19 Love Quotes to Live By, From Thought-Leaders in Science

February 13, 2018 by Team Asprey

While there’s no better way to show someone you care than with an act of love, sometimes words can go a long way. This post is all about love quotes that bring a smile to your face, make you think, and maybe even a few that make you laugh. Enjoy this Valentine’s Day love quote round-up of inspirational voices from the web, as well as Bulletproof Radio thought leaders, that will tickle your heart. Go on, share one of these with your true love today.

The goal is to last, to be stronger, and to not compromise the self in the context of a connection. – Esther Perel

Science is not only a disciple of reason but, also, one of romance and passion. – Stephen Hawking

I think lovemaking is a lost art. – Pedram Shojai

When you are courting a nice girl, an hour seems like a second. When you sit on a red-hot cinder, a second seems like an hour. That’s relativity. – Albert Einstein

Let us always meet each other with a smile, for the smile is the beginning of love. – Mother Teresa

Sometimes the heart sees what is invisible to the eye. – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

We all have relationship issues that we’re going to need to work on. All of us. It’s just part of human nature. The only question is going to be with whom. – Esther Perel

A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person. – Mignon McLaughlin

We need love. We need loving relationships. It doesn’t have to be a marriage. But sex is the most healing thing you can do to your body. – John Gray

The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: If there is any reaction, both are transformed. – C.G. Jung

Let the beauty of what you love be what you do. – Rumi

I choose to see this differently. I choose to see through the lens of love. I choose to practice forgiveness. – Gabrielle Bernstein

May you live as long as you wish and love as long as you live. – Robert A. Heinlein

The good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge. – Bertrand Russell

You can’t blame gravity for falling in love. – Albert Einstein

Science is like a love affair with nature; an elusive, tantalizing mistress. It has all the turbulence, twists and turns of romantic love, but that’s part of the game. – Vilayanur S. Ramachandran

All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt. – Charles M. Schulz

Relationships are the most transformational space, whether it’s with your children, your parents, or your loved ones, because you can’t control the other person. – Neil Strauss

Love is the most powerful form of energy, but science cannot decipher its elements. Yet the best cure for a sick soul is love, but even the most advanced physician cannot prescribe it as medicine. – Suzy Kassem

New Study Reveals Why Fructose Is More Dangerous Than Table Sugar

February 12, 2018 by Team Asprey

A new study[ref url=”http://www.cell.com/cell-metabolism/fulltext/S1550-4131(17)30729-5″] finds that fructose – the sugar found in fruit and high-fructose corn syrup – is actually processed in the small intestine, not the liver, as previously believed. And when people consume fructose in large amounts – say, processed foods or a small soft drink – it overwhelms the small intestine and spills over into the liver, where it gets converted into fat. This is extremely problematic, because the liver is not meant to metabolize fructose. This helps explain why eating too much sugar can be harmful, especially to the liver. Over time, too much fructose in your diet can cause liver disease and type 2 diabetes.

Glucose is processed in the liver, while fructose is metabolized in the small intestine

The study followed the trajectory of isotope-labeled fructose and glucose (otherwise known as table sugar) through the digestive systems of lab mice. Some mice received fructose doped with an isotope used for tracking, while others received glucose. By observing where the isotope went, the researchers then mapped the paths of the two different sugars. The glucose quickly traveled to the liver, and then was distributed to the rest of the body via blood circulation. Fructose, on the other hand, gathered in the small intestine, instead of being sent to the liver. Researchers concluded that it’s the intestine’s job to deal with fructose and make sure it never reaches the liver. However, when fructose is overconsumed, it leaks unprocessed into the liver and stores as fat. These fat storages can lead to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, which can subsequently lead to cirrhosis or even liver cancer.

When fructose overwhelms the small intestine, it gets shuttled to the liver by way of the colon. As a result, it comes into direct contact with the microbes in our gut. “The microbiome is designed to never see sugar,” says Joshua D. Rabinowitz of the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics at Princeton University, whose laboratory led the study. “As soon as you drink the soda or juice, the microbiome is seeing an extremely powerful nutrient that it was designed to never see.” While the study didn’t find that fructose affects the microbiome, the authors believe it’s a likely consequence and deserves further study.

The study also found that the small intestine handles fructose more efficiently after a meal, so better to save a sweet treat for dessert only.

A large glass of orange juice is too much fructose for the small intestine to process

“There is a fundamental physiological difference in how smaller and larger amounts of sugar are processed in the body,” reveals Joshua D. Rabinowitz of the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics at Princeton University, whose laboratory led the study. “We can offer some reassurance – at least from these animal studies – that fructose from moderate amounts of fruits will not reach the liver,” he says. However, problems will occur when the small intestine gets overwhelmed by fructose. How much is too much? Half a can of soda or a large glass of OJ, and you are doing yourself a major disservice. The occasional piece of fruit, however, should be OK.

