Ancestral Hacks for Modern Health

Ben references studies showing that movement during work boosts focus and BDNF, which he calls 'Miracle-Gro for your brain.' He laments the loss of physical jobs and attempts to 'hack' his office to replicate ancestral hunting and gathering movement. His setup includes a walking treadmill, kettlebell, pull-up bar, and a CAROL bike for high-intensity bursts. For coaching calls, he often walks outside with his phone in his pocket, telling clients they don't need to see his face to get value. He notes some pushback but believes it's worth overriding social expectations for health.

Ben observes that in Blue Zones and among long-lived populations, there is no consistent macronutrient pattern but rather a common thread of consuming a massive variety of whole foods. He contrasts the typical Western salad (lettuce, cucumber, tomato) with the rich diversity seen in traditional diets. To achieve this, he recommends joining a CSA (community-supported agriculture) to receive random seasonal produce that forces culinary experimentation. The key insight is that avoiding plant foods due to fear of lectins or gut irritation actually creates a more fragile gut; gradually increasing diversity trains the microbiome to handle a wider array of foods, much like early peanut exposure prevents allergies (citing Marty Makary's book 'Blind Spots'). He stresses that the goal is variety of real, recognizable foods, not processed junk.

Ben argues that humans are smarter than plants, and rather than avoiding plants altogether, we should use traditional preparation techniques that deactivate their natural defense compounds. He gives the example of quinoa: the bitter saponin coating must be thoroughly rinsed and soaked, otherwise it can cause digestive distress and pass through undigested. Wheat, if chewed raw, is dense in gluten and lectins, but slow fermentation into sourdough significantly lowers gluten content and makes it far more digestible. He also extends this to hearty greens like kale, which should be cooked or steamed to break down cell walls and unlock nutrients. This approach not only improves tolerance but also increases the array of foods one can enjoy, further boosting dietary variety.

Ben breaks down the meal chronologically. For drinks, bitter compounds stimulate digestive enzyme secretion and lower the glycemic response of the subsequent meal. He recommends a cocktail heavy on bitters (like a Negroni style) or a non-alcoholic bitters and soda. For wine, he avoids US wines because they can use over 70 pesticides and are often high in sugar due to irrigation; he sticks to Old World (France, Italy) and New Zealand wines with biodynamic practices, lower sugar, and fewer chemicals. Appetizers: he almost entirely avoids fried foods because heated vegetable oils create oxidized compounds that incorporate into cell membranes and persist for years—he would rather eat pure sugar (cotton candy) than a corn dog. He also skips bread baskets and starchy sides. For the entrée, he prioritizes protein sourcing: grass-fed beef, low-toxin pork if pastured, small fatty fish (salmon, sardines, mackerel) to minimize mercury. Sauces and dressings are typically high in industrial seed oils, so he orders them on the side. For dessert, he finds most people secretly don't want it, so he suggests being the one to say 'I'm not feeling dessert'—often everyone agrees. At home, he enjoys full-fat yogurt, dark chocolate, and frozen blueberries.

Ben explains that modern LED fixtures produce flicker and harsh blue wavelengths that cause 'brain drain' by the end of the day, even if one feels fine. He used to manually put red bulbs in the bedroom and dimmer bulbs in living areas, but now uses smart bulbs where a single on-off-on toggle cycles through brightness and color temperature. He wears blue-blocking glasses during podcasts when extra LED lights are needed. The core principle is that our ancestors experienced gradual light transitions from bright full-spectrum daylight to darkness, and mimicking that with technology prevents circadian disruption that can impair sleep, immune function, and metabolic health.

Ben details his experience with Jasper filters, which originated from the mold remediation industry and feature a real-time PM2.5 display. He was shocked to see particulate counts jump from 3 to 40 during routine baking. He emphasizes that typical range hoods are too high above the cooktop to capture contaminants effectively. Since adding the filter, he noticed a difference in how fresh the air smells after cooking and believes it is a crucial layer of defense alongside water filtration and light hygiene.

Ben explains that molecular hydrogen is a unique selective antioxidant because it only targets the strongest and most damaging free radicals like hydroxyl radicals while leaving beneficial signaling molecules intact. This means it can lower systemic inflammation and improve recovery without the downside of blunting mitochondrial biogenesis and muscle gain post-exercise. He compares it to methylene blue, which also exhibits selective antioxidant properties and is often used for cognitive enhancement. He's recently delved into the research and integrated it daily.

Ben lays out a tiered approach. First, train heavy with lower body because androgen receptors are concentrated in the legs. Second, ensure adequate nutrition with key cofactors: creatine supports ATP and androgen receptors, zinc and boron are direct testosterone precursors, fish oil reduces inflammation, magnesium aids sleep and steroidogenesis, vitamin D is a steroid hormone precursor. Third, he strongly recommends the Dutch dried urine test because it shows not just hormone levels but also metabolites, revealing whether low testosterone is due to adrenal burnout (pregnenolone steal) or primary testicular issues. Only after these are optimized and tested should medical interventions be considered.

Ben positions enclomiphene as a 'less of a sledgehammer' option compared to straight testosterone injections. He notes that many guys jump to TRT without addressing underlying hypothalamic-pituitary issues. Enclomiphene tricks the body into ramping up its own production, often restoring levels to the normal range while preserving fertility. It can also be used in combination with TRT to allow lower external doses. He views this as a critical step in the decision tree before fully committing to TRT.

Ben strongly criticizes standard once- or twice-weekly injection protocols because the large boluses cause exaggerated aromatization to estrogen and 5-alpha-reductase conversion to DHT, leading to common complaints like acne, hair loss, and emotional volatility. Cream allows for smoother pharmacokinetics. He also notes that if a male partner applies the cream shortly before sex, it can act as a libido enhancer for the female partner (but cautions about the extreme dose discrepancy). He personally started this approach a couple of years ago.

Ben explains that high doses open a spiritual portal, leaving the user extremely vulnerable to influence and what he believes can be literal entity possession. He ties this to the Biblical word 'pharmakeia,' which he interprets as divination with the spirit world through drugs. For every nine people who benefit, he estimates one person develops lasting issues. He now advocates stoic, drug-free modalities like breathwork, cold exposure, sauna, and prayer, which require more effort but are far safer. He personally has not touched high doses in a long time and only uses microdoses for cognitive support, akin to having one glass of wine versus two bottles.

Ben noted that he has been digging into the research on molecular hydrogen and now incorporates hydrogen water into his daily routine. The mechanism relies on hydrogen's ability to act as a signaling molecule that selectively neutralizes the most damaging hydroxyl radicals without interfering with the reactive oxygen species that trigger beneficial pathways like NRF2 and PGC-1α. He contrasts this with typical antioxidants, which indiscriminately scavenge free radicals and can therefore hinder recovery adaptions. He also mentions methylene blue as another selective antioxidant option, though his focus here is on hydrogen.

The guest informed Ben that indoor air quality can decrease by hundreds of percentage points during cooking. Skeptical at first, Ben verified this when his wife was simply baking dinner and his office purifier's PM2.5 reading jumped from 3 to 10. Placing a unit directly in the kitchen showed a leap to 40. He notes that typical overhead fans are too far from the cooking surface to effectively remove particulate matter. This experience led him to advocate standalone HEPA units specifically for kitchen use, which he found made a noticeable difference in freshness of scent and overall air quality post-meal.