Causes or Cures

An interesting episode in the aftermath of the worst of COVID!
In 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 his PhD in social psychology at the University of Michigan. He is currently doing postdoc research at the Center for the Experimental-Philosophical Study of Discrimination at Aarhus University.  His research focus is on psychological processes that help people manage fundamental threats and opportunities in their environment.  

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On this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats wtih Dr. Dmitry Abramov about his and his team's research on the impact of sustance 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 assessed include alcohol, opioids, marijuana, and psychostimulants. He also describes how these substances may damage the heart. 
Dr. Abramov is a practicing cardiologist and researcher at Loma Linda University. His specialities include cardiovasclar disease and advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology.

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In 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 identified as the common exposure. She explains how other known syndromes were ruled out and discusses ongoing research to determine how exactly fentanyl causes the new syndrome. Finally, she offers next steps in terms of informing the public and public health.
Dr. Fernandes is a practicing physician and researcher in the division of medical genetics at Nemours Children's Health. Her and her team's study on the new syndrome was recently published here in Genetics in Medicine Open.

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"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 describes how people can eat healthier on any budget and what foods to prioritize, and she discusses our current approach to obesity, including the new obesity drugs, and what else needs to be done. She also describes how the body positive movement fits in with the war on obesity, as the two are not at odds with one another. 
Dr. Toussaint is a board-certified family physician, obesity medicine physician, and is certified in culinary medicine. With over fifteen years of clinical experience, she has spent much of her career working with underrepresented communities and is a champion for eliminating health disparities. If you are interested in learning more about her or are interested in working with her, please visit her website Anise Medical.
You can also follow her food and cooking tips on her Instagram here. 

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In 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. He discusses economic outcomes, health outcomes, and addresses criticism of these types of taxes, including that they are too "Big Brotherish" and discriminate against the poor.
Dr. Kaplan is an applied microeconomist whose research interests include consumer behavior and food and health policy. He is an Assistant Professor in the Economics Department at the United States Naval Academy.

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In 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 information and opinions (often conflicting) in a digital, social-media obsessed age. Finally, Dr. Sutter outlines a path forward on how to rebuild trust in science. 
Dr. Paul Sutter is a theoretical cosmologist, award-winning science communicator, NASA advisor, U.S. Cultural Ambassador, and a globally recognized leader in the intersection of art and science. He is a research professor at the Institute for Advanced Computational Science at Stony Brook University and a visiting professor at Barnard College, Columbia University. He is also a seasoned author and his next book, Rescuing Science in an Age of Doubt, is available this March.

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In 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 medications and how to slow down muscle loss. She discusses access issues and how the medications may be widening health disparities related to obesity and remaining questions that require more research.
Dr. Jay is an Associate Professor, Department of Medicine and an Associate Professor, Department of Population Health at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. She leads the "Jay lab" at NYU and her research focus is improving the treatment and prevention of obesity. You can learn more about her work on obesity here. 

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In 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 and how that was determined. Finally, he explains the larger health impact of his work, particularly in an age when cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease are on the rise.
Dr. Iliff is a researcher and professor at the University of Washington Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and the Associate Director for Research at the Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center at the Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care System. His research focuses on traumatic brain injuries and neurodegeneration.

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In 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 years of experience working with teens and adults. She is the co-author of the books Seen and Beyond the Spiral.  She is a Licensed Professional Counselor, a Board Certified Counselor and a Counselor Educator & Supervisor, and a certified EMDR therapist with a doctorate in Counselor Education. You can learn more about her on her website and follow her Instagram here.

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In 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 personal. He has lost several family members to ALS, including his father, uncle, grandfather, and aunt. He is also a carrier of the ALS gene, and realizes it may only be a matter of time until he shows signs of the disease. As a young man now, he discusses what that feels like in the podcast.
Daniel also talks about finding a way to have kids with his wife to avoid passing on the ALS gene and finding the group End the Legacy, a not-for-profit organization that provides support and resources for the 1 million individuals with or at risk of genetic ALS and FTD. 
Thank you to everyone who reviews and rates the podcast!

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In 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 between dream research and unraveling the mystery of consciousness.
 Dr. Valli is a neuroscientist and senior researcher who has researched various aspects of dreams and dreaming for the past 20 years. She works as a senior researcher at the Department of Psychology University of Turku, Finland and as an Associate Professor at the Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Skovde, Sweden. Her research focus is states of consciousness and the biological function of dreaming. You can learn more about her here. 

