Peter Attia MD

413 ‒ The neuroscience of emotion: challenging conventional theories of emotion and much more

22K views · 4d ago · 2:36:38

Guest: Dr. Lisa Feldman Barrett

In this episode, Peter sits down with Dr. Lisa Feldman Barrett, a psychologist, neuroscientist, author, and distinguished professor at Northeastern University whose research challenges many of the conventional assumptions about emotions and how the brain works. Lisa is best known for her theory of constructed emotion, which challenges the idea that emotions such as fear, anger, and sadness are hardwired responses with universal biological signatures.

Topics: The difficulty of defining emotions and the brain’s role in regulating the body · Consciousness, interoception, and the limits of subjective experience · Defining emotion: fear and anger · The brain as a predictive system rather than a reactive one · Baseball as an example of the brain’s predictive nature · How the human brain differs from that of other animals

412 ‒ The evolving science of cancer: emerging approaches to prevention and early detection, & more

44K views · 1w ago · 2:04:54

In this episode, Peter welcomes back Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee, a physician, oncologist, researcher, and the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies. Fifteen years after the book was first published, Sid released an updated edition. This conversation examines what has changed in our understanding of cancer—not only in how we treat it, but in how we think about its causes, prevention, detection, and biology.

Topics: The contributions of genetic risk, bad luck, and inflammation to cancer · The role of metabolism and hyperinsulinemia in cancer · Osteoarthritis: the role of inflammation and regenerative stem cells · How CAR T cell therapy works and why solid tumors are harder to treat · Targeting KRAS in pancreatic cancer · The rise of colorectal cancer in younger adults

Strong convictions, loosely held: how Peter’s views have changed (AMA 90 sneak peek)

25K views · 2w ago · 17:56

In this “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) episode, Peter looks back on 400 episodes of The Drive with another installment of “strong convictions, loosely held,” revisiting some of the positions he has taken over more than eight years of the podcast. He explains why changing one’s mind in response to new evidence, conversations with experts, and clinical experience is essential for practicing medicine well.

410 ‒ The biology of pregnancy: physiologic adaptation, childbirth, and long-term maternal health

22K views · 3w ago · 2:01:49

Guest: Dr. Kathryn

In this episode, Peter sits down with Dr. Kathryn (Katie) Gray, a physician-scientist, high-risk obstetrician, and maternal-fetal medicine specialist at the University of Washington School of Medicine. View show notes here

Topics: Early hormonal changes, prenatal nutrition, and neural tube defects · Fetal development and the physiology of gestational diabetes · Diagnosing and treating gestational diabetes · Preeclampsia: diagnosis, biology, acute risk, and how it’s managed · What pregnancy reveals about long-term cardiometabolic health · Cesarean delivery, breech presentation, and stillbirth

409 ‒ Inside modern drug development: the science, economics, and regulatory hurdles

27K views · 1mo ago · 2:35:05

Lloyd B. Klickstein is a physician-scientist who has spent more than 20 years at the intersection of drug discovery, healthy aging, and preventive medicine. Drawing on his experience in academic medicine, translational research, and biotechnology, Lloyd walks through the full arc of modern drug development. He explains how scientists identify an unmet medical need and decide which diseases and therapeutic targets are worth pursuing.

Topics: Lloyd’s path from academic medicine to translational drug development · Drug modalities, patents, and the economics of innovation · Toxicology, capital allocation, and the path to an IND · IND requirements, GMP manufacturing, and gray market peptides · Phase 1 dosing, pharmacodynamics, and global trial strategy · Phase 2 lessons on muscle mass, function, and nutrition

Thyroid health: interpreting symptoms, diagnosing & treating dysfunction (AMA 89 sneak peek)

27K views · 1mo ago · 15:36

In this "Ask Me Anything" (AMA) episode, Peter takes a deep dive into thyroid health and explains why diagnosing and managing thyroid dysfunction is unusually complex. He begins with the basic biology of the thyroid gland and three commonly measured hormones—free T4, free T3, and TSH. He explains how T4 is converted to the active hormone T3 and the important functions T3 performs throughout the body.

Topics: Why thyroid management is unusually complex and what the thyroid does

407 ‒ Preventing cardiovascular and Alzheimer’s disease: lowering LDL early, APOE4, and more

69K views · 1mo ago · 2:19:16

Michael Davidson is a world-renowned cardiologist, lipidologist, and the founding CEO of NewAmsterdam Pharma. He begins this episode by sharing how his family history shaped his interest in lipidology and primary prevention. He explains why prevention should focus on causal drivers of disease rather than near-term risk and examines the causal relationship between LDL and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

Topics: Michael’s path to lipidology, and his passion for primary prevention · Reframing prevention around causal drivers rather than time horizon · The causality of LDL in cardiovascular disease

Why healthspan is a crucial component of longevity | Peter Attia, M.D.

