EP40: Good Energy: Unlocking Cellular Health
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Welcome to the deep dive. Okay, we're jumping straight into some really eye-opening source material today. Stuff that challenges our basic ideas about health and, well, why so many of us just feel

If you've ever had that kind of low grade fatigue or aches or just feel like you're always running on fumes, this deep dive is definitely for you. We're exploring what our sources are calling good energy. Right. And trying to figure out why getting it feels so, you know, out of reach for so many people these days.

Our guide here is excerpts from this really compelling book. It's titled Good Energy. And the core question these sources pose is pretty provocative, actually. It's like, what if the way we normally think about chronic illness or even just feeling generally unwell, what if that's missing the real root cause? These sources, they build this powerful case that it really all boils down to how our cells, our actual cells,

produce and use energy. And I think that's the big shift, right? The sources are saying energy isn't just about feeling peppy. They argue it's the absolute foundation of health, like at the most basic cellular level. So when those tiny power plants in our cells, the mitochondria, when they're not working right,

It creates this ripple effect. It shows up as problems that seem totally disconnected. Like what? Well, things like gaining weight, high blood pressure, even mental health stuff, and chronic diseases. What's really striking is how the sources kind of weave all these different threads together. And they start with this incredibly powerful personal story. Oh, it really anchors the whole thing. Yeah. The book kicks off with the author sharing their mom's health journey. And

Honestly, some parts will probably sound pretty familiar to a lot of you listening. She struggled with her weight, had high blood pressure, high cholesterol. She was pre-diabetic, managing these things, you know, on several medications, seeing different specialists. And she often heard she was healthy for her age. Right. That common phrase. Exactly. But then, bam, at 71, everything changed instantly. A diagnosis of stage four pancreatic cancer. And she was gone just 13 days later. Her breaking story.

But the sources use it as this really stark example of their main point. They argue that those conditions, the weight, the blood pressure, they weren't just normal aging. No. There were critical warning signs, indicators that her cells weren't generating or using energy properly.

That's what the author calls bad energy. Okay. So that's the term. Yeah. And this, the sources argue, is the core problem. The thread that ties everything together, connecting those earlier, seemingly milder issues to the really serious outcome later. Okay. Okay.

So our mission today diving into these sources with you is to really unpack this. What is good energy? Why do the sources think it's so foundational for your well-being? What parts of modern life are like actively sabotaging it and maybe most importantly what can we actually do to start cultivating it? Hey, let's dig in. Let's do it. The sources really don't hold back when they critique the current medical system. They describe it as

incredibly siloed, like compartmentalized. They also talks about their own medical training path starting bra, you know, physics, chemistry, then biology, then specializing way down head and neck surgery, maybe even just the nose or the ear after that. Wow. They argue the whole system rewards becoming an expert on just a tiny part of the body basically tells doctors stay in your lane.

There's even this example in the book about some syndrome named after an apologist who focused on just three square inches of the body. I mean... Right. And the critique there is that this hyper-specialization, while maybe needed sometimes,

It often fails patients whose problems are all interconnected. Yeah. Think about someone like Sarah. She's mentioned in the sources, 30s dealing with these awful migraines. She'd seen neurologists, psychiatrists, cardiologists even was on a bunch of meds. Oh, wow. But with all those specialists focused on their little area, not a single one had suggested something as basic as trying a migraine elimination diet.

Yeah. Makes you think, how does that get missed? It really does. And the sources ask, you know, why are we so focused on just managing symptoms, giving a pill for blood pressure, treating the inflammation itself instead of drilling down to the root cause? Exactly. The author, as an ENT surgeon, treated tons of inflammation, sinusitis, tonsillitis, all that.

But they had this realization that they were treating the result, not the reason the immune system was chronically revved up or why cells were sending out these fear signals all the time. And that loops right back to their core idea. Yeah. Bad energy. Right. They argue that when cells are underpowered, they basically send out distress signals, alarm bells. These signals trigger inflammation.

And chronic inflammation over time leads to disease. OK, so what's making the cells underpowered then? Well, the sources point the finger directly at our modern world, our lifestyles, our diets. They argue these things are actively damaging our mitochondria, those energy factories. And they list the culprits, right? The sources name things like, well, eating way more calories and sugar than ever before, being incredibly sedentary.

Constant stress. Constant stress, yeah. Exposure to tons of toxins. Not sleeping enough. They really emphasize this isn't random. It's a direct result of how we live now. And they share another story that hits home for a lot of people. Lucy, 36 years old, had acne, bloating, anxiety, insomnia, trouble with infertility. So a lot going on. Yeah. But by standard medical tests, she was technically healthy. Yet she felt awful, like something was just fundamentally off.

