THE ED MYLETT SHOW — "Nutritional Expert Reveals Why You Have Cravings and How To Stop Them"

Date: December 13, 2025
Host: Ed Mylett
Guest: Dr. Amy Shah (Physician, nutritional expert, author of I'm So Effing Hungry)
Special Segments:

• Bob Harper (Fitness trainer & author) — Cardiac health and post-heart attack resilience
• Max Lugavere (Science journalist & podcaster) — Processed foods, nutrition science
• Dr. Andrew Huberman (Stanford neuroscientist) — Light, sleep, peak states

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the science of gut health, hormonal balance, food cravings, and practical life strategies to improve mood, energy, and longevity. Host Ed Mylett brings back Dr. Amy Shah to breakdown why cravings happen, how gut and brain health are intertwined, and the real-life steps that transform wellbeing. The episode roams widely—from gender-specific advice on hormones, prebiotics, and psychobiotics, to transformative insights about sleep, exercise, medication, and mindset. Noted experts Bob Harper, Max Lugavere, and Dr. Andrew Huberman also weigh in on health crises, food choices, and the subtle but critical influence of light on mood and health.

Main Themes & Key Insights

Gut Health & Hormones: The Overlooked Connection

• Dr. Amy Shah reveals: There is a strong link between gut bacteria and hormone levels, especially for women.
• Key fact: Transplanting a male's gut flora to a female can shift the woman's testosterone to male ranges—underscoring the power of the microbiome on hormones.
• Women experience more gut discomfort and cravings due to hormonal cycling and societal pressures to ignore their own needs.

Quote:
“Poor gut health is one of the biggest reasons that women feel like their hormones are imbalanced. Maybe their cycles are off, their PMS is exaggerated.”
— Dr. Amy Shah [03:00]

Practical advice:

• Track menstrual cycles.
• Modify stressful activities (e.g., limit HIIT, avoid long fasting) during the late luteal/PMS phase.
• Opt for complex carbs and healthy fats over sugar to stabilize mood and insulin.

The Craving Epidemic: Why and How to Fix It

• Women tend to experience and report more gut issues and food cravings.
• Cravings and mood regulation are directly tied to gut-brain chemistry; better gut health can reduce cravings and improve emotional balance.

Quote:
“When we looked at the cravings research...how much cravings really dictate a woman's life versus a man's. It’s like double.”
— Dr. Amy Shah [07:15]

Probiotics vs. Prebiotics: Building a Healthy Gut

• Probiotics: Fermented foods with live bacteria (yogurt, kimchi, sauerkraut). 4 servings/day = measurable gut health improvements.
• Prebiotics: "Food" for your good bacteria (fiber: psyllium husk, polyphenols in plants).
• Fiber’s magic: Expands in the gut, signals fullness via stretch receptors, and boosts hormones like leptin for appetite control.

Quote:
“We have stretch receptors. And when our stretch receptors get activated, leptin...gets sent to the brain.”
— Dr. Amy Shah [09:50]

Fecal Transplants & Psychobiotics: The Wild, Promising Frontier

• Pills made from top athletes’ gut bacteria are being explored (not FDA-approved for broad use yet).
• Transplanting gut microbes can potentially transfer mood, hormone profiles, and mental health conditions.
• Psychobiotics—emerging field where gut bacteria are engineered to affect mood, motivation, even alleviate depression, schizophrenia, or autism.

Quote:
“Psychobiotics is the next phase of mental health. Bacteria can make dopamine...serotonin. You can transplant...and change their entire mental state.”
— Dr. Amy Shah [15:05]

Lifestyle Levers: Food, Exercise, Sunlight, and Mindset

• Exercise—especially outdoors—is the most potent “probiotic” for the gut, boosting anti-inflammatory compounds (butyrate) that affect mood and energy.
• Sleep, sunlight exposure, and reducing blue light at night massively impact the gut-brain axis and overall health.
• Medications (antibiotics, acid reducers) can rapidly disrupt gut flora; positive dietary change can yield visible microbiome shifts in just 3 days.
• Mindset and social context matter: happiness and positivity measurably alter gut bacteria composition.

