Exploring the Vagus Nerve: Regulation of Inflammation and Heart Function

This chapter explores the vital role of the vagus nerve in regulating heart rate variability and inflammation. It examines research on the nerve's fiber functions and the effects of vagus nerve stimulation on cytokine production, including insights from unexpected experimental findings.

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Kevin J. Tracey, MD is president and CEO of the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research at Northwell Health, a pioneer of vagus nerve research and author of the recent book, The Great Nerve: The New Science of the Vagus Nerve and How to Harness Its Healing Reflexes.

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Timestamps:

00:00 Tim’s intro: why he dismissed vagus-nerve hype

06:34 What the vagus nerve actually is, plus common myths

11:31 Breaking news: FDA approval for SetPoint’s RA implant + Kelly Owens’s turnaround

21:11 Inflammation 101: when healing turns harmful

31:37 Bioelectronic medicine: from lab insight to real devices

55:26 TNF, IL-1, and IL-6: immune drivers and what VNS modulates

56:06 Exercise & recovery: vagal signals, IL-6, and adaptation

56:30 Cold exposure & breathwork: sympathetic spike, parasympathetic payoff

59:04 Chronic inflammation today: prevalence, diagnostics, and uncertainty

59:53 Autoimmunity: genes, environment, infections

01:01:08 Stress hormones, personality traits, and metabolic fallout