metabolic health summit

Three Days of Gettin' My Geek On in the FLA

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to head down to Clearwater Beach, FL to attend the Metabolic Health Summit, one of the largest and egg-headiest conferences on diet, lifestyle and health that there is. It was a great chance to see my dad, who lives nearby, and to absorb some of the latest science in diet, lifestyle and health.

It can be kind of intimidating, going to a conference by yourself — especially when it’s something that’s well outside your area of expertise. But it turns out I need not have worried. I connected with tons of great people, both old friends and new. Here are just a few highlights from Day One:

beth

Moments after registering, I walked down the stairs to find myself face-to-face with none other than Beth Zupec-Kania, Registered Dietician who works with The Charlie Foundation. “Dave!” she said, giving me a big hug, “I read your blog every week!” (Hi, Beth!). Immediately, I knew I was right where I belong.

I got to spend some quality time with Beth over the course of the weekend (and even on the dance floor!), and we had some great conversations. She’s a wonderful person and yet another good reason to support the Foundation and all the amazing work they do.

chris

After the welcome remarks and a keynote on fasting and longevity by Dr. Valter Longo (that will be a whole ‘nother post at some point), there was a reception and book signing, which I’d somehow talked my way into.

I was given a little baby table, a table tent with my name on it, and a spot right between two of the most popular authors at the conference: Chris Palmer and Nasha Winters.

Dr. Nasha Winters is the founder of The Metabolic Terrain Institute of Health and author of The Metabolic Approach to Cancer (ranked #5 on all of Amazon in “Oncology”). Dr. Christopher Palmer is a Harvard psychiatrist and author of Brain Energy (ranked #1 in Amazon’s Medical Neuropsychiatry category). Over the course of two hours (long past the scheduled end time), each of them was visited by a steady stream of readers and admirers, each sharing their own stories of how these good doctors had saved their lives. It was amazing and inspiring, and all I could do was twiddle my thumbs and pretend not to be insanely jealous.

from the npr news story about the conference. (not pictured: yours truly, sitting approximately five feet to dr. palmer’s right)

I’ve mentioned Dr. Palmer’s book here before, and certainly will again. Even though it’s about the connection between metabolic health and mental health, he draws on epilepsy research to make many of his points, and it really helped me to understand my own unremarkable brain a bit better. I snuck in his line toward the end of the night and after getting his signature, slipped him a copy of my book. Maybe some good karma will come of it!

I also took the opportunity to wander around a bit and chat with some of the other authors, like Dr. Annette Bosworth, whose content I love, and Dr. Mary Newport, who’s been a guest here and who’s become a friend.

some brazilian lady

I did have two notable visitors to my humble table, though. The first was a tall, gorgeous Brazilian woman who rushed up to me telling me how she loved my work, had heard me on a podcast, was so excited to meet me. And would I please sign… her copy of Nature Wants Us to Be Fat, by Dr. Richard Johnson (who spoke on the second day). I sheepishly returned the text, and she apologized profusely for the mistaken identity. In fact, she was so embarrassed that she ran and got me a glass of bubbly from the bar (which was free, but ya know, it’s the thought that counts) and we had a good laugh and a toast over it. (PS: It turns out she’s a PhD anesthesiologist from Sao Paolo who’s been a guest on several of my favorite podcasts.)

dr richard johnson, who I apparently resemble

ikaika

My second visitor, who actually stopped by on purpose, was a guy named Ikaika Molina, who had traveled all the way from Hawaii to attend. A trained Chef, he works in the healthcare system practicing something called “culinary medicine.” Essentially, he coaches and educates with patients who are prescribed certain dietary interventions by their doctor (such as keto for epilepsy, for example), and teaches them how to cook delicious meals that fit into their diet plan.

It’s such a cool idea, and given that compliance is one of the major concerns in lifestyle medicine, hugely important. Ikaika and I had several great conversations over the course of the weekend, and are in talks about collaborating on a project in the future. I’m hoping to do a podcast interview with him soon, so watch this space!

me with with my new buddies, chef ikaika and doc kwadwo

Ok, so that’s the first few hours of the conference. It was a whirlwind of a night and at the same time an absolute blast. As an academic, I’ve been to more than my fair share of conferences, as a presenter and as an attendee. But this one hit different. There was an energy in the air — a crackling sense that all of us were on the cutting edge of something new and powerful, something that could change the world. More to come in the following weeks, so stay tuned!