Sign inOpen the app
Artwork for Extend Podcast with Darshan Shah, MD
Health & Fitness

Extend Podcast with Darshan Shah, MD

Darshan Shah, MD

Extend with Darshan Shah, MD is a podcast dedicated to cutting-edge science, research, tools, and protocols designed to help you extend your healthspan.

Starting my medical journey at 16 and becoming one of the youngest doctors in the country, studying and training at the Mayo Clinic, Harvard Business School, Singularity University and other prestigious institutions, becoming a board certified surgeon and accumulating over two decades of practice, I have discovered that a mere 20% of health knowledge yields 80% of the results.

That's why this podcast is all about cutting through the noise on how to turn back the aging clock.
I interview world-renowned medical practitioners, doctors, experts, and thought leaders, offering you a step-by-step guide and actionable advice to proactively avoid disease and optimize your health.

Plus, I share weekly solo episodes giving you quick, digestible protocols for successfully extending your healthspan.

SubscribeListen in podnodRSS feedShow website
  • 188 episodes
  • Updated Tuesday

Episodes188

Newest first
  • Tuesday · 59 min

    187. Dr. Izabella Wentz: 30+ Root Causes Behind An IBS Diagnosis

    Hashimotos isn't just a thyroid disease-it may actually begin in the gut. If you've been told your thyroid labs are "normal" but you still struggle with fatigue, bloating, constipation, IBS, or autoimmune symptoms, this episode could change the way you think about your health. I sit down with Dr. Izabella Wentz, PharmD-better known as the Thyroid Pharmacist and one of the world's leading experts on Hashimoto's disease - to uncover the powerful connection between gut health, autoimmune disease, and thyroid function. Dr. Wentz explains why IBS is often not a true diagnosis, but a collection of symptoms with more than 30 possible root causes. Together, we explore why conventional medicine frequently misses these underlying issues and how identifying the real drivers - from intestinal permeability and SIBO to food sensitivities, medications, infections, and even heavy metal exposure - can help people finally find lasting relief. Whether you're living with Hashimoto's, IBS, or another autoimmune condition, this conversation offers a practical roadmap for uncovering the root cause and supporting long-term healing. In this episode, you'll learn: Why gut health is critical for thyroid function and autoimmune healing The surprising connection between Hashimoto's disease and IBS Why IBS is a symptom - not a diagnosis The 30+ root causes that may be driving digestive symtpoms How intestinal permeability ("leaky gut") contributes to autoimmune disease The biggest food, medication, and lifestyle triggers for IBS Which functional medicine tests can uncover hidden gut dysfunction How targeted treatment can improve symptoms and support long-term remission If you've been searching for answers beyond symptom management, this episode provides an evidence-based look at the gut-thyroid connection and what it really takes to restore health. Thank You to Our Sponsors Next Health Longevity Summit: Head to www.next-health.com/summit to secure your spot at the first ever Next Health Longevity Summit in Nashville on 9/12! IM8: Try IM8 today with a 30-day money back guarantee. Get 10% off your first order with code DRSHAH at https://im8health.com/drshah Timeline: Timeline powere by Mitopure just dropped the price. Check it out using link shop.timeline.com/DRDARSHANSHAH for up to 20% off when you subscribe and save. Learn more about Dr. Shah: Website: drshah.com Instagram: @extend_podcast and @darshanshahmd Clinic: next-health.com Learn more about Dr. Izabella Wentz: Website: thyroidpharmacist.com Instagram: @izabellawentzpharmd Book: thyroidpharmacist.com/ibs-book-order/

  • July 30 · 1 hr 9 min

    186. Raj Sisodia: The Inner Work Behind Better Leadership

    A leader's unresolved pain rarely stays contained within that leader. It can show up as control, aggression, emotional distance, relentless pressure, or a workplace where people are treated as resources rather than human beings. The organization may still perform, but the cost is often carried by employees, families, customers, and the leader's own health. In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Raj Sisodia to examine the relationship between personal healing and conscious leadership. We discuss why a company's culture often reflects the inner state of the people guiding it, how purpose changes the way work affects people, and why leadership built around fear, ego, or extraction eventually creates suffering. Raj Sisodia is a co-founder of the Conscious Capitalism movement, a business professor, speaker, and author of numerous books on purpose-driven organizations and leadership. His work has challenged the idea that companies must choose between financial performance and human well-being, while his personal healing journey has led him to explore what leaders must address within themselves before they can create healthier systems around them. What's Discussed: (2:57) Why self-interest and greed are not the same, and what happens when a business is built around extraction. (7:18) The four principles behind companies that create value without treating people as costs to minimize. (13:02) How healthcare loses its purpose when profit is placed above patients and practitioners. (20:18) The first question every leader should ask before trying to change company culture. (35:26) Why leaders cannot create healthy organizations without examining their own unresolved pain. (43:07) How qualities you learned to see as weaknesses may be the strengths you are meant to contribute. (51:06) Why unhealed trauma can keep driving your reactions, relationships, and leadership without your awareness. Listen to this episode of Extend to understand why leadership is not only about what you build, but also about what you bring into the room while building it. Thank You to Our Sponsors Next Health Longevity Summit: Head to next-health.com/summit to secure your spot at the first ever Next Health Longevity Summit in Nashville on 9/12. Pendulum: You can go to pendulumlife.com and use my code EXTEND for 20% off your first membership order. Learn More About Dr. Darshan Shah Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn More About Raj Sisodia Website: rajsisodia.com/ Facebook: rsisodia Podcast: theconsciouscapitalists.com/podcast Instagram: @rajsisodiacc

