Sunlight and Sulfur
Hi! New subscriber here. I wanted to introduce myself first. I was on the team that invented the first commercial Hemoglobin A1c test in 1978 (I was 24 years old then!). I have a doctorate in Biochemistry and have worked in the medical device industry, specifically in vitro and in vivo diagnostics, my whole career. I am thus an industrial clinical chemist. In the past few years, I have taken an interest in extending lifespan and healthspan and I feel ecstatic to have found your podcasts. I am 66; but only in my first century of life. I have only listened to your 10 most recent podcasts and I need to go back and listen to your archive. I have also listened to a Mercola-Seneff interview (https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/09/17/stephanie-seneff-on-sulfur.aspx) about sulfur and sunlight and felt intrigued. The science behind this is unproven, but there are significant factoids that I think point to this being true. Here are some of these observations: 1. In the northern latitudes, hospitalizations for CHD and congestive heart failure are less in the summer months. 2. The areas with the highest populations of centenarians live near volcanos. The soil near volcanos is rich in sulfur from previous lava flows. Indigenous people, who eat food grown in high sulfur soil, may benefit from increased sulfur in their diets. There is a talk about Blue Zones, which are areas where people live significantly longer than other areas of the world. GWS 2018: Blue Zones: https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=blue+zones+youtube&docid=608003825988142513&mid=D9723BC67960AB81529FD9723BC67960AB81529F&view=detail&FORM=VIRE. I checked, and all but one of the blue zones is near a volcano or hot springs, which also contain sulfur. 3. There are peer-reviewed scientific publications that theorize that sulfur but also sunlight supplementation result in health benefits. The conditions that are positively impacted/prevented include depression, MS, Alzheimer’s, infections, CVD and many more. I realize that Vitamin D can account for some of these benefits, but reading the book referenced in the next paragraph changed my mind that not all the benefit is due to Vit D. I have read a book entitled, “Embrace the Sun” by Sorenson and Grant. This book explains the benefits and debunks the medical profession’s embrace of sunlight avoidance and use of sunscreens. It provides hundreds of scientific articles references to prove their points, including numerous chapters on the benefits of sunlight. The Seneff theory primarily centers around cholesterol sulfate (CH-S), which there is not a lot of scientific literature about. Her theory is that sunlight promotes cholesterol (and Vit D) sulfonation in the red cell and endothelia. She proports that eNOS is the enzyme where this occurs and sunlight is the sulfonation cofactor/activator. CH-S surrounds our cells and it a major component of the ordered water around our cells, which prevents them from sticking to themselves and the endothelia. Sulfonation allows cholesterol, Vit D and drug metabolites to get where they need to be, as these molecules are less hydrophobic, following sulfonation. I live in Michigan (Ann Arbor), a northern latitude area. I use a UV-B light in the winter and take frequent Epsom Salt baths (year-round) to increase my plasma sulfate levels and thus cholesterol sulfonation. And the dividend is that Epsom salts also provide magnesium. My question is, what is your opinion of using sunlight and sulfur to increase lifespan and healthspan? P.S., I went to high school with Gerald Reaven, who is the cousin of Gerald Reaven (may his memory be a blessing), the insulin resistance expert referred to in your recent podcast with Gerald Shulman. Boy, that is a lot of Geralds (n =3)! P.S.S. Because I live in Ann Arbor, I will have to connect with Richard Miller and suggest he look at sulfur and sunlight in mice.
Why is herbal tea permitted while fasting (why does Peter permit herbal tea while fasting)?
Peter said that he does consume herbal tea in fasts (when talking about not consuming black coffee, as it does break a fast). - Therefore, Why is herbal tea permitted? -Can we thereby conclude that herbal tea does not raise insulin, and, why not? Doesn't herbal tea (like ginger tea) contain at least some calories, why would that not raise insulin to the point it breaks a fast?
Thoughts on mirabegron
I’ve recently grown interested in using mirabegron in my metabolic switching efforts. Luckily (from the “everything is a gift” perspective) I seem to have the classic indication for using the drug as well. Any experience or thoughts on using it with the goal of increasing nonshivering thermogenesis? Since introducing more frequent fasting to my regimen I haven’t been able to tolerate cold and have thus cut out cold exposure as a tool for increasing brown fat mass/activity. It seems mirabegron might be a reasonable alternative.
Insulin resistance in muscle and low carb or keto diet
If I understand it correctly, a low carb or keto diet, as well as fasting, will induce a relative increase in muscle insulin resistance as compared to a normal carbohydrate diet . How do you reconcile the benefits of low carb, keto, and fasting given that the muscle now is becoming more insulin resistant using these diets? Is it just a decrease in an overall glucose load? Would a glucose tolerance test in someone who is on a low carb or keto diet be worse than a healthy non diabetic person on a normal carbohydrate diet?