The sources describe how Dr. Casey in the story didn't see these as separate problems. No. No, she saw them all as branches of the same tree. The root cause, bad energy, or what they also call metabolic dysfunction. It shows how these common complaints can be really important clues. And the sources really hammer this point home, how incredibly common Lucy's story is. We've sort of accepted feeling just, okay, right. Like fatigue, acne, bloating, low mood. It's just part of being an adult. Yeah, we normalize it. But

But the sources say no, these are warning signs. They're signs of cellular problems that, if you ignore them, can lead to really serious things like diabetes, heart disease, cancer down the road. Metabolic dysfunction is that sort of invisible thread. And they also argue these issues can start really, really early. Dr. Casey looks back at her own life.

Her mom's metabolic health during pregnancy, being a big baby, is cited as a risk factor. Oh, interesting. Yeah. Then growing up on processed foods that she says wrecked her gut, dealing with weight, acne, painful periods as a pain, and then, bam, stress and bad habits during medical residency brought it all roaring back. Wow.

They point to the huge rise in childhood obesity, fatty liver disease, ADHD, anxiety, and argue it's all tied to this underlying metabolic dysfunction, often starting way back in childhood. But for the author, the real turning point, the thing that just changed everything, was their mom's pancreatic cancer diagnosis. Yeah.

They talk about facing this intense pressure from really prestigious doctors at Stanford to go for aggressive invasive procedures, biopsies, transfusions, a liver stent. Even though the odds weren't great. Exactly. The doctors apparently said there was like a 33% chance it might add a few months, but also a 33% chance it could shorten her life. And the worst part, because of COVID rules then, she'd probably die alone in the hospital if they did it. Ugh. It's just...

That conflict really highlights what the sources are getting at. The system pushed for intervention. The author felt judged for even questioning it. They describe asking the doctor point blank, are you really recommending this invasive thing that you admit probably won't extend her life and means she could die alone? And the doctor just said yes. Wow. To me, that exchange, as the source tells it, just perfectly shows their argument.

Sometimes the system is built for procedures, not necessarily for the patient's overall well-being or, you know, quality of life. So instead of doing that, they made a different choice. They took their mom home to Half Moon Bay and the sources described those last 13 days as just deeply meaningful. In her final conscious moments, they took her to see where she'd be buried, this beautiful forest grove overlooking the ocean. The author writes about her hugging them, saying it's just so perfect and beautiful right before she lost consciousness.

She passed away two days later at home with family holding their hands. And the sources make that powerful point. If they had followed the standard advice, that incredibly human, meaningful end wouldn't have happened. No. They argue that

The system, yeah, it has doctors with good intentions, but they're often trapped in a system that rewards doing more, not doing what's best for the patient. It's designed for billing codes, for procedures, for interventions. And there's another critique in the sources, right, about how we handle diseases like cancer. Treatment, chemo, surgery, it all happens after you get diagnosed. Right, reactive. But the sources argue so strongly that cancer is often preventable. So why, they ask, is there so little focus on prevention?

On addressing those root causes, they talk about diet, lifestyle, metabolic dysfunction. And this leads to what the sources call maybe the biggest lie in health care. Yeah. This idea that the reasons we get sick are super complicated. Yeah. They say based on their research and experience, no, they aren't that complicated. They argue it really boils down to the food we eat, the way we live, and the systems that profit from our suffering.

a direct link between our choices and the economics of health. - Wow, okay, but it's not all doom and gloom, right? The sources offer a path forward. - Definitely, they pivot pretty strongly towards solutions, towards hope, and really agency. - Agency, okay. - Yeah, they argue that by shifting focus to cultivating good energy, by giving ourselves what they actually need, we have the power to reverse a lot of chronic conditions. It's not always about more drugs or complex treatments.

Often it's about simplifying, removing the blocks. So the takeaway is we don't have to just wait for the system. We can actually take control. That's the empowering message. Exactly. We can start taking meaningful control right now. How? Where do we start? Well, a key part is trusting your own body.

the sources say your body has the answers we've gotten so used to feeling just okay that we ignore the signals like headaches bloating yeah headaches bloating low energy anxiety the sources argue these aren't normal they're vital clues that somebody's off balance inside pay attention to those things they share that story about emily right with the glucose test oh yeah great example standard glucose test during pregnancy told she was fine

But then she used a continuous glucose monitor, a CGM. Totally different story. Her blood sugar was spiking hours later, hitting unhealthy levels.

