Thank you sooooo much. I'm a 77 year old woman, with type 2, and chronic insomnia, who lives in a small pensioner flat which gets hardly any sun. My neighbourhood isn't always safe to go out walking in, so I'm inside most of the time. I will try to drive to somewhere where I can walk in the sunlight and maybe my infra red lamp night help? I live in NZ where the sun can be very harsh and had skin cancer on my nose a few years ago (an awful operation followed). Therefore I kind of avoid the sun, but I do take heaps of Vitamin D supplements. You have given me much to think about. Thanks again.
You know what it’s so funny because with all the craziness going on in the US, I’m always dreaming that New Zealand would be the best place to live. Some reason. I never thought that would be a crime there.
Wonderful video ! SO glad this is not another video focused on ‘losing weight’ - which is the polar opposite of my metabolic need. Light exposure applies to all mammals, to my knowledge, if not all living things.
I started getting tired this morning about 6 am while watching your video, so I went to You tube and turned on a blue screen and within a few minutes I was not tired anymore and came back to watch the rest of your video. Don't trust what I am saying, try it yourself next time you get tired my You tube friends, of course it is no cost to do this . Can't believe I am this old and just discovered this trick thanks to " Nourished by Science" channel.
Your timing is amazing... as we have gone from spring to summer here in Australia, and based on some of the early infrared research you quote in this piece, I have taken to exposing my body to sunlight for some 10 or 15 minutes per day. Being careful as Australia has some of the most intense light and melanoma is rife here as a result. What I have found is that for N = 1 (aka ME)... my fasting blood sugar level is **always** lower the next day. Substantially so. My fasting level can usually be in the 6.9-7.5mmol/L range. After explicit sunlight exposure it will usually be between 5.5-5.9mmol/L the next day. This would seem a seriously interesting line of research to pursue, given we know that in most western/industrialised economies, many more of their populations will spend far larger amounts of time working indoors.
Fascinating and encouraging info! Also, the organization of info in your videos is superior to all others I’ve seen. Your visuals are excellent, as well. Thank you.
Yes, the entire science of how red and near-infrared light affects mitochondria, and that near-infrared light can even penetrate deep into the body, was fairly new to me as well just a few months ago. Really interesting area of research that, IMO, holds tremendous potential.
I have a Dexcom G7. If my glucose level rises, even a small amount of exercise causes the level to drop dramatically. Example, I eat something with carbs, my level rises to 140. I get on a treadmill and walk at a pace that slightly raises my heart rate to 100 bpm. Within 10 minutes, the level drops to 120 and 100 in 15 minutes. I don’t believe my glucose could possibly drop this quickly, especially considering the CGM latency. I think the CGM is affected by blood pressure and heart rate. This happens every time. I haven’t confirmed with a finger prick yet, but I will do so soon.
These changes that you describe, and much more substantial ones, are absolutely common when doing any kind of exercise, even just walking. You should calculate how much glucose you have in all of your blood. Even at 140 mg/dL, it's not more than 2 teaspoons. Once you use several large muscles, they can easily take up enough glucose to drop the levels to 120 or 100 mg/dL. About confirming your CGM data, consider that when blood glucose is changing rapidly, the interstitial glucose concentration (which is what the CGM measures) lags the changes in blood sugar by about 15 minutes.
@NikolaEngineering , I have done some extensive testing about the impact of cardio exercise on my blood glucose (I am prediabetic). I use a Contour Plus glucose monitor. Had shared my results with Mario in another video some time ago. My conclusions were that - as far as I am concerned - very light cardio is bloog glucose killer. By very light, I mean around 100bpm on the treadmill, or on the stationary bicycle. Experiment: say my fasting glucose is 90mg/dl, and I eat a meal which includes 50g of NET carbs (I eat cheekpea pasta, not wheatbased pasta anymore), and in addition, a small apple and a small handful of blueberries. I also eat a piece of fish and some vegetables. Results: 1) Without cardio, my blood glucose would peak to in the region of 140-160. 2) With cardio, started immediately after meal and uninterrupted during digestion, meaning for 3-4 hours, I test my gluclose every 1/2h: my blood glucose doesn't rise meaningfully above 90. There is simply no meaningful rise in blood glucose. It stays say below 100mg/dl. Amazing. 3) With cardio, started immediately after meal BUT interrupted after an hour: for so long as I walk, there is no meaningful rise in my blood glucose. However my level start rising right away after I stop walking on the treadmill. 4) Interestingly, more vigourous cardio with HR of say 130bpm or above do not keep my blood glucose rock bottom. It will rise to a level meaningfully above fasting glucose. In other words, as far as I'm concerned, cardio really has to be "very light". => I believe that what you are observing may not be the result of something going wrong in your testing.
between 1.4g/l and 1.0g/l for 5l of blood, that is 2g of variation. I you walk only on carb 2g of glucose are 8kCal. We usally say the energy consumption while walking is in kcal=weight (kg)* distance (km). meaning is you are 80kg you need only 8/80=100m to use it, aka nearly 150 steps.
I use blood glucose monitor only and have found dramatic reductions in glucose reading post workout( fast walk - small uphill) however, when retesting 30 minutes later, it has risen again but not to the pre walk levels. Anyone understand what is going on here???
My dog was diabetic and she could drop a 100 points chewing on a bone . Exercise was a strategy to lower high glucose . I have a carb meal before I head out for my mountain bike ride . That glucose is turned into energy . It's normal for athletes to ingest carbs before a athletic event and sometimes during
I love your channel, thank you! In my research I have learned that genetics, epidemics, and seasonality play a huge part In how our body responds to weight and weight fluctuations, and basically our overall health. When we have low sunlight, as in nature this would be during cold winter months, we tend to have higher insulin resistance. Insulin resistance triggers our body to store body fat because in the cold months we are less likely to have readily available food so we need the extra body weight to survive the winter. In nature this all makes sense, but as you presented in your research, we have messed with our circadian rhythm and are living in unnatural environments. Thank you again!
This is a very insightful comment. Thank you. It is indeed possible that the insulin-resistance and glucose-intolerance-inducing effects of vitamin D deficiency could have had some positive survival effects in our ancestors.
No. It does not make sense at all. We would not want to be storing fat in the cold winter months . . . we would be wanting to USE stored fat when external food sources were unavailable. If our bodies made it hard for us to access stored calories specifically during those cold months when food was unavailable to us, who would ever survive winter?
@@marynlyn it’s just a perspective as to why we would be insulin resistant when we have low levels of vitamins D. From my knowledge, we are insulin resistant during adolescence and pregnancy. Both are times when our bodies want to store fat, not to release it so we have enough fat to survive and grow. Even though our bodies are designed to store fat during these periods of a persons life, we are still using fat as a fuel source. I don’t believe it’s one or the other as some believe. It’s more about homeostasis and the overall goal of survival.
Worked 10yrs night shift at 7-11. Lots of delicious highly refined foods. No wonder I’m fat n diabetic! Retired for a few years, my doc says my diabetes is going away. I still look at my phone at night
Thanks Mario for another masterpiece video. I was diagnosed prediabetic a few months ago and wasn't aware that more sunlight could potentially be a solution. I own a blood glucose monitor and do some testing. Cheers.
Careful. Whether or not more sunlight (or less artificial light at night) make any difference will depend on whether a lack of sunlight or too much artificial light at night are among the causes of your glucose intolerance, and whether you are exposed to other causes of glucose intolerance. I suspect that for some people, this video could make a big difference; for others, mayne none. To clarify what I mean with that: let's say you are insulin resistant and glucose intolerant because you have excess visceral and ectopic fat or because of a chronic inflammatory condition, then getting more sunlight would do little to address these issues, right? However, if you are insulin resistant and have poor beta-cell function because of vitamin D deficiency, poor quality sleep, and circadian disruption, correcting your relationship with light may be very helpful. Cheers Mario
Fantastic video. My partner scoffs at my warm low lighting at night but I see that I am right. In any case this is a great very information dense video. Also thank you for the link to the vitamin D calculator. I actually found that calculator several years ago, and I lost the link to it. Happy to have that back.
Great content once again-very informative. Thank you! I live in WNY, where it’s either snowing (a lot!), raining, or cloudy 90% of the time. Not sure what my Vitamin D levels are. Will have to look at that too. Since I’m dark-skinned and of South Asian descent, I’ll need to make some adjustments!
Many thanks Mario! Now it is clear to me and I thoroughly agree! Many 🙏 as well for the extremely interesting information you always give. I’m practicing all of it and I’m 72 and in optimal shape!😂. My brother who is a GP is also a gran aficionado of you!😂. Keep going!👍🌞
About 25 years ago, I decided to live with all natural light at home during the day, and use just candles, salt lamps or red/orange fairy lights at night only. I forget how uhnusual it is until someone else mentions it, but I believe it's why my home always feels so relaxing and peaceful. Now whenever I'm in an office with those awful artificial lights, I want to run screaming from the room, lol. 😂
Hey Chris! Funny that I was doing research for this video as you were interviewing Roger Seheult for your channel, right? And you still have questions after talking to him? That guy is a walking medical encyclopedia. Not sure I have answers to your questions, but happy to chat. I'll send you a note privately. Cheers Mario
I had a constant cold when I was 40. Sniffing all the time. Doctors gave me all the antibiotics. I had two polyp surgeries in 3 years which provided a year of relief each. Accidentally my own doctor was not available and I met a reserve doctor. She spent 15 minutes reading my history on the computer ! And was shocked about sinus. She gave me a blood test that indicated that I had 0 vitamin D. Anyway after 10 days of high dose 20000 IU I felt fantastic. Now I take 1000 a day. So I did not need any antibiotics or surgeries. Regrettably even today vitamin d test is not part of routine blood testing. Doctors should request it. The good side effect was that I also changed my diet and life style.
