October 19, 2023

Health and wellness are vast arenas, but a few figures cut through the noise with their pioneering insights and transformative impacts.

Dr. Joseph Mercola is undeniably one of them.

Hailing from Chicago, Dr. Mercola's multifaceted journey encompasses marathon feats and leadership roles at prestigious institutions like St. Alexius Medical Center. Dr. Mercola is the author of 15 books, with his most recent book, “The Truth About COVID-19”, being a national bestseller on Amazon, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly. Three of his books have also been included in The New York Times Best Sellers list, namely Effortless Healing, The No-Grain Diet, and The Great Bird Flu Hoax.

Dr. Mercola has joined me on the following previous podcast episodes:

• This Doctor Has A “Stealth Strategy To Stop COVID Cold”: A Breaking Interview With A Controversial Alternative Health Figure On Vitamin D, COVID-19, Sunshine, Vitamin K2, Magnesium & Much More!.
• The Shocking Truth About You Getting “EMF*D”: 5G, Wi-Fi & Cell Phones – Hidden Harms & How To Protect Yourself
• KetoFasting: The Dark Side of Fasting & Ketosis (+How To Use Cyclic Ketosis To Fix The Issues)
• How To Reverse The Damage From Cell Phone Radiation, Hidden Sources Of EMF, The Best Way To Measure Your EMF Exposure & Much More With Dr. Joseph Mercola!
• High-Fat Fudge Balls, The Best Fruits For Blood Sugar, Egg Allergies & More With “Fat For Fuel” Author Dr. Mercola
• Killing Fat Cells, Fixing Mitochondria, Growing Superfoods & More: The Official, Much-Anticipated, Mind-Blowing, Geeked-Out Podcast With Dr. Mercola.

And now he's back.

Born and raised in the inner city of Chicago, Dr. Mercola has always been passionate about helping preserve and enhance the health of the global community. As a doctor of osteopathic medicine (DO), he takes a “whole-person” approach to wellness, helping you develop attitudes and lifestyles that can help you Take Control of Your Health. By sharing valuable knowledge about holistic medicine, regenerative practices, and informed consent principles, he has become the most trusted source for natural health information, with a legacy of promoting sustainability and transparency.

Dr. Mercola is an osteopathic physician who, similar to MDs, finished four years of basic clinical sciences and successfully completed licensing exams. Hence, he is fully licensed to prescribe medication and perform surgery in all 50 states. Also a board-certified family physician, he served as the chairman of the family medicine department at St. Alexius Medical Center for five years. Moreover, he has written over 30 scientific studies and reports published in medical journals and publications. With his written contributions and extensive experience in patient care, he was granted fellowship status by the American College of Nutrition (ACN) in October 2012.

In the 1990s, Dr. Mercola recognized the monumental potential of holistic, preventative health measures. This revelation gave birth to Mercola.com in 1997, a sanctuary for those drawn to a natural approach to wellness. Beyond being a top-ranking health website, it stands as a bastion against misinformation, challenging narratives propagated by corporate and governmental behemoths.

In today's conversation, Dr. Mercola and I get into the nexus between vitamin D and COVID-19, uncover the links between the modern American diet and mitochondrial damage, and traverse the intriguing landscape of Intermittent Hypoxia Training (IHT). As we delve into the historical trajectory of obesity and diabetes and explore the mechanisms of methylene blue and ozone, prepare for another discussion that is always fascinating and enlightening.

During our discussion, you'll discover:

