Rational Wellness Podcast (Dr. Ben Weitz)

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The Holistic Kids discuss Avoiding Ultraprocessed Foods with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.]

Podcast Highlights

The Holistic Kids, Abdullah, Zain, Emaad, and Qasim are the co-hosts of The Holistic Kids’ Show Podcast.  They have co-authored four best-selling books with their mother Madiha Saeed, MD,  Adam’s Healing Adventures children book series which have been featured as Dr Mark Hyman’s Top 5 Picks.  Their book The Teen Health Revolution: Unlocking lifestyle secrets to Optimizing the Mind, Body and Soul will be releasing in 2025. Their YouTube page is HolisticMom, MD.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Dr. Jill Crista discusses PANDAS and PANS with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.]

Podcast Highlights

Dr. Jill Crista is a Naturopathic Doctor and the author of Break the Mold: 5 Tools to Conquer Mold and Take Back Your Health and now of this new book, A Light in the Dark for PANDAS and PANS. Dr. Crista offers several popular physician training programs on both Mold and also on PANDAS and PANS, as well as a course for patients on mold. Her website is DrCrista.com.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Dr. Jeffrey James discusses Hypothyroidism with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.] 

Podcast Highlights

3:17  Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is the most common form of low functioning thyroid or hypothyroidism.  Dr. James noted that he has seen hundreds of women suffering with hypothyroidism and most of these women don’t even get tested for Hashimoto’s, since from the perspective of conventional medicine, if the woman has low functioning thyroid/high TSH levels, they will be treated with Synthroid or levothyroxine, which is synthetic thyroid hormone.  If it has an autoimmune origin, it doesn’t change the pharmaceutical outcome.  But if you have Hashimoto’s thyroiditis you have an immune system problem rather than a primary thyroid problem. We need to try to understand what would cause your immune system to dysregulate and want to attack your own body tissues?  Unfortunately, once you have one autoimmune disorder, you’re 50% more likely to develop another one.  Dr. James explained that a lot of women complain that they’re exhausted, they’re putting on weight, they’ve got brain fog, they’re losing their hair, they’re constipated, their skin is dry, they’ve got brain fog, they have this constellation of symptoms, and they’re cold.  When they go to their doctor, out comes the prescription for Synthroid.  Unfortunately a majority of women end up back in their doctor’s office after a few months or a few years and they don’t feel any better.  Their primary MD or endocrinologist then tries to dial in their TSH.  If they are depressed, then they get prescribed an antidepressant like Effexor or Cymbalta. If they have headaches, they get prescribed Imitrex.  If their blood pressure goes up, they are prescribed antihypertensive medications like Lisinopril or Amlopidipine or hydrochlorothiazide.  Dr. James sees a lot of these women who feel like they are not being seen or their complaints are not being addressed by their physician. 

9:10  Functional Medicine practitioners are not simply treating each symptom with a pharmaceutical drug to ameliorate that symptom but are looking at your underlying metabolism, physiology, endocrinology as well as the root causes of the autoimmunity that is often driving these imbalances that can often be corrected with diet and lifestyle changes.  The patient with hypothyroidism could have an underlying GI infection or a biotoxin illness. They could have a genetic susceptibility to not being able to process mycotoxins that are either in their environment or that are in their foods that they’re eating. They could have a Lyme infection. They could have a viral infection or a gut infection, a parasite or a bacterial infection in their gut that’s driving an immunological response.  Any of these things can create a low level inflammatory response that can affect thyroid production, conversion, or uptake, all of which create symptoms that are very similar.  From a Functional Medicine perspective we want to see which way the physiology is tilting and we want to see if their lab values are optimal and not just normal or not. 

11:05  The medical system in our country where once per year you go in for a physical exam with very minimal testing only to look for a pharmaceutical intervention is a failed system. Just look at how poor the health of our country is.  We need to test more widely to see how well our bodies are functioning.   

Dr. Jeffrey James is a Doctor of Chiropractic, a Chiropractic Neurologist, and a Functional Medicine practitioner and his office is LA Functional Neurology.  He has been in private practice in West Los Angeles since 1989.  His website is DrJeffreyJames.com. His office phone is 310-396-3100.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111. Dr. Weitz is also available for video or phone consultations.

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Dr. Lani Simpson discusses How to Test for and Manage Osteoporosis with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.] 