  • July 28 · 52 min

    185. Dr. Neha Sangwan: The 5 Questions That Predict a Health Crisis Before It Happens

    I have operated on patients whose bodies had been sending them warning signals for years before a crisis ever put them in front of me. Stress alone causes or worsens more than 80 percent of the illness I see, and most of it traces back to one skill almost nobody was ever taught: how to actually listen to their own body. We dive deeper into this in the Extend Podcast with Dr. Neha Sangwan. We also chat about the five questions she asks every patient before sending them home, why your boss has more influence on your health than your doctor does, and the five levels of connection that determine whether a relationship heals you or drains you. Dr. Neha Sangwan is an internal medicine physician and former hospitalist who also trained as a mechanical and biomedical engineer. She is the founder and CEO of Intuitive Intelligence, where she works as an executive health and performance coach for corporate leaders and their teams. She is the author of TalkRx: Five Steps to Honest Conversations that Create Connection, Health, and Happiness, and Powered by Me: From Burned Out to Fully Charged at Work and in Life. What We Discuss: (1:09) Why training as both a mechanical engineer and a physician led straight to burnout at 34. (2:29) The Awareness Prescription: the five questions she asks every patient the night before discharge. (9:59) The Body Map: how physical signals are data your doctor never sees. (16:54) Why your leader has more influence on your health than your doctor does. (22:48) The five-step framework for walking into any hard conversation clearly and calmly. (30:34) The five-hour shift and the question from a nurse that first told her she was burning out. (34:13) Net gain versus net drain: mapping where your energy leaks and where it grows. (40:07) The five levels of exchange, from broken to sacred. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Next Health Longevity Summit: Head to next-health.com/summit to secure your spot at the first ever Next Health Longevity Summit in Nashville on 9/12. Function Health: Learn more and join using my link. Visit www.functionhealth.com/drshah and use gift code DRSHAH25 for a $25 credit toward your membership. Learn more about Dr. Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: @darshanshahmd Learn more about Dr. Neha Sangwan: Website: intuitiveintelligenceinc.com/ Instagram: @doctorneha LinkedIn: drnehasangwan Book: intuitiveintelligenceinc.com/powered-by-me/

  • July 23 · 1 hr 6 min

    184. Dr. Sahil Chopra & Sagar Chopra: Why Your Sleep Apnea Machine Might Be Lying to You

    Millions of people wear a CPAP machine every night, the standard breathing device prescribed for sleep apnea. They trust the number on the screen to tell them their sleep apnea is under control. I've had patients tell me they stopped using theirs because it felt pointless, and it turns out that feeling was often correct. We dive deeper into this in this episode of Extend with Dr. Sahil Chopra and Sagar Chopra, co-founders of Empower Sleep. We also chat about why palate shape and mouth breathing are driving more sleep apnea in kids, how GLP-1 medications are changing the CPAP conversation, and the truth about lip taping. Dr. Sahil Chopra is a pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine physician trained at UCLA and Loma Linda, with fellowship training in sleep medicine at Harvard. He is co-founder of Empower Sleep, a longitudinal home sleep testing platform used by physicians and patients nationwide. Sagar Chopra holds an MBA from the Wharton School, previously worked on product growth at Uber, and co-founded Empower Sleep alongside his brother, Dr. Sahil Chopra. What We Discuss: (8:04) The Landmark Study: 25,000 Nights of Data and the CPAP Discordance Problem (13:43) Inside the Empower Sleep Device and How It Differs From Wearables (25:27) Palate Shape, Mouth Breathing, and the Rise of Pediatric Sleep Apnea (30:31) Menopause, Andropause, and Why Sleep Apnea Shows Up Later in Life (41:53) Hypoglossal Nerve Stimulators and Central Sleep Apnea (47:27) How GLP-1 Medications Are Changing Sleep Apnea Treatment (51:13) The Truth About Lip Taping and Nasal Breathing Thank You to Our Sponsors: Next Health Longevity Summit: Head to next-health.com/summit to secure your spot at the first ever Next Health Longevity Summit in Nashville on 9/12. Momentous: Head to livemomentous.com/fiber and use code DRSHAH for up to 35% off your first order. Learn more about Dr. Shah: Website: drshah.com/ Clinic: next-health.com/ Instagram: @darshanshahmd Learn more about Dr. Sahil Chopra and Sagar Chopra: Empower Sleep: empowersleep.com/ Sagar Chopra on LinkedIn: choprasagar/ Sagar Chopra on X: schopsss More Resources: Quality sleep is the most underestimated longevity accelerator. Download this sleep optimization workbook to transform sleep into a powerful longevity practice: drshah.com/sleep

  • July 21 · 53 min

    183. Rachel Lambert & Angie Noack: Why 70% Of ADHD Diagnoses Are Wrong

    For most people, an ADHD diagnosis, an anxiety diagnosis, or a depression diagnosis is made entirely from a symptom checklist. No one looks at the brain producing those symptoms. In this episode, I sit down with Rachel and Angie, co-founders of BrainCode Centers, to talk about quantitative EEG brain mapping and neurofeedback, and why measuring the brain's actual electrical activity changes the picture so often. We look at why the majority of people carrying an ADHD diagnosis do not show the neurological pattern for it, what depression and anxiety actually look like on a brain scan, and how reward-based neurofeedback training retrains those patterns without medication. Rachel and Angie are licensed professional counselors and board certified in neurofeedback. Over seventeen years, they have mapped and trained roughly 25,000 brains, built in-person clinics across Denver, Boulder, Tulsa, and Dallas, and developed a remote kit that lets anyone get a brain map and begin neurofeedback training from home. What's Discussed: (0:47) What a brain map actually measures, and why it is not a CT scan or a blood flow test. (1:52) The five brain waves everyone produces, and what happens when the brain gets stuck in one of them. (4:26) How a remote EEG kit lets someone map their own brain from a swim cap at home. (9:11) How neurofeedback works as reward-based training instead of willpower or medication. (16:14) What depression actually looks like on a brain scan, and why the DSM diagnosis often misses the real driver. (25:07) Why the majority of people carrying an ADHD diagnosis do not show the neurological pattern for it. (29:51) What anxiety looks like across ten completely different brain patterns. (38:26) Angie's own bipolar diagnosis as a teenager, and how forty sessions of training changed the scan. Listen to this episode to learn why a diagnosis deserves an actual look at the brain behind it, before medication becomes the only conversation. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Next Health Longevity Summit: Head to next-health.com/summit to secure your spot at the first ever Next Health Longevity Summit in Nashville on 9/12. IM8: Try IM8 today with a 30-day money back guarantee. Get 10% off your first order with code DRSHAH at im8health.com/discount/DRSHAH . Momentous: Head to livemomentous.com/fiber and use code DRSHAH for up to 35% off your first order. Timeline: Timeline powered by Mitopure just dropped the price. Check it out at timeline.com/drshah and get an additional 20% off your first month with code DRSHAH. Learn More About Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn More About BrainCode Centers: Website: braincodecenters.com Instagram: @braincodecenters

