Optimal Health Insider
Research broken down for ease of use
Healthy sweets: The sugar in fruit is not the evil you’ve been told it is
Is all sugar bad for you? We all know that refined sugar---the kind used in sweets, processed food and soda pop---contains no nutrition and loads of calories. It also makes your blood sugar skyrocket and is the primary cause of the ongoing type-2 diabetes pandemic....
What do people who live past 100 have in common? Healthy guts with diverse bacterial colonization
When it comes to the question, "Why are some people able to live past the age of 100?" there is plenty of debate. Vegetarians argue for eliminating meat from the diet completely. Advocates of the Ketogenic diet urge cutting carbs in favor of fat. Followers of the...
Rhodiola crenulata can help high-altitude pilots with cognition and blood oxygen, new study suggests
According to a new study from Taiwan, supplementing with a Rhodiola crenulata extract prior to takeoff could help pilots maintain blood oxygen levels and combat cognitive impairment at high altitudes. Rhodiola is a genus of perennial plants that grow in high-altitude...
From fighting age-related diseases to improving depression—studies show benefits of Rhodiola
Rhodiola is a genus of perennial plants that grow in high-altitude and other cold regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Rhodiola species are often called "stonecrops" due to the types of terrain they typically grow in. Though 96 different species of Rhodiola have been...
Valerian root extract enhances sleep quality and daytime mood, new study affirms
According to a new study conducted by Indian researchers, valerian root supports different aspects of sleep quality---including the time it takes to fall asleep and time staying asleep. The researchers reported the benefits of valerian root begin as soon as three days...
America moves a step closer to pushing insect foods into the mainstream
With the announcement by food giant Tyson Foods that they are investing in the "insect protein" business, it appears America is a step closer to incorporating bugs into its food supply. The big question is, will we be aware of it when it happens? Becoming unwitting...
Regular cell phone use shown to affect sperm quality in new Swiss study
Attention men: Are you taking a supplement to support your "manliness" yet? By now you're probably aware that sperm counts in Western countries have been declining since the 1940s. In fact, according to a review of 185 studies, total sperm count declined by 50% to 60%...
The mushroom benefit you probably missed: protection from toxins
In recent years Western countries have finally started to acknowledge what traditional medical systems in Asian countries have known for centuries: mushrooms convey numerous nutritional and medicinal properties. As a food, mushrooms are low in calories, but rich in...
Study highlights benefit of a complete nutrition supplement to lower risk of malnutrition
A new study from Taiwan is highlighting the life-extending benefit of a comprehensive nutritional supplement for the elderly. While most studies on elderly nutrition focus on vitamins and minerals (micronutrients), the new Taiwanese study examined the benefits of a...
Early detection of micronutrient deficiencies reduces neuro-degenerative disease risk, study says
In today's toxic world, exacerbated by nutrient-deficient processed foods, obtaining critical nutrients from supplements is literally a life-saver for many people. This was demonstrated dramatically during the Covid pandemic when study after study showed...
Algae helped fight radiation poisoning after Hiroshima bombing, and it can protect you from toxins too
If you feel tired, regularly suffer brain fog, or suddenly struggle with several seemingly-unrelated health issues at once, a build-up of toxins in the body may be to blame. Everyone suffers from some degree of toxic build-up---it's impossible to avoid it in a modern...
Probiotics offset toxicity in the gut caused by microplastics, new review finds
While the world has been focused on Covid-19 another plague has grown in scale, and will ultimately affect the health of far more people than the Covid virus: plastic toxicity. Plastic is toxic to humans and animals, but since the exposure happens slowly it takes a...