The Doctor's Farmacy With Mark Hyman, M.d.

We need to transform our food system and address one of the biggest threats to our well-being: our lack of a coordinated and comprehensive food policy. The outside influence that industrial food and agriculture lobbyists have on our policies encourages a food system that engenders disease. Lobbying power in Washington is rarely in the best interest of the public, supporting food and agriculture policies that undermine public health, harm the environment and increase private profits for Big Food. Big Food and Big Ag spend millions of dollars in Washington every year for the power to block policies that hurt their bottom lines and promote policies that make them money, whether or not it’s harmful to our society or the environment.  On this week’s mini-episode, Dr. Mark Hyman talks about the dirty politics of Big Food, how that influences our government food policies, and why we need to change it. Learn more about these topics and the undeniable harm our food system is doing to human health and to the environmen

The thyroid tends to be an underappreciated organ, but despite being a small gland it has massive implications for your health. While thyroid disease can occur in various forms, one of the most common is called Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune disease where the body attacks the thyroid gland and diminishes its ability to create precious hormones—ones that impact every cell of the body. Hashimoto’s is the leading cause of hypothyroidism (an underactive thyroid) in the US and roughly 14 million people in the US are struggling with this diagnosis, with women at much higher risk, being 7 to 8 times more likely than men to get it.  In this mini-episode, Dr. Hyman is joined by Dr. Elizabeth Boham to review patient cases in which thyroid issues were treated. Elizabeth Boham is a physician and nutritionist who practices functional medicine at The UltraWellness Center in Lenox, MA. Through her practice and lecturing she has helped thousands of people achieve their goals of optimum health and wellness. She witnes

When I was growing up we had news sources we could trust. Under The Fairness Doctrine, news on the radio, TV, and in print was partial and fair. But in 1987 during the Reagan administration, this was repealed, leading to alternative media and more misinformation than ever before. And now with the internet, we are truly in the wild west of sharing information, collecting data, and trying to maintain privacy. Big companies take advantage of that from all angels with their marketing, which is now ultra-targeted (and often in ways you wouldn’t even be able to recognize).  Today on The Doctor’s Farmacy, I sit down with Andy Russell to talk about what data really means, who has yours, how they got it, and how they use it. Andy is a digital media, ad-tech, marketing-tech, and data science innovator and pioneer as well as a self-taught Behavioral Economist. He has invested in, incubated, or run over 50 technology companies, including Daily Candy, Thrillist, Tasting Table, Idealbite, PureWow, Zynga, Betaworks, Busines

It has been estimated that over the next 35 years, it's going to cost our society $95 trillion to address chronic disease. And not only is this affecting us economically, but our overall quality of life is decreasing. Imagine what we could do If we didn't have to spend as much money as we are currently spending on chronic disease. We would have enough money for other important things such as providing free education and healthcare. We could bring people up out of poverty, end social injustice, restore the environment, and help fund the reversal of climate change.  By addressing the overall dysfunctions in the food system, we can solve these problems. The solutions exist and they will call on a lot of us to fix it—multiple sectors and stakeholders from citizens and consumers to businesses and farmers, to policymakers in every level of government, including city and state to nonprofits, philanthropists, scientists. By coming together we can transform the food system.  Dr. Hyman speaks to all this and more in th

Research has shown that for every 10% of your diet that comes from ultra-processed food, your risk of death goes up by 14%. Yet 60% of American diets are made up of ultra-processed food. And though the government tells us to eat more fruits and vegetables, existing food policy subsidizes thousands of acres of corn, soy, and wheat that are turned into processed junk food, while only 2% of our farmland is used to grow fruits and vegetables. In fact, if everybody ate the government-recommended amounts of vegetables and fruits, there actually wouldn’t be enough to go around.  Part of what is driving these issues is that there is a major monopoly when it comes to seeds. Just a handful of companies control the majority of what and how crops are grown. We have to change our agricultural policies.  Dr. Hyman dives into these topics and more in this mini-episode of The Doctor’s Farmacy. He also outlines the problems and the solutions in his new book, Food Fix. foodfixbook.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit

