Glutamate is the most abundant amino acid in the diet, but is usually bound up in proteins. In its free form, it contributes to the umami taste, which is the savory flavor associated with meat and mushrooms. Long, slow cooking and fermenting can both bring out this flavor.⠀ Unfortunately, some people don’t tolerate glutamate well. …
Bruno da Gama, the “Brazilian Health Nut,” interviewed me about the science of weight loss, and you can find it here: BHN #032 The Science of Weight Loss with Dr. Chris Masterjohn Enjoy!
Question: What Is the Real Issue With Seed Oils? Short Answer: The main issue with seed oils is that they present an oxidative liability. They do not acutely cause oxidative stress, but their polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are more vulnerable than any other macronutrient to oxidative damage. Oxidative stress can increase because of nutrient deficiencies, …
Question: How do we find the root cause of an autoimmune condition? One example considered where the root cause is energy metabolism. Short Answer: Autoimmune conditions are likely driven by deficiencies of vitamins A and D, which contribute to post-infectious autoimmunity by compromising the rhythmic rise and fall of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), and to autoimmunity regardless …
Question: How can I protect against oxalates? Short Answer: Getting 300-400 mg calcium between food and supplements at each meal will minimize oxalate absorption. Maintaining postprandial urine pH in the 6.4-6.8 range by getting 3-5 grams of potassium per day from food or from organic acid salts such as potassium citrate will prevent its crystallization in the …
Question: What can be done about twitching? Short Answer: Most twitching will be driven by glutamate/GABA balance or acetylcholine regulation, and the most likely nutritional issues are any of the electrolytes or any factor that influences energy metabolism. The best way to address it is to consider the conditions that influence it and then trial and error …
Maintaining good GSH status is always important to protect high-dose C from generating oxalate and may often be important for preventing it from acting as a pro-oxidant. Cancer is an exception. In my preliminary report, I voiced the concern that high-dose vitamin C could deplete glutathione and worsen nitric oxide toxicity when not properly balanced with …
MASA chips launch today. Traditionally nixtamalized organic corn fried in grass-fed beef tallow. Full-bodied and perfectly salty. My friend Steve, who is the one who originally introduced me to the Essex Farm CSA that now supplies me with almost all my food, has invented a new tortilla chip that launches today! MASA chips are made …
At what dose should we be concerned, and what can we do about it? Yesterday, I held a live Q&A with Masterpass members, and one of the questions that came up was whether we should be concerned about alpha-lipoic acid supplements hurting methylation as described in this rat study from 2010. After searching among the papers citing this study, the Examine.Com …
Why Nick Hiebert is wrong in using antagonistic pleiotropy to refute the ancestral health framework. I recently had a debate on Twitter Spaces with Nick Hiebert on the value of the ancestral health framework. I will publish this soon with my reflections. Here, however, I want to make an independent analysis that focuses narrowly on …