The Alarming Rise of ED in Young Men, Back Pain Biohacks & Vitamin Tech You’ve Never Heard Of

Why Men are losing their erections, the intriguing science of vitamin microtransporters, biohacking, the nap, and a whole lot more.

Welcome to the show. Solo Sewed with me I've had an interesting past few days. Not to make this thing all about me, but I did. I didn't throw my back. It's only about the fourth time in my life I've thrown out my back, this time by sitting on a seven hour plane flight to Miami, then attempting kettlebell swings upon getting to my hotel. Not a good idea when your hip flexors have been in a shortened position and your glutes have been turned off for one of the longest seated domestic flights in the U.S. no, I do not have a private jet with a bed. I'm not at that level, unfortunately. So anyways, I have a couple of great articles about how I if you want to use this term, biohack back pain, I'll include links to those on BenGreenfieldLife.com 488 for the show notes in this case I was traveling and of course didn't have access to all of the cool tools I have at my disposal at home. But I got to tell you, when it comes to simple and effective things that you can do to get a back healed up fast, a few of my go tos even without expensive tools. Number one, if you're not familiar with Stu McGill's big three exercises, definitely look those up. I did those morning, afternoon and evening for blood flow, for stability, for teaching the body that it could move without pain. Probably easier for me to link to a video in the show notes showing these exercises rather than attempting to describe them to you via audio. But they're simple. They're effective. Called Stu McGill's big three. The next thing is that I forewent the gym for most exercises before the Big three, which I did in the floor of my hotel room and instead swam. Swimming is so good for the back. Yes, it is possible to kind of shift the back into hyperextension when you're swimming, so you do need to make sure that you still keep the core activated and avoid kind of like a lazy turned off core even when swimming. But man, swimming just saves my butt. But it's such a useful tool to have in your back pocket. If you have kids, try and get them in swim lessons. I put mine in swim lessons starting at 2 years old. It's kind of like a lifelong exercise alternative or exercise habit that just pays dividends. I love to swim. I live in fricking North Idaho. I Have no body of water anywhere near me. But when I travel, I always throw my goggles and yes, even my Speedo in my bag. And I swim whenever I travel. So I average, you know, maybe like five swim sessions a month. Not long. I'll swim for, you know, 20, 25 minutes, but man, especially for the back. Incredible. And I would say a close second is the standup elliptical trainer. Right. Because it's low impact. You're pumping blood flow, cerebrospinal fluid, decompressing the joints, moving the arms and the legs. That's another option if you can't swim. I also have this water bottle I travel with. I don't or try not to drink out of plastic in most situations. So I'm a big fan of stainless steel or glass. But there's this company. I'm not financially affiliated with them or anything like that. They should sponsor the podcast though. Now they should. It's called a Mobot. M O B O T. Look this thing up. I have the one called the Big. I think it's called the Big Bertha. It's quite literally a water bottle that doubles as a sort of foam roller. Foam is probably the incorrect term here. Stainless steel roller. I can set it upright and basically use the lid of the water bottle or the opening of the water bottle to go up and down my psoas on my iliacus as I grunt and groan on a hotel room floor. I can flip it over and use it like a roller up and down the back and the erector spinae and the muscles of the upper back, the rhomboids.