  • July 16 · 57 min

    182. Michael Easter: The Hidden Health Cost of Modern Comfort

    A lot of people do not need to be convinced that the stairs are better than the escalator, walking is better than sitting all day, and reaching for the phone every quiet second is probably not helping their focus. The harder question is why the easier option still wins so often, even when someone cares about their health. This episode starts there, with the strange gap between what we know is good for us and what modern life quietly trains us to choose. In this episode of Extend, I sat down with Michael Easter to look at the hidden cost of a life designed around ease. The conversation asks what happens when discomfort, movement, boredom, load, scarcity, and friction are removed from daily life, and why putting some of those inputs back may change the way we think about resilience, behavior, and long-term health. Michael Easter is the author of The Comfort Crisis and Scarcity Brain, and the creator of the Two Percent newsletter and podcast. His work sits at the intersection of science, human behavior, fitness, and real-world experience, making him the right person to explain why the modern world can pull us away from the very things that help the body and brain stay adaptable. What's Discussed: (8:12) The striking gap between how much humans move today versus how much we evolved to move and what that gap is quietly doing to our health. (9:42) The one statistic that explains why most people consistently choose the thing they know is worse for them even when the better option is right in front of them. (11:41) The exercise that humans are uniquely built to do, that has almost completely disappeared from modern life and why bringing it back changes everything. (21:52) The specific treadmill protocol Michael uses that builds endurance and strength simultaneously without the injury risk most people associate with cardio. (32:11) Why solitude and loneliness are not the same thing and what the research actually shows about what happens when you learn to be alone with yourself. (38:14) The three-part psychological loop behind slot machines that was deliberately engineered into the technology most people use every single day. (50:46) What a study on one of the most unlikely populations in America revealed about why movement and community can offset almost everything else we get wrong about health. Listen to this episode of Extend to understand why the healthier choice is not always a knowledge problem, why comfort can quietly shape behavior, and how the right kind of friction may help your body and mind become more resilient over time. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Momentous: Head to livemomentous.com/fiber and use code DRSHAH for up to 35% off your first order. Next Health Summit: Head to next-health.com/summit to secure your spot at the first ever Next Health Longevity Summit in Nashville on 9/12. Learn More About Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn More About Michael Easter: Website: TWOPCT.com Substack: Two Percent with Michael Easter Book: The Comfort Crisis Book: Scarcity Brain

  • July 14 · 49 min

    181. Dr. Taz: The Hormone Conversation Women Should Have Before Birth Control, IVF, or HRT

    For many women, the hormone conversation starts only when something becomes hard to ignore. Painful periods. Irregular cycles. Acne. Hair loss. Fertility struggles. Perimenopause symptoms. Too often, the answer is a quick fix for the symptom in front of them, without anyone asking what the body was trying to signal years earlier. In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Taz Bhatia MD to talk about why women's hormone health needs to be understood across the entire lifespan, not as separate problems that show up during adolescence, fertility, perimenopause, or menopause. We look at why symptoms like bad periods, PMOS, fatigue, mood changes, inflammation, weight gain, and hormone shifts should be connected back to the gut, metabolism, stress, nutrient status, inflammation, and emotional health. Dr. Taz Bhatia MD, brings a rare mix of conventional medical training and integrative medicine experience to this conversation. She began her career in emergency medicine, then expanded her work through holistic medicine, Chinese medicine, acupuncture, nutrition, and integrative medicine training through Dr. Andrew Weil's fellowship. Her own experience with fatigue, hair loss, joint pain, weight changes, and PMOS also shaped the way she helps patients look beyond symptom management and understand the full body story behind their health. Important note: This episode was recorded before PCOS was formally renamed PMOS (Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome). Throughout this conversation, you'll hear the term PCOS, as it was the standard name at the time of recording. The new name was adopted to better reflect that the condition is a complex hormonal and metabolic disorder affecting multiple body systems—not just the ovaries—and because many people with the condition do not actually have ovarian cysts. What's Discussed: (01:15) Dr. Taz Bhatia's own health struggles and why conventional medicine did not give her the answers she needed. (10:02) Why people need a medical home that helps them stay well, not just emergency care when something goes wrong. (16:36) How symptoms act as early signals from the body, and why health needs to be looked at across physical, emotional, cognitive, spiritual, and community layers. (26:25) Why women's hormone health should start in adolescence, not when perimenopause or infertility begins. (30:40) Why PMOS is not just about ovarian cysts and how blood sugar, insulin resistance, gut health, stress, and inflammation can drive symptoms. (37:17) What women need to understand about long-term birth control use, nutrient depletion, inflammation, and hormone suppression. (41:13) Why birth control options should be part of a deeper conversation about the individual, not an automatic prescription. Listen to this episode to learn why women deserve a better hormone conversation before they reach the crisis points of birth control, IVF, or HRT. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Next Health: Your destination for cutting-edge health optimization—from IV therapy to hormone balancing. Explore at next-health.com/ IM8: Try IM8 today with a 30-day money back guarantee. You can get 10% off your first order with code DRSHAH at im8health.com/discount/DRSHAH. Momentous: Head to livemomentous.com/fiber and use code DRSHAH for up to 35% off your first order. Learn More About Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn More About Dr. Taz Bhatia MD Website: doctortaz.com Instagram: @drtazmd