If you are going to consume fruit, eat a small portion as dessert

Consume fruit as a dessert: If you are going to eat fruit, eat it after your main meal as dessert – as a moderately-sized portion (less than 25 grams of fructose per day).
Choose your fruits wisely: Some fruits have more sugar than others. Eat the most nutrient-dense fruits – in-season blueberries and strawberries, for instance, which are loaded with good-for-you polyphenols, but are relatively low in fructose. Refer to the Bulletproof Diet Roadmap for healthful fruit choices. Think of fruit as a treat, not a staple of your diet. Remember, your body is simply not made to consume more than what’s in a single piece of fruit.
Consider sugar substitutes: Avoid highly processed, sugary foods and beverages – that includes juice and anything sweetened with juice concentrate or high-fructose corn syrup. If you need more incentive, read this post about the harmful effects of fructose. For sugar substitutes that won’t wreak havoc on your blood sugar, check out this guide to healthy Bulletproof-friendly sweeteners.

Study Shows Why Fasting Is Just as Important as What You Eat

February 9, 2018 by Team Asprey

Did you know that just minutes after you eat a meal, your bloodstream is flooded with nutrients and your body undergoes a monumental shift from a fasting- to feeding-state to break down and store fats and sugars? That’s right, within half an hour, your liver switches completely from burning stored fat for energy to stockpiling sugar, or glucose. The sheer speed of this metabolic transformation befuddled scientists, until now. They knew the liver’s cells couldn’t possibly activate genes and produce RNA blueprints to create new metabolic proteins in that timeframe, so how does the liver respond to food so quickly? In a study, Salk Institute for Biological Studies researchers found the answer – liver cells actually store pre-RNA molecules that are instrumental in glucose and fat metabolism.

Liver cells store pre-RNA molecules called NONO that are key to glucose and fat metabolism

Scientists have known that an RNA-binding protein called NONO regulated daily circadian rhythms in the body. However, this study’s researchers wondered if NONO also had a specific role in the liver, so they decided to analyze NONO levels in response to feeding and fasting in mice. Post-feed, NONO clumps suddenly appeared in the mice liver cells, and they were bound to RNA molecules. Sure enough, within half an hour, the levels of proteins that corresponded with the NONO-RNA molecules increased.

“After mice eat, it looks as if NONO brings all these RNAs together and processes them so they can be used to make proteins,” says Satchidananda Panda, a professor in the Salk Institute’s Regulatory Biology Laboratory and lead author of the paper.

Understanding the role of NONO in metabolism could lead to new therapies for obesity and diabetes

Without NONO, it took more than three hours for protein levels (those involved in processing glucose) to rise. During those three hours, blood glucose spiked to unstable levels. What this means for those with diabetes who possess high blood glucose levels is that mice without NONO may be a potential disease model to study. “Understanding how glucose storage and fat burning are regulated at the molecular level will be important for the development of new therapies against obesity and diabetes,” says first author Giorgia Benegiamo.

In the meantime, what is clear: “The switch from fasting to feeding is a very quick switch and our physiology has to adapt to it in the right time frame,” says Satchidananda Panda. “Now we know how our body quickly handles that extra rush of sugar.”

Be mindful of your peas…and avocados

So why does this study mean for you? Everything you eat matters and causes a unique response in your body — even something as minuscule as a leftover goldfish from your child’s lunchbox. So it’s important to be mindful of how — and how often — you fuel yourself. (If you want to dive deep into Bulletproof-friendly foods, check out the Bulletproof Diet Roadmap.)

Balance your feeding-state with a healthy fasting-state

As this study reveals, your fasting state is just as critical to metabolism as your feeding state. That’s where intermittent fasting comes in. The idea behind intermittent fasting is to consume all of your daily food in a shortened time period (say, a six-hour window) and fast for the remaining part of the day/night. This study demonstrates that intermittent fasting reduced blood sugar and insulin levels and increased neurons’ resistance to excitotoxic stress in mice. Think of it this way – intermittent fasting, combined with Bulletproof eating, boosts the body’s energy production, reduces cholesterol, lowers inflammation, and helps you lose weight.