It's just fantastic for getting everything loosey goosey. Red light therapy. Big red light beds, red light panels. Ob. I'm not throwing those in my suitcase, nor do I call them to the hotel front desk and have them send up a red light bed to my hotel room. But there are portable wrap around red light devices. One that works really well for the back. I also like it because it's waterproof. You can literally wear in a hot tub. It's called the Lumaflex. Again, not a sponsor, not financially affiliated with them, but that one I kind of like because I can just wrap it around my back. I have two of them. I travel with them. TSA occasionally raises an eyebrow, but it's not that big of a deal. I travel with them and when I wake up, I wrap one around my back and one around my abdominals and it's kind of like a warm red light teddy bear hug. Right when you wake up and it seems to work really well for back pain. You know, infrared light can help to modulate pain anyways, but that was super effective. I dropped into Whole Foods, got some transdermal magnesium, which you can rub on muscle cramps or spasms to help them to relax, and within about five days after pretty debilitating pain, I was moving effectively. By the time I got home, you know, I'm back to deadlifts and squats and everything like that. But you know, if all that stuff seems too boring and basic for you, I have a lot of really cool tools I've implemented for back pain that go way beyond what I just described you. I have two very popular articles on all of the gadgets out there, how they work for back pain, why back pain occurs in the first place, and I'll link to those articles. There's about 20 different tips on them if you go to BenGreenfieldLife.com 488 for the show notes this podcast is not about back pain. I'm actually going to be covering erectile dysfunction next. But here is something interesting. I did not anticipate this segue. My apologies if there's kids in the minivan with you, but I did lose my boners for like four days when I hurt my back. Isn't that crazy how the nerves of the low back can also be related to pelvic and sexual organs? And was getting a little concerned that my wife would be severely disappointed by the time I got home. However, with all the protocols that I did, it seems like the nerves healed up pretty quickly and I was back in action pretty quickly. So anyways, those are a few tips for back pain. Now let's move on to what I just promised to talk to you about, because there was a very interesting article that just came out and it was on the what they call the Erectile dysfunction Industrial complex. The Erectile Dysfunction Industrial Complex. So this article, which appeared on the Free Press website, describes how between 2017 and 2019 visits to direct to consumer telehealth platforms offering erectile dysfunction or to save space and time, what I will here for refer to as ED. They offered ED treatment. It increased by a relatively shocking 1,688%. That little blue pill Viagra, once relegated to the realm of retirees, is now being pitched to 20 and 30 something years old via social media ads. And it's no longer an older gentleman smiling wistfully at their partner on these blue pill ad commercials. Instead, as the article describes, bearded young men in Warby Parker glasses winking at you about your penis problems from a subway stop in Brooklyn. And it is kind of true. And it goes beyond just pills. I mean there's a company called Firm Tech now they literally sell an aura ring like device for the penis. Telling men that this will allow them to track nighttime tumescence, which is something that Mr. Brian don't die Johnson has made quite popular of late to improve their nighttime erectile fitness fitness score. Then there's Eroxon. Great title. E R O X O N. A new FDA approved quick topical gel for those who want an immediate Viagra like effect via transdermal administration. And there's more. There's Fallowfill, which is a series of two injections of hyaluronic acid to increase girth to allow a body part to fill or to plump. Almost like self inflicted cosmetic surgery for one's penis, I suppose. And then of course, you know, there's testosterone clinics, there's hormone replacement clinics, but the question is why is this occurring? A 2021 national survey of sexual well being showed that ED prevalence is highest among older age groups. But it's also increasing with, you know, with shocking frequency in younger individuals. People in their 20s and 30s and 40s are more and more coming in and seeing urologists for erectile dysfunction issues. Now the article actually gets into what I think is a very reasonable elephant in the room here. Elephant with a very small saggy trunk. In this case, that elephant being porn consumption as being a likely culprit. Of course, rampant access to porn and now AI driven porn and even robots is something that is becoming more and more prevalent. And if you visit a website like yourbrainonporn.com There are some neurotransmitter and dopaminergic mechanisms that result from frequent porn use that not only make a man more nervous in the bedroom when it is time to perform because they're literally comparing themselves to professional sexual athletes. But there's also an increasing ability to need weird and wild imagery to get aroused. Weird and wild imagery that often one's partner may not be so up for providing. They just want a romantic time in the bedroom and you know, you want a donkey and some ping pong balls and some AI driven, you know, cartoon anime objects, you know, and so it's certainly an issue, the porn issue. But I think that there are other issues as well. For example, nicotine I think is another elephant in the room. There are actual studies and I'll link to them in the show notes on the body's response to Nicotine and how that is associated with erectile dysfunction. So nicotine, when it's consumed or chewed or vaped or the delivery mechanism doesn't matter. It stimulates the central nervous system to release adrenaline, chemical response that's normally associated with stressful or dangerous or excitatory situations. And you'd think that might be good for sex or good for workouts. But that release of adrenaline causes changes in the body's cardiovascular system. It increases heart rate, increases blood pressure, increases breath rate. And nicotine itself has a highly vasoconstrictive effect. Right. We have vasodilation, the opening up of the arteries, the dilation of the arteries. And we have vasoconstriction, the shrinking and the tightening of blood vessels, which then reduces the amount of blood that can flow through those blood vessels, including the blood vessels that feed the penis. So that reduces the body's ability to effectively transport oxygen. It can lead to a crappy workout. If you're relying upon nicotine as a pre workout stimulus, I don't think that's the greatest idea. And that placement of the body into a state of high stress over and over again and the repeated vasoconstriction can cause effects on erections. See getting and maintaining an erection, and I don't think this is a big secret for most guys. It's dependent on a strong, steady flow of blood into the spongy tissue of the penis and the smooth muscles of the penis. Now, during sexual arousal, certain chemicals in the lining of blood vessels in the penis allow the penile muscles to relax and to accept that additional blood flow. And these same chemicals then create kind of a seal to trap the blood in the penis, creating an erection. And that chemical induction and the subsequent seal is actually something that the active ingredient of Viagra or Cialis, like sildenafil or tadalafil can actually cause. That's why sometimes there's a warning that many men who haven't used it before actually get very excited about the risk of a four hour erection. One of the reasons for that is because it's keeping the chemical that would allow for vasoconstriction to occur from, from being there in the penis and allowing for the vasodilatory substances to hang around for a longer period of time. Nicotine does the exact opposite. It's actually kind of paradoxical that so many young men are vaping well, filling out the form on a little blue pill website or getting their hands on some erectile dysfunction treatment, when in fact they're directly inducing via oral or vaping administration of nicotine, the very vasoconstriction that could be leading to the issue in the first place. So yes, I am literally telling you right now, one of your most potent, potent tools against erectile dysfunction would be to not chew nicotine gum while surfing, you know, through scantily clad women on Instagram, for example. And so this is not just hypothesis. In one study of over 13,000 men recently, about 4.8% reported e cigarette use and were more than twice a as likely to also report erectile dysfunction. And there's a growing body of additional research suggesting that nicotine is not going to help you out much at all in the ED department. Now, of course, as many people are also probably aware, much of the issues with erections can also be psychological. The article that I was just quoting from the Free Press, there is a urologist who quotes that the relentless pursuit of optimizing one's sex life may fuel the very problem it seeks to solve because a lot of clients get into their own head about it, right? They hear about folks like, you know, Brian Johnson, who I have nothing against by the way. He's a friend, he puts out great information. I think he's doing the world of service when it comes to using his body as a guinea pig to increase the knowledge about the science of longevity and inspire people to take care of their bodies in a way that allows them to defy aging. Yet I think perhaps some young men who might have been influenced by him are thinking too much about their erections and self inducing performance anxiety.

