Causes or Cures

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks welcomes Dr. Shai Efrati, a world-renowned physician from Tel Aviv specializing in internal medicine, nephrology, and hyperbaric medicine. Dr. Efrati is the director of the Sagol Center for Hyperbaric Medicine and Research, the largest hyperbaric center globally, treating over 350 patients daily. He is a leading researcher with over 170 scientific publications, a professor at Tel Aviv University, and co-founder of Aviv Scientific.Dr. ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks sits down with Professor Joyce Harper to discuss her fascinating study on the effects of cold water swimming on premenstrual and perimenopausal symptoms. Prof. Harper kicks off by sharing her background and what inspired her to dive into this unique research. They explore what qualifies as cold water swimming and how the study was conducted, revealing interesting findings—like the differences in benefits between wearing bathing suits ...

Subscriber-only episodeSend us a text In this bonus episode for subscribers of Causes or Cures, we uncover the strange history of a “truth serum” that began as a drug intended to ease labor pain but took an unexpected turn. First thought to compel honesty, this powerful substance soon became known for darker uses, from police interrogations to secret CIA operations. Over time, it even gave rise to modern “zombie” myths. Join us as we trace this drug's bizarre path, question its reliabili...

Send us a text In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks sits down with Dr. Hooman Allayee and James Hilser to explore their new research on the lasting impact of COVID-19 on heart health. They reveal surprising findings about how COVID—especially in those who were hospitalized—elevates the risk of severe heart issues long after recovery, even years down the road. The conversation dives into the connection between blood type and post-COVID heart risk, and the researchers share their t...

Send us a textDo you struggle with constipation or diarrhea? How is that linked to your overall organ health? In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Johannes P. Johnson-Martínez about his recent research on how variations in bowel movement frequency (BMF) can impact the gut microbiome, blood metabolites, and overall organ health. They discuss how abnormal BMF patterns are linked to toxins produced by gut microbes that enter the bloodstream and increase inflammation levels...

Send us a textAre you afraid of clowns?If you're like many who dread those painted smiles, you're not alone- especially as Halloween approaches and horror movies like It remind us just how unsettling they can be. In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Sophie Scorey about her research on the origins for the fear of clowns or coulrophobia. Sophie dives into the global prevalence of this bizarre phobia and explores why so many people, from kids to adults, are terrified of clowns...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with snake expert Bob Ashley on his fascinating new book, A Photographic History of Snakebite Treatments: Bad Medicine Snake Oils, Potions, Elixirs and Kits. From ancient remedies described in Hebrew Scriptures to modern day antivenom, he discusses the intriguing, sometimes shocking history of snake bite treatments throughout the centuries. He advises what everyone should do if they get bit by a venomous snake, and rest assured,...

Subscriber-only episodeSend us a text*Bonus Episode for Subscribers*In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks dives into the "War on Misinformation" and unravel its complexities. Is misinformation truly an "infodemic," like a virus infecting our brains? Is the militaristic approach to misinformation missing the mark? Here we explore how misinformation is policed online, the rise of fact-checkers, and some of the biggest misinformation scandals of our time, including the opioid ep...