I was watching a documentary of a doctor from the Caspian Sea who used to conduct vitamin d tests routinely 30 years ago and noticed that many people were deficient in that area. He then completed residency in Boston and result there was no better as they hardly had any sun. He then started working in LA and was confident that people received enough sun there and did not bother to test patients d levels. however testing a few patients proved otherwise. In fact many patients reduced their dose of their other medication eg blood pressure tablets after addressing the vitamin d deficiency. As you suggested doc it’s best to test vitamin d and keep the necessary actions.
@@houtansadeghi Sometimes, even having "normal" vit D levels in blood some people might not have the "receptors" to use it and will have deficiency symptoms like. A vit d test in blood along with symptoms might be more accurate, not easy.
i have worked nights for 35 years. sleep during the day during the week, flip to sleeping nights on the weekend. Severe diabetic. Even being Keto for almost 2 years, still on insulin and insulin resistant. Hmmmmm. I do try to get sunlight on the weekends. Probably not nearly enough sun.
Interesting video. I moved to the tropics 2 years ago, and managed to reverse my diabetes about four months ago, doing keto and after that slowly introducing carbs again. I do try to expose myself to the sun regularly, for short periods of time (just a minute, wearing shorts only). I wonder if that has helped my 'miraculous' insulin resistance reversal. We have those IR light blocking windows, but they are usually open, unless it is raining.
Here is a response that I gave elsewhere about red and near-infrared light devices in general: There are some red and near-infrared light devices that, I think, can be helpful. However, they need to meet certain specifications as to their quality, flicker of light, and power output, and it's my sense that there are many cheap devices on the market that may not be helpful and maybe even have negative effects. I would purchase something that's been tested by a third party so that you can be certain that it emits the right wavelength at adequate power, and doesn't flicker. With regard to specific ones to treat certain conditions, such as face masks to improve the skin or reduce wrinkles, or LED boots to treat neuropathy, I honestly don't know whether there is scientific evidence to support the claims made by the manufacturers. Some photobiomodulation therapies have been tested clinically, for numerous indications, but whether these benefits translate to small low-power devices that people order of the internet seems uncertain to me.
I just started the video and immediately came to the comments to see if anyone had mentioned his hair! I love it! (But was also thinking that if a woman did a video with bedhead or whatever happened here there would be negative comments.)
I moved from CA to NZ, 23 years ago, n live in northern part of it, which is warmer, no snow, n 7sed to be very sunny. The Ozone layer here is very thin. One gets sunburned... Some ppl like me, can't have their head in the sun, we feel dizzy. 5 min is a lot to survive. Gradually, I lost interest having direct sun light. And I have diabetes 2 which I developed it here. And I gained lots of weight, as most ppl who come here do. I take vit D3 daily. How do I use direct sun light safely? How do I help my diabetes 2 to be healed? My life style is healthy. Thanks. Neli
Great summery. Most people need help to understand that back to nature is the best and cheapest way to get your health back or even preventing getting sick in the future.
The CGM shown my average glucose yesterday at 116 and 92% within the target range(140). I ate 2 meals yesterday(non-low carb meal). My A1C is 5.8. Both the insulin antibody and C- peptide tests comes back normal. How do I interpret these data? Do I have insulin resistance or pre-diabetes? Also my vitamin D is 24 which is lower than the normal range. I did several blood test recently due to frequent UTI episodes. And it seems like low vitamin D also links to bladder control and estrogen level so I’m taking my daily sun dosage very seriously now.
U r pre diabetic at 5.6. Yr fasting glucose should be under 90. Stop the carbs. Eat big salads and meat fish and tofu. No fruit. Stevia to sweeten yr tea/coffee. Its a tough diet to follow. When u cheat w bread, divide the carbs by the fiber, aim for 5. For example 20 carbs divided by 1 fiber is norm. Avoid.
Vitamin D is super-important for overall health. Getting the levels up (but not too high of course) helps tremendously. I learned from the video (Thank you SO MUCH Mario) that, although my vitamin D intake is adequate/optimal, my body needs more sunlight. Unfortunately we have not seen the sun for a couple of weeks here in the Netherlands and if we see it it is only 'enough' on a very bright day during the summer months. Now I no longer doubt if it is in my mind that I am feeling a lot better in countries with a lot of sunshine almost everyday (was always doubting if it was 'just' relaxing activities during the holidays that made me feel better.....).
I was taking D3 supplements and my liver enzymes were slightly high. My endocrinologist said it could not be the D3. I did the elimination process and it was the D3. My lab consistently shows D as 45. I live in FL and am in the sun often. It’s colder now so hoping I can keep the D up.
I have never heard that, and I have even led a clinical trial in which we provided a vitamin D supplement. It is possible that the specific supplement you used was contaminated in some ways maybe? Supplements are notorious for being poorly regulated. At the same time, sun exposure has many benefits other than vitamin D synthesis, so if you live in a part of the world where you can easily meet your vitamin D requirements with natural sunlight, I would prioritize that. Alternatively, you could try a different brand of supplement.
@@nourishedbyscience it went on for over a year and us trying to figure out what it was, eliminating supplement by supplement. I was using the same brand but went through numerous bottles of that same brand. I would like to supplement in the colder months but scared to do so now.
Interesting video. Have some questions. Your definition "tolerance to glucose" is very indefinite. Does it mean somebody is too tolerant to glucose or to intolerant? I would prefer to define it as carbohydrate toxicity. In this case the root cause is self-explanatory: to lower the toxicity we need to lower the amount of toxins to ingest. The rest will be just minor pleasant factors...
Glucose tolerance is simply the ability to regulate blood glucose levels in the normal range, mostly 70-140 mg/dL, no matter what you are eating. The transition to glucose intolerance is gradual, but clinically clearly defined by specific thresholds. If you want to learn more about this, I recommend this video: th-cam.com/video/Yg9AS2sfY9Y/w-d-xo.htmlsi=kcszwI7Snmtd0d7Z The term you use, carbohydrate toxicity, is a misnomer, because carbs are not toxic, particularly not for people who are fully glucose tolerant. Also, there is no evidence that carbs are the cause of glucose intolerance. What you suggest, namely to adopt a low-carb diet, is indeed an approach I also recommend if someone is glucose intolerant. Because, as you say, if someone's body struggles with their glucose homeostasis, it would seem advisable to minimize that exposure . However, I also recommend that people aim to identify the root cause of their glucose intolerance, which in no case is carb consumption per se. If your point is that refined grains, added sugars, and carbs in ultra-processed foods are a cause of glucose intolerance, I could get on board with that because all of these trigger overconsumption of calories and weight gain, which through the accumulation of visceral and ectopic fat could trigger insulin resistance. However, it is critical not to confuse soda, ice cream, and syrupy breakfast cereals with whole food sources of carbs such as legumes, carrots, berries, or brown rice. No evidence whatsoever that people eating these latter foods develop glucose intolerance from them. In fact, as long as we are not gaining weight, there is no evidence at all that whether we eat high-fat or high-carb or a mixed macro diet that it has any meaningful impact on our insulin sensitivity: th-cam.com/video/ZcVenUbqsYY/w-d-xo.htmlsi=W6qoK0fyJuEz28_H
@@nourishedbyscience, appreciate you detailed answers. I don't promote any dietary approach but the instrumental control of blood glucose level as the marker of how tolerant the person to the carb contained food. By using the simple glucometer or better the advanced CGM, the person will easly get the knowledge of his personal carb tolerance/toxicity on every food group. I believe you see some like this comments already under this video
Because we have high-certainty evidence that sunburns are harmful, and only suggestive evidence that sunscreen carries risks. I only say repeatedly to limit exposure to mid- day sun. But, alas, some people lie on the beach all day, and in that case, I suggest sunscreen.
Great thank you Mario! Q1. I wear photochromic lenses in my glasses. Is it advisable to remove them as much as possible when outdoors especially for the therapeutic time suggestions? Would they reduce light to pineal gland? Q2 for improved circadian rhythm is it ok to just be in a sunlit backyard or do I need to be in direct sunlight?
Re Q2, any time in outdoors natural light is helpful. Re Q1, I don't know much about what photochromic lenses do? Do they filter out UV-light or blue light, or reduce the light intensity reaching the eye? Of course, if there is a therapeutic reason for wearing them, then I suggest discussing this with a doctor. Other than that, what the science suggests is that we benefit from bright daylight exposure during the day (to keep melatonin production in the pineal gland suppressed), and no blue light at night, for optimal sleep and circadian rhythm.
