The Neuroscience of Awakening
Evolution of Medicine Podcast
In this episode, host James Maskell sits down with Dr. Helen Lavretsky — integrative and geriatric psychiatrist, neuroscientist, and professor of psychiatry at UCLA, where she directs clinical research on integrated mental health and serves as research director for UCLA's Integrative Medicine Collaborative. Her path into the field began through Kundalini Yoga, sparking 20 years of studying mind-body practices with rigorous neuroscience. Despite initial pushback in academic psychiatry, her evidence ultimately gained widespread acceptance. She details her clinical model: a partnership where...
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The Forgotten Medicine: Community, Dance & Song
Evolution of Medicine Podcast
In this live episode from the Institute for Functional Medicine's Annual International Conference, host James Maskell sits down with Dr. Geeta Maker-Clark, who opened the conference that morning with its keynote address. The conversation begins with something unusual: conference attendees — mostly, as Maskell puts it, "type A, cerebral" doctors — got up and danced during her talk, a rare sight at a medical conference. Dr. Maker-Clark, who is part of a West African dance company, explains why: drumming and dance tap into something deeply primal in all of us, tied to ancestral rhythm, grief,...
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2026 Pauling Award Winner Reveals the Truth About Hormones & GLP-1s
Evolution of Medicine Podcast
What does it take to earn functional medicine's highest honor? In this live episode from the Institute for Functional Medicine's 33rd Annual International Conference, host James Maskell sits down with Joel Evans, MD, FMCP-M, recipient of the 2026 Linus and Ava Helen Pauling Award in Functional Medicine — awarded to Joel Evans, MD, FMCP-M in recognition of his career-long contributions to the field. Joel Evans, MD, FMCP-M shares the story of his journey from OB-GYN to functional medicine leader, crediting Jeff Bland and Bethany Hayes for pulling him into the field early on. He discusses why...
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The Blueprint for Functional Medicine in Big Health Systems
Evolution of Medicine Podcast
What does it actually take to build a functional medicine program that thrives inside a conventional health system? In this live episode from the Institute for Functional Medicine Annual Conference, James Maskell sits down with Laura Sandquist and Kate Otremba, who've spent six years building a large integrative and functional medicine program within Allina Health, a conventional health system in Minnesota. Laura and Kate share the infrastructure they built to make it work — smart phrases, practice guidelines, and templates that help clinicians translate their functional medicine training...
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The Bioage Reversal Breakthrough
Evolution of Medicine Podcast
What if the best way to live a long life isn't a longevity hack — but preventing chronic illness in the first place? In this live episode from the Institute for Functional Medicine Annual Conference, James Maskell sits down with Dr. Kara Fitzgerald, a naturopathic physician and longtime functional medicine researcher, to talk about her groundbreaking work on reversing biological age. Dr. Fitzgerald shares the story behind her 2018 clinical study, which found that a diet and lifestyle intervention reversed biological age by over three years — a result that stunned the field, since even...
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Why Whole Health Starts With This One Question
Evolution of Medicine Podcast
What does it really mean to practice "whole health" — and how do we keep it from becoming just another buzzword? In this live episode from the Institute for Functional Medicine Annual Conference, James Maskell sits down with Dr. Tracy Gaudet to unpack the evolution of whole health, the growing risk of paradigm "veneers" masking real transformation, and why the patient-practitioner relationship remains central to any lasting healing. Tracy explains how true system change begins with a different kind of conversation — one that starts with a person's purpose and meaning rather than their...
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Inside the Growth of Functional Medicine
Evolution of Medicine Podcast
How is functional medicine evolving from a niche practice into a global movement that is transforming healthcare? In this live episode from the Institute for Functional Medicine Annual Conference, James Maskell sits down with Amy R. Mack, MSES, MPA, CEO of the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM), to discuss the organization's mission, the rapid growth of functional medicine, and its future in healthcare. Amy shares how her background in nonprofit leadership—and the influence of her father, a gastroenterologist who practiced whole-person care long before it became mainstream—shaped her...
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How Functional Medicine Is Reshaping Healthcare
Evolution of Medicine Podcast
How can functional medicine create healthier communities while transforming the future of healthcare? In this live episode from the Institute for Functional Medicine Annual Conference, James Maskell sits down with Gail C. Christopher, DN, IFM Board Chair of The Institute for Functional Medicine, and Executive Director of the National Collaborative for Health Equity, to discuss the evolution of functional medicine and its growing influence on mainstream healthcare. Drawing on decades of experience in clinical practice, public policy, philanthropy, and health equity, Dr. Christopher explains how...
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Frontier Care in Warfarer Populations
Evolution of Medicine Podcast
How can functional medicine improve the health, resilience, and performance of military personnel? In this live episode from the Institute for Functional Medicine Annual Conference, James Maskell sits down with Dr. Bryan Stepanenko and former Green Beret Geoff Dardia to discuss how functional medicine is transforming healthcare for warfighters and veterans. They explain the unique physical and psychological demands of military service, including blast exposure, traumatic brain injuries, chronic sleep deprivation, toxin exposure, and repetitive physical stress. Rather than simply treating...
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Using CGM in Care Delivery
Evolution of Medicine Podcast
In this live episode of The Evolution of Medicine Podcast, James Maskell speaks with Dr. Ryan Arnold at the Institute for Functional Medicine Annual Conference about how continuous glucose monitoring (CGM), metabolic health, and functional medicine are transforming preventive healthcare. Dr. Arnold explains how his practice uses the Dexcom Stelo Continuous Glucose Monitor to help patients understand their individual glucose responses, allowing them to make personalized nutrition and lifestyle changes before chronic disease develops. He discusses how real-time glucose data provides far...
info_outlineHow is functional medicine evolving from a niche practice into a global movement that is transforming healthcare?
In this live episode from the Institute for Functional Medicine Annual Conference, James Maskell sits down with Amy R. Mack, MSES, MPA, CEO of the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM), to discuss the organization's mission, the rapid growth of functional medicine, and its future in healthcare.
Amy shares how her background in nonprofit leadership—and the influence of her father, a gastroenterologist who practiced whole-person care long before it became mainstream—shaped her passion for expanding access to functional medicine.
The conversation explores IFM's evolution toward making functional medicine available to more patients by educating practitioners across more than 20 healthcare professions and supporting its integration into hospitals, universities, and large healthcare systems. Amy explains why standardized certification, practitioner competencies, and collaboration across organizations are essential for maintaining quality as the field grows.
James and Amy also discuss the importance of building stronger scientific evidence through functional medicine research, including emerging work on chronic disease and cognitive decline. They examine how artificial intelligence is improving public awareness of functional medicine and helping provide more accurate information than outdated online sources.
Finally, they explore the growing international adoption of functional medicine, emphasizing the importance of adapting its principles to different cultures while fostering global collaboration and innovation.
Whether you're a healthcare professional, health leader, or someone interested in personalized, root-cause medicine, this episode offers valuable insights into the future of functional medicine and the movement to make whole-person healthcare more accessible worldwide.
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About the Guest:
Amy R. Mack, MSES, MPA, is the Chief Executive Officer of the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM). With a background in nonprofit leadership, public service, and organizational development, she has led IFM's mission to expand access to functional medicine through practitioner education, research, certification, and healthcare collaboration. Under her leadership, IFM has trained more than 100,000 healthcare professionals worldwide while advancing the integration of functional medicine into hospitals, academic institutions, and healthcare systems. Amy is passionate about making root-cause, patient-centered healthcare more accessible while maintaining rigorous education and clinical standards.
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