Podcast Highlights

Dr. Lani Simpson is a Doctor of Chiropractic who has established herself as an expert at bone health and women’s health over the last 35 years. She is a Certified Clinical Densitometrist, which means she is an expert at reading bone density tests, and she was the first alternative doctor to be awarded this certification.  She produced Down to the Bone, a CEU course for practitioners and she has been presenting the Heat is on, Menopause and PMS seminars for chiropractors, acupuncturists, and other practitioners for the last 35 years as well. She is the cofounder of the East Bay Menopause and PMS center and of the East Bay Osteoporosis Diagnostic Center. Her website is LaniSimpson.com.  Dr. Simpson will be teaching an advanced course on Osteoporosis starting on April 20, 2024: Ultimate Osteoporosis Course.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Ric Scalzo discusses Herbal Farming with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.]

Podcast Highlights

Ric Scalzo earned a master’s degree in herbal medicine from the School of Herbal Medicine and he was also awarded an honorary doctorate of naturopathic medicine from Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine.  He started and ran for 32 years and then sold Gaia herbs in 2019.  He now has a regenerative farm in Costa Rica where he grows and sells his own herbal products under the Kokora brand and the website is KokoraLife.com.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Dr. Robert Rountree discusses Improving Immune System Health with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.]

Podcast Highlights

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Dr. Robert Rountree, MD is a diplomate of the American Board of Holistic Medicine and certified by the American Board of Family Practice. He lectures around the world for the Institute of Functional Medicine.  He combines traditional family medicine, nutrition, herbology, and mind body therapy in his practice in Boulder Wellcare in Boulder, Colorado.  His office number is (303) 443-9590.

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Ryan Smith of TruDiagnostic discusses the Tru-Age Test of Biological Aging with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.]

Podcast Highlights

Ryan Smith is the CEO of TruDiagnostics, who offer the TruAge test, which is the best commercially available way to measure biological aging by measuring DNA methylation.  Their website is TruDiagnostic.com.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Dr. Robert Hedaya discusses Integrative Psychiatry with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.] 

Podcast Highlights

1:38  Dr. Hedaya noted that from his time in medical school he was always oriented towards getting to the root cause of things. After writing his first book, he was on the edge of chronic fatigue and he dove into the metabolic medicine approach of Dr. Jeffrey Bland, which later was changed to Functional Medicine. Dr. Hedaya was a neuropharmacologist trained in cognitive behavioral therapy and after bringing Functional Medicine into the mix he found that he was no longer doing this medication merry-go-round and most of his patients were now getting better. Dr. Hedaya explained that after writing his second book, he hired a statistician to assess the patients he had treated for treatment-resistant depression.  All 23 of these patients when they started had a mean Beck Depression inventory of 34, which is in the severe range, and by about 10 months everyone was normalized with only one change in medication but also adding the Functional Medicine approach. 

4:18  Insights into a Functional Medicine approach to psychiatry.  The key to using a Functional Medicine approach is to be a medical detective and to also understand that psychiatric problems are not primarily psychological, but more related to physiology and infections and hormonal problems and genetics and epigenetics and gastrointestinal things, etc..  The mental realm is directly part of the physical realm.  If your physical health is lacking, if you're lacking in nutrients, if you're having toxins and infections and other things that are affecting your physiology, that's also going to affect your mind.  Dr. Hedaya recalled his first patient from 1984 who was a 50 yr old woman with panic disorders and she did not have a great marriage and had bunch of things going on, but she didn't get better despite psychotherapy and medications.  He determined that she had a vitamin B12 deficiency and after her first injection, her panic went away and that's when he realized how powerful the Functional Medicine model could be.  When assessing B12 status, if your serum B12 is low normal, you probably have a B12 deficiency. But you can also look at the size of the red blood cells, the MCV, on the CBC. If you are B12 deficient, your red blood cells will get larger because they hang around longer--macrocytic anemia.   If you are iron deficient, your red blood cells will be smaller--microcytic anemia.   But you could have normal size red blood cells if you have both iron and B12 deficiency, because they will offset the effects on the red blood cell size.  We should also look at methylmalonic acid (MMC) and homocysteine as measures of B12 status, though MMC only accounts for 17% of B12 status.  You also need to look at medications that interfere with B12 status and if they are older they tend not to absorb as much B12 because of reduced HCL production.

10:57  Iron.  

11:29  Other nutrients, incl fish oil, vit D, zinc, and protein.  

12:12  Thyroid adrenal axis.  

15:30  Genetics, includeing NR3C1, FKBP5, CRH receptor 1 and 2, CRH binding protein, these control proteins that control the effective steroids inside your cell at the level of the nucleus.  