Send us a textDiscovering new hope for hair loss! In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Sheila MacNeil and Dr. Muhammad Yar about their accidental discovery that a simple sugar compound may stimulate hair regrowth and help end male-pattern baldness, or androgenic alopecia—a condition affecting many people. They dive into how an unexpected finding in a study on wound healing sparked their current study on hair loss, which they break down in the episode. The researche...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Andrea Casanova about his new research on how psilocybin impacts learning. This study is the first to explore how psilocybin (commonly known as "magic mushrooms") influences reinforcement learning, a type of learning driven by rewards and cues. Dr. Casanova breaks down how psilocybin affects the brain, the methods he and his team used to conduct the study, their key findings, and the potential future implications. He al...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Simon Gadbois and Dr. Laura Kiiroja about how scent-detection dogs can detect stress in breath samples from individuals with traumatic histories when exposed to trauma cues. They discuss the current use of dogs in detecting diseases, explaining what exactly these dogs are smelling and how they were recruited and trained for this unique study. The conversation also covers the role of human participants, key findings, and...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with America's Happiness Doctor, Dr. Elia Gourgouris, about practical steps people can take to achieve lasting happiness. Dr. Gourgouris breaks down the definition of happiness and shares how we can leverage it in our daily lives, at work, in relationships, and even during times of crisis. He also explores its connections to positive psychology, fear, and forgiveness.Dr. Elia Gourgouris, PhD, is a best-selling author of 7 Paths ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks sits down with Dr. Naaheed Mukadam to explore her latest findings on dementia. Dr. Mukadam sheds light on her recent research, delving into the changes in incidence and prevalence of dementia globally. They discuss the most current, evidence-based risk factors associated with the disease, identify populations and countries with the highest rates, and uncover practical, cost-effective strategies for reducing dementia risk. Tune in to g...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with filmmaker David Krissman about his groundbreaking grassroots initiative aimed at revolutionizing live kidney donations. David, a repeat guest (Episode 154) who previously discussed "The Great Social Experiment" and America's trial with universal healthcare for kidney disease, now shares how he's leveraging his filmmaking expertise and deep understanding of kidney disease, dialysis, and transplants to connect individuals in ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Jason Block about his research on weight gain caused by antidepressants. He compares weight gain across different antidepressants and explains what those taking these medications should expect. Dr. Block also discusses other medications his team is evaluating for weight gain, explores why these medications cause weight gain, and shares the practical implications of his findings in relation to the obesity epidemic.Dr. Ja...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Leonardo Tozzi about his research on identifying six unique biotypes for depression. He explains the current problem with the "one size fits all" diagnostic approach to depression, the development of personalized brain circuit scores, and how they led to the discovery of six distinct biotypes. He explains how the identification of unique biotypes for depression may prove to be a gamechanger for how depression is diagnos...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Geoff Cole about his research on trypophobia, an aversion to clusters of small holes or bumps. If you’re a fan of American Horror Story, you might have come across trypophobia there. Dr. Cole delves into the details of this phenomenon, exploring what causes it, theories on its origins, and strategies for overcoming it. Dr. Cole is a researcher and professor at the Center for Brain Science, University of Essex. You can l...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Jamie Zeitzer about his recently published research on the link between one's bedtime preference and mental health. He explains which sleep pattern correlates with better mental health and which correlates with poorer mental health. Unfortunately for night owls, he offers hypotheses on why going to bed late, regardless of preference, is associated with worse mental health. He also discusses the benefits and risks of day...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Aaron Mitchell about his recent research on pharmaceutical industry payments to medical doctors for promoting specific drugs on X (formerly known as Twitter). Dr. Mitchell describes the financial relationships between pharmaceutical companies and doctors, the prevalence of this issue, and what is known about its impact on prescribing practices and patient outcomes. He also shares his thoughts on direct-to-consumer drug ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Andres Acosta MD PHD about the identification of 4 phenotypes for obesity and how they can revolutionize the future of obesity treatment. In great detail, he describes the 4 obesity phenotypes (Hungry Brain, Emotional Hunger, Hungry Gut, and Slow Burn) and explains what treatment, diet, and exercise plan works for each. He also describes his company, Phenomix Sciences, a precision-medicine endeavor that predicts how wel...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with gastroenterologist Dr. David Clarke about the viral wellness trend of fart walking. He, an avid fart walker himself, describes the health benefits of fart walking, particularly how it can help with digestion, heart burn, bloating, and possibly even Type 2 Diabetes. He offers tips on how to optimize fart walking for your intestines and overall wellness. Dr. Clarke is a repeat guest on Causes or Cures, having appeared o...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with ovarian cancer survivor Meg Wilkinson about the omentum, her cancer journey, and her advocacy group, The Omentum Project. As part of her cancer treatment, Meg had her omentum removed. Though little is known about this mysterious apron of "fat", Meg decided to explore further after she and other cancer survivors living without omentums developed debilitating gastrointestinal symptoms. On the podcast, Meg shares w...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with researcher Omar Almahayni about his published systematic review on the physiological and psychological benefits of the Wim Hof Method for both healthy and non-healthy individuals. Wim Hof, known as "The Iceman," is a Dutch extreme athlete and motivational speaker famed for his extraordinary ability to endure extreme cold.During the podcast, Omar discusses his interest in Wim Hof, the components of the renowned Wim Hof Metho...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with cardiologist, physician-scientist and CEO of Fractyl Health Dr. Harith Rajagopalan about solutions his company is developing for the problem of keeping weight off after someone stops taking the obesity/weight loss medication, such as Ozempic. Dr. Rajagopalan explains the issue of weight rebound after stopping the medication, and describes two new therapies Fractyl Health is developing that would allow a person to susta...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks sits down with internationally renowned music publicist Mary Lou Falcone to discuss her new book, I Didn't See It Coming. The book takes readers on an emotional journey filled with love, a dream job working with some of the world's most famous classical music stars, romance, and profound loss. Mary Lou shares her experiences as a caretaker, first for her sick father during her childhood and later for her soulmate, Nicky Zann—a 1950s r...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Randall Urban about his research on the link between Long COVID and growth hormone and how growth hormone may potentially reverse or decrease the neurological symptoms/brain fog associated with Long COVID. Dr. Urban is an endocrinologist at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston, Texas. He is the Vice Dean of Clinical Research in the School of Medicine, Vice President and Chief Research Officer, and ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Valter Longo about his latest research on the fasting-mimicking diet (FMG) and how it has been shown in studies to reduce biological age and disease risk. In great detail, he describes the fasting-mimicking diet and its components while explaining how it was tested in clinical trials for its effect on biological age and disease risk. Dr. Longo describes the difference between biological age and chronological age and how...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks converses with Dr. Jay Maddock about his research on the scientific connection between nature and mental health benefits. The discussion centers on one of his recent studies, which examined the relationship between a community's "Nature Score" and levels of anxiety, stress, and depression. Dr. Maddock explains the concept of a "Nature Score," the methodology of the study, and its findings. He also highlights other research indicating ...