It shows how the standard system gives you one snapshot, like a photo. But our bodies are dynamic. They're always changing. A CGM gives you the whole movie. Right, seeing the fluctuations. Exactly. And this leads into the potential of, like, bio-observability and technology. Right. Observability. Yeah. It's kind of ironic, isn't it? We know more about our cars or our phones than our own bodies sometimes. But tools like wearables, CGMs, tracking apps...

They're changing that, giving us real-time insights into our own biology. It's about empowering you with your own data.

And they critique standard blood tests too, don't they? They do. You get results, told you're fine or normal range. But doctors often don't explain what the numbers mean or what's optimal versus just not technically diseased. Like triglycerides. Yeah, exactly. Normal might be under 1 in 50, but the sources suggest optimal is under 80. Fasting glucose, normal under 100, but ideally more like 70 to 85. And a lot of standard panels don't even test fasting insulin.

which the sources say is a huge red flag for insulin resistance early on. So the CGM and wearables give you way more data. Immense amounts. A CGM might give you 35,000 data points a year versus one fasting glucose test. You see exactly how food, stress, sleep, exercise affect your blood sugar right now. Wow.

They mentioned things like one bad night's sleep can tank your insulin sensitivity by 25%. Stress can spike blood sugar like eating sugar. Why are we ignoring this info about our own bodies? They also mentioned tracking other things, right, like sleep, steps. Yeah, sleep quality, steps, and heart rate variability, HRV. They explain HRV as like a window into your stress levels.

High HRV, you're probably relaxed, recovering well. Low HRV could mean you're stressed, not recovering, maybe overtraining. So the message about data is don't just rely on the doctors, okay. Pretty much. Your body gives feedback constantly.

These tools help you listen. It's not about obsession, but about seeing trends and making changes. Blood sugar spikes after that meal. Adjust it. HRV low. Maybe rest instead of that hard workout. The power is shifting back to you. Okay, let's shift gears to food. This sounds like a huge piece of the puzzle in the sources. Oh, absolutely huge. They say it pretty bluntly. We're eating ourselves to death. Wow. But it's more complex than just willpower. They draw this striking parallel.

The author mentioned seeing an opioid patient desperate for drugs during residency and suggests we're similarly addicted, but to ultra-processed foods. Addicted to food. That's the argument. Both are killing us. But the food addiction is more insidious. It's everywhere. It's normalized. And it's often not seen as the root cause of chronic illness. So how should we think about food then? The sources reframe it. It's not just calories or fuel.

It's information. It talks directly to yourselves. Information? Yeah. Every bite sends signals. Junk food sends bad signals. Disruptive signals. Like trying to build a house with shoddy bricks. Our bodies are constantly rebuilding, right? Given bad info via food, you get dysfunction. Disease. So the key isn't some specific fad diet. No. They argue it's simply returning to eating real, unprocessed food. And when you do that, something amazing happens, according to the sources.

the cravings often just vanish. Really? Yeah, the author shares their own story of ditching a Hershey's Kisses habit easily once they switched to Whole Foods.

It's not magic. It's biology. Cells getting the right signals finally. They use that analogy, right? The general and the troops. Yeah, I love that one. Your food choices are like orders from the general, you to the troops, your cells. Send mixed messages, sugar, then no nutrients. Cells get confused, dysfunctional. Clear signals. Clear signals. Like omega-3s telling the immune system to chill or

fiber-feeding good gut bacteria, the whole body thrives. It really shows that direct link. And the gut bacteria, the microbiome, that's important too. Critically important. Trillions of bacteria calling the shots on our health.

Feed them well, they support you. Feed them junk, it's disaster. The sources also talk about having awe for food. Yeah, seeing it as more than just fuel. It's a miracle. Connecting us to the sun, the soil, our ancestors. Thinking that way makes healthy choices feel less like restriction, more like respect. Have

Have we lost that connection? It seems like it. And the sources are really critical of nutrition research itself, aren't they? Oh, yeah. They argue it's often deliberately confusing. They point to funding claiming food companies spend way more on research than the NIH, like 11 times more. Wow. And they claim industry funded studies are six times more likely to show fearable results.

This, they argue, shapes official guidelines, school lunches, farm subsidies. They mentioned the dietary guidelines panel. Yeah, the 2020 panel. Alleging massive conflicts of interest, leading to recommendations like 10% of a kid's diet from added sugar is fine. That doesn't sound right. And get this, they cite a 2022 study that ranked Lucky Charms healthier than lamb or ground beef, put cereals way above eggs, and the study's stated goal,

to influence marketing to children. That's shocking. It really is. It highlights how funding might skew things. So the sources take is basically it's simpler than all this. Exactly. Animals, humans, 75 years ago, they didn't have this metabolic crisis. They figured it out. Why do we need 45,000 nutrition studies in two years when the basics work? So what are the basics? The good energy meal principles. Okay. They recommend organic,

Unrefined fruits, veggies, ideally regenerative. Organic nuts, seeds, legumes, beans, minimally processed. Pasture-raised, grass-fed meats, organs, elk, bison, et cetera. Pasture-raised poultry eggs.

