295: Your Fatigue Has Hidden Roots - with Martha Carlin
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
Release Date: 12/11/2025
301: The Menopause Gut Connection - with Cynthia Thurlow
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
The conversation around menopause is evolving toward a more holistic understanding of this transition. One crucial, yet often overlooked, aspect is the profound connection between menopause and gut health. Nurse practitioner Cynthia Thurlow is shedding light on what she terms the "menopause gut" to help women navigate this stage with vitality. The Gut-Hormone Connection Hormonal shifts during perimenopause and menopause have a direct and significant impact on the gut microbiome. This complex ecosystem of trillions of microbes is intricately linked to nearly every system in our body. As Thurlow...
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300: Roadmap to Tinnitus Relief - with Ben Thompson
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
While many perceive tinnitus as a problem solely with the ears, it is actually a neurological condition occurring in the auditory brain. The Auditory Brain Connection Because the brain possesses neuroplasticity—the ability to adapt and change—this "brain buzz" is not necessarily a permanent condition.In a deep dive into the subject, Dr. Ben Thompson, an audiologist and tinnitus expert, reveals that Tinnitus is not a disease itself, but rather a symptom of an underlying issue within the auditory system. The Impact of Stress A healthy brain typically utilizes a filter mechanism to...
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299: Fertility Beyond Biological Clock - with Gabriela Rosa
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
For decades, the conversation around starting a family has been dominated by a single, ticking sound: the biological clock. We're told that age is the ultimate arbiter of reproductive success. But according to Harvard-awarded fertility specialist Gabriela Rosa, age is only one piece of a much larger puzzle. If you've been told that your "labs are normal" but you still aren't pregnant, or if you're facing the daunting prospect of IVF, it's time to look deeper. Based on Gabriela Rosa's pioneering F.E.R.T.I.L.E. Method, here's why health matters more than age, and what's truly missing from the...
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298: Organic to Regenerative Agriculture - with Jeffrey Burke
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
Dr. Burke started working in health food stores while in college at the University of Michigan. In the late 70s and early 80s, he worked with industry pioneer Dr. Earl Mandel, eventually managing a chain of 170 stores. For 42 years, he hosted a national radio talk show focused on health. He now hosts the Honest Health with Jeffrey Burke podcast and serves as the Director of Education for Kokora Life, founded by Rick Scalzo. The Industry Evolution He credits his interest in natural medicine to his Ukrainian and Polish grandmother, who used to forage for mushrooms and dandelion tea and kept a...
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297: Insurance Rigged Against You - with Chris Hamilton
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
Health insurance in America is expensive on purpose, not by accident. Chris Hamilton argues that confusion and hidden incentives are the real products big carriers sell… and employers and employees pay the price. How Insurance Giants Game the System Under federal rules, large insurers in the USA can only keep about 15 percent of premiums as profit, which sounds protective until you realize it pushes them to grow the total cost of care. To do that, they've built a "massive ecosystem that's able to bill the insurance company" by buying physician groups, pharmacies, and pharmacy benefit...
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296: Emerge From Behind Logo - with Paige Velasquez Budde
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
The old playbook of "buy ads, rank for keywords, and wait for patients" is failing. According to Paige Velasquez Budde, CEO of Zilker Media and author of The Strategic Business Influencer, we've entered an era of "corporate suspicion." Trust in institutions is at an all-time low, while trust in individuals is skyrocketing. For health and wellness organizations, you can no longer rely on your company brand alone. AI Search Demands Leader Visibility Patients now find health providers through AI platforms like ChatGPT, not just Google. Budde calls this Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). Unlike...
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295: Your Fatigue Has Hidden Roots - with Martha Carlin
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
Are you constantly battling fatigue, brain fog, and persistent bloating? You might be dealing with a silent instigator: LPS endotoxins. We recently dove deep into this topic with Martha Carlin, a pioneering microbiome researcher and founder of The BioCollective. Here's what you need to know about this stealthy driver of chronic inflammation. What is LPS? LPS, or lipopolysaccharide, is an endotoxin—a component of the cell wall of gram-negative bacteria in your gut. While these bacteria are normal, problems arise when they die and release inflammatory debris. In a healthy gut, this isn't a...
