In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Jay Maddock about his research on the scientific link between nature and mental health benefits. The focus is on one of his recently published studies that analyzed the link between communities' "Nature Score" and anxiety, stress and depression. He explains what a "Nature Score" is, how they did the study and the results. He describes other research showing that exposure to nature is beneficial for PTSD and ADHD and explains theories...

On 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 Type 2 Diabetes. She...

In 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 in humans....

In 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 cobras, rattlers,...

On 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 shares a colorful...

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...

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 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 assessed include...

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...

"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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...