How Sugar & Processed Foods Impact Your Health | Dr. Robert Lustig

(uptempo music) Welcome to the Huberman Lab Podcast, where we discuss science and science-based tools for everyday life. I'm Andrew Huberman, and I'm a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine. My guest today is Dr. Robert Lustig. Dr. Robert Lustig is an endocrinologist, that is, he's a specialist in the function of hormones in the body, and a professor of pediatric endocrinology at the University of California, San Francisco. He has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed studies exploring how different types of nutrients, that is food, impact our cellular functioning, our organ functioning, and thereby our health. During today's discussion, we discuss the idea of whether or not a calorie is indeed a calorie, and whether or not our body weight and body composition only reflects the number of calories we eat versus the calories that we burn. We talk about how different food types, that is how the different macronutrients, protein, fat, and carbohydrates, are processed in the body, and the important role that fiber and the gut microbiome plays in that process. And we pay particular attention to the topic of how different types of sugars, and fructose in particular, can indeed be addictive to the brain and can modify the way that hormones in the body, in particular insulin, impact our liver health, kidney health, and indeed the health of all of our cells and organs. Indeed, Dr. Lustig is an expert in how sugar impacts the brain and body. We talk about how certain types of sugars can indeed be addictive in the same way that certain drugs of abuse and behaviors can become addictive. So in other words, how sugar actually changes the way that the brain works, and we discuss how the food industry, that is the commoditization and sale of particular types of food, has altered the way that we eat, and indeed the foods that we crave. Today's discussion covers all of that, and by the end of today's discussion, you'll have a thorough understanding of how foods are processed when they enter your body, and how those different food choices are impacting your immediate and long-term health. Before we begin, I'd like to emphasize that this podcast is separate from my teaching and research roles at Stanford. It is, however, part of my desire and effort to bring zero-cost-to-consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public. In keeping with that theme, I'd like to thank the sponsors of today's podcast. Our first sponsor is Eight Sleep. Eight Sleep makes smart mattress covers with cooling, heating, and sleep tracking capacity. I've spoken many times before on this podcast about the fact that sleep is the foundation of mental health, physical health, and performance. Now, a key component of getting a great night's sleep is that in order to fall and stay deeply asleep, your body temperature actually has to drop by about one to three degrees, and in order to wake up feeling refreshed and energized, your body temperature actually has to increase by about one to three degrees. One of the best ways to make sure that those temperature changes occur at the appropriate times, at the beginning and throughout, and at the end of your night when you wake up, is to control the temperature of your sleeping environment, and that's what Eight Sleep allows you to do. It allows you to program the temperature of your mattress and sleeping environment such that you fall and stay deeply asleep easily and wake up each morning feeling incredibly refreshed and energized. I've been sleeping on an Eight Sleep mattress cover for almost three years now, and it has dramatically improved the quality of my sleep, so much so that when I travel and I'm at a hotel or an Airbnb and I don't have access to my Eight Sleep, I very much look forward to getting home because my sleep is always better when I sleep on my Eight Sleep mattress cover. If you'd like to try Eight Sleep, you can go to EightSleep.com/huberman to get $150 off their Pod 3 mattress cover. Eight Sleep currently ships in the USA, Canada, UK, select countries in the EU, and Australia. Again, that's EightSleep.com/huberman. Today's episode is also brought to us by Levels. Levels is a program that lets you see how different foods affect your health by giving you real-time feedback on your diet using a continuous glucose monitor. One of the most important factors in your immediate and long-term health is your blood sugar or blood glucose regulation. With Levels, you can see how different foods and food combinations, exercise, and sleep patterns impact your blood glucose levels. It's very easy to use. You just put the monitor on the back of your arm, and then you take your phone and you scan it over that monitor now and again, and it downloads the data about your blood sugar levels in the preceding hours. Using Levels has allowed me to learn a tremendous amount about what works best for me in terms of nutrition, exercise, work schedules, and sleep. So if you're interested in learning more about Levels and trying a continuous glucose monitor, you can go to Levels.Link/huberman. Levels has launched a new CGM sensor that is smaller and has even better tracking than the previous version. Right now, they're also offering an additional two free months of membership. Again, that's Levels.Link/huberman to try the new sensor and two free months of membership. Today's episode is also brought to us by AeroPress. AeroPress is similar to a French press for making coffee, but is in fact a much better way to make coffee. I first learned about AeroPress well over 10 years ago, and I've been using one ever since. AeroPress was developed by Alan Adler, who was an engineer at Stanford, and I knew of Alan because he had also built the so-called Aerobie Frisbee, which I believe at one time, perhaps still now, held the Guinness Book of World Records for furthest thrown object. And I used to see Alan, believe it or not, at parks around Palo Alto testing out different Aerobie Frisbees, so he was sort of famous in our community for developing these different feats of engineering that turned into commercial products. Now, I love coffee. I'm somebody that drinks coffee nearly every day, usually about 90 to 120 minutes after I wake up in the morning, although not always. Sometimes if I'm going to exercise, I'll drink coffee first thing in the morning, but I love, love, love coffee, and what I've personally found is that by using the AeroPress, I can make the best possible tasting cup of coffee. I don't know what exactly it is in the AeroPress that allows the same beans to be prepared into a cup of coffee that tastes that much better as compared to any other form of brewing that coffee, even the traditional French press. The AeroPress is extremely easy to use and it's extremely compact. In fact, I take it with me whenever I travel and I use it on the road in hotels, even on planes. I'll just ask for some hot water and I'll brew my coffee or tea right there on the plane. If you'd like to try AeroPress, you can go to AeroPress.com/huberman. That's A-E-R-O-P-R-E-S-S.com/huberman to get 20% off any AeroPress coffee maker. AeroPress ships anywhere in the USA, Canada, and over 60 other countries around the world. Again, that's AeroPress.com/huberman to get 20% off.And now for my discussion with Dr. Robert Lustig. Dr. Robert Lustig, welcome.