Brad Marshall

Is BCAA-Catabolism The Mechanism Of MCT Oil?

MCT oil has long been associated with weight loss. This is especially true of the 8 carbon MCT, caprylic acid. I have yet to see any reasonably definitive reason for why this might be. I have recently been talking about restriction of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs: valine, leucine and especially isoleucine) for weight loss. Obese …

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Human Metabolic Syndrome Resembles Mammalian Torpor (New Evidence)

I’ve argued that obesity, diabetes and heart disease are the human expression of mammalian torpor, an altered metabolic state characterized by high levels of desaturase enzymes and high circulating branched chain amino acids (BCAAs): leucine, isoleucine and valine. A torpid mammal prefers to store fat rather than burn it. Two 2023 papers add significant evidence …

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Scale Receipts: 28 days on The Emergence Diet

So I’ve been promising that I would share my weight progress after I had done The Emergence Diet for 28 days. My argument is that weight loss isn’t about calories, it’s about burning glucose efficiently. To burn fat you need NAD+. Burning fat lowers NAD+ availability and burning carbohydrate increases it. “Fat burns in the …

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How I Both Aced and Failed My Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT)

I’ve been consuming what I’m now calling the “induction phase” of the Emergence Diet. In short, this is a very high carbohydrate (>400g/day) diet that is low in fat and which the protein source is mainly collagen based proteins: bone broth, gelatin, headcheese, pork rinds, pigs feet, beef tendon, etc. I am also supplementing with …

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Our Livers SHRED omega 3 PUFA. For better or for worse.

Video Link First, tl;dw Summary Article Below Summary Omega 3 PUFA activate PPAR alpha, which in turn activates peroxisomes. This is what gives PPAR alpha the name Peroxisome Proliferator. Peroxisomes carry out the process of beta-oxidation: breaking down long fat molecules into acetyl-CoA. Acetyl groups are 2 carbon units that are the building blocks of …

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Fat Metabolism in Context: PPAR alpha, Saturated Fat and NAD+

PPAR alpha is a nuclear receptor that is often said to be crucial for fat metabolism.  It increases the activity of enzymes that increase fat flow into mitochondria and increase beta oxidation: fat burning. Having said that, the functions of PPAR alpha are largely redundant with PPAR delta, which is more highly expressed in most …

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Stearic acid as a signalling molecule: SEA. Stearoylethanolamide.

In the latest video I explain the basics of the ethanolamide system.  You may have heard of OEA, an ethanolamide made from oleic acid (olive oil) when you eat.  OEA can lower caloric intake and inflammation. Ethanolamides can be made from any fat.  When made from the omega-6 arachidonic acid they become AEA and trigger …

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List of Branched Chain Amino Acids as Percent of Calories

This is the list of foods sorted by percentage of calories supplied by branched chain amino acids. In general, branched chain amino acids are proportional to protein as a percent of calories. Most protein is between 16-23% BCAAs, and this is the same for plant foods and animal foods. BCAAs are of interest because they …

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The Emergence Diet : Get Out of Torpor!

In this video I ask how mammals get out of torpor. Grizzly bears are the most appropriate model organism: monogastric, large-bodied, omnivorous hibernators. We also happen to have very detailed knowledge about their diet and it may not be what you think. Before that, I look at the argument that you really ARE in torpor, …

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Wapato: The human history of starchy tubers

I made this video to push back on the idea that starchy tubers are “fallback foods” for humans. I would argue that the evidence that we have suggests that starchy tubers have been fundamental to human development. I’d also argue that we should rethink paleolithic peoples role in the environment. There is significant evidence that …

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Turnips green, buttermilk and potatoes. Obesity Explained episodes 8 and 9.

Obesity explained episoeds 8 and 9 are out. They are based on a trio of really great papers that have come out since 2018. Two are in the journal Nature and one is in PNAS, but remarkably all three are publicly available. The papers are (Kim, 2018), (Kim, 2020) and (Huang, 2022). Kim (2018) shows …

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