Send us a textOn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Diana Noga about her new research on the relationship between short sleep and the risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes. This is especially relevant in a busy world that doesn't prioritize sleep and is already facing growing rates of Type 2 Diabetes, even in younger age groups. In the podcast, she discusses how they conducted their study and the theories for why a short nightly sleep duration may increase risk for Typ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Mark Mamula about the vaccine he and his team created for cancer in dogs. In the podcast, he explains how they created the vaccine, how it works, how they are testing it in dogs, and what is currently known about how well it works. He describes the types of cancers in dogs that the vaccine is targeting, the similarities between cancer in dogs and cancer in humans and how the vaccine could one day also be used for cancer...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with venom expert Tim Friede about his twenty plus years' "unusual" journey with the world's most venomous snakes: Seeking protection from snake bites, Tim purposely injected himself with diluted venom at escalating doses until he achieved a level of hyperimmunity unknown to humans. Working by himself in his Wisconsin home, Tim achieved the uncanny ability of being purposely bitten by the world's deadliest snakes, including cobr...

Send us a textOn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Prabhat Jha about his fascinating research recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine on the extent and speed at which quitting smoking reduces death rates from smoking-related illnesses. What he describes in the podcast will be encouragement for anyone, no matter how long they smoked, to consider quitting. In addition to his research, we also chat about evidence for and against vaping, and he also ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Wilson Merrell about his recently published research on the percentage of people who hide the fact that they are sick with an infectious disease. In the podcast, he discusses who hides the fact that they are sick, when they do it, why they do it and how they do it. He explains their motives, things the researchers found surprising and the wider implications of his research. Dr. Merrell is a researcher who completed...

Send us a textOn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats wtih Dr. Dmitry Abramov about his and his team's research on the impact of substance use on heart-related deaths over time in the US. The research was recently published in the Journal of the American Heart Association. In the podcast, he explains how he did the research, what substances have the greatest impact on heart-related deaths, and what subpopulations are most at risk, including some surprising trends. Substances assess...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Erica Fernandes about the identification of a new syndrome linked to fentanyl exposure while in the womb. Dr. Fernandes first discusses how a new syndrome related to developmental or genetic abnormalities is identified and then explains how they carried out their study at Nemours Children's Hospital. She discusses the specific characteristics identified in the babies enrolled in their study and how fentanyl was identifi...