I would like to request some advice on the following: 1. **HBA1C Levels**: - March 2024: 6.4 - July 2024: 5.2 - September 2024: 5.4 - January 2025: 5.2 2. **Fasting Blood Sugar (FBS)**: - March 2024: 108 - July 2024: 73 - September 2024: 80 - January 2025: 93 - **Question**: Why is it gradually increasing despite maintaining the same routine? 3. **Blood Pressure**: - March 2024: 140/90 - January 2025: 110/70 4. **Fasting Insulin**: - January 2025: 1.54 5. **LDL Cholesterol**: - July 2024: 196 - September 2024: 198 - January 2025: 220 6. **HDL Cholesterol**: - July 2024: 38 - September 2024: 48 - January 2025: 55 7. **Weight**: - March 2024: 84 kg (height: 180) - January 2025: 66 kg 8. **Waist Size**: - March 2024: 43 inches - January 2025: 32.5 inches **Exercise Routine**: Daily minimum of 10,000 steps, including a 30-minute walk after each meal and 1 hour at the gym. **Dietary Restrictions (Don'ts)**: No sugar in any form, no fruits, no milk, no sodas, no seed oils, no grains, no rice, no baked goods, no processed carbs, and minimal starchy vegetables and legumes. **Dietary Focus (DOs)**: Animal fats, olive oil, red meat, chicken, 5 whole eggs daily, green salad, Greek yogurt daily, vegetables, and nuts (mainly almonds, walnuts, pistachios, and peanuts). Thank you for any insights you can share!
Congrats. Looks like you are on the right track. Don't worry about fluctuations in your fasting glucose within the normal range (70-100 mg/dL). Look at the overall long-term trends, and these mostly look good. I'd personally be worries about that LDL-chol though, and would discuss this with a doctor: Blood Lipids and CVD Risk: Everything You Need to Know: th-cam.com/video/xjPDA0Ccl50/w-d-xo.htmlsi=TsZcwyzBAi6rXwkR
@nourishedbyscience Thank you for your kind response regarding the test results I shared with you. I truly appreciate your insights. I've been watching your videos on lipid blood results, and they've been incredibly informative. I'm now focusing significantly on improving my LDL values, inspired by your guidance. Thank you for all the valuable information you share with your audience on your TH-cam channel. It has made a positive impact on many, including myself.
TH-cam soon offers a feature that automatically translates TH-cam videos into different languages (the spoken word, that is). Right now, you can already have that by going to settings -> Captions -> Auto-translate -> Pick your language, and then switch on CC (closed captions). It works very well.
@@nourishedbyscience I did it but your video has english as the only option. In some other videos from other channels, yes I can choose the preferred language among many.
When doing Sungazing and walking outside, what should be our considerations about the air quality. What is the ideal range of AQI for being outside ? If above that until what AQI one should say have limited exposure and can masks help, what kind and soec of the mask to use? Can glasses help when AQI is above the ideal limit, some inputs will be very helpful 🙏
Is it possible that the positive benefits of a 'Mediterranean Diet' are confounded by - or at least amplified by - consistent exposure of these populations to sunlight?
I have read sometime ago (years), that Synthroid is the most common medication prescribed to women. (In Canada at least) This might provide additional testing ideas for this same connection between infrared sunlight and energy production in the cell???
May I suggest you watch this video here in which I explain all that: The Regulation of Blood Sugar th-cam.com/video/Yg9AS2sfY9Y/w-d-xo.htmlsi=-4c3ditIKFt8vABh Cheers Mario
Would be an evening in Front of a fireplace stove, also effective ? I mean Fire Emissionen is mostly IR-Light. So could This boost mitochondria function?
Yes, probably good. To which degree near-infrared light can actually 'boost' mitochondrial function is probably dependent upon how much red and near-infrared light we are exposed to. If you rarely ever go outside, or you live in Northern Alaska and barely see the sun all winter, then the IR-emissions from a fireplace may be really helpful. If you are outside all day anyways, it may not make much of a difference.
Mario - this was a fascinating video. I'm going to reinstall my blackout blinds this evening. I did have a question. You mentioned that living here in NH, I can be out in the sun all day long, and never get enough vitamin D because of the angle of the sun. Is the same true for the other factors, such as exposure to near infrared light or other sun-related factors? For those of us who live in the north country or a place like Seattle, we just don't get as much sun as those who are farther south. Are there any studies that look at geographic factors? P.S. I did send a rather long message to your "newsletter" email. Don't know if you saw it. I'd be intereseted in hearing your thoughts as to whether I should re-join the new community.
Hi Sam, Good to hear from you. Sun intensities are lower in the winter in Northern and Southern latitudes away from the equator, and the cloud cover and our thicker clothing in the cold part of the year play a role as well. However, on a clear day, you do get quite a bit of infrared and near-infrared light still when you are outside. Still, we do have plenty of data that many diseases are more common in geographic areas that have periods of low-intensity sunlight. For example, in the US, multiple sclerosis is way more common in Seattle than in Southern California. In Europe, Type 1 diabetes and celiac disease (both autoimmune) are way more common in Scandinavia than in Italy or Spain. And one paper I reviewed looked at glucose levels in relation to recent sunlight intensity (in England and the Netherlands), and found a strong association between brighter sunlight and lower blood glucose. Cheers Mario P.S.: I have not received your email. Make sure it's addressed to newsletter or mario at nourishedbyscience.com. However, the community is not new; it's the same as before. For now, we just changed the name. However, some changes are probably coming for early next year, and I'd be curious about your feedback as to what would be most helpful to you.
I'm wondering about people who live outside polar circle where there are seasons of "white nights" and winter is 9-10 months per year. Or humans weren't adapted to live in such harsh environment conditions?
Hi Olga, People who live far away from the equator usually lived along the coasts and consumed the only food that has meaningful amounts of vitamin D: fatty fish. Probably not a coincidence. About the impact of near-infrared light on mitochondrial function, it's possible that they have poor mitochondrial function, and maybe that is one factor why these populations are very susceptible to type 2 diabetes once they have access to industrialized food (soda, UPF)!? My hypothesis is that lack of near-infrared light is particularly devastating if combined with caloric excess, and specifically once the personal fat threshold has been crossed and fat and other nutrients start to accumulate in tissues that were not designed for fat storage. Cheers Mario
I'm doing a trial, 18 days of 50,000 IU of vitamin D3 to see what it does for my seborrheic eczema, I'm trying to boost my immune system to break the fungi power over receptors regulating vitamin D3 for the immune system. What I noticed day 2 is that urinating is way better, it flows like when I was 20. Tingling in my legs is way less (T2D) and I feel oddly... Happy? 🤔 (I take vitamin K2 to regulate calcium in the blood and directing it towards the bones)
Does the change of glucose level after exposure to red light show that the preferred source of energy for mitichondria is glucose as opposed to ketones? I wonder if there is data on the level of ketones after exposure to red light?
There are a very large number of questions, such as this one, that we don't have any experimental data on yet. My sense is that the electron transport chain in mitochondria is working more smoothly with red and near-infrared light, and if that's the case, the source of the fuel shouldn't matter. But, that's a guess and we'll need a lot more data on this phenomenon.
No discussion of Night Owls and how this impacts them?! He should have mentioned if blue light bulbs can replace bright day sunlight, for any use case.
Don't think that the night owls vs. larks discussion is all that relevant here. Even if you are a night owl, too much blue light late at night is probably still bad for you. There are no lightbulbs that can replace the sun. There are some whole-spectrum 'happy' lights with up to 10,000 lux that can help with seasonal affective disorder, but other than that, it is simply recommended to have as many full-spectrum lightbulbs in the house that emit near-infrared light in addition to visible light.
@@nourishedbyscience By 'night', do you mean normal night or the night which is for night owls? Because for night owls, Daytime is the Night. I understand that lightbulbs can never replace sunlight fully, but there are three parts of sunlight discussed, and I was referring to your discussion seemingly pertaining to the visible spectrum of sunlight.
Light boxes have been shown to help reduce the risk or severity of seasonal affective disorder, a kind of depressive state thought to be linked to lack of light exposure in the dark months of the year. However, to my knowledge, most of these use only visible light, and not UV- or infrared light.
We should be able see epidemiological differences due to the sunlight in a latitudinally spread country, such as japan, chile, Maine vs Florida in the US, or Seatle vs San Diego. We'd expect less t2dm farther from the equator.
More T2DM farther from the equator, yes. Don't think anyone has looked. The only thing we do have are studies that have looked at acute changes in blood glucose levels when the sun is out vs. when it's cloudy, and they do find that glucose levels are lower after a few sunny days, on average on a population level.
@@nourishedbyscience It should be quite ready at a population level to detect seasonality of blood glucose level in Canada. The data must be floating around somewhere.
Depends on your fasting glucose. If it's in the normal range, then a low insulin is usually not an issue. If fasting glucose is elevated, then a low insulin would suggest that your pancreas is unable to make enough insulin, which could be a sign of what we call beta-cell dysfunction. Note, however, that insulin is secreted in a pulsatile fashion. That means that blood draws taken 5 or 10 min apart could show very different insulin levels. Your may just generally be very insulin sensitive, which causes your insulin to be lowish, and if the blood was drawn in-between two insulin secretory pulses, this could seem to be too low. In other words, if you have any real concern about your insulin levels, have your doctor draw two blood samples 5 minutes apart, and take the average insulin level.