This whole realm of health optimization can quickly down spiral into obsession. That includes obsession over one's sexual performance that then makes one very, very nervous and needing ED meds. I am very self conscious as I tell you all of this because I was the subject of magazine article in Men's Health magazine that you can still find online if you google it. Or maybe I'll link to it in the show Notes cover article literally called New Year New Dick, in which I went on a six month foray to try out everything that a man could do to enhance his sexual performance. And I learned some things during the writing of that article which involved everything from not ejaculating for a month to getting shockwave therapy to injecting stem cells into my penis. I learned some things that seem to be a little bit more reasonable than going to a clinic getting on testosterone therapy, which by the way doesn't have much of an impact on erections. Many men believe it does. But testosterone is not as important as blood flow or doing lots of expensive biohacks. So what are some things that you should think about if this is an issue for you? I don't just want to name a problem and then walk away snickering because I was able to say penis 12 times during a podcast. What are some things you can do? Well, some of these things you're probably already familiar with. Some of them might be new for you, but I'm going to go through a quick list for you first. Maximizing nitric oxide production is important because that is your vasodilatory gas. What kind of things can do that? Red Light therapy right? Pretty easy to get a portable red light therapy device. I was talking about what I use for my back earlier. I could just as easily tuck that between my legs when I'm, you know, falling asleep at night or when I get up in the morning. Beet juice Pomegranate juice. These are nitrate rich foods that convert into nitric oxide. And if you are using beet juice and pomegranate juice, here's a fun fact. If you are simultaneously keeping a super clean mouth with in particular mouthwash and fluoridated toothpaste, then you will limit the ability of these nitrates to convert into nitric oxide, right? So consider a non fluoridated toothpaste and instead of using mouthwash, consider just oil. Pulling right with coconut oil or olive oil, for example, which I do for about five minutes when I get up in the morning. A couple of ingredients that you'll find in many pre workouts. These can double up as sexual performance enhancing aids or ways to combat erectile dysfunction, namely L Citrulline and L arginine. Find them in many pre workouts and they're great for sex as well. Kill two birds with one stone and you have something in your pantry that you can use for either need. L citrulline is usually 3 to 6 grams. L arginine is around 5 grams. So that's another option. Paradoxically, even though, you know, ever since the old Seinfeld episode about shrinkage, people associate ice baths, cold showers, et cetera with shrinkage. Anybody who's done an ice bath, do you notice I did one last night? I came out as red as a Lobster. I did four minutes at 33 degrees in my Morozco forge out in my back porch. Granted, I was in the sauna beforehand, which makes four minutes at 33 degrees a little bit easier to handle, but I was red as a lobster and that's because you get this rebound vasodilatory effect when you get out of the cold. And considering that keeping your testicles a little bit cool is also great for fertility, that's a goal of yours. Regular cold baths, cold showers, cold soaks, cold swims, and icy lakes or rivers or oceans. It can also help you with better nitric oxide production. There are some people who have Raynaud's phenomenon, which involves very cold hands and feet, often partially due to low nitric oxide levels to the extremities, to the digits, to the toes. And they.

Anecdotally can solve this with repeated exposure to cold baths because you gradually build up the body's ability to be able to produce nitric oxide. My wife has a high genetic risk for high blood pressure, and I've encouraged her and she does this to regularly do a cold bath.

So.

So she's doing one about twice a week. I wish she would do one every day, but I'm not going to burden her with that. So nitric oxide, that's one thing.

