in humans and animals.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Historical views on obesity: In some cultures, like northern Africa or Stone Age societies, high body fat ...
Mitochondria Genetics & Human Metabolic Variation in Health & Disease | Douglas Wallace | Episode 283
Mitochondria in human evolution, climate adaptation, maternal genetics, aging, and disease.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Endosymbiotic theory: Mitochondria arose from oxidative bacteria engulfed by archaea-like hosts, confir...
Bile Acids in Health & Metabolic Disease | Episode 282
Role of bile acids in cholesterol regulation, digestion & metabolic diseases like diabetes.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Bile acids basics: They enable cholesterol excretion, with about half of bodily cholesterol elimina...
Circadian Rhythms, Metabolism & Why Timing Your Meals Matters | Dr. Joseph Bass | Episode 281
How the body's internal circadian clocks regulate metabolism, energy balance, and health.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Master circadian clock in the brain: Light detection via retina entrains the suprachiasmatic nucleus, whi...
Opioid Addiction: RNA Biology, Brain Inflammation & Psychedelic Therapy | Episode 280
Gene regulation through RNAs, the neurobiology of opioid addiction, and how psychedelics affect drug-seeking by modulating inflammation and plasticity. Not medical advice.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Gene regulation basics:...
Estrogen & Body Fat: Menopause, Puberty, Females vs. Males | Episode 279
The biology of fat tissue, estrogen's role in metabolism and health, and how exercise interacts with these processes, especially during menopause.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Adipose tissue basics: White fat primarily store...
The Claustrum: Cognition, Consciousness, Alcohol & Psychedelics | Episode 278
The brain's mysterious claustrum region, its role in cognitive flexibility, and how substances like alcohol and psychedelics affect neural circuits and behavior. Not medical advice.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Cerebral cortex s...
Psychedelic Neurobiology: Sex-Specific Effects of MDMA & Psilocybin in Addiction & Reward Behavior | 277
Pharmacology & neurobiology of psychedelics & MDMA, focusing on isomers, sex-specific effects, and mechanisms in animal models. Not medical advice.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Biased agonism: Different drugs activat...
AMPK: Biochemistry of Nutrient Sensing, Fasting, Cell Repair & Growth | Greg Steinberg | Episode 276
The AMP kinase pathway's role in cellular energy sensing, nutrient allocation, and its connections to health practices like fasting, exercise, and diet.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Cellular energy basics: ATP/ADP/AMP as ene...
Farm Food: Soy in Animal Feed, Pesticides, Phytoestrogens, Seed Oils & Regenerative Farming | Episode 275
How industrial farming, seed oils, soy, and pesticides impact food nutrition and health. Not medical advice.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Soy’s rise in farming: Originating from paint uses and wartime chemicals, soy became d...
Personalized Nutrition: Individual Responses to Foods, Fiber, Fats & Maternal Health | 274
How individuals vary in responses to carbs, fibers, and fats.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Personalized health profiling: Snyder’s lab sequences genomes and measures molecules from blood, urine, and microbiomes to detect dis...
Nutrition Content of Animal & Plant Foods: Beef, Plant-Based Meat, Raw vs. Processed Milk | Stephan Van Vliet | Episode 273
How agricultural practices influence the nutrient density of foods, particularly meat, and the importance of hidden compounds beyond standard nutrition labels.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Nutrient density profiling: Labs an...
Obesogens & Oxidative Stress in Metabolic Health, Neurodegeneration & Alzheimer's Disease | Robert Lustig | 272
Cellular metabolism, mitochondrial health, and the roles of diet and environment in metabolic health, fetal & child development, and Alzheimer's.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Cellular growth vs. burning: Cells alternate ...
Carbohydrates vs Ketosis in Exercise, Fatigue & Sports Science | Andrew Koutnik | Episode 271
Deep dive into how ketogenic diets and carbohydrate intake effect exercise performance, and misconceptions in sports nutrition.TOPICS DISCUSSED:Insulin as a powerful metabolic hormone: regulates nutrient storage...
Stress & Psilocybin: Effects on Maternal Care & Offspring Development | Danielle Stolzenberg | 270
Neurobiology of maternal care in mammals: hormonal influences, stress effects & a study on psilocybin's unexpected effects during the postpartum period.Sponsor: SporesMD. Use code TRIKOMES f...
Soybean Oil: Obesity, Fatty Liver Disease, Gut Health, IBS & Colitis | Ep. 269
Metabolic effects of soybean oil and linoleic acid on obesity, fatty liver, and liver function.Topics Discussed:Historical trends in soybean oil use: Consumption increased dramatically since the 1960s due to far...
Dietary Fat & Light Regulation of Circadian Biology | Louis Ptacek | 268
How seasonal changes in light and dietary unsaturated fats affect circadian rhythms in mammals.Topics Discussed:Evolutionary context of circadian rhythms: All organisms have adapted to Earth’s 24-hour day for su...
Ketosis & BHB: Metabolic Diet Therapies, Brain Cancer & Exercise | Dominic D'Agostino | Episode 267
How ketosis and ketogenic diets work and how these tools can improve metabolic health, brain function, and even cancer management.Topics Discussed:Organs have different fuel preferences: brain strongly prefers glucose,...