18:18  Gut Health.  

25:32  Ketogenic diet.  

30:24  HYLANE technology.  

Dr. Robert Hedaya is an MD/Psychiatrist who is board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and he also teaches Functional Medicine approaches to psychiatric disorders with the Institute of Functional Medicine.  He is also a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Georgetown University Medical Center.  He wrote a number of books, including Understanding Biological Psychiatry, The Anti-depressant Survival Program, and Depression: Advancing the Treatment Paradigm.  He treats patients with psychiatric disorders with a Functional Medicine approach, pharmaceuticals when indicated, and he has now pioneered the use of the HYLANE program, which includes Hyperbaric Oxygen, EEG guided laser, and neural exercises.  His website is WholePsychiatry.com.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111. Dr. Weitz is also available for video or phone consultations.

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Dr. Peter Bongiorno discusses An Integrative Approach to Depression and Anxiety at the Functional Medicine Discussion Group meeting on September 28, 2023 with moderator Dr. Weitz.  

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.] 

Podcast Highlights

9:27   The Neurotransmitter Theory of Depression and Anxiety.... 

16:02  SSRIs.... 

20:32  Dietary Factors....  

23:35  Blood Sugar....   

30:54  Coffee....  

32:58  Alcohol....    

36:17  Sleep....  

38:19  Exercise....  

47:04  Labs....  

55:25  Nutritional Supplements....  

Dr. Peter Bongiorno is a Naturopathic Doctor and Acupuncturist and he is the co-director of InnerSource Natural Health and Acupuncture, with offices in New York City and on Long Island.  He also works with clients around the world via phone and Skype.  He did research at the National Institutes of Health in the department of Neuroimmunology and then went to Bastyr University to study naturopathic medicine and acupuncture.  He wrote a number of books, including Healing Depression in 2010 and Holistic Solutions for Anxiety and Depression in Therapy: Combining Natural Therapies with Conventional Care in 2015, both targeted for physicians, as well as How Come They’re Happy and I’m Not, and Put Anxiety Behind You: The Complete Drug Free Program. 

Dr. Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111. Dr. Weitz is also available for video or phone consultations.

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Dr. Tom Fabian discusses Myths and Misconceptions about Stool Testing with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.]

Podcast Highlights

Dr. Tom Fabian has a PhD in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology and he is a certified Nutrition Therapy Practitioner. Tom specializes in the microbiome and how it relates to digestive, immune, brain, and metabolic health.  Dr. Fabian serves a consultant and science advisor with Diagnostic Solutions Laboratory.  DiagnosticSolutionsLab.com.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Dr. Nalini Chilkov discusses An Integrative Approach to Cancer at the Functional Medicine Discussion Group meeting on March 28, 2024 with moderator Dr. Ben Weitz.  

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.] 

Podcast Highlights

4:08  The relationship between cancer and obesity and glycemic control is huge. 

7:34  The United States is a sugar nation and diabetes and obesity continue to rise here.  Obesity accounts for 14% of cancer diagnoses in men and 20% in women, and its higher in women due to the estrogenic effect of fat.  

Dr. Nalini Chilkov is the founder of the American Institute of Integrative Oncology Research and Education and the creator of the The OutSmart ® Cancer System.  She is committed to training front line clinicians worldwide to become skilled and confident in serving the health needs of patients whose lives have been touched by cancer by utilizing her OutSmart Cancer® System. She is the author of the best seller, 32 Ways to Outsmart Cancer_How to Create A Body Where Cancer Cannot Thrive and is recognized as an authority and pioneer in the fields of Integrative Cancer Care, Cancer Prevention and Immune Enhancement. Dr. Chilkov has lectured worldwide and at the Schools of Medicine at UCLA and UC Irvine and is a frequent expert resource to the media.  Her websites are Nalinichilkov.com and the American Institute of Integrative Oncology.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111. Dr. Weitz is also available for video or phone consultations.

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Dr. Allison Siebecker discusses Controversies in SIBO Testing and Treatment with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.] 

Podcast Highlights

Dr. Allison Siebecker is a Naturopathic Doctor and Acupuncturist specializes in the treatment of Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth and she teaches advanced gastroenterology at the National University of Natural Medicine. She has the most incredible resource of research articles and information about SIBO, siboinfo.com. 

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Dr. Philip Goglia discusses Sports Nutrition with moderator Dr. Ben Weitz at the Functional Medicine Discussion Group meeting on October 24, 2024.  