Testosterone, even though it's not as important as nitric oxide, you should make sure that you're taking care of your testicles. From a testosterone standpoint. Best ways to do this, in my opinion, do heavy weight lifting with the legs, where a large amount of androgen receptors reside. Get adequate amounts of sunshine, decent sleep, low stress, good relationships. Then there's a few building blocks for testosterone, but I think every guy should definitely have in place before they even consider something like testosterone replacement therapy. What would those building blocks be? Boron. Let's see if I can recite them all from memory here, because I talk with a lot of guys about this when I'm doing consults with them. Boron, vitamin D, zinc, magnesium, omega 3 fatty acids, and creatine would be some of the most important precursors for testosterone. Should you not have written all those down because you're too busy doing back squats while you listen to this? Don't worry, I'll put a list in the show notes. And then favoring high intensity interval training and sprinting as an alternative to long chronic cardio is a good idea, because if you send the body a message that is just constantly running at a low intensity from a lion or in a time of starvation or famine, it's not going to want to bring babies into the world. And whether or not you want to have a baby, it'll decrease testosterone levels. What are a few more kind of biohacky things that would be a little more expensive? Well, hyperbaric oxygen therapy that increases angiogenesis or new blood vessel formation. So does pulsed electromagnetic field therapy. If you have a mat or a coil or anything like that. About three times a week for around five minutes, I will just sit and read a book while sitting cross legged on a PEMF mat. And it's kind of like this, almost like a shockwave therapy for my testicles and for my pelvic musculature. Feels great, but you also get this big increase in microcirculation and oxygenation. So that's another great alternative. I did mention that keeping your balls cold is a good idea, but therapeutic sauna use several times per week can boost circulation and nitric oxide production. I just don't recommend getting your balls very warm when you do that. And some people, such as the company snowballs, who even develop special underwear that helps to keep your balls cooler while you are in the sauna. How do you like that? You could just google literally underwear that keeps your balls cold. And you'll come up with a variety of different options. So what are some other kind of biohacks that you can think about? Well, if you were to go to a clinic, there are clinics that offer now shockwave therapy. A guy interviewed back in the day, Dr. Jud Brandes, a men's health coach, has very good results with his clients. Using something to cause nitric oxide release like a beetroot, the pomegranate, the L citrulline, the L arginine, anything like that. And then this shockwave therapy, which is just what it sounds like, it's acoustic sound wave therapy that stimulates new blood vessel growth in penile tissue. Should you not want to go to a clinician to have this done and should you want to instead self administer it, it does not involve pulling down your pants next to a speaker turned on at a very loud volume. Don't try that, you'll just be deaf with no erections. Instead there's a device, last I checked, it was named this. It probably is still named. It's called the Phoenix. And you just use the Phoenix on a daily basis for about two to five minutes. You kind of run it up and down the surface of the penis and it's self inflicted. Shockwave therapy works very well. Like I mentioned, some people will go really overboard and get stem cell. Not overboard, but they'll pull out all the stops and use stem cell injections or platelet rich plasma injections. I have had five stem cell injections into my penis. I've had multiple platelet rich plasma injections. I am 43 years old and I would suspect partially as a result of doing that about once a year, my erections, I realize this might be too much information for just about every listener, but they are stronger and bigger and better than they were when I was 18. And I think a big part of it is some of these slightly more expensive biohacks, but also I think just a knowledge on my part of, you know, eating things that allow for nitric oxide production, production, cold bathing, taking care of my testosterone levels, et cetera. So those are a few of the things that I would think about when it comes to erections. And is there anything that actually has good clinical research behind it as far as some of these herbal remedies? Well, a few that I've seen decent research behind. So specifically for the erection piece, in addition to the arginine and the citrulline that I mentioned earlier, one is pine bark extract, also known as Pycnogenol, which enhances nitric oxide production and endothelial function. Another one is a supplement made by a company called Calroy. It's called Vasconox. It's a blend of a bunch of stuff that increases nitric oxide production. That one's also a good option. And then there's some evidence that this herb a lot of people talk about these days, Tongkat Ali, may also help a little bit. So in the realm of peptides. Oh yeah, there are some peptides. Bremelanotide, also known as PT141 is a very powerful libido enhancer that can also enhance erections. Melanitan is a peptide that tans you. My wife has used it in the past. I borrowed some of hers once and I had about a six hour erection. It works too well for me, so I don't use it. But in, in many men it does not have as potent an effect as that. It's called melanitan. The side effect being it actually gives you a pretty good looking non trump like tan. And then Kisspeptin is another one. Kisspeptin is another peptide. I would say PT141, kisspeptin and melanitan would be the top three peptides for improving erectile quality. And then of course the big guns that we already just got done talking about, but that I think should not be used before you've tried. Some of the natural methods would be tadalafil or sildenafil, but surprisingly, and those are the active components of medications like Viagra or Cialis. Surprisingly, you don't need that. Much of them. To get the effects, you can use low dose like 2 1/2 to 5 milligrams of tadalafil and 5 to 10 milligrams of sildenafil. So there you have it. You might need to hit rewind and listen again or visit the show notes for the summary or use, I don't know, Grok or something like that to. To give you the summary. Choose sexy mode. Maybe you will get an erection. But anyways, those are some of my tips. That's what's going on with ED in the ED world right now. And I hope that's helpful for you. Okay, so what else? Another study that was interesting was on napping. The latest research on napping and cognitive performance. This one really caught my eye. You know, whenever I'm reading studies I do put them out on X. If you follow me on x.com BenGreenfield you get these hot off the presses. But this one was about napping and specifically what it looked at was a bunch of male soccer players during Ramadan. Okay, so the last 10 days of Ramadan, 10 days after Ramadan and 20 days after Ramadan, they did these tests. So Ramadan, if you don't know, involves fasting as a religious practice from sunup to sundown. There are many other traditional practices as part of Ramadan, but fasting from sunup to sundown. Now Ramadan fasting has been shown to impair physical performance and also to increase fatigue in athletes as well as probably due to the hunger, a slight worsening of sleep quality during the period of Ramadan. So what they wanted to look at was whether or not a nap could combat the issues with physical and cognitive performance that many people experience in this scenario. Now this doesn't mean this is just relevant to you if you follow Romanon. It might also be relevant to you if you fast, if you restrict calories, if you are sleep deprived, if you are an athlete or someone who works out and feels like you're just not recovering well enough. So what they did was they had a couple of groups. They had one group that took a 40 minute nap during the afternoon. The other group stayed awake. And this was at 2pm in the afternoon. Then at 5pm they had a cognitive test and a physical performance test. Well, the TLDR effects or the results of this study was that those who napped had significantly higher performance on the physical sprints and better performance on the cognitive tasks. And this was with a 40 minute nap. This actually agrees with previous studies that were similar. Another study on physically active men during Ramadan in 2020 showed that napping reduced their rating of perceived exertion while they were sprinting how hard they felt like they were working. Another study in 2022 also showed lower subjective muscle soreness and an increased ability to work out at a higher intensity in those who threw in again a 40 minute nap in the afternoon about three hours prior to working out. And there's a host of other non Ramadan esque studies on napping and its benefits. Folks like Dr. Matthew Walker have also discussed napping I am a huge fan of napping. Okay, huge fan of napping. I want to give you some practical tips here momentarily, but the way that I do things is I have a family, wife, sons, busy life. So I'm usually not in bed until about 10pm I'm usually asleep by 10, 10:15pm, but then I'm up around 4:45 or 5am so if you do the math, I'm getting around six and a half to seven hours of sleep a night, which is not the recommended eight to nine hours of sleep, although we know those recommendations widely vary. Sometimes it's 7 to 9, sometimes it's 8 to 9. Some people need less, some people need more. However, I have found that by getting up early I have time to do a whole morning routine. I'm able to be productive at work without my phone blowing up and people explain expecting me to be replying to their emails and slack messages, et cetera. And I am able to have a much more relaxed day because I don't feel like I'm playing catch up, having gotten up at 6 or 6:30am when the rest of the world's already starting to wake up and I haven't had that time to get ahead. So what I then do is typically between about 2 and 4pm in the afternoon, I will settle in for about a 20 up to as long as a 60 minute siesta nap or meditation session. Now what are my favorites? I will quickly run you through this. I've got three options and for those of you who like biohacking, I know many of you listen to this episode to learn about cool biohacks. So I'm going to tell you not the boring stuff, but the kind of more advanced stuff that I do. Number one. Number one, I have a shiftwave chair. This vibrates your entire body. And above that shiftwave chair is what is called a Roxiva lamp which uses light sound therapy to lull my body into a deep state of relaxation while down regulating the default Mode network, monkey mind. And the light and sound actually correlates to the vibration effect of the chair. It's an incredible setup. They aren't sold together, but I bought both of them and then I connected the shiftwave to the Roxiva via an AV cable. I am not very smart, I am not an electrician. This was very intuitive and simple to do. The sessions on the Roxiva and or the shiftwave can last anywhere from 5 minutes to 60 minutes. And it is an incredible way to turn off the brain and use haptic vibratory sensations, light and sound to shift the body into a deep state of relaxation very quickly. I love that setup. I do that typically about three afternoons a week. I'll link in the show notes, but the chair is called the shiftwave and the light is called the Roxiva. My equivalent of that when I travel is that there is a small vibrating wristband or ankle band, depending where you wear it, called the Apollo. And I pair that with a travel friendly light sound stimulation machine called the Visor, the Neurovisor V I Z R. Right. So I can do light sound vibration when I travel or I can do light sound vibration when I'm at home. That home setup is not inexpensive. You know, it's over $10,000. Get a Shiftwave and a Roxiva. And that whole setup, the travel version is a little bit more budget friendly and could be used at home. You could get a Neurovisor and an Apollo for I think under $1,500. But that's one setup that I use. The next option that I do is full body pmf. I literally lay on a PEMF mat. I pull on some of these compression boots or gravity boots. There's one called the Normatec. There's another great company called therabody. And then I lay back, I put on an eye mask and some over the ear headphones and I play this thing called nucalm, which are these super deep rich audio sounds designed to lull you into state of sleep or sleep simulation. All right, so for this one I got kind of like three different options. These are my three recipes I choose from. This is laying down on a PEMF mat with recovery boots on while playing nucalm through headphones. I've tested out a bunch of different ways to nap and relax. By the way, what I'm sharing with you are like straight to the top of the mountain. The best three. I've done the research for you and I can guarantee none of these give you explosive diarrhea and you feel pretty relaxed after you do them. So PMF with over the ear headphones and the new calm and recovery boots, then the last option.

