989 On: Health

For most people in history, it wasn’t sweet treats that were the problem - there wasn’t a lot of choice when it came to food - if your dad is a fisherman, you’re gonna eat a lot of fish - if you’re family is growing corn, you’re going to eat a lot of corn - and there’s even a known disorder - Pellagra - it causes everything from these awful skin sores to dementia - that comes from eating too much corn without enough other variety in your diet.

Losing consciousness, defenseless, this doesn’t seem like a good idea from a survival standpoint, especially for a little furry creature in the wilderness that’s trying not to be eaten. You have to sleep or you get sick and you die. And this doesn’t seem to have anything to do with humans having such complex brains - fish sleep, cats sleep, it’s even possible that little microscopic lifeforms like blue-green algae might sleep.

The role of exercise in health is frustrating to anyone trying to improve their health. Check 3 different sources and you’ll find that something as simple as “is 30 minutes a day exercise enough” turns into a back and forth shouting match, with each side gathering studies that match their own opinions.

Humans have taken stress to a whole new level - it's frequently difficult to deal with, especially since our modern society seems to find every excuse to add new stressors every day.

In Episode 1, we introduce the basic concepts of the Eastern and Western medical systems. Each approach has its place, and a lot to offer - concepts we'll refer back to throughout the episodes that follow.