Here is a response that I gave elsewhere about red and near-infrared light devices in general: There are some red and near-infrared light devices that, I think, can be helpful. However, they need to meet certain specifications as to their quality, flicker of light, and power output, and it's my sense that there are many cheap devices on the market that may not be helpful and maybe even have negative effects. I would purchase something that's been tested by a third party so that you can be certain that it emits the right wavelength at adequate power, and doesn't flicker. With regard to specific ones to treat certain conditions, such as face masks to improve the skin or reduce wrinkles, or LED boots to treat neuropathy, I honestly don't know whether there is scientific evidence to support the claims made by the manufacturers. Some photobiomodulation therapies have been tested clinically, for numerous indications, but whether these benefits translate to small low-power devices that people order of the internet seems uncertain to me.
Prof Glen Jeffery has undertaken research that indicates the value of RED light. 30 mins exposure in the morning (but not after noon) benefits the mitochondria.
@ -As I am learning from your different video sources such as blood sugar spike , resistant starch , insulin resistance, HOMA-IR etc . Regarding OGTT if not able to get , how possible to check 2 hours Postprandial insulin levels without 75G of pure glucose? Just normal meal and it’s optimal nutrition number please. Thank you.
Wanna share some insight which I hope someone. Over the past year my A1C was 5.7 % which was very shocking for me because my HOME index over the year was 0.8, multiple blood tests, triglycerids also low, apoB below 60 and blood sugar very rearly goes above 7.5 mmol after eathing carbs. Last 3 months i increased significaly the amount of monounsatured fat i consumed and on my last blood work A1C was 5.1. Also i`m 2kg heavier
It's not that simple. Light at night, even a little bit, will suppress the level of melatonin in your brain. If you are a robust sleeper, this may never bother your sleep, and in that case, it may not affect your insulin sensitivity at all. However, it could be a contributing factor for some people who struggle with their sleep. And in those people, sleep deprivation or a lack of high-quality sleep could very much reduce their insulin sensitivity.
Hmm. This got my gears cranking. What do you think about infrared sauna blankets? Or infrared lamps? These are relatively cheap purchase items. Someone should be able to do a quick test on the metabolic effects (and publish a paper).
There are some red and near-infrared light devices that, I think, can be helpful. However, they need to meet certain specifications as to their quality, flicker of light, and power output, and it's my sense that there are many cheap devices on the market that may not be helpful and maybe even have negative effects. I would purchase something that's been tested by a third party so that you can be certain that it emits the right wavelength at adequate power, and doesn't flicker.
I think it's beneficial that we now have many different ways that people can try to normalize their body weight. I would always try to improve my eating habits first, as I explain in my playlist 'Keys to a Healthy Body Weight' and implement some form of Time-Restricted Eating. However, that may not be sufficient for some people. For those, having options such as bariatric surgery or medication can be very helpful. What I would suggest strongly, however, is to always ALSO try to improve my diet quality and maintain a regular exercise practice. Particularly if we are eating less food and losing weight is it important to (a) eat a micronutrient-dense diet to prevent vitamin and mineral deficiencies; and (b) prioritize protein and exercise regularly to minimize the loss of muscle mass.
I am so perplexed by vitamin d. My active form is very low, but my inactive is normal. It's a controversial topic, but I've heard several practitioners say that as long as the inactive is normal, you do not need to address it. Thoughts? VITAMIN D,25-OH,TOTAL,IA -16 VITAMIN D, 1,25 (OH)2, TOTAL-38 VITAMIN D3, 1,25 (OH)2-38 VITAMIN D2, 1,25 (OH)2-
Well well, lowering insulin frees up vitamin D from fat cells. Therefore, eating a low insulinogenic diet (strict Keto or fasting) is the way to go. Vit D is fat soluble; any rise in insulin will shove it into fat cells.
I'm in a AI rabbit hole to see if a fireplace can deliver a meaningful dose of IR. Seems that there is an appreciable amount of target radiation but it's in the lower end of power per unit of surface to be clinically meaningful.
For most people, an hour of physical activity outside per day would be a major blessing. Just considering the natural ight exposure, we don't really know what 'dose' is ideal, so whether 2 or 4 hours is better than 1, I cannot say. However, I am pretty confident that 1 hour per day, or even 30 minutes, is better than no time outdoors.
I do an infra and near infra red light lamp every day. Lumie bright SAD lamp in the morning hours, Lumie alarm, go running at miday although that’s not doing much in December. I run in shorts and tank top unless it’s near freezing. I am now going to add a UVB reptile lamp. I lived in Singapore (on the equator) for nine years and it was fantastic for health and I dropped a stone of fat. Look at the blue zones - all in hot sunny places. Singapore is now an official blue zone. Weirdly I never burned there. It’s in England that I burn if I am not doing the usual precautions. We have booked a three week break in Singapore this winter. That will top up my vitamin D and other sun benefits.
It’s why every Brit ought to be on vit D from Oct to March, and lower levels over the Summer. We cannot absorb vit D if we are wearing sunscreen. Nor can white skinned folk make any during the Winter season.
Great video again. I have found two types of LED globes/bulbs available online. One for general use which cuts out blue light (visible light range 500 to 789 nm, peak at 620nm) and a second for bedroom/reading lamps which cuts out all blue and green light (visible light range 580 to 700 nm, peak wavelength of 630nm). Will these parameters be of benefit? I presume that they will not put out any infra-red light.? I am looking to buy one of each as an initial trial. As you say they are relatively expensive but would seem to have at least some worthwhile health benefits. Have you tried such lamps yourself?
About the correlation between sunlight exposure and T2 development can`t be use as a strong argument, because that mean that the person is not very physically active
@@stoenchu122 I walk one hour everyday at 7:30 PM for the past 15 years and a lot of the people going to a indoor gym at night time because that’s the only free time we got.
The studies are pretty robust in this regard, because we can measure physical activity well and adjust for it. You may be right that physical activity may still be a partial confounder, but I don't think it's the entire story.
Sorry ...! I feel for you, but maybe some of these suggestions may help ... (and I know it may not be that easy, with lots of factors playing into this). Best wishes, Mario
Please note that there was no icon for "thumbs up" for this video on my laptop. Thank you for this excellent content.
Thanks, Mario. Enlightening and interesting video as always. Never thought about light affecting glucose tolerance!
Thank you sooooo much. I'm a 77 year old woman, with type 2, and chronic insomnia, who lives in a small pensioner flat which gets hardly any sun. My neighbourhood isn't always safe to go out walking in, so I'm inside most of the time. I will try to drive to somewhere where I can walk in the sunlight and maybe my infra red lamp night help? I live in NZ where the sun can be very harsh and had skin cancer on my nose a few years ago (an awful operation followed). Therefore I kind of avoid the sun, but I do take heaps of Vitamin D supplements. You have given me much to think about. Thanks again.
You know what it’s so funny because with all the craziness going on in the US, I’m always dreaming that New Zealand would be the best place to live. Some reason. I never thought that would be a crime there.
7:00 am to 10:00am you can sungaze, even just for 10 minutes. Take off any glasses and contact lenses.
I always feel my best when I've spent time in the morning and mid day sunlight.
Amazing....Will spend more time in the sun..and in less blue light at night...Thank you very much..I learnt something I was unaware of for so long.
Wow, I never realized this connection between vitamin D and insulin resistance. Thank you for shedding light on it 😉
The connection is that insulin shoves vit D into fat cells as it is a fat soluble vitamin. Low vit D is most often cause by a high carbohydrate diet.
Wonderful video ! SO glad this is not another video focused on ‘losing weight’ - which is the polar opposite of my metabolic need. Light exposure applies to all mammals, to my knowledge, if not all living things.
I started getting tired this morning about 6 am while watching your video, so I went to You tube and turned on a blue screen and within a few minutes I was not tired anymore and came back to watch the rest of your video. Don't trust what I am saying, try it yourself next time you get tired my You tube friends, of course it is no cost to do this . Can't believe I am this old and just discovered this trick thanks to " Nourished by Science" channel.
How do you turn the blue screen?
@@CL-im9lk I guess he meant anti-bluelight screen filter
Your timing is amazing... as we have gone from spring to summer here in Australia, and based on some of the early infrared research you quote in this piece, I have taken to exposing my body to sunlight for some 10 or 15 minutes per day. Being careful as Australia has some of the most intense light and melanoma is rife here as a result.
What I have found is that for N = 1 (aka ME)... my fasting blood sugar level is **always** lower the next day. Substantially so. My fasting level can usually be in the 6.9-7.5mmol/L range. After explicit sunlight exposure it will usually be between 5.5-5.9mmol/L the next day.
This would seem a seriously interesting line of research to pursue, given we know that in most western/industrialised economies, many more of their populations will spend far larger amounts of time working indoors.
Fascinating and encouraging info! Also, the organization of info in your videos is superior to all others I’ve seen. Your visuals are excellent, as well. Thank you.
Great information delivered in a very simple manner. Thanks!
A lot of this was new to me. I am interested how this knowledge will evolve in the following years.Thanks for keeping us updated!
Yes, the entire science of how red and near-infrared light affects mitochondria, and that near-infrared light can even penetrate deep into the body, was fairly new to me as well just a few months ago. Really interesting area of research that, IMO, holds tremendous potential.
Great video Mario pulling it all together to give us a holistic view of metabolic dysfunction. The effect of red and NIR is a revelation!