Grass-fed A2-strained dairy may be easier for some to digest. Wild-caught, small, omega-3-rich fish mackerel, sardines, anchovies, herbs, spices, simple condiments like vinegar, mustard, fermented foods, sauerkraut, kimchi, natto, tempeh, tofu, kefir, and crucially, clean water. Filtered with reverse osmosis or charcoal. They really emphasize the water part. Yeah, it's 90% of our blood. Non-negotiable.

The author found crazy high arsenic in their local water. Brita filters don't cut it for heavy metals or bacteria. And hydration is key for metabolic health. How so? Even mild dehydration is linked to obesity risk. There's this pathway. Dehydration triggers the polio pathway, turns glucose into fructose, which promotes fat storage.

Wild, right. Not drinking enough water could make you store fat. Okay, so that's what to eat. What about what not to eat? Very simple, according to the sources. Avoid any refined sugars, any refined grains, and any refined industrial vegetable or seed oils. Grains, too. Even whole grains. The author questions their benefit. Says modern grains aren't nutrient-dense, often pesticide-heavy. Compares quinoa's fiber, 5G cup, to basil seeds.

15G2-TBSP focuses on nutrient density and minimal processing. They mentioned farming practices as well. Yeah, criticizing conventional farming, bad for soil health, planet, billions of pounds of pesticides linked to obesity, cancer. Organic is better. Regenerative is the gold standard. But the real enemy seems to be processed foods. Ultra processed foods, yeah. They make up like 60% of adult calories in the U.S., 67% for kids.

directly linked to obesity, diabetes, dementia. One study showed four servings a day up to death risk by 62%. It's not just empty calories. They're actively harmful. So the simple answer is just eat real food. Basically, yeah. Focus on whole, unprocessed, stock your kitchen right. They give budget tips to frozen organic, cook beans from scratch, shop sales. It sounds simple, but it's not.

But it's potentially life-changing. Not rocket science, but requires a shift. OK, let's move beyond food. Lifestyle factors. The sources talk about our biological clock being disrupted. Totally. The author shares this intense story from residency covered in blood bags after a trauma. Awake 24 hours straight, exhausted, then getting yelled at by an equally sleep-deprived supervisor.

It shows how normalized extreme sleep deprivation was. And that connects to everyday life. Absolutely. We live out of sync with our biology, mostly indoors, staring at screens, eating late, flooded with artificial light at night. We're daytime creatures, right?

But we've created this constant state of cellular confusion. Cellular confusion. Yeah. And that, they argue, directly causes mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, inflammation, bad energy again. Our environment itself is working against our cell health. Sunlight is a big factor here. Huge. It's not just vitamin D. It resets our internal clocks. Light hits your eyes, tells your body it's daytime, sets off biological processes.

But we live in dim indoor days and bright artificial nights, throw circadian rhythms way off, linked to metabolic disease, obesity, mental health issues. And sleep quality matters, too, not just hours. Definitely. Not just how long, but when and how consistently. Sources mention research. Even a few nights of bad sleep can cause prediabetes symptoms. Sleep-deprived mitochondria literally fall apart.

Like running a car on empty, eventually things break. We treat sleep like a luxury, not a necessity. Meal timing is another one. Eating late. Yeah. We graze all day, sometimes 11 eating events, often late at night. But our bodies are designed to eat during the day, fast at night. Eating late tells cells it's daytime when it's not. Contributes to weight gain, insulin resistance. But there's good news. Simple fixes. Yeah. The sources say simple things have a big impact.

Get morning sunlight, even a short walk while brushing your teeth helps. Eat early or finish by 7 or 8 p.m. Supports that natural nighttime fast. Might be tough with modern schedules, but the benefits are huge. Treat your body like the amazing machine it is. Align habits with biology. Okay, what about movement and discomfort? Right. Modern life engineers these out. Comfy chairs, climate control, cars everywhere.