Send us a text"Let food by thy medicine and medicine be thy food."In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Marissa Toussaint about how she is using culinary medicine to help her patients lose weight, maintain a healthy weight and prevent chronic illnesses. Taking a holistic approach to health, she explains what culinary medicine is and how she uses it in conjuction with her training in family medicine and obesity medicine to help patients get to their healthiest state. She ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures I chat with Dr. Scott Kaplan about his research on the effectiveness of putting a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. Sugar-sweetened beverages are significantly linked to heart disease, obesity and other chronic illnesses, and taxes are one (albeit controversial) approach we can take at the population level. Dr. Kaplan discusses price and purchasing changes afte a sugar-sweetened beverage tax was implemented in five major US cities. ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Paul Sutter about the declining trust in science and why it is happening. They discuss how regulatory capture and the pressure to publish as many papers as possible is leading to bad science and fueling a culture of distrust. They discuss the difference between an effective scientific communicator vs a polarizing one and what happens when you politicize science. They talk about how to manage an overwhelming amount of in...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Melanie Jay about the new weight loss drugs (Wegovy, Ozempic (Semaglutide), Manjaro (Tirzepatide), Zepbound). She starts by explaining what obesity is and how it impacts the body. Then she breaks down how the medications work; how effective they are at taking off weight and keeping it from coming back on; side effects; risks, and benefits. She talks about the best diet and exercise programs to follow while taking these ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Jeffrey Iliff about his research on changes in sleep patterns over time and how that is linked to cognitive function. He discusses the relationship between sleep and cognitive function in general, and then describes how some sleep patterns over time may be more prone to cognitive decline than others and explains the theories behind that. He talks about the optimal number of hours of sleep a person should get each night ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Chinwé Williams about the teen mental health crisis, what is causing it, and how we can address it. Dr. Williams discusses how social media impacts teen mental health, the "lying" spiral of anxiety, and offers practical tips for parents and guardians to try at home. She also comments on the link between faith and teen mental health. Dr. Williams is a trauma therapist, best-selling author and speaker with over twenty yea...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Daniel Barvin, Vice President of Operations and Patient Advocacy at Coya Therapeutics, a trailblazing company working on groundbreaking treatments for ALS and Alzheimer's. In the podcast, Daniel will tell us more about the debilitating and fatal disease ALS and the therapies they are testing at Coya Therapeutics which target T cells, cells that form an important part of the immune system. Daniel's fight against ALS is pers...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with neuroscientist Dr. Katja Valli about what the function(s) of dreams is. She describes what a dream is and the potential theories for why we dream. She discusses the content of our dreams, who appears in our dreams, and if our dreams impact our behavior. She touches on nightmares, lucid dreaming and if we can "make ourselves" dream things we want to dream. Finally, she chats about the meaning of dreams and the important link...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. David Clarke about the hidden causes of chronic pain and something he refers to as "the biggest blind spot" in the healthcare community. He discusses how adverse childhood experiences, traumas and stresses create chronic pain in adults and how they makes changes in the body. He also shares remarkable stories of patients he has successfully treated with something called Pain Relief Psychology. Dr. Clarke is the Pre...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Jamie O'Driscoll and Jamie Edwards about their research recently published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine on what is the best exercise for maintaining a healthy resting blood pressure. In the podcast, they explain how they conducted their study, their results, and the theories behind why one exercise did significantly better than others at lowering blood pressure. They will tell you how you can do the best ex...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Tera Fazzino about her research on how the biggest US tobacco companies owned the leading food companies from 1988 to early 2000s and disproportionately produced hyper-palatable foods (HPFs). She explains what a hyper-palatable food is and how they are created, the theory for why some Americans get hooked on them, and how these foods may impact our health. Then she takes us back in history to describe when and why the t...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Jay Joshi about his new book, Burden of Pain, a Physician's Journey through the Opioid Epidemic. Dr. Joshi was a practicing physician at a clinic in rural Indiana when his world was turned upside down. The DEA, using a fake patient and a prescription monitoring system, investigated Dr. Joshi for his opioid prescription practices. He was eventually arrested, tried in court and served a prison sentence. While in prison he...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with journalist Kristina Marusic about her book A New War on Cancer, the Unlikely Heroes Revolutionizing Prevention. In the podcast, Kristina discusses how rising cancer rates are linked to our widespread exposure to chemicals, specifically chemicals in everyday products that we all use. She provides an overview of how the United States regulates these chemicals compared to other countries and what testing is or isn't done befor...