-Dr. Mercola's thoughts on vitamin D and COVID-19…07:29

• Dr. Mercola is passionate about the benefits of vitamin D
• Dr. Mercola's vitamin D report
• He was named the number one spreader of COVID misinformation in 2021
• The Truth About COVID-19 by Dr. Joseph Mercola
  • The book was number one on USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, The New York Times
  • Highly controversial
• Dr. Mercola argues that there is a specific impact of vitamin D on the immune system
• The impact of vitamin D on cancer
• The best way to get vitamin D is through exposure to the sun
• Podcast with Kashif Khan:
  • Why You Worry About Stuff, Wake Up Earlier Than You Want To & Get Bored Easily: Unlock The Secrets Of Your Genes To Reverse Disease, Slow Aging & Achieve Optimal Wellness, With Kashif Khan.
• Difficulties with the conversion of Vitamin D
  • Vitamin K2 and magnesium can help with that (use code GREENFIELD10 to save $10)
• Podcast with Joe Cohen:
  • How To Decode Your Genome, Unlock The Nitty-Gritty Details Behind Your DNA, Discover Your Good Genes, Your Bad Genes & More.
• Cholecalciferol – an oral form of vitamin D
• On the days you expose yourself to the sun, you don’t need a supplement
• Functional medicine doctors will prescribe vitamin D in 50,000 units
  • Dr. Mercola doesn’t recommend that
  • 8,000 units is the normal dose for most people
• Ergocalciferol or vitamin D2 is generated from plants
  • Sources like fortified foods, bread, UVB mushrooms, etc.
• Only humans and animals produce vitamin D3
• Vitamin D2 is not as good as vitamin D3
  • Vastly inferior
• Dr. Mercola predicts another crisis similar to COVID
  • Tyrannical oppression by the government, authoritarian control, loss of personal freedoms
  • There will be a sensible trigger
• Ben has an off-grid farm in Idaho
• Sunlight is elevating melatonin during the day
• Antioxidant effect on cellular membrane
• Exposure to infra-red light
• Exposure to the sun increases resilience
• Get the F*ck Out of the Sun by Lauryn Evarts Bosstick
• Is there a danger in sunlight?
  • Never allow yourself to get burned
• You will not get skin cancer if you have a low level (2%) of linoleic acid in the tissue
  • The average person today has 12 or 16

-The modern American diet, linoleic acid, and mitochondrial damage…26:29

• The main source of linoleic acid is processed foods
• Processed seed oils
  • Started around the American Civil War
  • Did not become popular until the 20th century
  • In the 19th century, 99% of the fat that we consumed came from animal sources
  • Today 70-90% is from seed oils
• The problem with olive and avocado oil
  • 80-90% of commercial oils are adulterated
• Podcast with T.J. Robinson:
  • What Olive Oil Should Taste Like, The Scary Truth About Olive Oil, Can You Cook With Extra Virgin Olive Oil & Much More!
• Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil
• Linoleic acid is the primary source of oxidative stress in the body
  • Damages the double bonds and convert it to OXLAMs (Oxidized Linoleic Acid Metabolites)
• Dietary fats and their impact on mitochondrial health
• The dietary intake of fat can influence the type of fats in the inner mitochondrial membrane
• Dr. Mercola's video: Linoleic Acid — The Most Destructive Ingredient in Your Diet
• Dr. Mercola's peer-reviewed study on linoleic acid
• The argument that linoleic acid is healthy because it is in breast milk
  • Linoleic acid in breast milk has increased significantly over the past 75 years
  • Due to changes in the modern diet
• Nutreval test
• Vitamin E is a very potent inhibitor of peroxidation of the fatty acids (use code BEN15 to save 15%)
  • Avoid synthetic vitamin E
• Podcast with Dr. Barrie Tan:
  • Why Your Vitamin E Supplement Could Be Harming You (& The “One Plant Wonder” Alternative That Could Be The Single Most Powerful Molecule If You’re Stranded On A Desert Island).
• The best dietary sources of vitamin E – seeds and nuts

-Dr. Mercola’s diet…41:43

• Deep fundamental appreciation of the dangers of linoleic acid
• Warnings about linoleic acid in 1980s by Ray Peat
  • Recommends adequate carbohydrate intake with activities that increase glucose transporters
  • Better than avoiding carbohydrates and not being active
• Dr. Mercola increased his carbohydrate intake
  • Got very good results
• Carbohydrate depletion can lead to increased blood glucose levels
  • Due to the body's response to stress rather than the direct effect of carbohydrate intake
• Increasing dietary protein
• Ideal amount of protein is 0.7g per lb. of body weight
• Dr. Mercola’s breakfast
  • Chicken or goose egg yolks
• Chickens and pigs are often fed with grains loaded with linoleic acid
• The majority of his carbohydrates come from ripe fruit
• Dr. Mercola rarely goes over 105g of protein a day
• Ben’s exercise routine
  • Foam rolling
  • Blood flow restriction (use code BEN to save 5%)
• Other food Dr. Mercola eats
  • Organic meat
  • White rice (brown rice has a lot of linoleic acid)
• Be careful with potatoes because of starches that are hard to digest