Last option is I have one of those at home soft shell hyperbaric chambers. It only goes to 1 1/2 atmospheres, but that's enough to hypersaturate my body with oxygen. Once you've been in there for about 10 minutes, your whole body just slips into this deep state of relaxation. What do I do in there? Well, you may have heard of yoga NIDRA or non sleep deep rest protocols. I do an NSDR or a non sleep deep rest protocol in there. I actually downloaded some tracks off of YouTube from a practitioner named Ali Boothroyd. She has sessions that last anywhere from 20 minutes up to eight hours. So I've got all her tracks downloaded. So my phone is in airplane mode. Hello, Ali, if you're listening in, I love your tracks. They lull me into this deep state of relaxation and then I lay there in the hyperbaric. And it's almost like a head to toe body scan with a special form of breathing. You don't actually fall asleep. Well, actually sometimes you feel like you've fallen asleep. Maybe I do, I don't know. But I'm like drifting in and out of consciousness and I feel incredible when I finish that session. So those are the three ways that I biohack the nap. Yes, you could kind of like my wife does and teases me about, just sit down in a La Z boy or lay in bed and close your eyes and take a nap. But I like to get the most out of my naps and that's how I do it. So what I'll do is I'll lay out the show notes. You can kind of see those three naps laid out nice and pretty for you if you want to try any of those three options. But napping is great for physical performance, for cognitive performance, and those are some of the ways that I do it. So we've got time, I think, for one more topic. So let's talk about this podcast that I did a few months ago with this guy named Brandon Dawson. Brandon Dawson is the CEO of 10x Health. During that episode, we held up these little sachets and they were full of these brightly multicolored beads which are almost like printed for you or made for you after you send the results of your genetic test off the 10x to basically.

