Nutrition FAQs

How can I lose weight?

Excellent question and one that I cover in my recent live presentation, where I offer an overview of the key ingredients for weight loss, the topic of my book How Not to Diet. To whet your appetite, here are some of the...

What is a healthy way to gain weight?

Question: I am underweight and would like to gain weight in a healthy way.  Do you have any recommendations?  Answer:As explained in my video Eating More to Weigh Less, the key to healthy longterm weight loss is understanding calorie density and eating low calorie-dense...

What are some options for trainings on Lifestyle Medicine?

I am a medical student and would like to obtain more training in nutrition and lifestyle medicine. Are there any residencies for Lifestyle Medicine?  If not, what are some other training opportunities that can I pursue?   Answer: Thank you for sending...

Do nuts and seed have a high acid load that could be bad for the kidneys?

Thank you for this informative video - have been cutting down on high oxalate foods in attempt to prevent another stone, but don't want to cut out all those delicious dark leafys. Any idea where nuts/seeds/legumes fall along the LAKE scale? ashelton / Originally...

Is it true that antioxidants can actually cause cancer?

Hi Dr. Greger, appreciate all your work. There's been a lot of bad news a about antioxidants recently. Should people be concerned about how much they ingest?  Ren / Originally posted in Acai to Zucchini: antioxidant food rankings Answer: Good question! There has been a buzz around...

What are the hazards of oxalates?

CC / Originally posted in How to Prevent Kidney Stones with Diet You mention oxalates in other videos. But a vegan friend of mine has found that many of the veggies that are great sources of calcium are also high in oxalates....

What is the latest verdict on the proclaimed health benefits of coconut oil?

Coconut oil has its advocates. It can be purchased in health food shops and often appears as an ingredient in vegetarian and vegan recipes. However, I have my doubts regarding its proclaimed benefits. I would appreciate your opinion, is it good or...

Have you seen the very recent web blitz on heavy metals (particularly thallium) in cruciferous vegetables (particularly kale)?

jack p/ Originally posted in Diverticulosis: When Our Most Common Gut Disorder Hardly Existed Answer: A new Care2 post has surfaced about thallium poisoning and kale. A great article in VOX lays out the background. The claims that kale has high loads of...

What does the research say about dietary interventions on women with PCOS?

Is there anything that can lower DHEA? Also, is there any information about the cause of PCOS? I keep hearing it is Insulin Resistance, but my Insulin/Glucose were only midly resistant, but my DHEA is three times too high. I don't see...

Do algae-based omega-3 supplements contain beta-N-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA) that has been found in blue-green algae?

I am taking an algae supplement for omega-3 (per Dr. Greger's advice a couple months ago) - should I stop since he said blue green algae was a source? How can I find out the BMAA risk?  Alexandra / Originally posted in Diet and...