  • July 9 · 57 min

    180. Dr. John Kim: The Hidden Stressors Keeping Your Body in Defense Mode

    When labs look normal, it is easy to assume the body is fine or that the biggest risks have been ruled out. Dr. John Kim's story challenges that belief. At 33, after a normal lipid panel and without the classic heart attack picture, he ended up with an 85% blockage in his LAD. That experience forced him to ask what standard markers were missing. The answer led him into the deeper cellular stressors that can keep the body in defense mode: mold, mycotoxins, chronic infections, biofilms, heavy metals, emotional trauma, gut dysfunction, damaged cell membranes, and mitochondrial stress. In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Dr. Kim to talk about how these stressors can push the mitochondria away from energy production and into the cell danger response, where the body is still trying to protect itself but starts paying the price through brain fog, fatigue, inflammation, hormone disruption, gut issues, and hypersensitivity. Dr. John Kim is a functional pharmacist whose work focuses on mold toxicity, mitochondrial health, lipid membrane medicine, chronic infections, gut health, and structured detox support. This episode gives listeners a new framework for symptoms that do not make sense on standard labs, from brain fog and fatigue to chronic inflammation, hormone disruption, gut issues, and hypersensitivity, while showing why recovery has to happen in the right sequence before the body can fully rebuild. What's Discussed: (03:39) The heart attack at 33 that doctors almost missed. (05:01) Why a normal lipid panel did not explain what was happening underneath. (09:52) Why heart disease goes beyond cholesterol. (12:26) How biofilms can hide chronic infections from the immune system. (17:43) What the cell danger response does to mitochondria and energy production. (23:41) Why mold and mycotoxins can affect the brain, gut, immune system, and hormones. (42:01) How the ENCORE method helps sequence recovery from mold and cellular stress. Listen to this episode of Extend to understand why "normal" does not always mean resolved, how hidden stressors can keep your cells on defense, and why recovery may need to start with the environment, nervous system, gut, detox pathways, and cell membrane before deeper healing can happen. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Next Health Longevity Summit: Head to next-health.com/summit to secure your spot at the first ever Next Health Logevity Summit in Nashville on 9/12. IM8: Try IM8 today with a 30-day money back guarantee. You can get 10% off your first order with code DRSHAH at im8health.com/discount/DRSHAH. Momentous: Head to livemomentous.com/fiber and use code DRSHAH for up to 35% off your first order. Learn More About Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn More About Dr. John Kim, Pharm.D. Website: drjohnkim.com/ Instagram: @john.pharmd

  • July 7 · 46 min

    179. Dr. Scott McMahon: The Hidden Trigger Behind Your Unexplained Symptoms

    Most people assume that once they leave a mold-exposed building, their body should recover. But I see this all the time in my clinic, the mold exposure ends, and the symptoms don't. In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Dr. Scott McMahon, medical director at MoldCo, to ask why removing the source doesn't always mean removing the illness. We get into a switch inside the immune system, one that determines whether the body can actually call off an inflammatory response once a threat is gone, and what happens when that switch stops working. Understanding it changes how a long list of unexplained, lingering symptoms starts to make sense. Dr. Scott McMahon spent eighteen years as a pediatrician before a case involving a group of sick high school students redirected the entire focus of his career. He went on to study under Dr. Richie Shoemaker, the physician who first identified Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS), and has spent years treating patients, publishing research on the condition's diagnostic criteria, and co-authoring a book on CIRS medicine. As medical director of MoldCo, he now works at the intersection of testing, treatment, and education for a condition that affects an estimated one in four people genetically, making him one of the most credible voices in the country on this topic. What's Discussed: (3:43) The high school case that revealed how multi-system illness can hide behind symptoms doctors are trained to treat separately. (6:55) The difference between a mold allergy and a full immune system malfunction, and why they are not the same thing. (10:29) What determines whether one person's body can shut off inflammation and another person can't. (12:34) The ten lab markers that can actually confirm what's happening, and why most physicians have never ordered them. (17:41) Why a popular at-home mold test might be telling you less than you think. (21:41) How to check your own home for the signs most people walk right past. (35:17) The real number of people walking around with this genetic predisposition, and why it's higher than almost anyone expects. If symptoms have stuck around well after leaving a mold-exposed space, this conversation breaks down why, and what's actually keeping the body in that state long after the exposure ended. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Next Health: Your destination for cutting-edge health optimization—from IV therapy to hormone balancing. Explore at next-health.com/ Function Health: Learn more and join using my link. Visit functionhealth.com/drshah and use gift code DRSHAH25 for a $25 credit toward your membership. Learn More About Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn More About Dr. Scott McMahon: Website: scottmcmahon.doctor Instagram: @drscottmcmahon LinkedIn: dr-scott-mcmahon Latest book: The Art and Science of CIRS Medicine

