STEM-Talk: Dr. Jason Fung, “The Obesity Code” author, on insulin resistance and metabolic health

Dr. Ken Ford is joined by guest co-host Dr. Tommy Wood for a fascinating interview with Dr. Jason Fung,  the best-selling author of “The Obesity Code” and “The Complete Guide to Fasting,” on episode 144 of IHMC’s podcast STEM-Talk, which is now live and available on podcast apps and YouTube.

Fung is a Toronto-based nephrologist who has gained international attention for combining a low-carb diet with intermittent fasting to help thousands of overweight patients reverse their type 2 diabetes, lose weight, and improve their metabolic health.

“We mistook the symptom (high blood glucose) for the disease (type 2 diabetes) and we were treating the symptom and expecting the disease to get better and it never did,” Fung says.

In addition to “The Obesity Code,” Fung is also the author of the “The Diabetes Code,” and “The Cancer Code.”  In the “The Complete Guide to Fasting,” Fung and co-author Jimmy Moore look at the history and culture of fasting and how it helps people improve their metabolic health.

In this interview, Ford and Wood delve into:

• How in the beginning of his practice, Jason prescribed insulin for type 2 diabetes patients.
• Jason’s realization that type 2 diabetes is largely a dietary disease and therefore requires a dietary solution rather than a pharmaceutical one.
• The origins of Jason’s Dietary Management program, which counsels overweight and obese patients to follow a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet to reduce insulin.
• A critique of the “eat less, move more” strategy acclaimed by many obesity experts.
• The various forms of fasting, including time-restricted eating, intermittent fasting and extended fasts over multiple days.
• Mark Mattson’s research into the powerful impact of intermittent fasting on metabolic health. (Mattson was the guest on STEM-Talk episodes seven and  133.)
• A recent paper that questioned the effectiveness of time-restricted eating when compared to daily calorie restriction.
• Recent research and evidence that fasting during chemotherapy may reduce the side effects of the treatment.

STEM-Talk is the podcast of IHMC, a not-for-profit research institute of the Florida University System. Researchers at IHMC pioneer science and technologies aimed at leveraging and extending human capabilities. For more information, visit ihmc.us.