Send us a textWhy do some people NEVER get sick from COVID? In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Jill Hollenbach about her recently published research on how a person's genes may keep them from getting sick from COVID. In the podcast, Dr. Hollenbach explains why genes influence how a person responds to a virus; she describes the specific genes she studied and why, and then explains how she carried out her research in an easy-to-understand way. She also discusses the pot...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Michelle B. Slater, PHD about her book Starving to Heal in Siberia. After working with a team of medical experts, trying everything in the book and contemplating assisted suicide, Michelle went all the way to Siberia as a last effort to heal from late-stage Lyme Disease, a chronic illness that devestated her. She spent months in Siberia where she was monitored by a Russian physician and engaged in a rigorous dry-fasti...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Raj Khanna, director of NYU's Pain Research Center and professor of molecular pathobiology at NYU School of Dentistry, about his and his team's new research on potential future ways to tackle chronic pain. Given that chronic pain is a growing issue that impacts people of all ages and that there really are no good, long-term, reliable solutions out there, this is a key area of research. Without reliable, long...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Kirk Schneider about his new book Life-Enhancing Anxiety: Key to a Sane World. In the podcast, Dr. Schneider tells us about himself and his own struggle with anxiety and how that got him on the path to discovering life-enhancing anxiety. He explains how we get from a state of anxiety to a state of Awe and why it's important that we go through that entire (often difficult) process and not plug or drug it away. He d...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Andrew Sikora about the link between HPV, the most common sexually-transmitted disease, and head and throat cancers in men. While we hear more about HPV-linked cervical cancer in women, Dr. Sikora will discuss the types of cancers HPV causes in men, risk factors, signs and symptoms, how it is treated once diagnosed, and prognosis after treatment. He will also talk about prevention and the HPV vaccine. Dr. Sikora i...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with filmmaker and documentarian David Krissman about his investigative podcast series, "The Great Social Experiment," about America's only experiment with universal healthcare, the treatment of patients with kidney failure. David takes us back to 1972, when congress guaranteed healthcare coverage for people with kidney failure regardless of race, socioeconomic status and age. And while on the surface, this sounds like a g...

Send us a textIn this episode, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Nicholas Seyfried about his research on a protein(s) in the brain that may hold the key to making people resilient to Alzheimer's Disease, a growing concern in western nations with aging populations and those who have a family history of the disease. In the podcast, Dr. Seyfried discusses what the pathological hallmarks are of Alzheimer's Disease and why cognitive impairment happens. He then describes why certain proteins in the brain, wi...

Send us a textThere has been recent reports and concerning articles suggesting that COVID-19 is leading to an uptick of new cases of Type 1 Diabetes in kids but is this potential link something parents and kids have to worry about? Dr. Lars Stene joins Dr. Eeks on the podcast to discuss risk factors for Type 1 Diabetes and the trend of diagnosing new cases in kids over the last several years. He then discusses the potential, talked-about link between COVID and Type 1 Diabetes and provides his...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Ari Green about the latest thinking on what causes Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and who it impacts most, current treatment approaches, and research on potential new treatments involving remylenation therapies. He chats about the ReBUILD trial and something called the "Myelin Water Fraction" and how it can be used to measure remylenation. He also discusses the latest evidence on preventive factors for MS. Dr. Green is a neuro...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Tom Parsons about his study called The Weight of New York City, Possible Contributions to Subsidence from Anthropogenic Sources published in Earth's Future. He tells us what subsidence is and how it is measured, how and by how much the skyscrapers and buildings of NYC are contributing to it, why we should care about it, and what the potential short-term and long-term implications are. He talks about the potential implic...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Lance Price about his recent study published in One Health on the link between the meat we eat and urinary tract infections (UTIs). In the podcast, he explains how he conducted the study and breaks down the more technical stuff so that it is understandable. He discusses the results of his work, antibiotic resistance, the types of meat most significantly linked to UTIs and how eating and preparing these types of meat may...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Stephanie James about the potential use of genetically modified mosquitoes (GMMs) to fight diseases that mosquitoes carry and spread, such as Malaria and Dengue Fever. In the podcast, Dr. James provides an overview on GMMs, as well as what something called Gene Drive Modified Mosquitoes (GDMMs) are. She talks about the current state of research, testing, and describes the GeneConvene Global Collaborative "GeneConve...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Comninos about Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder (HSDD) and his and his team's research on a potential new treatment called Kisspeptin. He will discuss prevalence, diagnosis, symptoms, how the diagnosis may be misdiagnosed as Erectile Dysfunction Disorder, and current treatment approaches to HSDD. In detail, he'll describe what Kisspeptin is and how it might help. He'll also talk about the clinical trials he has conduct...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Andrei Gudkov and Dr. Joseph Wakshlag about their research on extending a dog's lifespan. They both are part of a group of scientists at Vaika, a non-profit medical research organization that is dedicated to extending the lifespan of domestic animals. In the podcast, they will discuss the aging process, how it might be reversed and how some of the things they are learning may apply to humans too. They will also talk abo...