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294: Oral Health “Mouth Mapping” - Jonathan Levine
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
With long-term health, the mouth is often overlooked. For most people, the dentist is someone only seen for a cleaning or to fix a problem like a cavity or crown. However, according to Dr. Jonathan B. Levine, a world-renowned oral health expert, we are undergoing a massive paradigm shift. It is time to stop seeing the mouth as separate and recognize it as a critical data center for your entire body's well-being. This new approach, which Dr. Levine's practice calls "mouth mapping," is poised to change how we manage everything from heart disease to sleep. The Biological Connection: Mouth...
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293: Not Willpower, Your Roots - with Amber Romaniuk
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
It is a staggering statistic that an estimated 90% of women and up to 50% of men in North America struggle with binge and emotional eating. For those caught in this exhausting cycle—marked by shame, frustration, and the feeling of being completely out of control—the common response is often another diet, followed by self-blame for lacking willpower. However, according to emotional eating and hormone expert Amber Romaniuk, focusing on willpower is exactly the wrong approach. Individuals are attempting to fix a deep, multi-layered issue with a surface-level solution. The true healing, she...
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292: The Key to Aging Strong - with Alan Rozanski
BIOptimizers - Awesome Health Podcast
We all want to age with vitality and independence. Yet, there's a stark statistic looming over Americans: 1 in 3 people over 65 will suffer a fall. This "overlooked aging crisis" isn't just about a broken bone; it's often the starting point for a decline in health, confidence, and independence. According to Dr. Alan Rozanski, a distinguished professor of medicine, the solution isn't a new drug or a complex medical procedure. It's a proactive, powerful strategy he calls "muscle care." The Real Reason We Fall The primary driver behind this crisis is a natural process that we've accepted for too...
info_outlineAre you constantly battling fatigue, brain fog, and persistent bloating? You might be dealing with a silent instigator: LPS endotoxins.
We recently dove deep into this topic with Martha Carlin, a pioneering microbiome researcher and founder of The BioCollective. Here's what you need to know about this stealthy driver of chronic inflammation.
What is LPS?
LPS, or lipopolysaccharide, is an endotoxin—a component of the cell wall of gram-negative bacteria in your gut. While these bacteria are normal, problems arise when they die and release inflammatory debris.
In a healthy gut, this isn't a major issue. But if you have poor elimination or a leaky gut, this toxic debris leaks into your bloodstream.
Over time, your immune system stops recognizing it, causing low-grade chronic inflammation wherever it travels—in the brain, joints, or digestive system. This inflammation silently drives fatigue, brain fog, joint pain, and digestive distress.
What Your Poop Reveals
A stool test can analyze your microbiome and reveal if you have a high LPS load, giving insights into your immune burden and inflammatory state.
However, not all tests are created equal. Carlin sequenced her own sample and sent it to three different labs—all had different results. Pick one kit and stick with it to compare apples to apples.
Daily Toxins Fueling Inflammation
The first step to lowering your endotoxin load is removing the red flags from your daily life that feed bad bacteria:
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Processed Foods & Sugar: Sugar feeds pathogenic bacteria that produce endotoxins.
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Household Cleaners: Quaternary ammonium compounds in liquid soaps and laundry detergents damage your gut lining.
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Tap Water: Our water systems now carry a toxic load of chemicals.
The Soil Connection
Your gut is an ecosystem that directly reflects our planet's ecosystem. You cannot heal one without the other.
Our modern food system, reliant on chemicals like glyphosate, has decimated soil health. Glyphosate binds up minerals, meaning our food has less mineral density. When soil is stripped of microbes and minerals, the plants are less nutritious.
The chemicals we spray on farms don't stay "out there." They end up inside our bodies, damaging our gut lining and allowing endotoxins to flourish.
Healing is about supporting a food system that supports the soil and removing daily chemicals that disrupt our internal ecosystem.
In this podcast, you'll learn:
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What is LPS and how does it silently drive fatigue, bloating, and brain fog?
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What your poop can tell you about your hormones, brain, and immune system
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Red flags hiding in your daily routine—and how to shift them naturally
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Why healing starts in the soil (and what that means for your plate)
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How the microbes in your food, your gut, and your garden are all connected—and how eating for soil health supports your own.
EPISODE RESOURCES:
https://biotiquest.com
https://www.marthasquest.com
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