12K views · 1mo ago · 3:06

This clip is from episode # 311 of The Drive which was released on 7/29/24. In the full episode, we cover The evolution of medicine from medicine 1.0 to 2.0, and the emergence of medicine 3.0 The 5 components of the longevity toolkit Peter’s framework for exercise—The Centenarian Decathlon Drugs and supplements: Peter’s framework for thinking about drugs and supplements as tools for enhancing longevity Much more

Blood pressure: how to measure, manage, and treat high blood pressure (AMA #48 rebroadcast)

40K views · 1mo ago · 1:16:50

In this “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) episode, Peter delves into the critical subject of blood pressure, which is one of the three primary causes of atherosclerosis, along with high apoB and smoking. He begins by unraveling the nature of high blood pressure, its prevalence, and why it often goes undiagnosed. Peter describes in detail the proper way to accurately measure blood pressure and what determines a diagnosis.

Topics: Blood pressure and other risk factors for cardiovascular disease · The prevalence of high blood pressure—a hidden epidemic? · Low blood pressure: symptoms and consequences · How to properly measure blood pressure · Primary hypertension vs. secondary hypertension: what to look for · Lifestyle factors impacting blood pressure: weight loss, exercise, and sodium

406 ‒ Migraine, cluster headache, and tension headache: symptoms, causes, prevention, and treatment

46K views · 2mo ago · 2:09:11

Brian Grosberg is a world-renowned headache specialist who joins Peter to provide a master class on the diagnosis and treatment of headache disorders. In this episode, Brian explains the distinction between primary and secondary headaches and breaks down the defining features of the "big three" primary headache types (migraine, cluster, and tension headache)—highlighting how often they are misdiagnosed and how they are treated.

Topics: Brian's interest in headaches and how Peter met Brian · Genetic susceptibility to migraine and the role of hormones · Tension headaches: symptoms, causes, and prevalence · Lifestyle interventions to prevent headaches · Pharmacological treatments to prevent headaches · Use of calcium channel blockers and Botox to treat cluster headache and migraine

Metabolic liver health: how to assess risk, catch dysfunction early, and more (AMA 88 sneak peek)

24K views · 2mo ago · 38:38

In this "Ask Me Anything" (AMA) episode, Peter takes a deep dive into the liver and its central role in metabolic health. He explains why the liver can serve as a "canary in the coal mine" for metabolic dysfunction and explores how insulin resistance, visceral fat, alcohol consumption, genetics, and hormones contribute to liver disease, along with how increasing muscle mass can benefit liver health.

Topics: The relationship between the liver and blood sugar control · A framework for understanding how metabolic disease affects the liver · Chronic caloric surplus and insulin resistance as drivers of liver disease · How visceral fat affects liver health

404 ‒ Mental health beyond neurotransmitters: hormones in psychiatry, psychedelic therapies, & more

19K views · 2mo ago · 2:19:21

Guest: Dr. Linus Abrams

Peter Attia is the founder of Early Medical, a medical practice that applies the principles of Medicine 3.0 to patients with the goal of lengthening their lifespan and simultaneously improving their healthspan. Learn more

Topics: A short primer on the different classes of drugs used in psychiatry · Evaluation of a patient with bipolar disorder · An evolutionary perspective on depression · Changes in the modern world triggering mental health problems · An evolutionary perspective on insomnia · Peter's window analogy to understand distress tolerance and irritability

403 ‒ Peptides: separating scientific promise from marketing hype

43K views · 2mo ago · 50:17

Peter Attia is the founder of Early Medical, a medical practice that applies the principles of Medicine 3.0 to patients with the goal of lengthening their lifespan and simultaneously improving their healthspan. Learn more

Topics: What peptides are and why they must be evaluated individually · A five-question framework for evaluating peptides and other drugs · A three-tier system for classifying the scientific evidence behind peptides · Evaluating BPC-157: unclear mechanisms, absent human evidence, and unknown risks · Why BPC-157’s expanding claims do not indicate a broad mechanism · CJC-1295: biological activity versus meaningful clinical benefit

402 ‒ NMR blood analysis: how mortality risk and more can be assessed from a single blood sample

21K views · 2mo ago · 2:27:11

In this episode, Jim Otvos, Ph.D., recounts the unlikely story of transforming a flawed cancer test into a new way of measuring lipoproteins, explains what standard cholesterol tests can miss and why LDL-P and apoB can inform treatment decisions beyond LDL cholesterol alone, and dispels the misconception that large, “fluffy” LDL particles are benign.

Topics: How NMR spectroscopy measures lipoprotein particle size and concentration · What MVX can tell us about longevity and mortality

Environmental pollution and longevity: air pollution, noise, light, EMFs, & more (AMA 87 sneak peek)

8.8K views · 3mo ago · 19:50

In this “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) episode, Peter explores the evidence behind environmental pollution and its impact on long-term health, separating well-supported risks from less substantiated claims while providing a practical framework for deciding which exposures deserve attention.

Topics: Defining environmental pollution and its role in longevity

399 - The evolution of Alzheimer's disease and dementia care | Gayatri Devi, M.D.

29K views · 3mo ago · 1:58:43

Gayatri Devi is a nationally recognized neurologist specializing in memory disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. In this episode, Gayatri explains how to think about dementia as a spectrum—including Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, and mixed presentations—while exploring the evolving biology of amyloid, tau, and neuroinflammation and why brain pathology does not always correlate with symptoms.

Topics: Two patient examples of exceptional responses to anti-amyloid therapy · Vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, and the overlap with Alzheimer's disease · Risk factors for Lewy body dementia and what remains unknown