Ep. 225: Casey Means, MD - Improve Your Metabolic Health with "Food as Medicine" Prescription

Nov 30, 2023

Dr. Casey Means, former ENT surgeon turned 'Food as Medicine' evangelist, discusses the impact of metabolic health on the body. She emphasizes the role of inflammation and poor metabolic health in causing illnesses, and advocates for addressing the root causes. Dr. Means explores the importance of micronutrients and omega-3 fats for metabolic health, as well as fermented foods for the microbiome. She also highlights the negative effects of excessive sugar consumption. The podcast ends with gratitude for the guest and a promotion of a plant-based lifestyle.

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Introduction

00:00 • 4min

The Link Between Inflammation and Dietary Choices

04:22 • 22min

The Importance of Micronutrients for Metabolic Health

25:59 • 25min

The Importance of Omega-3 Fats

51:05 • 7min

The Benefits of Fermented Foods for the Microbiome and Health

57:58 • 5min

The Negative Effects of Excessive Sugar Consumption on Metabolic Health

01:03:22 • 29min

Favorite Foods and Future Topics

01:32:42 • 3min

Gratitude for Guest and Discussion on Metabolic Health

01:36:08 • 3min

We hear the phrase, “metabolic health” a lot, but do we really know what that means? And, more importantly, how much do we understand the massive impact that metabolic health has on literally every system of our body?

Today, we explore that line of thinking with Dr. Casey Means.

Casey was trained as an ear, nose, and throat surgeon, but in recent years, she has become a self-proclaimed “Food as Medicine” evangelist.

Why would she make such a drastic change in a successful budding career? Well, as you’ll hear today, Dr. Means (like most doctors) pursued medicine in order to help people, but started realizing that most illnesses - even those she was treating as an ENT surgeon– came back to a person’s level of inflammation and poor metabolic health. So, as a surgeon, she was playing the proverbial “whack-a-mole” with the problems but never identifying the root causation.

Now, she’s on a mission to create a healthier world through her company, LEVELS Health - a continuous glucose monitor company - along with her upcoming book, Good Energy.

Today, we focus our conversation on exactly what metabolic health really means, as well as the Nine Elements of Metabolic Health. Casey also discusses the importance of metabolic health as it relates to exercise and sexual health.

About Casey Means, MD

Casey Means, MD is a Stanford-trained physician and Chief Medical Officer and Co-founder of metabolic health company Levels. Her mission is to maximize human potential and reverse the epidemic of preventable chronic disease by empowering individuals with tech-enabled tools that can inform smart, personalized, and sustainable dietary and lifestyle choices. Dr. Means’s perspective has been recently featured in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, The New Yorker, Men's Health, Women's Health, and more.

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