Customize your vitamin and supplementation protocol to your genetics. Well, since recording that episode, I've got a Lot of questions like, what are these, how to use them, how are they made? So I'm gonna give you the rundown of this because it actually is super interesting. So what you do is you send in your genetic test, and now you can send in your blood test, too. So they can adjust these microtransporter ingredients based on ongoing results. Now, microtransporters, what they are are these. They're these really small beads, and they package these bee or these nutrients and vitamins and minerals into this hard microtransporter that allows it to be very stable for shipping, for shelf life, et cetera. But the reason this is important is because the proper absorption of nutrients and micronutrients into your body is a complex issue, because many substances can inhibit the absorption of other substances. So it's actually pretty important how, where, and at what rate micronutrients are released in your intestine. So I'll give you an example. Certain micronutrients are absorbed in your body through the same channels. A good example of this is calcium and zinc. So if you take a calcium zinc powder or capsule, let's say you take calcium and zinc mixed into a gelatin capsule, they both get released in the intestine, calcium and zinc do. The intestinal mucosa then begins to absorb the calcium, which is typically administered in very high doses via a limited number of calcium channels. But zinc also gets absorbed through those channels, so it gets displaced by the calcium, and in many cases remains largely in the intestine until it's excreted, thus creating expensive urine. So for that reason, certain micronutrients should not be administered together in the same form. So if you're taking, like a calcium zinc effervescent tablet or gelatin capsule, you're likely wasting a lot of the zinc. Now, what they do with these microtransporters that you get in this sachet after you do your genetic test is they manufacture them in a way such that mutually blocking substances aren't in the same beads. So calcium gets secreted in one part of the intestine and zinc in another. So each of the micronutrients is absorbed away from other blocking micronutrients. So this continuous, small release of micronutrients doesn't stress the uptake mechanisms so much that the uptake of only one micronutrient occurs. So it's basically this spatially separated distribution, which is kind of cool science when it comes to nutrient absorption. Now, in addition, paradoxically, certain micronutrients support each other in their absorption so vitamin D and calcium, for example, those get packaged into the same little microtransporter bead. Because vitamin D and calcium work synergistically to help each other get absorbed. Then there's certain fat soluble vitamins, for example, like vitamin E. Vitamin E requires calcium carrier fats to be absorbed in your body. That's why a lot of times they'll tell you to take your fat soluble vitamins with food. So they take this vitamin E supplement and they dissolve it in a, or they store the vitamin E in the microtransporter and then when it comes into contact with dietary fats in your intestine, that's when it gets actually absorbed. They actually put this fatty substance in with the vitamin D, so the, or the vitamin E. So the vitamin E gets absorbed much better because it's released upon contact with fats. So another example of this would be a lot of micronutrients dissolve immediately in water and get immediately delivered to your body in the intestine and then absorbed into your bloodstream. But that has significant disadvantages. Like vitamin C, for example, very popular water soluble vitamin that gets removed from your body very quickly. It has a half life of like 30 minutes. So the body loses half of the vitamin C in the blood every half hour. So if you take 80 milligrams of vitamin C, you only have about 5 milligrams left after just a couple of hours, once again resulting in expensive urine. So what they do with these microtransporters is they design the microtransporter that has the vitamin C in it to very, very slowly degrade. So you're getting like this slow time release of vitamin C throughout the day. So when you look at the absorption and the timing of these micronutrients or these microtransporters, it's very cool how they've actually created these beads, but then they do a little bit more than that. For example, what they do is they actually look at your weight, your age and your sex and then they adjust the actual dosages within each sachet so that you're never going above the recommended safety limit for each of the components within the microtransporter sachet. So they do this DNA test. They determine the right nutrient selection and requirement, but then they adjust it based on your age, your sex, your weight, et cetera. So a 300 pound man and a 100 pound woman might go to a pharmacy or Costco or Walgreens to get a multivitamin or it's going to be the same for Each of them, but obviously their needs are going to be much, much different for most of the vitamins and minerals in that substance. So instead they actually adjust these sachets to be unique to the sex, weight and age of the person that is getting sent out to. And literally like I get my microtransporter bead sent to me, it says, you know, Benjamin, this sachet is designed for you. And then you just take it. And in my case, right before a meal. So they also look at which nutrients are harmful for you. For example, there are some people who have certain genes that dictate that they don't respond very well to say, omega 3 fatty acids. There are other people who need a different form of coenzyme Q10 in order to be able to use that antioxidant properly. So they will then take different forms of say like omega 3 fatty acids and choose whether you need a fish oil version or whether you need like an algal or more plant based or vegan version of omega 3 fatty acids. Or they'll decide whether you need like a CoQ10 or Ubiquinol version of a Coenzyme Q10 supplement. And so that's all based on your genes. And you wouldn't know whether or not a fish oil would potentially be good or bad for you until you actually get the genetic test to know. But then they customize that based on your gene test. And then now what they're doing is if you do follow up blood tests, they simply adjust the nutrients and the vitamins and the minerals as follow up blood tests come in. Because let's say that you have the gene that causes you to express a low number of VDR vitamin D receptors. And so theoretically you would have a large amount of vitamin D in that sachet. But if for some reason due to the fact that you might have a high amount of vitamin D already in your diet, or maybe you, you convert vitamin D really well from sunlight or something like that, you send in a blood test and you have high levels of vitamin D, well then they will adjust that in the sachet. So they're not just supplementing based on the genetics, but supplementing based on how much the blood testing actually agrees with the genetics. So all of this is super duper interesting. I actually thought it was so interesting that I fed a bunch of the information about microtransporters into Google Notebook lm, which I'll use a lot of time to study, and it came up with this really cool AI driven 14 minute conversation about these microtransporters and micronutrients. And I'm going to put that in just a moment. I'm going to put it as a little bit of extra for you right here in the show so you can hear a couple of voices talking even more about this microtransport or microbead technology and how it actually works. So I think this stuff is just fascinating. That's actually one of the reasons I started working with 10x in the first place was they're doing some really forward stuff with old genetic testing and precision supplementation based on your genetics. And I get certain deals and discounts, et cetera, on these genetic and blood tests. So I'll link in the shownotes if you go to BenGreenfieldLife.com 48 full disclosure, I'm now a spokesperson for it advising helping out 10x a little bit, but I thought that I should. I think it's good to educate you on how these sachets work and how cool it is that you can now adjust your vitamin and mineral intake based on your genetics. So I'm actually kind of excited to see what you think about this AI driven conversation that I created based on a lot of the information I've learned about these microtransporters. So enjoy this little addendum that you're about to hear. And in the meantime, you can go to BenGreenfieldLife.com 48 for the show notes on erectile dysfunction, on napping, and a whole lot more. So until next time, thank you so much for listening in. Enjoy this next part of the discussion. Check out Google Notebook LM if you want to learn how to make little study guides and Q&As. And I use NotebookLM all the time now because I can just feed it anything and they get an audio summary of what I fed it. So listen to this and thanks so much for tuning in again. BenGreenfieldLife.com 48:40 for the show notes. Here we go.

Okay, so this time we're gonna really dive deep into personalized nutrition.

Sounds good.

We're talking about 10x, pronounced 10x by the way.

Okay.

And their approach is really kind of next level. It is they use microbead technology, genetic analysis, blood tests. Yeah, like the whole shebang to create a supplement tailored just for you.

Yeah. What's interesting here is that they're really laser focused on how our bodies actually absor and use nutrients. They're not just throwing a bunch of ingredients together, they're really considering how those ingredients interact with each other. How your Genes might play a role and even things like upper safety limits.

Yeah. I was reading through some of the material that you sent over, and the microbead thing really caught my eye. It seems like a total game changer.

It is.

Instead of just like swallowing a bunch of pills, 10x uses these tiny microtranscorders to deliver nutrients gradually throughout the day.

Yeah, it's a totally different way of thinking about supplementation. I mean, think about it this way. With traditional supplements, you get that big spike of nutrients all at once, and then it drops off pretty quickly.

Kind of like mainlining a giant cup of coffee and then crashing a couple hours later.

Exactly. But with 10x's microbeads, it's more like having a slow, steady drip of nutrients throughout the day, so you're keeping your levels more balanced.