I have a Dexcom G7. If my glucose level rises, even a small amount of exercise causes the level to drop dramatically. Example, I eat something with carbs, my level rises to 140. I get on a treadmill and walk at a pace that slightly raises my heart rate to 100 bpm. Within 10 minutes, the level drops to 120 and 100 in 15 minutes. I don’t believe my glucose could possibly drop this quickly, especially considering the CGM latency. I think the CGM is affected by blood pressure and heart rate. This happens every time. I haven’t confirmed with a finger prick yet, but I will do so soon.
These changes that you describe, and much more substantial ones, are absolutely common when doing any kind of exercise, even just walking. You should calculate how much glucose you have in all of your blood. Even at 140 mg/dL, it's not more than 2 teaspoons. Once you use several large muscles, they can easily take up enough glucose to drop the levels to 120 or 100 mg/dL.
About confirming your CGM data, consider that when blood glucose is changing rapidly, the interstitial glucose concentration (which is what the CGM measures) lags the changes in blood sugar by about 15 minutes.
@NikolaEngineering , I have done some extensive testing about the impact of cardio exercise on my blood glucose (I am prediabetic). I use a Contour Plus glucose monitor. Had shared my results with Mario in another video some time ago.
My conclusions were that - as far as I am concerned - very light cardio is bloog glucose killer. By very light, I mean around 100bpm on the treadmill, or on the stationary bicycle.
Experiment: say my fasting glucose is 90mg/dl, and I eat a meal which includes 50g of NET carbs (I eat cheekpea pasta, not wheatbased pasta anymore), and in addition, a small apple and a small handful of blueberries. I also eat a piece of fish and some vegetables. Results:
1) Without cardio, my blood glucose would peak to in the region of 140-160.
2) With cardio, started immediately after meal and uninterrupted during digestion, meaning for 3-4 hours, I test my gluclose every 1/2h: my blood glucose doesn't rise meaningfully above 90. There is simply no meaningful rise in blood glucose. It stays say below 100mg/dl. Amazing.
3) With cardio, started immediately after meal BUT interrupted after an hour: for so long as I walk, there is no meaningful rise in my blood glucose. However my level start rising right away after I stop walking on the treadmill.
4) Interestingly, more vigourous cardio with HR of say 130bpm or above do not keep my blood glucose rock bottom. It will rise to a level meaningfully above fasting glucose. In other words, as far as I'm concerned, cardio really has to be "very light".
=> I believe that what you are observing may not be the result of something going wrong in your testing.
between 1.4g/l and 1.0g/l for 5l of blood, that is 2g of variation. I you walk only on carb 2g of glucose are 8kCal. We usally say the energy consumption while walking is in kcal=weight (kg)* distance (km).
meaning is you are 80kg you need only 8/80=100m to use it, aka nearly 150 steps.
I use blood glucose monitor only and have found dramatic reductions in glucose reading post workout( fast walk - small uphill) however, when retesting 30 minutes later, it has risen again but not to the pre walk levels. Anyone understand what is going on here???
My dog was diabetic and she could drop a 100 points chewing on a bone . Exercise was a strategy to lower high glucose . I have a carb meal before I head out for my mountain bike ride . That glucose is turned into energy . It's normal for athletes to ingest carbs before a athletic event and sometimes during
Yesss!!! The topic I have been interested in. And now by my favourite lecturer 😍 Thank you!
Fantastic lecture. It added another aspect to how much power we have in supporting our health.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge. 🙏
I love your channel, thank you! In my research I have learned that genetics, epidemics, and seasonality play a huge part In how our body responds to weight and weight fluctuations, and basically our overall health. When we have low sunlight, as in nature this would be during cold winter months, we tend to have higher insulin resistance. Insulin resistance triggers our body to store body fat because in the cold months we are less likely to have readily available food so we need the extra body weight to survive the winter. In nature this all makes sense, but as you presented in your research, we have messed with our circadian rhythm and are living in unnatural environments. Thank you again!
This is a very insightful comment. Thank you. It is indeed possible that the insulin-resistance and glucose-intolerance-inducing effects of vitamin D deficiency could have had some positive survival effects in our ancestors.
No. It does not make sense at all. We would not want to be storing fat in the cold winter months . . . we would be wanting to USE stored fat when external food sources were unavailable. If our bodies made it hard for us to access stored calories specifically during those cold months when food was unavailable to us, who would ever survive winter?
@@marynlyn it’s just a perspective as to why we would be insulin resistant when we have low levels of vitamins D. From my knowledge, we are insulin resistant during adolescence and pregnancy. Both are times when our bodies want to store fat, not to release it so we have enough fat to survive and grow. Even though our bodies are designed to store fat during these periods of a persons life, we are still using fat as a fuel source. I don’t believe it’s one or the other as some believe. It’s more about homeostasis and the overall goal of survival.
really excellent episode and very rich in related scientific evidences
Worked 10yrs night shift at 7-11. Lots of delicious highly refined foods. No wonder I’m fat n diabetic! Retired for a few years, my doc says my diabetes is going away. I still look at my phone at night
Thanks! Amazing video and excellent work behind it, keep going.
Thanks for your support!
Thanks Mario for another masterpiece video.
I was diagnosed prediabetic a few months ago and wasn't aware that more sunlight could potentially be a solution. I own a blood glucose monitor and do some testing. Cheers.
Careful. Whether or not more sunlight (or less artificial light at night) make any difference will depend on whether a lack of sunlight or too much artificial light at night are among the causes of your glucose intolerance, and whether you are exposed to other causes of glucose intolerance. I suspect that for some people, this video could make a big difference; for others, mayne none.
To clarify what I mean with that: let's say you are insulin resistant and glucose intolerant because you have excess visceral and ectopic fat or because of a chronic inflammatory condition, then getting more sunlight would do little to address these issues, right? However, if you are insulin resistant and have poor beta-cell function because of vitamin D deficiency, poor quality sleep, and circadian disruption, correcting your relationship with light may be very helpful.
Cheers
Mario
@@nourishedbyscience Thanks Mario for the clarification, this was very nicely explained in the video, very clear on this 👌. Cheers
Thank you for presenting this in such a clear and scientifically literate manner.
Very nice integration of several concepts :). Thanks.
I'm gonna use incandescent bulbs all winter now. 👍🏻
It's not inefficiency when it aids in home heating. Plus, that's the season when we most need it.
Absolutely fascinating. Great news content clearly explained. I will definitely be following those tips. Thank you
Maybe this is why I immediately feel more relaxed and better when I step outside
Excellent short video that summarizes concisely the research on sunlight, vitamin D and glucose tolerance.
I have a 250w infrared/red heat lamp above my kitchen table. Instant warmth on a chilly morning, feels like being in the sun.
Great video!
Me too
Which product did you buy? Celluma?
Infrared lamp does not have ultra violet ray so cannot make vitamin D. It is good for improving mitochrondia.
Always learning new information here, to develop, a more healthy lifestyle. 💯
Fantastic video. My partner scoffs at my warm low lighting at night but I see that I am right. In any case this is a great very information dense video. Also thank you for the link to the vitamin D calculator. I actually found that calculator several years ago, and I lost the link to it. Happy to have that back.
More fantastic content delivered in a clear and practical manner. We particularly appreciated the specific action items. Thanks!
Hugh & Laura, you guys may have little issue with getting enough sunlight, considering where you live!
Cheers
Mario
Great content once again-very informative. Thank you!
I live in WNY, where it’s either snowing (a lot!), raining, or cloudy 90% of the time. Not sure what my Vitamin D levels are. Will have to look at that too. Since I’m dark-skinned and of South Asian descent, I’ll need to make some adjustments!
Fascinating, Mario. Thank you!
another excellent video, thank you so much!!!
Thx for another excellent video. Motivated me to start taking morning walks again.
Very inspiring thoughts.
Thank you very much for the video… very informative
Dr.Mario thank you so much for sharing this insightful, objective and scientific knowledge.🎉❤🎉❤🎉
Thank you Mario. Your presentations always promote maximum practical key takeaways for better health. ❤
Many thanks Mario! Now it is clear to me and I thoroughly agree! Many 🙏 as well for the extremely interesting information you always give. I’m practicing all of it and I’m 72 and in optimal shape!😂. My brother who is a GP is also a gran aficionado of you!😂. Keep going!👍🌞
Let there be light!
Thanks for the info.
About 25 years ago, I decided to live with all natural light at home during the day, and use just candles, salt lamps or red/orange fairy lights at night only. I forget how uhnusual it is until someone else mentions it, but I believe it's why my home always feels so relaxing and peaceful. Now whenever I'm in an office with those awful artificial lights, I want to run screaming from the room, lol. 😂
Candles make me feel suffocated by their invisible fumes. Even organic, soy candles. Can’t stand their effect on my lungs.
Try beeswax candles. No fumes
@marycarter6716 there are no fumes from my candles, but thank you.
@@awesomelife3710 I have asthma and have never once felt that, even in a studio. Weird.
It's the fluorescent lights. Incandescent lights wouldn't bother you.
Once again, a very interesting and informative video. Thank you so much.
Fascinating! I have so many questions. Up for an interview?
Hey Chris! Funny that I was doing research for this video as you were interviewing Roger Seheult for your channel, right? And you still have questions after talking to him? That guy is a walking medical encyclopedia. Not sure I have answers to your questions, but happy to chat. I'll send you a note privately.