The author notes the irony of med school. Sitting eight hours learning about diseases caused by sitting. Yeah. They really lean into sitting is the new smoking. The author's story about trying to get a standing desk in residency is wild. Built one from an Ikea tub, surveyed classmates. Admin wanted a two-year study for formal evidence. Even after the study showed benefits, still denied. Their conclusion, literally training doctors in a system that's making them sick.

shows how ingrained comfort is. And this comfort has a cost. That's the argument. It makes ourselves complacent. The body needs some stress, not too much, but just enough to stay resilient. Like plants in harsh conditions make more antioxidants. Outdoor cats are leaner. Wild animals have less cancer. Depression, less comfortable life, might be better biologically. So the fitness industry approach is wrong. Scheduling workouts. They critique it, yeah. Movement used to be part of life, not separate.

Sitting 80% of the day is terrible. That hour at the gym might not undo the damage if you sit five hours. They cite Huberman on that. Wow. The key is consistent movement woven in. Stand more, walk more, stretch. Not necessarily intense, just consistent. And temperature. We avoid hot and cold, too.

Totally. Ancestors dealt with it. Kept mitochondria active. Our average body temp has dropped. Sources argue intentional heat, saunas and colds, showers, plunges, boost metabolism, improve insulin sensitivity, lower stress, a wake-up call for your cells. It's ironic, isn't it? We pay for comfort, then pay to fix the problems comfort causes. Exactly. Pay for AC, then pay for a gym or sauna. Cycle of paying for comfort, then paying to undo the damage. Right. The solution isn't more gadgets. It's a mindset shift.

Embrace a little discomfort. Movement, temperature changes. They're essential, not extras. Okay. One more lifestyle factor, toxins. Yeah. The modern world is full of them. Sources say 80,000 synthetic chemicals in our air, water, food.

Many are obesogens. They mess with metabolism, contribute to obesity, like bathing in a chemical soup. Yikes. Is there anything we can do? Good news is yes. We can reduce exposure, filter water, choose organic food, ditch plastic products. It's progress, not perfection. Reintroduce what modernity took away. Movement, temperature changes, less toxic environment, bring back natural stressors. They're small. Yeah.

Stand more, try a cool shower finish, swap one cleaning product. Little changes add up for cellular energy. It's empowering how much is in our control. Okay, the final piece the sources discuss is less physical. Fear. Right. They call fearlessness the highest level of good energy. Fear drains energy enormously. We're wired for it though, right? For survival. We are. But modern life turns it against us. Constant global crises. 247. Beam through screens.

We end up carrying the weight of the world's trauma. The stats are pretty grim. Startling. Nearly 40% of U.S. women diagnosed with depression. 75% of young Americans feel unsafe daily. Biologically, chronic stress hormones flood our cells, stop them working right no matter how well you eat or exercise.

That mental fear loop hurts the body. And we use distractions to cope. Sugar, social media, alcohol, anything to numb that fear and anxiety. Like we're running from something. They use the term digital terrorism glued to screens. Yeah. Consuming fear inducing stuff because biologically we can't look away from threats, even digital ones. But there's hope here too. A way out. Definitely.

The sources offer a roadmap. Not ignoring the world, but setting boundaries, being intentional. Using tools like meditation, therapy, nature, breathwork to rewire the brain, calm the cells. The authors' mom's story shifted their view on fear. Profoundly. Made them realize life is short. Worrying about uncontrollables just steals the present. It's about choosing where to put your energy. And there's that deeper idea of connection. Yeah, seeing ourselves as part of this vast, interconnected web. Same stuff as stars and mountains.

That perspective can lessen fear's grip, not denying death or pain, but embracing beauty and impermanence. They even mention psychedelics like psilocybin as potential tools for breaking fear patterns, connecting to something bigger, wild maybe, but fits the journey. Wow. Okay, so wrapping this up, the main shift here is... It's moving from that siloed symptom-treating view of health to an energy-centric one, focusing on root causes, on cellular function.

Bad energy underlies chronic issues, but the liberating part is good energy is achievable. And the most powerful takeaway for you listening. I think it's that so much of your health is in your control. You don't have to wait for this system or a miracle. It's about listening to your body, using data, building habits that support your cellular energy. Not perfection, just intention and progress. So the key pillars again are... Eating real, unprocessed food.

Respecting your biological clock light, sleep, meal timing, weaving in movement and temperature changes, reducing toxins, and actively managing fear and stress. They all work together. And the underlying hope is reversing chronic illness is possible. By focusing on the root cause, your cellular energy. That's the core message of hope from these sources. Which leaves you, the listener, with a final thought from the sources to chew on. Yeah, this provocative question. If feeling just okay isn't actually normal,

What would it feel like to truly thrive? How much energy, focus, well-being are you leaving on the table by not prioritizing your cellular health? That's definitely a question worth exploring for yourself.