So it's not just about what you take. It's about how your body actually absorbs and utilizes it.

Exactly.

Over time. Exactly.

Precisely. And they take this even further by addressing how certain nutrients can actually interfere with each other's absorption.

Yeah, like the whole calcium and zinc thing.

Exactly. They often compete for the same pathways in your gut.

Yeah.

So if you take them together in a typical supplement, they can actually block each other.

Right.

But 10x cleverly separates them into different microbeads. So they're releasing them in different parts of your intestine.

So it's like they're choreographing the whole nutrient absorption process. That's pretty wild. And it's not just about, like, separating the troublemakers. They also combine nutrients that actually work well together.

Right, right. Like vitamin D3 and calcium.

Okay.

Putting them in the same microbead can actually enhance their effectiveness because they work synergistically.

This is starting to sound less like a supplement and more like a personalized internal pharmacy.

It is.

But how do they even figure out what your specific needs are in the first place?

Well, that's where the genetic testing and blood work come in.

Okay.

10X analyzes over 50 of your genes that are directly related to nutrient requirements.

50 genes. That's pretty impressive. What kind of information are they getting from that?

Well, they can see things like how efficiently you convert certain vitamins into their active forms, whether you need higher or lower doses of specific nutrients, and even if there are any nutrients that might be harmful for you based on your genes.

Okay, harmful. You mean like some people might need to avoid certain vitamins altogether?

In some cases, yes.

Wow.

A classic example is iron. We all know it's important.

Yeah.

But for people with certain gene Variations like those predisposed to iron overload, getting too much can actually be dangerous.

That's kind of a mind bender.

It is.

I always say iron was just something everyone needed more of.

Yeah.

It's a common misconception.

Oh.

But 10x looks at your individual genetic profile and adjusts your iron intake accordingly.

Wow.

They also consider things like the APOA1 gene.

Okay.

Which can impact how your body responds to omega 3 fatty acids.

Wait, so even omega 3s, which are generally considered like, super healthy. Yeah. Can be problematic for some people.

That's right. For people with certain variations of that gene, omega 3s can negatively affect their cholesterol levels.

Wow.

So 10x analyzes that as well and personalizes your supplement based on what your genes are telling them.

This is seriously next level personalization.

It is.

So it's not just about what nutrients you need in general. It's what your body specifically needs.

Right.

Based on your unique genetic makeup.

Precisely. And it's not a one size fits all approach when it comes to dosage either. 10x also factors in your age, your sex, and your body weight.

Which makes total sense.

It does.

I mean, a 300 pound man and a 100 pound woman are obviously going to have very different nutrient requirements.

Right. But they don't stop there. They also use blood tests to fine tune things even further.

So that's where the blood testing comes in? Yeah. Is that like a double check to make sure everything's on point?

Exactly. Blood tests provide a snapshot of your current nutrient levels.

Okay.

Which helps them confirm if the dosages suggested by your genetic analysis are accurate.

It seems like they're really trying to get a complete picture of your individual needs.

They are.

Before creating your personalized supplement.

Absolutely. They're taking a holistic approach.

Okay.

Considering your genetic predispositions, your current nutrient status, and even your lifestyle.

Right.

It's about optimizing everything from the types of nutrients you're getting to how they're delivered and absorbed by your body.

Okay. This is a lot to take in.

It is.

It sounds incredibly impressive. But. But I also have a million more questions. Okay. How do they make sure they're not overdoing it with certain nutrients? And how does this whole microbead thing actually work in practice?

Those are great questions, and we'll definitely delve into those next.

Okay, great. This deep dive is already blowing my mind. And we're just getting started.

Awesome. So you were asking about how 10x ensures they're not overdoing it with certain nutrients.

Yeah, that was my Thought, yeah, personalization is great, but you don't end up with too much of a good thing.

Exactly. And that's why 10x is so careful about establishing upper safety limits for every single nutrient that they include.

So they're not just randomly throwing in extra vitamin C because your genes say you might need a bit more?

Not at all. They take into account the recommended daily allowances, any potential interactions with other nutrients, and, of course, those upper safety limits.

Okay.

It's a very calculated approach that makes.

Me feel a lot better. So walk me through this microbead technology again. How does it actually work in practice?

Okay, so imagine these microbeads as tiny, sophisticated capsules. Each one contains a specific nutrient or a carefully chosen combination of nutrients that are designed to work together.

So it's not just like a regular pill that dissolves all at once?

Nope, not at all. These microbeads are designed to release their contents gradually over time, mimicking the way that we naturally absorb nutrients from food. It's like a slow, controlled release system.

That makes sense. We don't eat all our food for the day in one sitting.

Right? Exactly.

We graze, we snack, we have meals spread out over time.

Exactly. And our bodies have evolved to absorb nutrients best that way.

Right.

10X'S microbe technology really tries to replicate that natural rhythm.

Okay, I'm getting that, but earlier you mentioned how they use these microbeads to deal with nutrients that can block each other's absorption.

Right.

Can you give me a specific example of how that works?

Sure. Let's go back to calcium and zinc. We know they compete for the same absorption pathways, so if you take them together in a typical supplement, they can get in each other's way, and you end up absorbing less of both.

Right. That was the whole traffic jam analogy.

Exactly.

So how do the microbeads fix that?

10X separates them into different microbeads, releasing them at different rates and in different locations along your digestive tract.

Okay.

So the calcium might be released slowly in the upper part of your intestine, while the zinc is released later, further down.

It's like they're choreographing the whole journey through your gut.

They are?

That's pretty amazing.

It's all about optimizing the absorption process and making sure those nutrients aren't fighting each other for space.

Okay, that's really cool. So we Talked about how 10x ensures you're getting the right nutrients in the right amounts, but what about making sure your body can actually use them?

Right.