Cheers
Mario
I had a constant cold when I was 40. Sniffing all the time. Doctors gave me all the antibiotics. I had two polyp surgeries in 3 years which provided a year of relief each. Accidentally my own doctor was not available and I met a reserve doctor. She spent 15 minutes reading my history on the computer ! And was shocked about sinus. She gave me a blood test that indicated that I had 0 vitamin D. Anyway after 10 days of high dose 20000 IU I felt fantastic. Now I take 1000 a day. So I did not need any antibiotics or surgeries. Regrettably even today vitamin d test is not part of routine blood testing. Doctors should request it. The good side effect was that I also changed my diet and life style.
I was watching a documentary of a doctor from the Caspian Sea who used to conduct vitamin d tests routinely 30 years ago and noticed that many people were deficient in that area. He then completed residency in Boston and result there was no better as they hardly had any sun. He then started working in LA and was confident that people received enough sun there and did not bother to test patients d levels. however testing a few patients proved otherwise. In fact many patients reduced their dose of their other medication eg blood pressure tablets after addressing the vitamin d deficiency. As you suggested doc it’s best to test vitamin d and keep the necessary actions.
@@houtansadeghi Sometimes, even having "normal" vit D levels in blood some people might not have the "receptors" to use it and will have deficiency symptoms like.
A vit d test in blood along with symptoms might be more accurate, not easy.
i have worked nights for 35 years. sleep during the day during the week, flip to sleeping nights on the weekend. Severe diabetic. Even being Keto for almost 2 years, still on insulin and insulin resistant. Hmmmmm. I do try to get sunlight on the weekends. Probably not nearly enough sun.
Really great information!
Interesting video. I moved to the tropics 2 years ago, and managed to reverse my diabetes about four months ago, doing keto and after that slowly introducing carbs again. I do try to expose myself to the sun regularly, for short periods of time (just a minute, wearing shorts only). I wonder if that has helped my 'miraculous' insulin resistance reversal. We have those IR light blocking windows, but they are usually open, unless it is raining.
Thanks for shedding light on vitamin D and insulin resistance. I had no idea.
Thanks for explaining a complicated topic in understandable terms. Looking forward to your discussion of Vitamin D supplements.
What about red light therapy panels or face masks?
Here is a response that I gave elsewhere about red and near-infrared light devices in general:
There are some red and near-infrared light devices that, I think, can be helpful. However, they need to meet certain specifications as to their quality, flicker of light, and power output, and it's my sense that there are many cheap devices on the market that may not be helpful and maybe even have negative effects. I would purchase something that's been tested by a third party so that you can be certain that it emits the right wavelength at adequate power, and doesn't flicker.
With regard to specific ones to treat certain conditions, such as face masks to improve the skin or reduce wrinkles, or LED boots to treat neuropathy, I honestly don't know whether there is scientific evidence to support the claims made by the manufacturers. Some photobiomodulation therapies have been tested clinically, for numerous indications, but whether these benefits translate to small low-power devices that people order of the internet seems uncertain to me.
Absolutely educational!!
Awesome Presentation.
Thank you sir.
Mario, what happend to your hair? Touched a power line? Thank you very much for your latest content.
Oh come on, his hair is awesome.
🤣
I just started the video and immediately came to the comments to see if anyone had mentioned his hair! I love it! (But was also thinking that if a woman did a video with bedhead or whatever happened here there would be negative comments.)
Hahaa, my first reaction was *Aww, a scientist 🤣
Hahaha, "bedhead" ...! You guys crack me up. Seems like incorporating some funky physical feature into these videos will increase engagement ...;-)
I moved from CA to NZ, 23 years ago, n live in northern part of it, which is warmer, no snow, n 7sed to be very sunny. The Ozone layer here is very thin. One gets sunburned...
Some ppl like me, can't have their head in the sun, we feel dizzy. 5 min is a lot to survive. Gradually, I lost interest having direct sun light. And I have diabetes 2 which I developed it here. And I gained lots of weight, as most ppl who come here do.
I take vit D3 daily. How do I use direct sun light safely? How do I help my diabetes 2 to be healed?
My life style is healthy. Thanks. Neli
I just drew the curtains open lol
Great summery. Most people need help to understand that back to nature is the best and cheapest way to get your health back or even preventing getting sick in the future.
The CGM shown my average glucose yesterday at 116 and 92% within the target range(140). I ate 2 meals yesterday(non-low carb meal). My A1C is 5.8. Both the insulin antibody and C- peptide tests comes back normal. How do I interpret these data? Do I have insulin resistance or pre-diabetes? Also my vitamin D is 24 which is lower than the normal range. I did several blood test recently due to frequent UTI episodes. And it seems like low vitamin D also links to bladder control and estrogen level so I’m taking my daily sun dosage very seriously now.
U r pre diabetic at 5.6. Yr fasting glucose should be under 90. Stop the carbs. Eat big salads and meat fish and tofu. No fruit. Stevia to sweeten yr tea/coffee. Its a tough diet to follow. When u cheat w bread, divide the carbs by the fiber, aim for 5. For example 20 carbs divided by 1 fiber is norm. Avoid.
Vitamin D is super-important for overall health. Getting the levels up (but not too high of course) helps tremendously. I learned from the video (Thank you SO MUCH Mario) that, although my vitamin D intake is adequate/optimal, my body needs more sunlight. Unfortunately we have not seen the sun for a couple of weeks here in the Netherlands and if we see it it is only 'enough' on a very bright day during the summer months. Now I no longer doubt if it is in my mind that I am feeling a lot better in countries with a lot of sunshine almost everyday (was always doubting if it was 'just' relaxing activities during the holidays that made me feel better.....).
I was taking D3 supplements and my liver enzymes were slightly high. My endocrinologist said it could not be the D3. I did the elimination process and it was the D3. My lab consistently shows D as 45. I live in FL and am in the sun often. It’s colder now so hoping I can keep the D up.
Get a used sperti vit D lamp
I have never heard that, and I have even led a clinical trial in which we provided a vitamin D supplement. It is possible that the specific supplement you used was contaminated in some ways maybe? Supplements are notorious for being poorly regulated.
At the same time, sun exposure has many benefits other than vitamin D synthesis, so if you live in a part of the world where you can easily meet your vitamin D requirements with natural sunlight, I would prioritize that. Alternatively, you could try a different brand of supplement.
@@nourishedbyscience it went on for over a year and us trying to figure out what it was, eliminating supplement by supplement. I was using the same brand but went through numerous bottles of that same brand. I would like to supplement in the colder months but scared to do so now.
Interesting video. Have some questions. Your definition "tolerance to glucose" is very indefinite. Does it mean somebody is too tolerant to glucose or to intolerant? I would prefer to define it as carbohydrate toxicity. In this case the root cause is self-explanatory: to lower the toxicity we need to lower the amount of toxins to ingest. The rest will be just minor pleasant factors...
Glucose tolerance is simply the ability to regulate blood glucose levels in the normal range, mostly 70-140 mg/dL, no matter what you are eating. The transition to glucose intolerance is gradual, but clinically clearly defined by specific thresholds.
If you want to learn more about this, I recommend this video:
th-cam.com/video/Yg9AS2sfY9Y/w-d-xo.htmlsi=kcszwI7Snmtd0d7Z
The term you use, carbohydrate toxicity, is a misnomer, because carbs are not toxic, particularly not for people who are fully glucose tolerant. Also, there is no evidence that carbs are the cause of glucose intolerance. What you suggest, namely to adopt a low-carb diet, is indeed an approach I also recommend if someone is glucose intolerant. Because, as you say, if someone's body struggles with their glucose homeostasis, it would seem advisable to minimize that exposure . However, I also recommend that people aim to identify the root cause of their glucose intolerance, which in no case is carb consumption per se.
If your point is that refined grains, added sugars, and carbs in ultra-processed foods are a cause of glucose intolerance, I could get on board with that because all of these trigger overconsumption of calories and weight gain, which through the accumulation of visceral and ectopic fat could trigger insulin resistance. However, it is critical not to confuse soda, ice cream, and syrupy breakfast cereals with whole food sources of carbs such as legumes, carrots, berries, or brown rice. No evidence whatsoever that people eating these latter foods develop glucose intolerance from them. In fact, as long as we are not gaining weight, there is no evidence at all that whether we eat high-fat or high-carb or a mixed macro diet that it has any meaningful impact on our insulin sensitivity:
th-cam.com/video/ZcVenUbqsYY/w-d-xo.htmlsi=W6qoK0fyJuEz28_H
@@nourishedbyscience, appreciate you detailed answers. I don't promote any dietary approach but the instrumental control of blood glucose level as the marker of how tolerant the person to the carb contained food. By using the simple glucometer or better the advanced CGM, the person will easly get the knowledge of his personal carb tolerance/toxicity on every food group. I believe you see some like this comments already under this video
Why would you recommend sun screen?
Because we have high-certainty evidence that sunburns are harmful, and only suggestive evidence that sunscreen carries risks.
I only say repeatedly to limit exposure to mid- day sun. But, alas, some people lie on the beach all day, and in that case, I suggest sunscreen.
Great thank you Mario! Q1. I wear photochromic lenses in my glasses. Is it advisable to remove them as much as possible when outdoors especially for the therapeutic time suggestions? Would they reduce light to pineal gland?