When done the Bulletproof way, intermittent fasting isn’t as tough as it sounds. Get the scoop on how to get started with intermittent fasting here. The key difference between standard intermittent fasting and Bulletproof intermittent fasting: You get to drink coffee with grass-fed butter in the morning before you break your fast at lunchtime. The creamy concoction fills you up and keeps you from feeling deprived. If you’re a woman, you may have different needs when it comes to intermittent fasting.

Follow Your Truth. Kute Blackson – #465

February 8, 2018 by Dave Asprey

Who are you, really? Kute Blackson, next generation leader in the field of personal development, asks you to quit lying to yourself and figure it out. His mission is simple: To inspire people across the world to access inner freedom, live authentically and fulfill their true life’s purpose.

Kute and Dave Asprey go deep into what it takes to surrender to the universe and find the courage to be who you are meant to be.

A truly transformational episode, Enjoy the show!

Listen

Follow along with the Transcript

Follow Your Truth. Kute Blackson – #465

Links/Resources for Kute Blackson

You.Are.The.One.: A Bold Adventure in Finding Purpose, Discovering the Real You, and Loving Fully

Kute’s Blog

Show Notes

I think, ultimately, there’s a great freedom in being who you are, which takes a lot of courage, which is why most of us aren’t. -Kute Blackson
Following your truth “What lies am I telling myself?” Sometimes we play this game of, “I don’t know.”
I remember being age five, age six … I always felt a really deep calling to serve humanity. I remember being five years old, feeling like I just had this burning desire to help people.
He would say, “Do you believe?” “Well, yes.” “If you believe, why do you have the crutches?” She would throw them away, and she would start running around. This was my father,
But I became very obsessed with questions like, “Who am I, and why am I here, and what’s the purpose of life?” I looked to people who seemed to have everything, and they were miserable, people who had nothing, they seemed to be happy, in Ghana, West Africa. This became my quest.

How Kute was ordained in his father’s church at 14.
Kute on “No Mind” “There was a state of going into no mind, no thinking. You could say a space of total surrender.”
“All I know is I don’t do the healing. Life does the healing. God does the healing. The Divine does the healing. The innate intelligence does the healing. All I do is I show up, and I get myself out of the way, and I allow the energy to move.”
“All I know is I don’t do the healing. Life does the healing. God does the healing. The Divine does the healing. The innate intelligence does the healing. All I do is I show up, and I get myself out of the way, and I allow the energy to move.” That has been, honestly, Dave, a huge principle for my life. Not just in terms of healing, but as a way of living, just showing up and saying, “Okay. Let the energy unfold,” so that’s been huge for me.

Dave on the age of “ego emergence.”
Kute on “the ocean he was in.”
“Yeah. I think the Ghanaian culture is very devoted to spirit, to God’s spirit, conscience, whatever label you want to put, but it’s very devoted to that.”
Kute on following his intuition. “I might achieve a level of success and fame or what have you, but if I didn’t have myself, then what the hell do I have? I felt like I was committing soul suicide if I just kept going down this path, and the pain of that was so intense for me.”
On the day Kute says he really became a man. “I realized I wasn’t living my truth and really feeling the pain of that. I basically gave up my relationship with my father, and we didn’t speak for two years.”
On winning the green card lottery. “That’s when I knew that there was something beyond myself that was guiding my life.”
“If you didn’t bring yourself here, then why are you worrying? Trust.”

“I had no idea what the hell I was doing. Talk about plan, no plan, no strategy, just following the wave.
That’s all I had. No plan, and I remember being terrified and scared, but I found this profound peace, this peace of knowing that I was not compromising myself, this peace of knowing that I have nothing, but I have my own truth. I have my own… If I died tomorrow, if I failed, I was following my truth, not living someone else’s life, you know?
The common lie of “If you know who I am, you won’t love me, and so who I am is not worthy. Who I am is not enough.”
Kute on reconnecting with the truth.
“Start with asking yourself and looking at the lies you’re telling yourself.”
“I think many times we have an idea of what we want, or we set goals for ourselves. Sometimes we achieve those goals, and I’d say sometimes you might achieve what you thought you wanted only to realize it’s not what you really wanted. It’s just what you thought you wanted based on who you thought you were, the identity that you created based on past conditioning.”
Truth is the greatest prayer. Truth is meditation. To me, truth is a profound spiritual practice, because it will cut away so much BS from our lives.
Having a coach or a guide who can see the truth of who you are and help you question yourself, help you unravel yourself, help you untangle some of these layers, but also hold a loving and safe space for you, someone who’s walked the path, who can say, “It’s going to be okay,” and, “Here’s how we move through that process.”
On constantly thinking about death. “Who am I really? Really? I know I’m going to die, but who am I that I’m saying I’m going to die?” I think if you really start questioning, “Who am I really, and who is it that’s going to die?”
Kute on the Liberation Experience, which is in India.
How Kute thinks the path to transformation is different for men and women.
On why Dave thinks women are better biohackers than men.
Kute on facing your death. “Face death. You are going to die. I don’t care who you are. We are all going to die, so face it. Embrace it.”
Speak the truth. Tell the truth.
Go check out “Headstrong” and “The Bulletproof Diet” on Amazon and leave a review!
If you like today’s episode, check us out on iTunes at Bulletproof.com/iTunes and leave us a 5-star, positive review

