There’s a logical-sounding argument for supplementing growth hormone as you age: your body used to make more of it, so replacing what’s lost should help. It follows the same reasoning as hormone replacement for menopausal women.
Comment ‚417‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
But the data in humans tells a different story. Dr Longo uses a striking analogy - put a brand new engine in an old car and push it, and something else is going to break. IGF-1 doesn’t exist in isolation, and what happens when you raise it artificially in an ageing body is not necessarily what the theory predicts.
To hear more, listen to episode #417 of The Proof Podcast with Dr Valter Longo.
#growthhormone #longevityscience #ageing
Two meals. Identical calories and identical ingredients. One was home-cooked, the other came from a packet. The people eating the home-cooked version lost twice as much body fat.
Comment ‚415‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
What’s even more interesting is that not all ultra-processed foods are equal. One type could actually be the healthier switch for some people - and it’s probably not what you’d expect.
To hear more, listen to episode #415 of The Proof Podcast with Rhiannon Lambert.
#ultraprocessedfoods #nutritionscience #weightloss
If you’re in your late 30s or early 40s and not yet lifting weights, you may be leaving your future self with fewer options. The period before menopause is one of the most strategic windows to build the muscle and bone reserves you’ll need when estrogen drops.
Comment ‚413‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
Research suggests that even consistent exercise may not be able to prevent all of the bone loss that comes with menopause. But going into that phase from a strong starting point makes a significant difference. The earlier you start, the more buffer you build.
To hear more, listen to episode #413 of The Proof Podcast with Dr Belinda Beck. #womenshealth #bonehealth #strengthtraining
Nutrition advice usually focuses on how much protein to eat. But a new study asked a different question - not how much, but what ratio of plant to animal protein is associated with better cardiovascular outcomes.
Comment ‚416‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
Looking across over 200,000 healthcare professionals followed for 30 years, researchers found that shifting more of your protein toward plants was linked to a lower risk of coronary artery disease. And there appears to be a ratio that stands out – though the answer may not be what the most extreme dietary camps on either side would like to hear.
To hear more, listen to episode #416 of The Proof Podcast with Dr Andrea Glenn.
#proteinintake #hearthealth #nutritionresearch
One of the most common defences for injecting peptides is that your body already makes them naturally. So how could they be harmful?
Comment ‚414‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
The problem is that many of these compounds aren’t actually produced by your body in that exact form. BPC-157, for example, is a fragment of a larger peptide - the specific sequence being sold doesn’t naturally exist in the human body. The ‚it’s natural‘ argument doesn’t hold up once you look at the chemistry - and a drug developer explains exactly why.
To hear more, listen to episode #414 of The Proof Podcast with Dr Leigh Baxt.
#peptides #wellnessscience #drugdevelopment
The peptide boom is moving fast. Growth-hormone-releasing peptides, GLP-1s, and the wellness aesthetic of higher IGF-1, more muscle, and less fat are being sold as the route to a longer, healthier life.
In this episode, I sit down with Dr Valter Longo, Professor of Gerontology at USC and developer of the Fasting-Mimicking Diet, to look at what 100 years of evidence really says, and why he calls himself the anti-biohacker.
Comment ‚417‘ and the episode link will be sent right to your inbox.
Listen now on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
There are six food additives flagged by public health bodies as linked to hyperactivity in children. Most people have never heard of them - and they’re hiding in the everyday foods you’d least expect.
Comment ‚415‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
And if you’ve been reaching for sweeteners as the safer option, Rhiannon’s updated stance might change your mind. The emerging data on what they do to gut bacteria and sweet food cravings is more nuanced than the usual „they’re harmless“ line.
To hear more, listen to episode #415 of The Proof Podcast with Rhiannon Lambert.
#foodadditives #nutrition #guthealth
The butter debate gets a lot of airtime online. But a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine followed over 200,000 healthcare professionals for 30 years and looked directly at mortality - not just surrogate markers.