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Kicking off the New Year with a fun one! In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Naor Sagy on whether or not space aliens are out there; what they look like and how they act; our motivation for wanting to meet them (and their motivation for wanting to meet us); and what could possibly happen if we meet each other.
Consider this a fun, shooting-the-breeze podcast. Neither Dr. Eeks nor Dr. Sagy have any special knowledge on space alien life form. However, they both like space, mysteries and shooting the shit. You can learn more about Dr. Eeks at her websites below. Dr. Sagy is an electrical engineer who also has a PhD in molecular biology and conducts anti-aging research at the University of Tel Aviv.

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In 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 President of the Psychophysiologic Disorders Association (PPDA), a nonprofit dedicated to ending the chronic pain epidemic. He earned his medical degree from the University of Connecticut School of Medicine, and is Board-certified in Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology. His organization’s mission is to advance the awareness, diagnosis, and treatment of stress-related, brain-generated medical conditions. You can learn more about him at EndChronicPain.org.

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In 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 exercise right now and also offer advice on how their findings should impact current exercise guidelines when it comes to high blood pressure, a serious health problem that affects millions of people!
Dr. O'Driscoll is a researcher in Cardiovascular Physiology at Canterbury Christ Church University and a Clinical Scientist in Cardiology. You can learn about him here. Jamie Edwards is a PhD student at Canterbury Christ Church University.

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In 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 tobacco industries owned and controlled leading food companies (Kraft, Nabisco, General Foods...) and how her and her team determined that they were making hyper-palatable foods. She also discusses what is happening with the current food industry, why this is a big public health issue, and what we can do to move toward a healthier food supply.

Dr. Fazzino is Associate Director of the Cofrin Logan Center for Addiction Research and Treatment at the University of Kansas and a Professor in the Department of Psychology.  She has a doctorate in experimental psychology and her research focuses on addiction, obesity, eating disorders and health-risk behaviors. 

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In 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 wrote the book Burden of Pain, which is his side of the story. After serving his time, he is back to practicing medicine. No matter your views on the causes and perpetrators of the opioid epidemic, in this episode Dr. Joshi provides valuable insights on the complexity of the epidemic; how we view and treat pain; the patient-Doctor relationship, the role of the DEA; and what he feels are the best steps forward. He also shares what it was like to be a doctor in prison, coming out and starting over.

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In 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 before a chemical hits the market. She talks about the public health researchers and health advocates who are revolutionizing our understanding of cancer and its causes, as well as leading the fight against chemical pollution and corporate influence with scientific evidence. Finally, she describes her vision for the new war on cancer, including putting a "face" to prevention. 


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Why 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 potential public health implications of her work, including how it may impact future vaccine development.
Dr. Hollenbach is a Professor in the Department of Neurology and Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco.  You can learn more about her and her lab here.

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In 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-fasting routine, along with other more unconventional therapies. Michelle credits dry-fasting for putting her on the path to healing.
What drives a person to go all the way to Siberia to engage in an unconventional therapy that many would consider risky and dangerous? What did her team of conventional doctors, friends and family think? What do folks suffering with chronic illness do and feel if all conventional approaches to treatment have been exhausted, but the person just isn't getting better?  Michelle answers that, and more, in the podcast.
*PLEASE NOTE: Eeks does not recommend anyone hopping on a plane to Siberia to try dry-fasting. She does not endorse dry-fasting. This podcast episode is not an endorsement of Siberia or dry-fasting or dry-fasting in Siberia. Eeks works in public health, doesn't practice medicine, and advises everyone to work with their team of doctors when it comes to overcoming a chronic illness. She didn't know much of anything about dry-fasting until she read Michelle's book, and there are currently no peer-reviewed published studies to support its effectiveness. She doesn't think she'd make it through the Siberia routine, but everyone is wired differently. (She once went to a juice camp where they ban coffee, but feeling like a tranquilized bear, she ended up breaking the rules and running to a mini mart to sneak some in.) However..., she recommends reading Michelle's book because it's a compelling close-up look of what it's like for someone struggling day after day with a chronic illness and what happens when a feeling of hopelessness starts to set in. This is a podcast (not news or advice or Gospel), and this episode is one woman sharing her story. (Apologies for the long disclaimer, but we need them in today's painfully reductive, slap-label-happy world.)

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In 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-term solutions from conventional medicine and therapies, many suffering from chronic pain seek out more alternative and unconventional approaches to find some relief. This is an especially timely topic given the ongoing US opioid epidemic.

In the podcast, Dr. Khanna starts with the basics and defines chronic pain and its causes. He describes his and his team's research and why a "special" sodium channel and a "special" protein that regulates this sodium channel are important when it comes to regulating chronic pain. He explains how he and his team used gene therapy to influence the interaction of the "special" protein and sodium channel, tested their hypothesis in animals and cells, and the results and outcomes related to chronic pain. Towards the end of the podcast, he discusses if the field may move towards replacing animals in research with other ways to test treatments, alternative approaches to chronic pain, and what the future of chronic pain treatment may look like.

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