Q2 for improved circadian rhythm is it ok to just be in a sunlit backyard or do I need to be in direct sunlight?
Re Q2, any time in outdoors natural light is helpful.
Re Q1, I don't know much about what photochromic lenses do? Do they filter out UV-light or blue light, or reduce the light intensity reaching the eye?
Of course, if there is a therapeutic reason for wearing them, then I suggest discussing this with a doctor. Other than that, what the science suggests is that we benefit from bright daylight exposure during the day (to keep melatonin production in the pineal gland suppressed), and no blue light at night, for optimal sleep and circadian rhythm.
Thank you.
I would like to request some advice on the following:
1. **HBA1C Levels**:
- March 2024: 6.4
- July 2024: 5.2
- September 2024: 5.4
- January 2025: 5.2
2. **Fasting Blood Sugar (FBS)**:
- March 2024: 108
- July 2024: 73
- September 2024: 80
- January 2025: 93
- **Question**: Why is it gradually increasing despite maintaining the same routine?
3. **Blood Pressure**:
- March 2024: 140/90
- January 2025: 110/70
4. **Fasting Insulin**:
- January 2025: 1.54
5. **LDL Cholesterol**:
- July 2024: 196
- September 2024: 198
- January 2025: 220
6. **HDL Cholesterol**:
- July 2024: 38
- September 2024: 48
- January 2025: 55
7. **Weight**:
- March 2024: 84 kg (height: 180)
- January 2025: 66 kg
8. **Waist Size**:
- March 2024: 43 inches
- January 2025: 32.5 inches
**Exercise Routine**: Daily minimum of 10,000 steps, including a 30-minute walk after each meal and 1 hour at the gym.
**Dietary Restrictions (Don'ts)**: No sugar in any form, no fruits, no milk, no sodas, no seed oils, no grains, no rice, no baked goods, no processed carbs, and minimal starchy vegetables and legumes.
**Dietary Focus (DOs)**: Animal fats, olive oil, red meat, chicken, 5 whole eggs daily, green salad, Greek yogurt daily, vegetables, and nuts (mainly almonds, walnuts, pistachios, and peanuts).
Thank you for any insights you can share!
Congrats. Looks like you are on the right track. Don't worry about fluctuations in your fasting glucose within the normal range (70-100 mg/dL). Look at the overall long-term trends, and these mostly look good. I'd personally be worries about that LDL-chol though, and would discuss this with a doctor:
Blood Lipids and CVD Risk: Everything You Need to Know:
th-cam.com/video/xjPDA0Ccl50/w-d-xo.htmlsi=TsZcwyzBAi6rXwkR
@nourishedbyscience
Thank you for your kind response regarding the test results I shared with you. I truly appreciate your insights. I've been watching your videos on lipid blood results, and they've been incredibly informative. I'm now focusing significantly on improving my LDL values, inspired by your guidance.
Thank you for all the valuable information you share with your audience on your TH-cam channel. It has made a positive impact on many, including myself.
Dr. Mario it would be good to have your videos in other languages including Spanish, so they could be shared and help more people.
TH-cam soon offers a feature that automatically translates TH-cam videos into different languages (the spoken word, that is). Right now, you can already have that by going to settings -> Captions -> Auto-translate -> Pick your language, and then switch on CC (closed captions). It works very well.
@@nourishedbyscience I did it but your video has english as the only option. In some other videos from other channels, yes I can choose the preferred language among many.
When doing Sungazing and walking outside, what should be our considerations about the air quality. What is the ideal range of AQI for being outside ? If above that until what AQI one should say have limited exposure and can masks help, what kind and soec of the mask to use? Can glasses help when AQI is above the ideal limit, some inputs will be very helpful 🙏
Is it possible that the positive benefits of a 'Mediterranean Diet' are confounded by - or at least amplified by - consistent exposure of these populations to sunlight?
I have read sometime ago (years), that Synthroid is the most common medication prescribed to women. (In Canada at least) This might provide additional testing ideas for this same connection between infrared sunlight and energy production in the cell???
What exactly is glucoze tolerance? What is the diference from insuline resistance ?
May I suggest you watch this video here in which I explain all that:
The Regulation of Blood Sugar
th-cam.com/video/Yg9AS2sfY9Y/w-d-xo.htmlsi=-4c3ditIKFt8vABh
Cheers
Mario
I had a heart surgery few months ago. The surgeon told me I have to avoid the sun for 1 year.
Wow. I would have a conversation about him or her about that. Not sure what the rationale for that is.
We would be better off switching to windows without coatings, and for energy efficiency use insulated shutters.
Would be an evening in Front of a fireplace stove, also effective ? I mean Fire Emissionen is mostly IR-Light. So could This boost mitochondria function?
This is an interesting question. I love my wood stove and fireplace, but have worried about using it lately because of the small particles of smoke.
Yes, probably good.
To which degree near-infrared light can actually 'boost' mitochondrial function is probably dependent upon how much red and near-infrared light we are exposed to. If you rarely ever go outside, or you live in Northern Alaska and barely see the sun all winter, then the IR-emissions from a fireplace may be really helpful. If you are outside all day anyways, it may not make much of a difference.
Mario - this was a fascinating video. I'm going to reinstall my blackout blinds this evening. I did have a question. You mentioned that living here in NH, I can be out in the sun all day long, and never get enough vitamin D because of the angle of the sun. Is the same true for the other factors, such as exposure to near infrared light or other sun-related factors? For those of us who live in the north country or a place like Seattle, we just don't get as much sun as those who are farther south. Are there any studies that look at geographic factors?
P.S. I did send a rather long message to your "newsletter" email. Don't know if you saw it. I'd be intereseted in hearing your thoughts as to whether I should re-join the new community.
Hi Sam,
Good to hear from you. Sun intensities are lower in the winter in Northern and Southern latitudes away from the equator, and the cloud cover and our thicker clothing in the cold part of the year play a role as well. However, on a clear day, you do get quite a bit of infrared and near-infrared light still when you are outside.
Still, we do have plenty of data that many diseases are more common in geographic areas that have periods of low-intensity sunlight. For example, in the US, multiple sclerosis is way more common in Seattle than in Southern California. In Europe, Type 1 diabetes and celiac disease (both autoimmune) are way more common in Scandinavia than in Italy or Spain. And one paper I reviewed looked at glucose levels in relation to recent sunlight intensity (in England and the Netherlands), and found a strong association between brighter sunlight and lower blood glucose.
Cheers
Mario
P.S.: I have not received your email. Make sure it's addressed to newsletter or mario at nourishedbyscience.com. However, the community is not new; it's the same as before. For now, we just changed the name. However, some changes are probably coming for early next year, and I'd be curious about your feedback as to what would be most helpful to you.
You you have any advice about protecting the hippocampus?
I'm wondering about people who live outside polar circle where there are seasons of "white nights" and winter is 9-10 months per year. Or humans weren't adapted to live in such harsh environment conditions?
Hi Olga,
People who live far away from the equator usually lived along the coasts and consumed the only food that has meaningful amounts of vitamin D: fatty fish. Probably not a coincidence.
About the impact of near-infrared light on mitochondrial function, it's possible that they have poor mitochondrial function, and maybe that is one factor why these populations are very susceptible to type 2 diabetes once they have access to industrialized food (soda, UPF)!? My hypothesis is that lack of near-infrared light is particularly devastating if combined with caloric excess, and specifically once the personal fat threshold has been crossed and fat and other nutrients start to accumulate in tissues that were not designed for fat storage.
Cheers
Mario
Mario, thank you for your time you spent on answering comments!
So, is sunlight good for lowering cholesterol levels? I really respect your content and channel. Thank you!
I haven't seen evidence to that effect, but I didn't look specifically at that.
I'm doing a trial, 18 days of 50,000 IU of vitamin D3 to see what it does for my seborrheic eczema, I'm trying to boost my immune system to break the fungi power over receptors regulating vitamin D3 for the immune system. What I noticed day 2 is that urinating is way better, it flows like when I was 20. Tingling in my legs is way less (T2D) and I feel oddly... Happy? 🤔
(I take vitamin K2 to regulate calcium in the blood and directing it towards the bones)
You can add magnesium glycinate and zinc as well
Does the change of glucose level after exposure to red light show that the preferred source of energy for mitichondria is glucose as opposed to ketones? I wonder if there is data on the level of ketones after exposure to red light?
There are a very large number of questions, such as this one, that we don't have any experimental data on yet. My sense is that the electron transport chain in mitochondria is working more smoothly with red and near-infrared light, and if that's the case, the source of the fuel shouldn't matter. But, that's a guess and we'll need a lot more data on this phenomenon.
No discussion of Night Owls and how this impacts them?!
He should have mentioned if blue light bulbs can replace bright day sunlight, for any use case.
Don't think that the night owls vs. larks discussion is all that relevant here. Even if you are a night owl, too much blue light late at night is probably still bad for you.
There are no lightbulbs that can replace the sun. There are some whole-spectrum 'happy' lights with up to 10,000 lux that can help with seasonal affective disorder, but other than that, it is simply recommended to have as many full-spectrum lightbulbs in the house that emit near-infrared light in addition to visible light.
@@nourishedbyscience
By 'night', do you mean normal night or the night which is for night owls? Because for night owls, Daytime is the Night.