  • July 2 · 1 hr 14 min

    178. Dr. Matt Kaeberlein: The Science, Risk, and Hype Behind Today's Longevity Trends

    If you care about longevity, you have probably seen the same pattern over and over again. A new peptide, supplement, biological age test, off-label drug, or protocol starts gaining attention, and suddenly it sounds like the missing piece everyone should be using. The hard part is not wanting to be proactive. The hard part is knowing which claims have real evidence behind them, which ones are still early signals, and which ones may carry risks no one is measuring carefully enough. In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Matt Kaeberlein to talk about how to think about longevity when the answer is rarely a simple yes or no. This conversation helps separate excitement from certainty, and shows why the real question is not only whether something might work, but whether the evidence, safety data, product quality, and risk-reward equation are strong enough to act on. Dr. Matt Kaeberlein is a scientist in the biology of aging and one of the most respected voices bringing scientific discipline to the longevity conversation. He has been involved with the Interventions Testing Program, which rigorously tests aging interventions in mice, and is one of the leaders behind the Dog Aging Project, a large-scale study looking at aging, health, and longevity in companion dogs. His work sits at the intersection of curiosity and caution, which makes him the right person to talk about what is promising, what is overhyped, and what still needs better evidence. What's Discussed: (03:24) Why longevity marketing can move faster than the science. (06:31) The risk-reward question most people skip before trying a new therapy. (09:39) Why years of peptide use does not automatically mean safety is proven. (20:00) The "research use only" peptide problem and why product quality matters. (34:51) How the Interventions Testing Program separates stronger longevity signals from noise. (38:39) Why rapamycin changed the field, and why some popular interventions failed to replicate. (58:43) What the Dog Aging Project may teach us about rapamycin, healthspan, and human aging. Listen to this episode of Extend to understand how to evaluate longevity claims with more clarity. You will hear what deserves excitement, what deserves caution, and what to ask before turning the next promising intervention into your personal health protocol. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Timeline: Timeline powered by Mitopure just dropped the price. Check it out at timeline.com/drshah and get an additional 20% off your first month with code DRSHAH. IM8: Try IM8 today with a 30-day money back guarantee. You can get 10% off your first order with code DRSHAH at im8health.com/discount/DRSHAH. Learn More About Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn More About Dr. Matt Kaeberlein & the Dog Aging Project: Website: dogagingproject.org/ Instagram: @mkaeberlein

  • June 30 · 41 min

    177. Dr. Jila Senemar: The Hormone Conversation Women Should Have Before Menopause

    A lot of women are taught to think about hormones only when something becomes impossible to ignore. Painful periods. Birth control decisions. Fertility anxiety. Postpartum changes. Perimenopause symptoms. Menopause. But what if those are not separate conversations? What if the body has been giving clues for years before the symptoms become loud enough to finally get attention? In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Jila Senemar to look at women's hormone health through a much wider lens. We talk about why the ovary should not be seen only as a reproductive organ, why the hormone conversation needs to start before menopause, and what women may be missing when birth control, AMH, perimenopause, and hormone replacement are treated like separate decisions instead of one connected health story. Dr. Jila Senemar is an OB-GYN and women's health physician who has spent years caring for women through cycle symptoms, contraception decisions, fertility questions, perimenopause, menopause, and hormone therapy. Her work brings together conventional women's health with a more proactive view of ovarian health, hormone longevity, gut health, bone health, and the full journey women move through over time. What's Discussed: (1:02:06) Why women's hormone health should be discussed before menopause. (1:15:55) How AMH can become a women's health marker before fertility panic begins. (1:20:50) Why birth control should not be the automatic answer for every cycle issue. (1:22:07) What changed with lower-dose birth control options. (1:24:55) How hormonal and non-hormonal IUDs fit into the conversation. (1:27:36) Why perimenopause may need a different hormone strategy than standard birth control. (1:31:34) Why hormone therapy should not ignore bone health, gut health, inflammation, and estrogen metabolism. Listen to this episode of Extend to understand why women's hormones should not be treated like separate stages, and why the earlier clues from the ovary, cycle, gut, bones, and symptoms may matter more than most women are told. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Next Health: Your destination for cutting-edge health optimization, from IV therapy to hormone balancing. Explore at next-health.com/ Pendulum: You can go to pendulumlife.com and use my code EXTEND for 20% off your first membership order. Learn More About Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn More About Dr. Jila Senemar: Website: jilamd.com/ Instagram: @drjilasenemar

  • June 25 · 57 min

    176. Dr. Labib Ghulmiyyah: What Fertility Can Reveal About Your Long-Term Health

    When a couple is trying to get pregnant and it is not happening, the conversation can become very intense very quickly. Suddenly, you are hearing about IVF, egg freezing, AMH, sperm count, hormones, age, cost, and timing. But before the conversation jumps straight to the next procedure or the next number to panic over, there may be a deeper question worth asking: What is fertility trying to tell us about the health of the mother, the father, and the future child? In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Dr. Labib Ghulmiyyah to talk about fertility and pregnancy through a much bigger lens. This conversation looks at infertility not as a failure, but as information. It helps explain why fertility struggles, sperm health, ovarian reserve, placental function, and pregnancy complications can all give clues about metabolic health, inflammation, cardiovascular health, hormones, sleep, stress, toxins, and long-term risk. Dr. Labib Ghulmiyyah is an OB-GYN and residency director at Broward Health who brings together reproductive medicine, pregnancy care, longevity, and functional health. That combination matters because fertility is often treated like a separate category, when in reality, it is connected to the whole body. His approach helps couples think beyond "How do we get pregnant?" and start asking what their reproductive health may be revealing before, during, and after pregnancy. What's Discussed: (02:30) Why health optimization should happen before or alongside IVF. (04:55) How long couples may need to optimize health before fertility treatment. (07:17) Why the placenta may be one of the most overlooked biomarkers in pregnancy. (10:40) Why pregnancy complications should be debriefed after delivery. (18:40) Why the father's health matters far more than sperm count. (26:15) How testosterone therapy can affect sperm production. (41:29) Why low AMH does not automatically mean you cannot get pregnant. Listen to this episode of Extend to understand why fertility is not only about having a baby. It may be one of the earliest windows into your health, your partner's health, and the health of the next generation. Thank You to Our Sponsor: FunctionHealth: Learn more and join using my link. Visit functionhealth.com/drshah and use gift code DRSHAH25 for a $25 credit toward your membership. Learn More About Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: @darshanshahmd Learn More About Dr. Labib Ghulmiyyah: Website: drlabib.com Instagram: drlabibghulmiyyah