New Study Finds Novel Way to Mentally Stimulate Dogs in Old Age

February 7, 2018 by Team Asprey

You might think that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but a fascinating new study[ref url=”https://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=3152146&dl=ACM&coll=DL&CFID=1025667842&CFTOKEN=64572395″] suggests that you can — and should — engage Fido’s brain in his old age. Regular brain training and lifelong learning fosters positive emotions that slow down mental deterioration in old age. However, due to physical limitations that come with age, older dogs aren’t regularly exposed to mentally stimulating activities like fetch or even a walk in the dog park to interact with other furry friends. This new study found that even simple computer games kept dogs mentally challenged, and were like Sudoku for the brain.

Dogs respond positively to cognitive training and remain willing to learn, study concludes

The researchers taught the dogs to complete brain teasers using touch-screen computers that they tapped with their noses. Dogs received a reward after completing each mental task. While the dogs underwent a period of adjustment to using the touch screens, once they had it down, they showed a knack for computer gaming. The old dogs responding positively to the cognitive training and remained willing to learn. “The positive feeling created by solving a mental challenge is comparable to the feeling that older people have when they learn something new, doing something they enjoy. Regular brain training shakes not only us, but also dogs out of their apathy in old age, increasing motivation and engagement and thus maximizing learning opportunities”, says senior study author Ludwig Huber. It also strengthens the bond between pet and owner.

Video Via Vetmeduni Vienna

Like humans, mental deterioration decelerates with brain training in dogs

The study reveals that dogs, like humans, are able to learn even in old age. Furthermore, consistent brain training and mental problem-solving create positive emotions in dogs and decelerate mental deterioration. “As is the case with people, dopamine production in dogs also falls in old age, leading to a decline in memory and motivational drive. But this natural mental deterioration can be countered with the specific training of cognitive skills,” offers first study author Lisa Wallis.

While this particular game isn’t available for pooches just yet, there are, believe it or not, a handful of apps you can download to your iPad to play with your pet (screen protector suggested).

How to upgrade your pet’s performance to live a long and happy life

Chances are, anything you do to upgrade your performance can also be applied to your pooch. Proper diet, exercise, adequate mental/social stimulation, even good light – you name it. What specifically can you to do ensure your dog is Bulletproof? For starters, give him a raw meat and bones diet. A foundation of good food is the number-one thing you can do to improve your dog’s well-being. Read more about what Bulletproof’s founder, Dave Asprey, feeds his dachshund Merlin here.

Diet: Barebones, follow Bulletproof Diet’s human principles and apply them to your pet.

Go with raw meat and liver powder.
Add butter, Brain Octane Oil, and krill oil.
Increase overall fat intake to 50-60%.
Calories will likely be higher than previously.

Exercise: Get your dog out to exercise every day, especially if he’s young and healthy.

A daily jaunt can create bonding with you and even interaction with other four-legged friends.
For dogs with movement challenges, read here to learn how Dave exercises with Merlin.
You can also try Pulsed Magnetic Field Therapy (PMF), which Dave uses on Merlin to stimulate his joints and muscles.

Social & mental stimulation: Dogs need the same social and mental stimulation that people do, especially as they age.

Even simple games to stimulate your pup’s mind, liking tossing a ball and having him return it to you, will work. Bottom line: Get your pooch engaged with you because, after all, he or she is a social creature too.
Go to the dog park. Even if your pup is older and unable to run, the interaction with other dogs is a win.
Discipline is also an important source of mental stimulation, as it gives your dog’s mind a chance to work out a particular problem. Training your dog with rewards keeps him engaged with a mental challenge, and always learning new tricks. Pick up a book on dog tricks if you don’t have one already.

BONUS: Good light: Just as light therapy works on humans, specific light helps your furry friend to stay young. To learn more about the benefits of red light therapy on humans, read here.

Inspired Sleep – Putting Your Dreams to Work – Deirdre Barrett # 464

February 6, 2018 by Dave Asprey

Is your body trying to tell you something as you sleep? Harvard Psychologist Deirdre Barrett, Ph.D. confirms what people have always known; answers, ideas, and inspiration can come while we sleep.