Comment ‚416‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
Those with the highest butter intake had a 15% higher risk of dying during the study period. Those with the highest intake of plant-based oils had a 16% lower risk. The size of that gap, and the fact it held across multiple oil types, makes it harder to dismiss than most nutrition headlines.
To hear more, listen to episode #416 of The Proof Podcast with Dr Andrea Glenn.
#nutrition #hearthealth #dietresearch
Bone loss during menopause isn’t just gradual. For some women, the drop in estrogen triggers a rapid resorption of bone that can have serious long-term consequences - and for those who already had low bone mass, the window to act is much smaller than most realise.
Comment ‚413‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
Estrogen acts as a biological brake on the cells that break down bone. When it disappears, those cells are no longer held in check. Whether hormone therapy is the right response is a question worth exploring with the evidence - not assumptions.
To hear more, listen to episode #413 of The Proof Podcast with Dr Belinda Beck.
#bonehealth #menopause #osteoporosis
America’s food system produces around 15,000 calories per person every single day from major commodity crops alone - and most of that never ends up on a plate. A large portion becomes biofuel. Another chunk goes to raising animals, a process where most of the energy is lost to heat before a single calorie reaches you.
Comment ‚411‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
What’s left gets engineered into some of the most shelf-stable, calorie-dense food products in history. The system isn’t neutral – it creates pressure to find uses for a glut of calories, and the food we eat is, in part, a solution to that problem.
To hear more, listen to episode #411 of The Proof Podcast with Dr Kevin Hall.
#foodsystems #ultraprocessedfoods #nutritionpolicy
Everyone’s focused on the blood sugar spike. But there’s a phase of your glucose response that happens hours after you eat that might be more relevant to hunger, cravings and how much you eat for the rest of the day.
Comment ‚412‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
1 in 4 people experience a significant glucose dip about three hours after a meal. According to new research, that dip - not the peak - is what drives increased hunger and leads to taking in more calories later. If you’ve ever felt unexpectedly hungry a few hours after eating, this could explain why.
To hear more, listen to episode #412 of The Proof Podcast with Dr Tim Spector.
#bloodsugar #guthealth #nutritionscience
Two guidelines. One country. They don’t say the same thing.
The American Heart Association just published its 2026 dietary guidance for cardiovascular health.
The federal Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2025–2030 (sometimes called the “Real Food” guidelines) are also in effect.
Most of the message lines up — vegetables, fruits, whole grains, less added sugar, less sodium, less alcohol.
Both even agree to limit ultraprocessed foods (the federal version renames them “highly processed foods” but the directional advice is similar).
Where they actually split:
→ Protein source. AHA: shift from meat to plants — legumes, nuts, seeds, soy, fish. Federal: animal sources listed first, plants last. No clear preference.
→ Dairy. AHA: low-fat or fat-free preferred. Federal: full-fat dairy at 3 servings/day — a clear reversal of decades of low-fat guidance.
→ Saturated fat. Both kept the 10%-of-calories cap. But the federal guidelines simultaneously promote butter, beef tallow, and full-fat dairy as “healthy fats” in the new pyramid graphic.
These documents shape school lunches, hospital menus, SNAP and WIC standards, clinical advice, and nutrition research funding. They are not just words.
The cardiovascular evidence on plant-vs-animal protein and on full-fat vs low-fat dairy points the direction the AHA points.
📊 Quick poll — drop your answer in the comments:
🅰️ I’m following the AHA
🅱️ I’m following the federal “Real Food” guidelines
🅲 I follow my own framework based on the evidence
🅳 I had no idea these two disagreed
Curious where this community lands. No judgement — just want to see the split.
🎙️ Full breakdown on EP. 409 — The Dietary Guidelines Great Debate with Dr Christopher Gardner (Stanford, 2025 DGAC) and Dr Ty Beal (GAIN). On The Proof Podcast — link in bio.
👇 Reading-like-a-scientist toolkit in the comments.