-More about linoleic acid…55:48

• Sunlight and movement are the foundation
• The amount of obesity in the 1800s was about 1%
  • Today it is about 40%
• At the same time, diabetes went up 500 times
  • The cause of diabetes is linoleic acid
  • It ruins the ability of the mitochondria to allow glucose to metabolize
• The Warburg metabolism
  • Your mitochondria are unable to burn glucose despite the fact that there's plenty of oxygen
  • It goes into glycolysis
• Mechanisms of methylene blue and ozone are related to reducing reductive stress
  • Methylene blue (use code BEN to save 5%)
• Chris Knobbe has done a great review of the world literature in 25 countries
• The incidence of heart disease in the United States was essentially unknown in 19th century
  • The first reported heart attack in the United States was in 1912
  • A quarter million people today in the United States die every year from heart attacks
• The No-Grain Diet by Dr. Joseph Mercola
  • Gluten is not our friend; we shouldn’t be eating wheat

-The correlation between EMF and linoleic acid consumption…1:06:22

• People with a low linoleic acid diet have much less risk of dying from exposure to high doses of ionizing radiation
• Linoleic acid can increase calcium influx into cells, which can be very damaging
  • It can increase the risk of cancer
  • Excess estrogen is also a risk for cancer
• The major danger of a low-carb diet is it causes your body to release cortisol, and cortisol just shreds muscle proteins
• The most effective cortisol blocker is progesterone
  • Potential solution for ADHD
  • Not good in the long-term
• Simply Progesterone – 2700 mg bottle dose is about 30 mg/day, typically ten drops taken before bed as it is also a GABA agonist resource

-What is IHT – Intermittent Hypoxia Training?…1:13:08

• Dr. Mercola has a medical-grade device that can generate pure clean oxygen
• It can monitor to see what your blood oxygen concentration is
• The oxygen level in air is 20%, the device can lower it to 9%
  • Intriguing hormonal and metabolic benefits
• cellgym IHHT
  • Currently very expensive, but very beneficial
• NuCalm
• Podcast with Jim Poole:
  • How To Simulate A Full Sleep Cycle In 20 Minutes, The Best Stress Biohack That Exists, Vagus Nerve Stimulation & Much More!
• Shiftwave
• Podcast with Dr. John Lieurance:
  • The Crazy Future Of Medical Biohacking: Skull Resets, Suppositories, Nasal Sprays, Nebulizers, Sound Therapy & More With Dr. John Lieurance.
• Ben’s top 3 supplements when in high-EMF environment
  • Magnesium
  • NAD
  • Hydrogen
• The benefits of exogenous ketones
  • KetoneAid 
  • HVMN
• NAD is expensive, and Niacinamide is inexpensive
  • 50mg of Niacinamide daily (Goldilocks dose)
• Dr. Joe Mercola arm-wrestling a young man
  • The secret to Dr. Mercola’s strength
  • The blood flow restriction training activates endurance fibers

-Dr. Mercola’s masterclass…1:22:06

• Wants it to be available to everyone
• The purpose is to prepare people for what is coming
• Probably $5 a month
• mercola.com

-And much more…

Upcoming Events:

• Couples Collective: October 25th – 29th, 2023

Couples Collective is an exclusive and immersive way to explore health, wellness, and mindset with your significant other. Jessa and I will be leading a health optimization and relationships workshop, alongside many other awesome couples. This is a small event, and access requires you to interview with event-holder OWN IT to ensure a right fit. However, for those who are said fit, this event is designed to bring you into deeper union within your relationship and onward into greater connection with your life, love, health, and happiness. I'm looking for 6 to 7 powerful couples to come join me at the event – are you one of them? Learn more here.

• Elements of Vitality: December 8th, 2023

Return to the Elements of Vitality—this will be the second time my good friend Dr. John Lieurance, and I collaborate to bring you the most effective and cutting-edge health and wellness advice, protocols, and some of our favorite tools. If you’re into health and wellness, and you want to stay on top of all of the cutting-edge, latest, and greatest innovations and protocols, you don’t want to miss this event. Learn more here.

• Keep up on Ben's LIVE appearances by following bengreenfieldfitness.com/calendar!

Click here for the full written transcript of this podcast episode.