Send us a textOn a topic near and dear to her, in this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with "misinformation scientist" Dr. Sacha Altay on what we are getting wrong about misinformation. This podcast will focus on his and his peers' paper published in the journal Social Media and Society titled Misinformation on Misinformation: Conceptual and Methodological Challenges. His article identifies 6 big misconceptions about misinformation and provides a lot to think about when it co...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Naveed Sattar, a clinician, researcher, and professor of metabolic medicine at the Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences at the University of Glasgow and a leading expert in diabetes and cardiovascular disease research. In this podcast, he discusses the most accurate ways to measure body fat and why that matters, and he talks about the "obesity paradox", what that is and how it unravels when using more a...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Victor Tseng about his and his team's study on how AI (ChatGPT) came close to passing the United States Medical Licensing Exams (USMLE), tests that all medical doctors must take and pass in order to practice medicine in the US. The study was published in Plos Digital Health here. Dr. Tseng will tell us more about what ChatGPT is and its current capabilities, how they set up the study to test its performance on the USMLE...

Send us a textWould you ever donate your kidney to a stranger? In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Elaine Perlman, Director of Waitlist Zero, an organization with the mission of representing kidney donors and ending the waitlist by making it easier for living donors to donate a kidney. Elaine will walk us through her journey (from start to finish) of donating her kidney to a stranger. She'll also tell us about the journey of her son, who donated his kidney when he was just...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats wit Dr. Michael Santos about the A-PLUS trial, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, which looked at the effects of a cheap, widely available antibiotic, Azithromycin, in preventing sepsis and death in women during childbirth in low- to middle-income countries. Dr. Santos will explain the prevalence and life-threatening nature of sepsis in women during childbirth, particularly in low-resource settings. He will discus...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Brennen McKenzie, a veterinarian, epidemiologist and Director of Veterinary Medicine at Loyal, a clinical-stage veterinary medicine company developing drugs to prolong the lifespan and healthspan of dogs. He discusses the aging process in dogs, age-related biomarkers, and the link between dog size (big vs small) and lifespan. He explains what a dog's "methylation age" is, how that relates to "epigenetics" and how ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Anushka Ataullahjan about her research on the polio eradication efforts in Pakistan. Wild polio is still endemic in Pakistan, and Dr. Ataullahjan will discuss different eradication programs and initiatives they've tried over the years and the different barriers they've met, including threats of insecurity and people's beliefs and concerns. She'll discuss how various global events impacted polio eradication e...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with author Susan Salenger about her book, SIDELINED, How Women Manage & Mismanage Their Health. Some of the topics covered in the book and on this podcast include why women put themselves second when it comes to health issues, why "nice girls finish last," the shame and blame game for when women are hit with an illness, a breakdown of communication when navigating the healthcare system, how pharmaceutical industries target ...

Send us a textOn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Professor Marianne Nissen Lund, who is a researcher and professor of food chemistry at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark. She will elaborate on what "food chemistry" means and how the chemical mechanisms in food and between foods can impact quality, stability and health. In this episode, she will focus on her recent work here and here and break down the chemistry into plain language to show how adding milk to coffee c...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Siwen Wang about her research published in JAMA Internal Medicine on the link between pre-infection healthy lifestyle factors and risk of Long COVID. She will talk about the 6 lifestyle factors they assessed and why, how they did the study and created a "healthy lifestyle score", and how they defined "Long COVID" for the purposes of her study. Then she will discuss results, "take-home" points, and implications for a wid...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Joseph Maroon about hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), what it is, and how it is administered. He will explain why he believes it is beneficial for improving brain health, particularly for helping people recover from traumatic brain injuries, strokes and PTSD. Dr. Maroon will also explain how it can be used to promote healthy aging and describe his own experience with HBOT at Aviv Clinic, as well as how he uses it with h...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Sebastian Goetze on his and his team's discovery of fungi-killing compounds, which they subsequently named after the famous actor Keanu Reeves. (You can read the study here in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.)While the study has created a lot of buzz for being named after Keanu, in the podcast, Dr. Goetze will describe the need for anti-fungals, particularly in a world experiencing an "anitmicrobial crisis....