Racism is still rampant in our country, and it might exist in places you didn’t expect it. For example, Black and Brown populations are at a higher risk of exposure to environmental toxins and have less access to high-quality medical care or clinical medical studies on their specific populations. This is a major problem that can’t be ignored. And it’s hugely impacting our economy and the success of future generations in multiple ways. Every year we spend 50 billion dollars and lose 23 million IQ points to lead toxicity alone, which affects people of color the most, regardless of social class and income level.  Today on The Doctor’s Farmacy I sit down for an important conversation with Harriet Washington about these issues. Harriet has been the Shearing Fellow at the University of Nevada's Black Mountain Institute, a Research Fellow in Medical Ethics at Harvard Medical School, a senior research scholar at the National Center for Bioethics at Tuskegee University, and a visiting scholar at DePaul University Coll

In honor of Dr. Hyman's newly released book, Food Fix (foodfixbook.com), we are sharing a recent interview he did on Revolution Health Radio with Chris Kresser. *** RHR: Fixing Our Broken Food System, with Dr. Mark Hyman I’ve often said that health is not just an individual endeavor—a multitude of other factors contribute to it, including our food system. In this episode of Revolution Health Radio, I talk with Dr. Mark Hyman about his upcoming book Food Fix, which delves deeply into the problems in our food system and discusses how they can worsen global crises like the chronic disease epidemic, climate change, poverty, and more. In this episode, we discuss: What’s wrong with our food system How our food system affects our children The role regulation can play in our health Access to healthy food in underserved populations The damage that our industrial food system causes Hyman’s Food Fix Campaign Show notes: Mark Hyman The UltraWellness Center Food Fix: How to Save Our Health, Our Economy, Our Co

Eleven million people die every year from a bad diet. In America, six out of ten Americans have a chronic disease; four out of ten have two or more chronic diseases. And this is not just an American problem. Eighty percent of the world's chronic disease and obesity is in the developing world. We know that food is driving the majority of this death and disease but no one is really talking about it.  In this mini-episode, Dr. Hyman explores the global chronic disease crisis being driven by food and the food system. He also breaks down the principles of his “Pegan” diet, a middle ground between vegan and Paleo, focused on whole-foods; primarily colorful, high-fiber vegetables like kale, cauliflower, peppers, and radishes; healthy fats like extra-virgin olive oil and avocados; some low-glycemic fruits like blueberries and blackberries; free-range meats and eggs, used more like condiments than as the star of the plate; anti-inflammatory nuts and seeds, and flavorful herbs and spices.  Learn more about these all of

In honor of Dr. Hyman’s newly released book, Food Fix (foodfixbook.com), we are sharing a recent interview he did on The Drive with Peter Attia MD. *** Mark Hyman, M.D.: The impact of the food system on our health and the environment In this episode, Mark Hyman, M.D., director of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine and the author of Food Fix, discusses that if we can fix the food system, we can solve many big problems—namely the chronic disease/obesity epidemic, the rising costs of healthcare, as well as the big problems facing the environment. Mark first briefly lays out the health consequences of processed food with a focus on the gut microbiome. From there, Mark discusses the environmental consequences of industrial farming and lays out how we can affect change on the individual level, through policy and regulations, and perhaps most importantly through regenerative agriculture. Additionally, Mark talks about the potential health risks of consuming GMO foods, herbicides, and other chemicals