I remember you mentioned something about genes affecting how we activate certain vitamins. Can you elaborate on that a little bit?

Absolutely. Let's take Coenzyme Q10 or CoQ10 for short.

Okay.

It's a powerful antioxidant that our cells need for energy production. But some people have gene variations that make it really hard for their bodies to convert CoQ10 into its active form.

So even if they're taking a regular CoQ10 supplement, it might not be doing much good.

Exactly. 10x takes those genetic variations into account.

Okay.

If your analysis shows that you have that issue, they'll either use a form of CoQ10 in your supplement that your body can readily utilize, or they might even suggest alternative antioxidants that can provide similar benefits.

Wow. So they're not just looking at what you need. They're looking at how your body is going to process those nutrients. And at a really deep level.

It's truly personalized.

Yeah.

It's about understanding your unique biology and making sure you're getting the most out of every nutrient.

This is fascinating. So, just to recap, 10x uses microbeads for slow, targeted delivery. They address nutrient interactions, and they even look at how your genes might affect your ability to activate certain vitamins. All to make sure you're getting the maximum benefit.

You gotta. It's a comprehensive approach blending cutting edge science with individual needs.

It's amazing to see how far personalized nutrition has come.

It is. And this is still just the beginning. 10x is constantly refining their approach, looking at new research, and finding ways to make personalized nutrition even more effective.

So where does blood testing fit into all of this? We talked about genetic testing, but you mentioned blood tests are important too.

Yeah. Blood tests are a crucial piece of the puzzle because they give 10x a snapshot of your current nutrient status.

Looks kind of like a reality check against a genetic analysis.

Precisely. Your genes provide a blueprint.

Okay.

But blood tests show what's actually happening in your body right now.

Right.

Let's say your genes suggest you need a higher dose of vitamin D, but your blood test shows your levels are already optimal.

Okay.

10X would adjust your supplement accordingly, even if your genes suggested otherwise.

So it's a constant back and forth between your genetic predispositions and your real time nutrient levels.

Exactly. It's a dynamic process.

Okay, this is all starting to make sense. But I have to ask, how practical is this in everyday life? Are we talking about, like, a mountain of pills to swallow every day?

That's a great question. And actually, 10x has made it remarkably convenient okay. They package all of those carefully calibrated microbeads into easy to take daily sachets.

So you just tear open a packet and swallow the contents?

You can do that, or you can mix the contents into yogurt or a smoothie, if you prefer.

Okay.

It's very flexible.

That's really clever. It's like they've thought of everything. So they adjust the number of sachets you take each day based on your individual needs.

Exactly. They are always striving for that minimum effective dose, taking into account all the factors we've discussed.

Wow.

This is truly personalized. So let me make sure I understand this correctly. 10x uses these microbeads to create a slow release, targeted delivery system that optimizes nutrient absorption and addresses potential interactions. They determine your individual needs through genetic testing, blood work, and even lifestyle assessments. And then package everything into these convenient daily doses.

It's a fascinating example of how science and technology are coming together to create a truly personalized approach to nutrition.

This is so much more than just popping a multivitamin. So let's dive a little deeper into some specific examples of how Tenex tailors those supplements based on your unique genetic makeup. What other cool things can they do with this technology? All right, so we've covered a lot of ground already, but I'm really curious to hear some specific examples of how 10x puts all this science into action. What kind of adjustments might they make based on someone's unique genetic makeup?

Well, we talked about iron earlier and how some people are genetically predisposed to absorbing too much from their diet.

Right.

10X can actually pinpoint those genetic variations and adjust the iron content of your supplement accordingly.

So for someone at risk of iron overload, 10x might actually reduce the amount of iron in their supplement.

Exactly. They might include a lower dose or even remove it entirely if necessary. It's all about working with your individual biology, not against it.

That's incredible. It really highlights how different we all are on a genetic level.

Absolutely. And it's not just about reducing potentially harmful nutrients. 10x also looks at genes that can affect how your body utilizes certain vitamins.

Okay, now I'm really intrigued. Can you give me an example of that?

Remember how we talked about Coq 10 earlier?

Yeah.

Some people have genes that make it difficult for their bodies to convert standard CoQ10 into its active, usable form.

Right. So even if they're taking it, their bodies might not be getting the full benefit.

Exactly. So what 10x does is look at those specific gene variations. If you have them. They'll either use a different type of CoQ10 in your supplement, one that your body can readily use, or they might even suggest alternative antioxidants that can provide similar benefits.

It's like they're fine tuning your supplement on a molecular level.

That's a great way to put it. It's about understanding the intricate interplay between your genes, your diet and your overall health.

Okay, so to recap, 10x uses genetic testing to identify potential issues with nutrient absorption. They adjust dosages based on individual needs and they even personalize the types of nutrients you receive. All to ensure you're getting the maximum benefit from your supplements.

You got it. It's a truly holistic and science backed approach. And the best part is that it's constantly evolving as new research emerges.

This whole deep dive has completely changed my perspective on supplements. I used to think they were all pretty much the same, but now I see just how personalized and targeted they can be.

It's a game changer for sure. 10x is at the forefront of this movement, blending cutting edge technology with a deep understanding of human biology.

It makes you wonder what other areas of health and wellness could benefit from this level of personalization. It's really exciting to think about.

It certainly is. As we continue to learn more about our individual genetic blueprints, the possibilities for personalized health solutions are practically limitless.

Well, on that note, I think we've reached the end of our deep dive. But before we sign off, I want to thank you for joining us on this incredible journey into the world of personalized nutrition. We hope you've learned something new and maybe even feel inspired to explore how this kind of personalized approach could benefit your own health journey.

It's been a pleasure exploring this fascinating topic with. Remember, knowledge is power and the more you understand about your own unique needs, the better equipped you are to make informed decisions about your well being.

Until next time, keep exploring, keep learning, and keep diving.

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