Resources from this episode:

– Dr. Joseph Mercola:

• Dr. Mercola's Books:
  • The Truth About COVID-19
  • Effortless Healing
  • The No-Grain Diet
  • The Great Bird Flu Hoax
  • EMF*D: 5G, Wi-Fi & Cell Phones: Hidden Harms & How To Protect Yourself
• Dr. Mercola's Vitamin D Report
• Vitamin D Paper
• Dr. Mercola's Video: Linoleic Acid — The Most Destructive Ingredient in Your Diet
• Dr. Mercola's Peer-Reviewed Study On Linoleic Acid
• Simply Progesterone
• Dr. Mercola Arm-Wrestling
• This Doctor Has A “Stealth Strategy To Stop COVID Cold”: A Breaking Interview With A Controversial Alternative Health Figure On Vitamin D, COVID-19, Sunshine, Vitamin K2, Magnesium & Much More!.
• The Shocking Truth About You Getting “EMF*D”: 5G, Wi-Fi & Cell Phones – Hidden Harms & How To Protect Yourself
• KetoFasting: The Dark Side of Fasting & Ketosis (+How To Use Cyclic Ketosis To Fix The Issues)
• How To Reverse The Damage From Cell Phone Radiation, Hidden Sources Of EMF, The Best Way To Measure Your EMF Exposure & Much More With Dr. Joseph Mercola!
• High-Fat Fudge Balls, The Best Fruits For Blood Sugar, Egg Allergies & More With “Fat For Fuel” Author Dr. Mercola
• Killing Fat Cells, Fixing Mitochondria, Growing Superfoods & More: The Official, Much-Anticipated, Mind-Blowing, Geeked-Out Podcast With Dr. Mercola.

– Podcasts And Articles:

• Why You Worry About Stuff, Wake Up Earlier Than You Want To & Get Bored Easily: Unlock The Secrets Of Your Genes To Reverse Disease, Slow Aging & Achieve Optimal Wellness, With Kashif Khan.
• How To Decode Your Genome, Unlock The Nitty-Gritty Details Behind Your DNA, Discover Your Good Genes, Your Bad Genes & More.
• What Olive Oil Should Taste Like, The Scary Truth About Olive Oil, Can You Cook With Extra Virgin Olive Oil & Much More!
• Why Your Vitamin E Supplement Could Be Harming You (& The “One Plant Wonder” Alternative That Could Be The Single Most Powerful Molecule If You’re Stranded On A Desert Island).
• How To Simulate A Full Sleep Cycle In 20 Minutes, The Best Stress Biohack That Exists, Vagus Nerve Stimulation & Much More!
• The Crazy Future Of Medical Biohacking: Skull Resets, Suppositories, Nasal Sprays, Nebulizers, Sound Therapy & More With Dr. John Lieurance.
• 1 Cheap & Easy Underground Training Method For Growth Hormone Release, 5 Biohacks to Increase Strength in 60 Seconds, 7 Exercises for the Eyes to Radically Enhance Stamina & Speed
• The Official KAATSU Episode: Everything You Need To Know About How To Use Blood Flow Restriction For Muscle Gain, Injury Recovery, Testosterone, Growth Hormone & Much More!

– Other Resources:

• Vitamin K2 
• Magnesium
• Vitamin D
• Vitamin E
• Magnesium
• NAD
• Hydrogen Tablets
• KetoneAid 
• HVMN
• Niacinamide
• Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil
• Foam Roller
• Kaatsu BFR Bands (use code BEN to save 5%)
• US Wellness Meats
• Methylene blue (use code BEN to save 5%)
• cellgym
• NuCalm

Episode Sponsors:

Organifi: Get the restful sleep you need with the most soothing ingredients! Organifi is a delicious superfood tea with powerful superfoods and mushrooms to help you sleep and recover so you can wake up refreshed and energized. Go to Organifi.com/Ben for 20% off your order.

Joovv: Get an exclusive discount on your first order of my favorite in-home light therapy devices. Just go to Joovv.com/ben and apply code BEN.

BiOptimizers Magnesium Breakthrough: The 7 essential forms of magnesium included in this full spectrum serving help you relax, unwind, and turn off your active brain after a long and stressful day so you can rest peacefully and wake up feeling refreshed, vibrant, and alert. On top of the promo code ben10 for a 10% discount, you can unlock a special gift with purchase – for a limited time only. Go to magbreakthrough.com/ben now and get your gift.

Xtend-Life: Achieve longevity through “future-proofing your health.” If you choose a single supplement, let Xtendlife x100 ingredient Total Balance Premium be that choice! Use code BEN15 at www.xtend-life.com/ben for 15% off sitewide, plus free shipping is available.

Apollo: Apollo is a safe and non-invasive wearable that actively improves your sleep. Head over to apolloneuro.com/bengreenfield and use code BG15 for 15% off.

Do you have questions, thoughts, or feedback for Dr. Joe Mercola or me? Leave your comments below and one of us will reply!