  • June 23 · 52 min

    175. Justin Roethlingshoefer: Why Your Body Needs More Than "Healthy Habits" To Heal

    Your body is constantly repairing, renewing, and rebuilding itself. Hundreds of millions of cells are replaced every few months, which sounds incredible until you ask the question most people skip: if the body is designed to heal, why do so many people still feel tired, foggy, inflamed, slow to recover, or like something is off even when they are doing so many of the "right" things? In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Justin Roethlingshoefer to bring that question back to the cell. Justin explains why healing is not just about what your body is trying to do, but the environment your cells are trying to do it in. If that environment is missing oxygen, overloaded with toxins, or depleted of nutrients, your body may be creating new cells without giving them the conditions they need to thrive. Justin Roethlingshoefer is the creator of OWN IT, a coaching platform and app built to help people take ownership of their health through HRV, VO2 max, sleep quality, cellular testing, personalized rhythms, and practical behaviour change. His work helps people cut through the noise of the wellness space and understand what their body actually needs at the cellular level, which is what makes him the right person to explain why feeling better may require more than another supplement, device, or protocol. What's Discussed: (03:46) Why your body's ability to repair and renew starts at the cellular level. (07:59) The three things your cells cannot live without. (08:36) Why the environment your new cells enter can affect how well they thrive. (12:33) How VO2 max reflects oxygen efficiency at the cellular level. (25:37) Why sleep quality matters for cellular detoxification. (34:30) Why standard blood work may not explain why you still feel off. (44:24) Why good habits can fall apart inside disordered rhythms. Listen to this episode of Extend to understand why your body may be trying to heal, why it may still feel like something is not working, and what your cells may need before your next supplement, wearable, protocol, or health habit can actually make the difference you are looking for. Free resources: Quality sleep is the most underestimated longevity accelerator. Download this sleep optimization workbook to transform sleep into a powerful longevity practice: https://www.drshah.com/sleep Thank You to Our Sponsor: Next Health Longevity Summit: Head to next-health.com/summit to secure your spot at the first ever Next Health Logevity Summit in Nashville on 9/12. Momentous: Head to livemomentous.com/fiber and use code DRSHAH for up to 35% off your first order. Learn More About Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: @darshanshahmd Learn More About Justin Roethlingshoefer: Website: ownitcoaching.com Holy Health Website: holyhealthbook.com Instagram: @JustinRoeth

  • June 18 · 1 hr 1 min

    174. Dr. Dave Rabin: Why Being Human Feels Harder Than It Should in 2026

    A lot of people are trying to do the right things. They are learning more, tracking their health, working on their stress, trying to be more present, and using the tools they have been told should help. But if the advice is available, the science is clearer than ever, and the tools are right in front of us, why do so many people still feel overwhelmed, burned out, disconnected, or unable to make those changes stick? In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Dr. Dave Rabin to talk about one of the biggest missing pieces in how we understand stress, healing, and what it actually takes to feel better in the modern world. We get into the questions so many people are quietly carrying: why being human feels harder than it should, why knowing what to do does not always mean your body can follow through, and what it may take to finally turn information into something your body can actually use. What's Discussed: (04:28) What Dr. Rabin realized Western medicine left out of his training. (07:01) Why trauma may be understood differently when viewed through the lens of learning. (13:42) What parents need to know about screens, discomfort, and regulation. (21:54) Why stillness is so difficult for many people today. (27:44) How productivity became tied to worth, and what the body loses when recovery is ignored. (33:25) Why emotional wounds can be harder to address when they are invisible. (45:47) Why connection and community may matter more to longevity than many people realize. Next Health Longevity Summit: Head to next-health.com/summit to secure your spot at the first ever Next Health Logevity Summit in Nashville on 9/12. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Timeline: Timeline powered by Mitopure just dropped the price. Check it out at timeline.com/drshah and get an additional 20% off your first month with code DRSHAH. IM8: Try IM8 today with a 30-day money back guarantee. You can get 10% off your first order with code DRSHAH at im8health.com/discount/DRSHAH Learn more about Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn more about Dr. Dave Rabin: Website: drdave.io Instagram: @drdavidrabin The Board of Medicine: boardofmedicine.org The Psychedelic Report podcast: podcast/the-psychedelic-report/ Dr. Rabin's new book: ASimpleGuideToBeingAlive.com

  • June 16 · 59 min

    173. Brian Le Gette: The Hidden Reason Your Body Struggles To Heal

    When your body feels wired, depleted, foggy, inflamed, or slow to recover, the usual instinct is to add something else. Another supplement. Another device. Another protocol. But the body does not respond to tools just because they are available. It responds to the signals it is receiving, and if those signals keep telling the body it is under threat, it will keep prioritizing survival over repair. In this episode of Extend with Dr. Shah, I sit down with Brian Le Gette, the creator of the Ammortal Chamber to talk about it after personally experiencing it and feeling the difference in my body for days afterward. Brian breaks down the technology behind that experience, why it felt so different, and how the chamber works with the body, mind, nervous system, and cells at the same time. We also get into why many of the same principles behind the chamber are not as far out of reach as people may think, and what you can start applying at home if you want to give your body better recovery signals. Brian Le Gette is the creator of the Ammortal Chamber. With a background in industrial design, engineering, entrepreneurship, and health technology, he has spent decades building products and companies before creating a multi-modality experience focused on recovery, nervous system regulation, cellular support, performance, and human vibrancy. What's Discussed: (02:11) What the Ammortal Chamber is and why it works on more than one system in the body. (05:17) The calm, grounded, and energized feeling many people experience after a session. (09:42) The technology working behind the scenes during the chamber experience. (12:30) Why the body's stress state can affect healing, recovery, and performance. (18:00) The simple reset Brian recommends for people who do not have access to the chamber. (21:18) Why HRV may become one of the most important ways to understand nervous system balance. (37:34) The deeper science behind cellular recovery, oxidative stress, and the chamber's approach. Listen now to learn what happened inside the Ammortal Chamber, why the effects lasted beyond the session, and what recovery signals your body may be missing in everyday life. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Momentous: Head to livemomentous.com/fiber and use code DRSHAH for up to 35% off your first order. Learn more about Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn more about Brian Le Gette: Instagram: @brian.legette LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/brian-le-gette

