Dr. Mindy Pelz — Functional health expert, bestselling author of Fast Like a Girl, and keynote speaker known for educating millions about fasting and women's hormones.
The gist
Dr. Mindy Pelz walks Steven Bartlett through the science of fasting, explaining how the body switches from a sugar-burning to a fat-burning metabolism and the healing benefits that unlock at different fasting durations. She details her six types of fasting and the cellular processes behind them, including autophagy, stem cell renewal, and immune reset. A large portion of the conversation covers women's hormones, the menstrual cycle, and how to live and work in sync with hormonal phases. She also addresses toxicity, metabolic health, weight-loss drugs, muscle's role in longevity, and gives Steven a personalized fasting plan.
Big reveals
- Pelz claims a 13-15 hour fast produces a 1,300% increase in testosterone in men.
- The 2015 Nobel Prize went to Dr. Ohsumi for autophagy, the process where cells heal themselves during fasting.
- At 17 hours of fasting cells enter autophagy and reportedly clear viruses and bacteria; a fasted cell can stop a virus replicating.
- A 36-hour fast unsticks weight-loss resistance and drops the most weight from the belly.
- Dr. Valter Longo's work shows three days of fasting reboots white blood cells and rebuilds the immune system during chemotherapy.
- Bartlett reveals he invested in glucose-monitoring company Zoe and wore a monitor for 14 days.
- Pelz argues women are 'perishing in the modern world more than men' and are not built to handle stress loads as well as men.
- Weight-loss injection drugs cause people to lose more muscle than fat, which Pelz warns leads to insulin resistance long term.
Things worth remembering
- 'Breakfast is the most important meal of the day' originated as a 1970s tagline for Kellogg's Corn Flakes, Pelz says.
- Phthalates in fragrances, colognes, perfumes, and laundry detergents are cited as the top toxin destroying testosterone levels.
- In the agouti mouse study, identical twin mice diverged in weight and hair color when one was given BPA plastic.
- An MIT study found 24 hours without food causes intestinal stem cells in the gut to reboot.
- Only 12% of Americans are metabolically healthy by markers like blood pressure, cholesterol, and A1c.
- Spain offers women three days of menstrual leave with no questions asked.
- Eating late at night when melatonin is high makes you more insulin resistant, so the meal is stored as fat.
- Pelz says a 'puffy' armpit signals stagnant lymph, and underarm and pubic hair exist to help mobilize toxins out.
- Late dinners can cause 2-3am wake-ups because dropping glucose triggers a cortisol spike the body reads as danger.
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