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Podcast Highlights

Dr. Philip Goglia has a PhD in Nutritional Science and he is also the best-selling author of Turn Up the Heat--Unlock the Fat Burning Power of Your Metabolism.  Dr. Goglia sees clients at his office in Santa Monica and he can be contacted at 310-392-4080 and through his website  http://www.pfcnutrition.com/  

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Dr. Maggie Ney discusses Bioidentical Hormone Therapy at the Functional Medicine Discussion Group meeting on April 25, 2024 with moderator Dr. Ben Weitz.  

Podcast Highlights

Dr. Maggie Ney is a licensed naturopathic doctor and a Menopause Society certified practitioner. She's the director of the Women's Clinic at the Akasha Center for Integrative Medicine in Santa Monica, California, where she has been supporting women through perimenopause and menopause since 2006. Dr. Ney is co-founder of HelloPeri, (TheHelloPeri.com) an online resource for women going through perimenopause, and she's been featured on The Doctors show and Goop for expertise on women's health and hormones.  Her website is DrMaggieNey.com.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Dr. Dale Bredesen discusses Revolutionary New tests for Alzheimer’s Disease with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.]

Podcast Highlights

Dr. Dale Bredesen, MD is a neurologist and an internationally recognized expert in the mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s Disease and the Chief Science Officer at Apollo Health. He is the author of the best selling books, The End of Alzheimer’s,  The End of Alzheimer’s Program, and The First Survivors of Alzheimer’s, and his newest book, The Ageless Brain.  Dr. Dale Bredesen’s career has been guided by a simple idea: that Alzheimer’s as we know it is not just preventable, but reversible. Thanks to a dedicated pursuit of finding the science that makes this a reality, this idea has placed Dr. Bredesen at the vanguard of neurological research and led to the discoveries that today underlie the ReCODE Report.  Dr. Bredesen offers training for doctors and practitioners in his ReCODE system at his website at ApolloHealthco.com.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Valentin Prisecaru and Jeff Ingersoll discuss Genomic Testing with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.] 

Podcast Highlights

5:02  Genetics or the Human Genome refers to the genetic code that is made up of only four letters, A, G, C, and T and this code about 3 billion letters long.  The majority of the genome is still kind of a mystery because we don't know exactly what it does.  But we do know about 20 or 30,000 genes that code for proteins or for RNA or a few other things.         

Valentin Prisecaru is a scientist who with Dr. Peter D'Adamo helped develop the Opus-23 platform that is the basis for the Genomic Insights, the Genomic Health Profile offered by Diagnostic Solutions Lab.  Diagnostic Solutions Lab web site is DiagnosticSolutionsLab.com  and the phone is 877-485-5336.

Jeff Ingersoll is the President of Diagnostic Solutions Lab, which besides the Genomic Insights profile, offers my favorite stool test, the GI Map, a cytokine panel Cyto DX, an organic acids profile, an amino acids profile, as well as food allergy and foods sensitivity panels.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111. Dr. Weitz is also available for video or phone consultations and he uses DUTCH testing regularly.

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 Dr. Jason Hawrelak discusses Probiotics and SIBO with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.] 

Podcast Highlights

4:30  Specific Strains of Probiotics for Specific Purposes.... 

9:27  Probiotics can be antimicrobial....  

17:31  When Dr. Hawrelak treats patients with SIBO he will generally choose selectively acting antimicrobial herbals and a prebiotic like partially hydrolyzed guar gum. PHGG is better tolerated by SIBO patients than other prebiotic fibers like inulin, FOS or GOS from a gas production perspective. And then for methane, he might use the BioGaia and Lactobacillus reuteri as well.  Dr. Hawrelak finds using the PHGG to stimulate buyrate production works better than taking supplements of butyrate.

24:22  When Dr. Hawrelak orders SIBO breath testing he does not order the Trio Smart that tests hydrogen, methane, and hydrogen sulfide gases but he continues to do the 2 gas test, but often has patients repeat the test 3 times with lactulose, glucose, and fructose and each for 3 hours.  He doesn't yet trust the 3 gas SIBO breath test.