  • June 11 · 50 min

    172. Dr. William Von Hippel: The Connection-Autonomy Paradox: Why More Freedom Can Make Us Feel More Alone

    Modern life tells us that more freedom should make us happier. More independence, more control, more convenience, more space to do life on our own terms. But what if the thing we keep chasing is also the thing quietly pulling us away from what our brain and body still need most: connection. In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Dr. William Von Hippel to talk about the conflict between two of our most basic human motives: connection and autonomy. We get into why connection used to be built into survival, why autonomy used to be rare, and why modern life has flipped that balance in a way that can leave people feeling lonely, empty, or disconnected even when they seem to "have everything." We also talk about why loneliness is not just an emotion, how it can affect the immune system, and how to build connection back into everyday routines without overcomplicating your life. Dr. William Von Hippel is an evolutionary psychologist, researcher at WHOOP, and the author of The Social Paradox and The Social Leap. After three decades as a psychology professor in the United States and Australia, he has published more than 150 academic articles, with work cited over 15,000 times and featured in outlets including The New York Times, The Economist, USA Today, Der Spiegel, and The Australian. What's Discussed: (02:23) What hunter-gatherer life reveals about how humans evolved to survive through connection. (12:34) Why modern life has created evolutionary mismatches our biology has not caught up with. (16:02) The conflict between connection and autonomy, and why both needs matter. (18:39) Why more people are living alone and spending more time disconnected than ever before. (23:08) Why even introverts still need meaningful human connection. (31:23) Why loneliness is not the same as being alone, and why the body can read disconnection as danger. (36:11) How emotions can affect immune function and physical health. (39:34) How to build connection into the things you already do instead of adding more to your schedule. Listen to this episode of Extend to understand why having more freedom does not always create more happiness, and why rebuilding connection into daily life may be one of the most important things you can do for your health, relationships, and sense of meaning. Thank you to our sponsors: Momentous: Head to livemomentous.com/fiber and use code DRSHAH for up to 35% off your first order. IM8: Try IM8 today with a 30-day money back guarantee. You can get 10% off your first order with code DRSHAH at im8health.com/discount/DRSHAH. Learn more about Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn more about Dr. William Von Hippel Website: researchwithimpact.com/

  • June 9 · 59 min

    171. Dr. Kristen Holmes: The Sleep Debt Problem Affecting Your Brain, Mood, and Relationships

    Sleep debt is usually treated like a personal problem. You sleep less, feel tired, and try to catch up later. But Dr. Kristen Holmes explains why that belief is too small. When your body is missing the sleep it actually needs, it can affect your mental control, emotional regulation, leadership, and even how safe the people around you feel in your presence. In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Dr. Kristen Holmes to talk about recovery in a way that goes far beyond "just sleep more." We get into why sleep debt is the gap between what your body needs and what you actually got, why a good night of sleep starts the moment you wake up, and how morning light, sleep consistency, bright days, dark nights, meal timing, stress reframing, breathwork, and outdoor time all shape how well your body restores. Dr. Kristen Holmes is a human performance and recovery expert at WHOOP and the author of Aligned: The Data-driven Guide to Performance, Recovery, and Human Potential. Her work connects physiology and psychology to help people understand how sleep, circadian rhythm, stress, movement, mindset, and nervous system regulation influence performance, health, leadership, and long-term resilience. What's Discussed: (02:27) Why sleep debt is not just about how many hours you missed. (03:45) How 45 minutes of sleep debt can reduce mental control the next day. (05:31) Why your sleep debt can affect how safe people feel around you. (08:08) What sleep quality really means beyond just being asleep. (10:33) Why better sleep starts the moment you wake up. (14:10) How morning light helps set the clocks in your body. (19:16) Why melatonin matters for more than falling asleep. (22:01) How bright days, dark nights, breathing, and outdoor time support recovery. Listen to this episode of Extend to understand why recovery is not just something you do at night, and how fixing sleep debt can help you think clearer, regulate better, lead better, and show up more fully for the people around you. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Momentous: Head to livemomentous.com/fiber and use code DRSHAH for up to 35% off your first order. IM8: Try IM8 today with a 30-day money back guarantee. You can get 10% off your first order with code DRSHAH at im8health.com/discount/DRSHAH Learn more about Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn more about Dr. Kristen Holmes Instagram: @drkristenholmes LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kristen-holmes