I understand that lightbulbs can never replace sunlight fully, but there are three parts of sunlight discussed, and I was referring to your discussion seemingly pertaining to the visible spectrum of sunlight.
Great video! I would love to know up to what point bright light boxes (10k lux) can substitute natural light exposure. Thank you very much:
Light boxes have been shown to help reduce the risk or severity of seasonal affective disorder, a kind of depressive state thought to be linked to lack of light exposure in the dark months of the year. However, to my knowledge, most of these use only visible light, and not UV- or infrared light.
We should be able see epidemiological differences due to the sunlight in a latitudinally spread country, such as japan, chile, Maine vs Florida in the US, or Seatle vs San Diego. We'd expect less t2dm farther from the equator.
More T2DM farther from the equator, yes. Don't think anyone has looked. The only thing we do have are studies that have looked at acute changes in blood glucose levels when the sun is out vs. when it's cloudy, and they do find that glucose levels are lower after a few sunny days, on average on a population level.
@@nourishedbyscience It should be quite ready at a population level to detect seasonality of blood glucose level in Canada. The data must be floating around somewhere.
What to do if we have fasting insulin lower than optimal range ? Thank you !
Depends on your fasting glucose. If it's in the normal range, then a low insulin is usually not an issue. If fasting glucose is elevated, then a low insulin would suggest that your pancreas is unable to make enough insulin, which could be a sign of what we call beta-cell dysfunction.
Note, however, that insulin is secreted in a pulsatile fashion. That means that blood draws taken 5 or 10 min apart could show very different insulin levels. Your may just generally be very insulin sensitive, which causes your insulin to be lowish, and if the blood was drawn in-between two insulin secretory pulses, this could seem to be too low. In other words, if you have any real concern about your insulin levels, have your doctor draw two blood samples 5 minutes apart, and take the average insulin level.
What about the red LED face masks? Good idea, or snake oil ?
That's the wrong type of light. You want a sunlight like I get a used spruity vitamin D UVB lamp
Here is a response that I gave elsewhere about red and near-infrared light devices in general:
There are some red and near-infrared light devices that, I think, can be helpful. However, they need to meet certain specifications as to their quality, flicker of light, and power output, and it's my sense that there are many cheap devices on the market that may not be helpful and maybe even have negative effects. I would purchase something that's been tested by a third party so that you can be certain that it emits the right wavelength at adequate power, and doesn't flicker.
With regard to specific ones to treat certain conditions, such as face masks to improve the skin or reduce wrinkles, or LED boots to treat neuropathy, I honestly don't know whether there is scientific evidence to support the claims made by the manufacturers. Some photobiomodulation therapies have been tested clinically, for numerous indications, but whether these benefits translate to small low-power devices that people order of the internet seems uncertain to me.
Prof Glen Jeffery has undertaken research that indicates the value of RED light. 30 mins exposure in the morning (but not after noon) benefits the mitochondria.
Dr Mario Kratz, which Blood ketone meter simple and accurate for daily use? Thank you.
Sorry, I have no experience with ketone meters at all.
@@nourishedbyscience Thank you very much.
@ -As I am learning from your different video sources such as blood sugar spike , resistant starch , insulin resistance, HOMA-IR etc . Regarding OGTT if not able to get , how possible to check 2 hours Postprandial insulin levels without 75G of pure glucose? Just normal meal and it’s optimal nutrition number please. Thank you.
Wanna share some insight which I hope someone. Over the past year my A1C was 5.7 % which was very shocking for me because my HOME index over the year was 0.8, multiple blood tests, triglycerids also low, apoB below 60 and blood sugar very rearly goes above 7.5 mmol after eathing carbs. Last 3 months i increased significaly the amount of monounsatured fat i consumed and on my last blood work A1C was 5.1. Also i`m 2kg heavier
I doubt very much that the little light of my alarm clock can influence my insuline. By the way: how can you measure that?
It's not that simple. Light at night, even a little bit, will suppress the level of melatonin in your brain. If you are a robust sleeper, this may never bother your sleep, and in that case, it may not affect your insulin sensitivity at all. However, it could be a contributing factor for some people who struggle with their sleep. And in those people, sleep deprivation or a lack of high-quality sleep could very much reduce their insulin sensitivity.
What if you have lupus?
Hmm. This got my gears cranking. What do you think about infrared sauna blankets? Or infrared lamps? These are relatively cheap purchase items. Someone should be able to do a quick test on the metabolic effects (and publish a paper).
There are some red and near-infrared light devices that, I think, can be helpful. However, they need to meet certain specifications as to their quality, flicker of light, and power output, and it's my sense that there are many cheap devices on the market that may not be helpful and maybe even have negative effects. I would purchase something that's been tested by a third party so that you can be certain that it emits the right wavelength at adequate power, and doesn't flicker.
Have you seen the VIRTA study regarding the keto diet and type 2 diabetes?
Yes. I think I responded to this question of yours in a thread of another video yesterday in a very detailed fashion.
Thanks. I just read it.
Very thorough clarification !!!
What do you think of ozempic for weight loss
I think it's beneficial that we now have many different ways that people can try to normalize their body weight.
I would always try to improve my eating habits first, as I explain in my playlist 'Keys to a Healthy Body Weight' and implement some form of Time-Restricted Eating.
However, that may not be sufficient for some people. For those, having options such as bariatric surgery or medication can be very helpful.
What I would suggest strongly, however, is to always ALSO try to improve my diet quality and maintain a regular exercise practice. Particularly if we are eating less food and losing weight is it important to (a) eat a micronutrient-dense diet to prevent vitamin and mineral deficiencies; and (b) prioritize protein and exercise regularly to minimize the loss of muscle mass.
@nourishedbyscience what about Ozempic for Type 2 Diabetes? Metformin is a little ruff, and I'm just not adjusting to it.
I am so perplexed by vitamin d. My active form is very low, but my inactive is normal. It's a controversial topic, but I've heard several practitioners say that as long as the inactive is normal, you do not need to address it. Thoughts?
VITAMIN D,25-OH,TOTAL,IA -16
VITAMIN D, 1,25 (OH)2, TOTAL-38
VITAMIN D3, 1,25 (OH)2-38
VITAMIN D2, 1,25 (OH)2-
Well well, lowering insulin frees up vitamin D from fat cells. Therefore, eating a low insulinogenic diet (strict Keto or fasting) is the way to go.
Vit D is fat soluble; any rise in insulin will shove it into fat cells.
I'm in a AI rabbit hole to see if a fireplace can deliver a meaningful dose of IR. Seems that there is an appreciable amount of target radiation but it's in the lower end of power per unit of surface to be clinically meaningful.
I walk outside about 2 hours most days. 4 hours today.
I guess that's enough?
For most people, an hour of physical activity outside per day would be a major blessing.
Just considering the natural ight exposure, we don't really know what 'dose' is ideal, so whether 2 or 4 hours is better than 1, I cannot say. However, I am pretty confident that 1 hour per day, or even 30 minutes, is better than no time outdoors.
@peterbedford2610 , Mario posted a sunlight need calculator in the video description. Perhaps you can give it a try.
Depends where you are and when.
Bad news for me, I live in England. We hardly see the sun.
I do an infra and near infra red light lamp every day. Lumie bright SAD lamp in the morning hours, Lumie alarm, go running at miday although that’s not doing much in December. I run in shorts and tank top unless it’s near freezing. I am now going to add a UVB reptile lamp.
I lived in Singapore (on the equator) for nine years and it was fantastic for health and I dropped a stone of fat. Look at the blue zones - all in hot sunny places. Singapore is now an official blue zone. Weirdly I never burned there. It’s in England that I burn if I am not doing the usual precautions. We have booked a three week break in Singapore this winter. That will top up my vitamin D and other sun benefits.
That's not true and you know it, lol. England is a country of gardeners, and having been there many times I know you get plenty of sun.
It’s why every Brit ought to be on vit D from Oct to March, and lower levels over the Summer. We cannot absorb vit D if we are wearing sunscreen. Nor can white skinned folk make any during the Winter season.
Great video again. I have found two types of LED globes/bulbs available online. One for general use which cuts out blue light (visible light range 500 to 789 nm, peak at 620nm) and a second for bedroom/reading lamps which cuts out all blue and green light (visible light range 580 to 700 nm, peak wavelength of 630nm). Will these parameters be of benefit? I presume that they will not put out any infra-red light.? I am looking to buy one of each as an initial trial. As you say they are relatively expensive but would seem to have at least some worthwhile health benefits. Have you tried such lamps yourself?
About the correlation between sunlight exposure and T2 development can`t be use as a strong argument, because that mean that the person is not very physically active
@@stoenchu122 I walk one hour everyday at 7:30 PM for the past 15 years and a lot of the people going to a indoor gym at night time because that’s the only free time we got.
The studies are pretty robust in this regard, because we can measure physical activity well and adjust for it. You may be right that physical activity may still be a partial confounder, but I don't think it's the entire story.
Red light devices could be a good solution for vitamn d deficiency!
No, red and near infrared light do not trigger vitamin D synthesis. You need UV-B for that.
Ironically I’m watching this at 3am due to insomnia.
Sorry ...! I feel for you, but maybe some of these suggestions may help ... (and I know it may not be that easy, with lots of factors playing into this).
Best wishes,
Mario