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. James Giordano about narrowing in on the cause of Havana Syndrome, a mysterious illness targeting the intelligence community. Havana Syndrome was first identified in 2016, when diplomats and intel officers working in Havana, Cuba began experiencing a mysterious set of symptoms. Dr. Giordano was one of the experts tasked to investigate the cause of Havana Syndrome, and while other reports of Havana Syndrome have occurred...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Jay Shah about why he believes that high blood pressure is a silent epidemic affecting millions of people. Dr. Shah will first describe what blood pressure is and how we measure it, what high blood pressure is, and why he believes we are experiencing a silent epidemic of high blood pressure. He will also make the case for why we should be continually monitoring blood pressure versus traditional methods of monitoring blo...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Nick Washmuth about how swearing (cursing, saying "bad" words, dropping "f bombs") can be used to help manage physical pain. He discusses the theories for why swearing helps with physical pain, the evidence for it, specific case studies, and how it might be used in a clinical setting. He also describes if some swear words are "better" than others for managing physical pain and whether or not making up swear words has an...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Madeline Li about Canada's Medical Assistance in Dying Law or MAID. The Parliament of Canada passed MAID in 2016, allowing eligible Canadian adults to request medical assistance in dying. In 2021 the law was revised to allow for more chronic conditions to be included, and now they are in discussions to expand eligibility to those with a diagnosed mental disorder. Dr. Li is a psychiatrist specializing in cance...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Kyle Flanigan, CEO and co-founder of US Specialty Formulations about his company's work on creating a COVID-19 vaccine you can swallow. Basically, a vaccine you drink instead of a shot in the arm. He will discuss his company's vaccine platform, called QYNDR, and how it produces oral vaccines. He'll tell us what an oral vaccine is and how it differs from the traditional vaccines we are used to, including differences in i...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Col Michael McGurk (Ret), Director of Research for the US Army's Center for Initial Military Training, about the Army's Holistic Health and Fitness System, or H2F. Col McGurk was instrumental in the development of the system and directs test implementation, standards and evaluation of H2F components for the US Army. You can read his bio here. In the podcast he will discuss what H2F is, describe its components (physica...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Karen Van Nuys and Dr. Neeraj Sood about the pricing of insulin in the United States. It's no secret that insulin is unaffordable for many Americans who need it. This discussion will center around how the price of insulin is set, all the players involved, and who is to blame for the high price of insulin in the US. We will explore who benefits the most from increasing insulin prices, whether or not the Inflation Reducti...

Send us a text In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Elena Conis, author of the book Vaccine Nation, America's Changing Relationship with Immunization. Dr. Conis will describe her interest in this topic and why she decided to write the book. She will discuss how the history of vaccination in the USA (particularly from the 1960s and onward) ties into the prevailing culture, societal beliefs and movements, political initiatives, an evolving body of epidemiological and...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Mandy Gulla about the PADs for Parkinson's Program, the first program of its kind in North America that teaches dogs how to detect an odor associated with Parkinson's Disease. In the podcast, she will provide an overview of Parkinson's Disease, talk about a dog's sense of smell and how good it is, and discuss when they first discovered an odor associated with Parkinson's Disease. She will discuss how the program t...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Rachel Stein about the Amish community and the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Stein is an Associate professor of Sociology and Anthropology at West Virginia University. Her research focuses mostly on community building and health in Old Order Amish Communities. You can learn more about her here. She will discuss how she became interested in studying the Amish, specifics about the Amish community (their values and way of l...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Thais Russomano about human health in space. Dr. Russomano will discuss changes that occur to the human body when in space; health concerns and differences between living on Mars vs living on the Moon; how medicines might behave differently in space; diagnostic tools needed in space; long-term health surveillance; and how clinical trials "in" space could be conducted. Finally, she will discuss her thoughts on if h...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Borja del Pozo Cruz, PhD, about his and his team's study recently published in JAMA Internal Medicine on the association between daily steps/step intensity and new cases of cancer, cardiovascular disease and death. (To date, it is the largest population sample and analysis of adults wearing an accelerometer.)In the podcast, Dr. Pozo Cruz will discuss his current research interests and why he is interested in the l...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Emily Luisana about her recent study on dog bowl and dog food hygiene and the link to human and dog health published here. In the podcast, Dr. Luisana will discuss how she became interested in this topic and provide an overview of the potential bacteria/viruses that may grow on dog bowls and the potential impact for dog and human health. She'll discuss results from her survey that assessed how many people knew about the...