  • June 4 · 57 min

    170. Dr. Sonya Jensen: The Hormone-Trauma Connection: Why Midlife Symptoms Are Not Just Physical

    Hormone symptoms are usually treated like a problem with levels. Progesterone is low. Estrogen is shifting. Cortisol is high. Testosterone is dropping. So the conversation often becomes about what to replace, what to supplement, or what protocol to follow. But there is a deeper layer that rarely gets brought into the room: the body is also responding to the stress, grief, resentment, trauma, people-pleasing, perfectionism, and survival patterns it has been carrying for years. In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Dr. Sonya Jensen to talk about the connection between mental health and hormonal health. We get into why anxiety can suddenly feel louder in perimenopause, why rage may be years of suppressed resentment asking to be expressed, why grief is not always about losing a person, and why some women still feel stuck even after doing the nutrition, supplements, herbs, or hormone therapy. The aha moment here is that hormones may not be creating a brand-new problem. They may be revealing what the body has been trying to manage in silence. Dr. Sonya Jensen is a naturopathic physician, international speaker, author of Heal Your Hormones, Reclaim Yourself, and founder of the HER Method and HER Community. Her work brings together naturopathic medicine, hormone therapy, herbs, nutrition, trauma-informed healing, ancestral healing, longevity medicine, and nervous system support to help women understand the emotional and generational patterns behind hormonal imbalance. What's Discussed: (02:11) Why hormone imbalance is not only a chemistry issue. (03:11) Why women can still feel stuck after doing "all the right things." (05:45) How shifting hormones can reveal emotions that were easier to manage before. (06:32) Why anxiety can become the symptom women finally cannot ignore. (09:09) How stress can show up as isolation, tension, gut issues, and insomnia. (13:03) Why perimenopause rage may be suppressed resentment coming up. (15:07) How grief in midlife can be tied to identity, motherhood, aging, and transition. (30:32) Why hormone therapy can help, but it cannot replace the deeper emotional work. Listen to this episode of Extend to understand how hormones, stress, trauma, grief, and the nervous system are connected, and why healing may require looking at the patterns the body has been holding long before symptoms showed up. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Function Health: Learn more and join using my link. Visit functionhealth.com/drshah and use gift code DRSHAH25 for a $25 credit toward your membership. Learn more about Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn more about Dr. Sonya Jensen: Book - Heal Your Hormones, Reclaim Yourself: healyourhormonesbook.com Website: drsonyajensen.com Instagram: @drsonyajensen

  • June 2 · 46 min

    169. Natalie Lefevre: How to Find the Toxins Blocking Your Body's Ability to Heal

    You can do the supplements, the IVs, the sauna, the clean eating, and the wellness routine, but if your body is still being exposed to toxins every day, you may be cleaning up a mess while the tap is still running. That is what makes toxic load so frustrating. It can hide in your water, food, air, dental work, travel habits, mold exposure, heavy metals, PFAS, pesticides, microplastics, and even the products you use daily, while standard labs never show the full picture. In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Natalie Lefevre to talk about how to outsmart toxins by testing first, removing what is actually there, and choosing the right protocol instead of guessing your way through another cleanse. We get into the rare labs and diagnostics that can reveal hidden toxic load, why not all toxin tests or blood cleanse methods work the same way, how biological dentistry can uncover inflammation that regular dental X-rays miss, and why detox has to become a lifestyle if you want your body to actually heal instead of constantly cleaning up the same exposures. Natalie Lefevre is a Vitality Expert, Detox Architect, and the visionary behind Purify, the first next-generation full-body blood cleanse protocol focused on identifying and removing toxins at the root. After recovering from a near-fatal health crisis linked to environmental toxin exposure, she dedicated her work to advanced rare labs, heavy metals, blood filtration methods, inflammation pathways, cellular function, and precision-based detox strategies, making her one of the most forward-thinking voices in root-cause toxin testing and detoxification. What's Discussed: (01:59) How standard medicine missed Natalie's near-fatal toxic exposure. (05:02) Why we are living in the "red zone," not the blue zone. (06:30) The hidden toxins most people never test for. (11:58) How old dental work can quietly drive inflammation. (15:19) Why your genetics can change how your body handles toxins. (17:41) The detox mistake people make with saunas and binders. (30:43) Why not all blood cleanse protocols remove the same toxins. Thank You to Our Sponsors: IM8: Try IM8 today with a 30-day money back guarantee. You can get 10% off your first order with code DRSHAH at im8health.com/discount/DRSHAH. Timeline: Timeline powered by Mitopure just dropped the price. Check it out at timeline.com/drshah and get an additional 20% off your first month with code DRSHAH. Learn more about Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn more about Natalie Lefevre: Instagram: @island_natalie Website: natalielefevre.com/

  • May 28 · 55 min

    168. Peter Crone: Why You Can't Access True Vitality Until You Free Your Mind

    When we talk about health, longevity, and performance, the conversation often starts with the body. We look at biomarkers, sleep, nutrition, exercise, recovery, and protocols, hoping that if we get enough of the physical pieces right, we will finally feel better, stronger, and more alive. Yet there is another layer that can quietly shape everything from the way we handle stress to the way we heal, lead, love, perform, and experience our own potential. In this episode of Extend, I sit down with Peter Crone to explore why true vitality is not only about what is happening in the body, but also about the subconscious stories shaping the mind. We get into the patterns of inadequacy, insecurity, and scarcity, how they can keep the nervous system in survival, why health is not simply the absence of disease, and how the narratives we live inside can affect our physiology, relationships, performance, and ability to feel free. This conversation matters because it challenges the idea that physical optimization alone is enough when the mind is still operating from old constraints. Peter Crone is a renowned thought leader in human awakening and potential who helps people dissolve the subconscious constraints shaping their behaviour, health, relationships, and performance. As a transformation coach, writer, speaker, and Ayurvedic practitioner, he has become one of the most trusted voices helping elite athletes, CEOs, and people from all walks of life move beyond survival patterns and access greater freedom, clarity, and ease. What's Discussed: (01:42) How Peter's early life shaped his understanding of survival, isolation, and belonging. (03:53) Why true vitality starts with freeing the mind. (07:28) The three patterns that keep people in survival: inadequacy, insecurity, and scarcity. (09:40) Why modern healthcare often focuses on disease management instead of true health. (10:50) Why health is not simply the absence of disease. (14:15) How unconscious stories can quietly drive your life. (18:44) Why some people do not want life to end, but want an old story to end. (46:09) Why self-improvement can still keep people inside the same limited identity. Listen now and learn why the story you keep living in may be one of the biggest factors shaping your health, vitality, relationships, and what you believe is possible for your life. Thank You to Our Sponsors: Function Health: Learn more and join using my link. Visit functionhealth.com/drshah and use gift code DRSHAH25 for a $25 credit toward your membership. Learn more about Dr. Darshan Shah: Website: drshah.com Clinic: next-health.com Instagram: darshanshahmd Learn more about Peter Crone: Website: petercrone.com Linktree: linktr.ee/petercrone