Dr. Barrett has spent her career studying the science of dreaming and has some compelling insights on how you can first remember your dreams, then make them work for you!

Enjoy the show!

Listen

Follow along with the Transcript

Inspired Sleep – Putting Your Dreams to Work – Deirdre Barrett # 464

Links/Resources for Deirdre Barrett

Deirdre’s Website

Books by Deirdre

Show Notes

Deirdre on Dreaming!
Nightmares, what can cause them?
What substances can cause you to have different kinds of dreams?
Deirdre on “The Committee of Sleep.”
On losing dreams: “Late stage fetuses have the most REM time. God knows what they’re dreaming about, but then babies have the most of, I mean, post-birth creatures and then toddlers, a little less and older children a little less than that. It’s not a sudden, “Oh, they quit at this age.” It’s a very gradual decline that almost plateaus in the young adult years but actually there’s a slight loss of percentage of dream time even throughout the adult life cycle. But it’s mostly from babyhood to the start of young adulthood.”
Can people have nightmares if they are getting sick? “A fair amount definitely make people report more nightmares and probably, they’re actually having more nightmares because the body is registering things are wrong.
Is there some kind of like an attempt for the body to communicate with you through dreams?
“But I think one phenomena is just that things that aren’t conscious by day often get through in our dreams because we don’t have to pay attention to all. Our band of consciousness is pretty narrow compared to everything going on in our brain.”
Can Dreams be a sign of something going wrong in the body? “Just things that we wouldn’t notice by day because they’re being crowded out of our attention I think often get through into our dream content just because they don’t have to compete with all the sort of basic visual input.”
Are you dreaming about a monster in your body? “I think that’s a function of just that our body is making antibodies even when they’re not working against infections and cancer and nerves are getting pushed out of the way.”
Dierdre on sleepwalking.
How do we put our dreams to work for us?
What’s Dierdre’s take on the usefulness of dreams? Can we put them to work for us?
Can people who aren’t particularly paying attention to their dreams can sometimes have breakthrough dreams.
What is a dream incubator? “I definitely have spent a lot of time developing dream incubation techniques that help people guide their dreams toward particular questions and problems and those can really increase the rate at which our dreams give us really practical help.”
What are some of those techniques?
What are three different levels of steps?
Why Deirdre thinks sleeping eight hours is just the single most important thing to increase your dream recall.
“Just making an effort to remember more dreams, lots of people find just opens up a whole other world to them.”
“The best forms of dream interpretation are not some expert telling you what they think your dream means.”
What is a dog to you? “One person will say, “Well, they’re big, fierce, scary animals with short teeth that can bite you.” And the next person will say, “They’re loyal. They’re man’s best friends. They’re more reliable than your human friends.” And the next person will say, “Oh, they’re these cute little baby-like things that we need to protect.” For those three people, the dog in the dream will represent those three very different things.”
Are there any supplements that help with lucid dreams?
Psychological practices that you can do to have more lucid dreams.
Techniques that work according to Dierdre. “Basically, the most effective low-tech approach is, if one’s not going to spend one’s life meditating, seemed to be a combination of what we call daytime reality checks where part of it is just asking yourself if you might be dreaming right now, and taking that question seriously, and thinking about it.”
The idea that your dreams may solve problem at work, or tell you when a medical problem is developing in your body, or just very practical things.
Go check out “Headstrong” and “The Bulletproof Diet” on Amazon and leave a review!
If you like today’s episode, check us out on iTunes at Bulletproof.com/iTunes and leave us a 5-star, positive review

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19 Love Quotes to Live By, From Thought-Leaders in Science

Glucose is processed in the liver, while fructose is metabolized in the small intestine

A large glass of orange juice is too much fructose for the small intestine to process

If you are going to consume fruit, eat a small portion as dessert

Liver cells store pre-RNA molecules called NONO that are key to glucose and fat metabolism

Understanding the role of NONO in metabolism could lead to new therapies for obesity and diabetes

Be mindful of your peas…and avocados

Balance your feeding-state with a healthy fasting-state

Listen

Follow along with the Transcript

Show Notes

Dogs respond positively to cognitive training and remain willing to learn, study concludes

Like humans, mental deterioration decelerates with brain training in dogs

How to upgrade your pet’s performance to live a long and happy life

Listen

Follow along with the Transcript

Show Notes

Get on “The Inside Track” with Dave

See What Trouble Dave’s Getting Into on Social

Start hacking your way to better than standard performance and results.

Get on
“The Inside Track”
with Dave