How can we reduce the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages?  There are efforts globally around the world looking at soda taxes as a solution for bringing down the consumption of foods that we know cause obesity and chronic disease. When those taxes are paired with incentives for eating healthy food, it's a win-win for everybody. Consuming more healthy food and less soda creates more productivity, lower healthcare costs, and less chronic disease. Yet we see organizations such as the American Beverage Association spending millions of dollars fighting soda taxes. It’s obvious that they wouldn't spend that kind of money if they didn't think they would lose profits from a soda tax. Dr. Hyman talks about all this and more in this mini-episode.  Learn more about these topics and the actions we can take for more transparency from the government and corporations in Dr. Hyman's new book, Food Fix. FoodFixBook.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In honor of Dr. Hyman’s upcoming book, Food Fix (foodfixbook.com), out on February 25th we are sharing a recent interview he did on The School of Greatness with Lewis Howes. *** Build Your Health to Build Your Wealth with Dr. Mark Hyman Wealth without health isn't wealth at all.  Let's say you're the richest person in the world. You have anything and everything you could ever want. You've started companies, written books, gone on tours—you name it. But your body isn't in the best shape. You've put it second to your career goals. And now, it's starting to show. Your health is a different kind of wealth. Taking care of your finances is important, but so is taking care of your body. If you neglect your body, your body will neglect you. As you age, this only gets harder. You won't be able to enjoy life because you'll feel tired, sick, or miserable. Of course, exercise is vital to maintaining good health, but so are the foods that you eat. The food we eat has an impact on our brain chemistry, our physical health,

In honor of Dr. Hyman’s upcoming book, Food Fix (foodfixbook.com), out on February 25th we are sharing a recent interview he did on Feel Better, Live More with Dr. Rangan Chatterjee. *** Why We Need To Fix Our Food System with Mark Hyman Is it possible to create a food system that promotes health, not disease? One that regenerates ecosystems, reverses climate change and ensures no one, least of all the poorest in society, is endangered? My guest on this week’s podcast believes it is. He is functional medicine doctor and New York Times bestselling author, Dr Mark Hyman. Mark and I talk about everything from how processed food is addictive by design, to the powerful role good nutrition, from real food, could have in hospitals, schools and prisons. We discuss why soil depletion from intensive farming is one of the biggest drivers of climate change – and why that vegan burger may not be the environmentally friendly option. Despite the serious subject matter of this conversation, I’m sure you’ll come away feeling

It’s time we stopped thinking about the way we eat only in terms of our health—we need to recognize the global impact of food. We need to eat in a way that combines good science with common sense. We need to not just include our health in the equation but also the biodiversity of the planet and our ability to grow food for future generations. So how do we do that? We’ve all been told we should go vegan to save the planet, but even if you don’t eat animals conventional agriculture kills 7 billion animals a year through habitat destruction. Not to mention, massive amounts of greenhouse gases are emitted to produce processed soy foods even if you completely avoid beef. Then people preach Paleo or keto but eat lots of factory-farmed meat, which also produces massive amounts of greenhouse gases, and is not something you want to put in your body.  Our food system is fundamentally flawed. That’s why I wrote my new book Food Fix that just hit shelves yesterday! To share all the solutions for creating a food system th

U.S. taxpayers are footing the bill for the growing of processed foods (through agricultural subsidies for the raw materials of processed food—namely wheat, corn, and soy), and for providing the poor quality processed food and soda to the poor (through our food stamps program). Yet the federal government has repeatedly denied cities and states the right to enact basic policy reform measures, despite evidence to show that incentivizing healthy food and disincentivizing unhealthy food has been proven effective.  And it is not just bureaucrats who have opposed policy change. Many anti-hunger groups and national food banks, like the Food Research Action Center, or FRAC, have used their political influence to resist efforts to ban sugary drinks from the food stamp program, or SNAP.  In this mini-epissode, Dr. Hyman examines three government agencies that are promoting unhealthy foods and how a change in food policy could shift our health and the health of our communities and planet. Learn more in Dr. Hyman's new b

In honor of Dr. Hyman’s upcoming book, Food Fix (foodfixbook.com), out on February 25th we are sharing a recent interview he did on Impact Theory with Tom Bilyeu. Watch Impact Theory at https://www.youtube.com/tombilyeu *** Mark Hyman on Why You Need to Examine Your Entire Health History to Heal Properly | Health Theory  Impact Theory with Tom Bilyeu   Functional medicine aims to uncover the laws of biology, treats the human body as an ecosystem, and is about creating health, not just curing illness. Mark Hyman is one of the foremost practitioners of functional medicine, one of its earliest advocates, and is certainly one of its best spokesmen. On this episode of Health Theory with Tom Bilyeu, Mark Hyman explains the rationale behind functional medicine and describes its most important features. He also gives detailed advice on improving the diet, talks about what it means to say that food is information, and discusses the connection between the body, mind, gut and brain.    Get a copy of Mark's new book "Foo