Send us a textIn this podcast, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Christopher Murray about his recent article published in The Lancet (2022) titled The Global Burden of Cancer Attributable to Risk Factors, 2010-2019, a Systematic Analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019. This is the largest effort to date to determine the gobal burden of cancer due to risk factors. He will discuss what the global burden of disease study is, how he and his team estimated the burden of cancer, the risk factors...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Carinne Chambers-Saini, CEO of DIVA and founder of the DIVA menstrual cup about how the mainstream dialogue around menstruation has changed over the years, what menstrual inequity and period poverty is, how the DIVA Cup works and its benefits over pads and tampons, anything we have to worry about with the DIVA Cup, and finally how she implemented a "menstrual health leave policy" at her company and how folks responded. You ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Christoffer Clemmensen about his research on the psychedelic drug, psilocybin, and its connection to weight and energy balance. This podcast will mostly cover his animal study published here in Translational Psychiatry. As there is renewed interest in psychedelics and, of course, the ongoing obesity epidemic that is increasing around the globe, this is a doubly timely topic. Specifically, he will discuss psilocybi...

Send us a textIn this Causes or Cures episode, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Shuji Ogino about his recent paper published in Nature Reviews, Clinical Oncology, titled "Is early-onset cancer an emerging global epidemic? Current evidence and future implications." In the podcast, Dr. Ogino discusses what "early onset" means, what types of cancer are showing up earlier in people less than 50 years of age, and the evidence and data that supports this trend. He discusses how exposures early in life and i...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Jack Swain, head of clinical operations at Mindbloom. Mindbloom is a mental health and wellness company dedicated to expanding science-based treatments for depression and anxiety, and they are starting with at-home, sublingual Ketamine treatment that is supplemented with telehealth and peer support. There is an explosion of interest in how psychedelics and other kinds of alternatives might be used to treat depression and a...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Marko Lukic, a physician and researcher at the Arctic Univeristy of Norway, who recently did a study on modifiable risk factors for colon cancer, an interesting and timely topic considering the concerning rising rates of colon cancer in young people. The study was published in the International Journal of Cancer. In the podcast, Dr. Lukic talks us through his research and the data he used. He describes the sp...

Send us a textThe opioid epidemic is still raging, and people are still dying as a result. In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Jeremiah Lindemann about how he is using his data, geographic information system and mapping skills to combat the opioid epidemic. Inspired by the loss of his brother to the opioid epidemic, he will discuss the creation of the "Celebrate Lost Loved Ones" map, hosted by the National Safety Council, who visits the map, and stories being shared ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks will chat with neuroscientist Dr. Mark Mattson about his new book titled, The Intermittent Fasting Revolution: The Science of Optimizing Health and Enhancing Performance. Dr. Mattson is a professor of neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University, the former chief of the laboratory of neurosciences at the National Institute of Aging and someone who has done a lot of research on intermittent fasting. The National Institute of Health (NIH) c...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Professor Maggie Wang about the first, real-time platform to predict the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines. The podcast is based on her and her team's work published in Nature Medicine in June of 2022. The platform has the potential to be used for other vaccines as well. In the podcast, Professor Wang will discuss the research behind the platform, how vaccine effectiveness relates to "genetic distance"; how, wh...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Hector Aguilar-Carreno about his and his team's research published in Nature, May'22 titled: A TMPRSS2 inhibitor acts as a pan-SARS-CoV-2 prophylactic and therapeutic. In the podcast, he will break down the study and in an easy-to-understand way explain what TMPRSS2 is and how it relates to COVID-19 infection; the inhibitors and how they work; results when tested on cells and mice; why a nasal spray would be the ...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Tal Patalon, head of Kahn, Sagol, Maccabi (KSM), the Research and Innovation Center of Maccabi Healthcare Services in Israel about her recent study (still in preprint), titled: Naturally-acquired Immunity Dynamics against SARS-CoV-2 in Children and Adolescents, which you can access here. Currently, this is the largest, real-world, observational study looking at this research question during the Delta wave in Israel, wit...

Send us a textIn this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Krista Varady about the evidence base for intermittent fasting (IF). Dr. Varady has conducted numerous randomized controlled trials on intermittent fasting and is with the Department of Kinesiology and Nutrition at the University of Illinois in Chicago. Her recent review on IF was published in Nature Reviews Endocrinology, which you can read here. You can follow her on Instagram here. In the podcast, she will discuss th...