Dr. Jason Hawrelak is a researcher, lecturer, naturopath, and nutritionist with over 20 years of clinical experience with a focus on the treatment of gastrointestinal conditions.  Dr Hawrelak is the Head of Research at ProbioticAdvisor.com, which is an incredible database of information about probiotics. Dr. Hawrelak completed his PhD examining the capacity of probiotics, prebiotics, and herbal medicines to modify the gastrointestinal tract microbiota. He teaches and lectures on probiotics and the microbiome all over the world.  He has written many papers and over 20 textbook chapters.  Probiotic Advisor can be found here: https://www.probioticadvisor.com/.  Dr. Hawrelak continues to work with patients at Gould's Natural Medicine clinic in Hobart, Australia. 

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111. Dr. Weitz is also available for video or phone consultations.

View the Show Notes For This Episode

Dr. Mark Pimentel discusses a Deeper Understanding of SIBO and IBS with moderator Dr. Ben Weitz at the Functional Medicine Discussion Group meeting on January 23, 2025.  

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.] 

Podcast Highlights

Dr. Mark Pimentel is a distinguished gastroenterologist, researcher, and innovator in the field of gut health and microbiome science.  He is the Executive Director of the Medically Associated Science and Technology program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where he leads a multidisciplinary team focused on understanding and treating diseases linked to the gut microbiome.  Dr. Pimentel is internationally recognized for his pioneering research in Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth and Irritable Bowel Syndrome.  His landmark work established SIBO as a leading cause of IBS, fundamentally altering the way such patients are diagnosed and treated. He also developed the first non-invasive breath test to identify SIBO, which has become a standard diagnostic tool globally, including the Triosmart SIBO breath test that measures three gases—hydrogen, methane, and hydrogen sulfide.  He has developed a blood test for measuring antibodies that documents the autoimmune origin of SIBO, the IBS Smart test.  He has mapped out the microbiome of the small intestine for the first time and he now has documented the specific microbes that cause the three forms of SIBO.  He pioneered the use of Rifaximin, a minimally absorbed antibiotic that has become a cornerstone treatment for SIBO and he is actively developing additional and better therapies for treating the root causes of SIBO, which is one of the reasons that Dr. Pimentel’s work has been so embraced by the Functional Medicine community, sharing our focus on root cause medicine.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

View the Show Notes For This Episode

Dr. Kim Crawford discusses Inflammatory Bowel Disease with Dr. Ben Weitz.

[If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, so more people will find The Rational Wellness Podcast. Also check out the video version on my WeitzChiro YouTube page.]

Podcast Highlights

Dr. Kim Crawford is a nationally recognized, board certified Internal Medicine and anti-aging specialist who uses a Functional Medicine approach to help patients overcome various chronic disease, including Inflammatory Bowel Disease.  Dr. Crawford herself was exposed to high levels of environmental mycotoxins, which attacked her GI tract and this resulted in CIRS, leaky gut, and eventually Crohn’s disease, which for her was a totally life-altering autoimmune disease.  Her website is KimCrawfordMD.com.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111.

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Charlotte Blease, PhD, and Cosima Locher, PhD, discuss The Nocebo Effect with Dr. Ben Weitz.

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Podcast Highlights

1:45  The placebo effect is when a patient feels better after taking a sugar pill of some other treatment that is not thought to be able to help them, because they believe that it will help them.  When a scientific study is conducted they often have a placebo arm with one group getting the pill with the active ingredient and the other group getting a pill without the active ingredient, which is referred to as the placebo group.  And yet a significant percentage of the patients who get the placebo improve.  The nocebo is sort of the opposite of the placebo in that if the patient believes or has fears or expectations that they are likely to have side effects or a negative result from a medication or treatment, they may have such negative effects.  The book The Nocebo Effect: When Words Make You Sick is designed to bring awareness to the nocebo concept, which has been much less researched than the placebo effect. And this book also attempts to bring some solutions so that nocebo effects occur less frequently.

Charlotte Blease, PhD is a philosopher and health researcher at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, and the Department of Women’s and Children's Health at Uppsala University, Sweden.  The book that Charlotte and Cosima helped write is The Nocebo Effect: When Words Make You Sick.

Cosima Locher PhD is a psychologist who has published in leading medical journals and is the co-founder of the Pain Net, an international network of researchers interested in chronic pain with a special focus on the placebo and nocebo effects.

Dr. Ben Weitz is available for Functional Nutrition consultations specializing in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders like IBS/SIBO and Reflux and also Cardiometabolic Risk Factors like elevated lipids, high blood sugar, and high blood pressure.  Dr. Weitz has also successfully helped many patients with managing their weight and improving their athletic performance, as well as sports chiropractic work by calling his Santa Monica office 310-395-3111. Dr. Weitz is also available for video or phone consultations and he uses DUTCH testing regularly.