Sales are going down for soda and processed food in the US and Europe, but they're dramatically rising in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East, and it's not by accident. It's by design.  The globalization of our processed industrial food has allowed Big Food and Big Agriculture to flood the world with disease causing products. Food companies are transforming local diets, uprooting healthy traditional foods that people have been eating for centuries, and replacing them with ultra-processed frankenfoods. It's a huge problem.  Dr. Hyman dives in to the topic of globalized junk food and much more in this mini-episode. You can also learn more about these topics in Dr. Hyman's new book, Food Fix. www.foodfixbook.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The way we grow food now is destroying our ability to grow it in the future. And the way we’re growing it now is making us sicker and more broke than ever before. Food is our #1 killer, even more so than smoking and guns.Our government supports the overproduction of the top crops for processed foods—corn, soy, and wheat—and Big Food reaps the benefits by turning them into sugary, starchy, highly addictive foods that cause chronic diseases. Diseases that are killing us and could be prevented. This all comes down to our food system. The way food is grown, transported, processed, consumed, and wasted in our country is contributing to these problems and so much more—especially some of our most urgent ones like climate change. That’s why I wrote my new book Food Fix: How to Save Our Health, Our Economy, Our Communities, and Our Planet—One Bite at a Time. And today on The Doctor’s Farmacy I’m excited to trade places and be the interviewee with my good friend, business partner, and host of The Broken Brain Podcast,

Money is corrupting science, our government’s food policies, and the media. So where is this money coming from? There is a multi-trillion dollar global food industry that is growing, processing, manufacturing, marketing, and serving food like substances that are making us sick and fat. They are cheap to make and rake in big profits for ”Big Food” which is furiously promoting false science. And many of the nutrition myths that are prevalent today were spread like propaganda by the food industry. Taxpayers are footing the bill for the growing of processed foods (through agricultural subsidies for the raw materials of processed food—namely wheat, corn, and soy), and for providing the poor quality processed food and soda to the poor (through our food stamps program). Then, we also pay for the costs of obesity and chronic disease caused by that food through Medicaid and Medicare. Not to mention the costs of soil degradation, depletion of our water supplies, climate change, and the widespread damage to humans and e

Tapping into our own intuition can be extremely powerful when it comes to creating our optimal health. It is a tool available to each of us, any time of day, any day of the week—we just have to take the time to listen and be willing to dig deeper. We are all unique when it comes to the precise ingredients we need to create health and at the end of the day, your body is the smartest doctor in the room—it will tell you what works and what doesn’t—if you simply observe and listen. Dr. Hyman explored this topic in interviews with Dr. Cynthia Li and Dr. Andrea Pennington. Dr. Cynthia Li received her medical degree from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. She’s practiced as an internist in many settings, including Kaiser Permanente Medical Center, San Francisco General Hospital, and St. Anthony Medical Clinic serving the homeless. She currently has a private practice in Berkeley, CA and recently published her first book, Brave New Medicine: A Doctor’s Unconventional Path to Healing Her Au

Fish is one of the most nutritious food sources on the planet, especially when it comes to protein. But I’m usually scared to eat it. That’s because some seafood is at risk for toxicity that can harm our health, not to mention certain aquaculture methods are contributing to declining populations and even the acidification of our oceans. It’s not all bad, but it is complex. There are several important things we should think about in order to reap the health benefits from fish and act as environmental stewards at the same time.  To better understand seafood I sat down to talk with Paul Greenberg for this week’s episode of The Doctor’s Farmacy. Paul is the bestselling author of Four Fish, American Catch, and The Omega Principle. A regular contributor to the New York Times and many other publications, Mr. Greenberg is the writer-in-residence at the Safina Center, a Pew Fellow in Marine Conservation and the recipient of a James Beard Award for Writing and Literature. He appears frequently on American and internati