The Tipping Point is Now
I started One of One Billion in honor of our son Andrew as part of my grief work. I wanted to give friends and family some understanding of what had happened in his life, and what might have made a difference to his outcome. While I haven’t focused on the role of medications, military veterans like Derek Blumke have, as I wrote about in June.
Instead, I’ve emphasized metabolic psychiatry, pioneered by Dr. Chris Palmer, and explained in his book, Brain Energy. As many of you know, Dr. Palmer argues that mental disorders are caused by mitochondrial dysfunction and that mitochondria and metabolism have a bi-directional relationship: they can harm each other, but they can also HEAL each other.
What’s become clear is that mitochondrial and metabolic dysfunction causes not only mental illness but all chronic illnesses. In his testimony to the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee on September 18, 2024, Dr. Mark Hyman described our chronic illness epidemic as a national emergency.
‘Fortunately, we know what to target: the culprit is what we consume’.
Dr. Mark Hyman
Endocrinologists, obesity specialists, cardiologists, psychiatrists, nutrition and mitochondrial scientists, citizen scientists, and self-healers who have been reversing chronic illness for decades realize that all the illnesses they all encounter are helped by the same things: metabolic strategies.
The strongest metabolic strategy is nutrition. But if that’s the case, why are so many Americans sick? How can the richest country in the world have such poor nutrition? First and foremost, it’s because of our Dietary Guidelines.
Why have the Guidelines Failed to Support our Health?
In their article, “The Hidden Costs of Our Dietary Guidelines”, Janet C. King, PhD, Professor Emeritus of Nutritional Sciences at UC Berkeley, and chair of the 2005 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee and Cheryl Achterberg, former Dean at The Ohio State University and member of the 2010 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, explain that the guidelines were controversial at their start, in 1980, when the president of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM), warned of ‘potential unintended consequences from implementing recommendations with such scant evidence’. Furthermore:
In 2017, two landmark studies from the NASEM delivered a critical verdict: The development process lacks scientific rigor and transparency, leading to guidelines that were not “trustworthy.” The reports made 11 concrete recommendations to improve rigor and transparency in the guidelines process. Yet, shockingly, follow-up evaluations in 2022 and 2023 revealed that the USDA had fully implemented none of them. The result? Untrustworthy guidelines that continue to drive obesity and poor metabolic health.
Other Key Policies That Shape Our Health
The Bayh-Dole Act of 1980 spurred innovation by allowing the commercialization of academic research. In the process, it inadvertently undermined Americans' health by incentivizing indefinite pharmaceutical treatment, and all but abandoning research to cure diseases
The National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act (NCVIA) of 1986, protects manufacturers from lawsuits while compensating individuals harmed by vaccines. While it has ensured vaccine availability, lower liability reduces incentives for manufacturers to maintain safety standards. I value vaccines, but I wonder if children need so many? At one time? With which adjuvants?
The GRAS (Generally Regarded as Safe) Loophole: Created in 1997, this allows food manufacturers to self-certify the safety of preservatives and artificial colors, flavors, and sweeteners without FDA oversight, leading to the widespread use of untested substances in the foods on the shelves in our grocery stores.
The Tipping Point is Now
Just six days after Dr. Hyman testified before Congress, Dr. Palmer delivered a powerful statement in Senator Ron Johnson’s roundtable discussion titled American Health and Nutrition: A Second Opinion, concluding with this fundamental question:
"We are at a crossroads. We have to decide who are the constituents of the American government. Is it industry or is it the American people?"
Dr. Chris Palmer
Politicians, business leaders, physicians, and grassroots organizers all realize that prioritizing profits over people is unsustainable. The burden of illness has reached critical mass.
Hope is on the Horizon
A new non-profit I’m involved in, Metabolic Revolution, is leading a non-partisan effort to create a healthier future.
On October 13, 2024, the first-ever Rally for Metabolic Health will happen in Washington, D.C., bringing together an incredible lineup of 14 distinguished speakers, including leading physicians, experts in nutrition and mitochondrial science, and passionate advocates. We will also celebrate with a Parade of Proof, featuring individuals who have reclaimed their health using metabolic strategies.
Join us at this pivotal moment to raise your voice and be part of the movement for lasting change!
Legislation to Watch
I won’t presume to interpret these or recommend a position, but want to highlight pending legislation relevant to our health and safety:
The 2024 Farm Bill – has the potential to impact the dietary guideline development process
Improving Efficiency to Increase Competition Act – relates to the research commercialization processes outlined in the Bayh-Dole Act
Toxic Free Food Act – seeks to mandate that the FDA tighten the GRAS loophole
Childhood Diabetes Reduction Act of 2024 – aims to restrict junk food advertisements to children, and to require health warning labels on sugary drinks and ultra-processed foods
Food Labeling Modernization Act of 2023 – seeks to improve the accuracy of food labeling
FREE Continuing Education Courses to Share
In keeping with their generous leadership to advance metabolic health, the Baszucki Group has made available two free, one-hour, credit-eligible continuing education courses on Metabolic Psychiatry for physicians, psychologists, and nutritionists:
Brain Energy: The Metabolic Theory of Mental Illness - Dr. Chris Palmer
Managing Major Mental Illness with Dietary Change - Dr. Georgia Ede
Please copy and paste the links to share them with your network far and wide!