Quote:
“Your brain has so much power. What you think can change your gut bacteria.”
— Dr. Amy Shah [35:35]

Chrononutrition & Sleep: When Matters as Much as What

• Circadian eating (“chrono nutrition”): Timing meals and meds with your body’s internal clocks for maximal health and energy.
• Blue light in the evening (devices/screens) suppresses melatonin production, disrupts sleep, and raises nighttime cortisol.
• Practical sleep hygiene: Avoid screens before bed/waking, keep the bedroom cool and dark, avoid stressful interactions at night.

Quote:
“One bout of blue light delays your melatonin by 90 minutes...So don’t check your phone at 2 a.m.”
— Dr. Amy Shah [28:35]

Supplementary Highlights

Bob Harper’s Story: Health, Identity & Surviving Cardiac Arrest

Timestamps: [49:00 – 66:20approx]

• Despite being fit and healthy, Bob suffered a cardiac arrest unexpectedly. Genetic factors and overlooked markers (like Lipoprotein A, not standard cholesterol) were key.
• Recovery included physical AND emotional adaptation: letting go of the “fitness guy” identity and embracing new forms of movement, self-compassion, and mental presence.

Quote:
“I had to find a completely new normal...I realized, you know what? I can't do everything. I want to continue to learn as we move into this life.”
— Bob Harper [62:10]

Max Lugavere: The Ultra-Processed Food Trap

Timestamps: [67:24 – 80:48approx]

• Ultra-processed foods (not merely cooking/processing, but heavily reformulated products) drive overconsumption, obesity, and nutrient deficiency.
• Ingredient red-flags: refined grains, seed oils.
• Practical: Whole, minimally-processed foods yield more satiety and less calorie absorption (i.e., less easy to overeat vs. processed foods).
• Broccoli sprouts and sulfur-rich foods boost glutathione, the body’s “master antioxidant.”

Quote:
“We’re overfed and undernourished...That explains the obesity epidemic.”
— Max Lugavere [71:46]

Dr. Andrew Huberman: Light, Mood, Dopamine, and Sleep

Timestamps: [81:48 – 86:57approx]

• Light exposure at the right times governs not just sleep, but brain chemistry and metabolic health.
• Bright light exposure first hour after waking = healthy cortisol bump, sets melatonin timer.
• Bright lights/blue lights 11pm-4am = suppressed dopamine & mood for days; linked to metabolic, mental disorders.
• Go outside daily, especially in the morning; dim lights in the evening.

Quote:
“If you're up in the middle of the night and looking at lights...you’re going to suppress your dopamine levels and it can lead to bad places.”
— Dr. Andrew Huberman [82:40]

Actionable Takeaways

• Track your gut: Use food/mood journals, especially if you have hormonal fluctuations.
• Eat for your bugs: 4 servings/day of fermented food, more complex fiber, minimize ultra-processed foods.
• Sync with your cycle (women): Adjust workouts, rest, and nutrition to hormonal shifts.
• Exercise as medicine: Even 20 minutes of brisk walking outdoors has outsized benefits.
• Prioritize sleep hygiene: Ditch screens at night, keep the room cool/dark, address stress before bed.
• Advocate for yourself: Seek out expanded blood testing (lipoproteins, genetic risk factors).
• Mindset matters: Seek positivity and community—your microbiome listens.

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• On Gut-Hormone Link:
  “The gut bacteria can make hormones, can help you balance. It is your best way to keep your hormone levels stable as you get older.”
  — Dr. Amy Shah [02:50]

• On Gender and Cravings:
  "When we looked at the cravings research...It's markedly different. How much cravings really dictate a woman's life versus a man's. It’s like double."
  — Dr. Amy Shah [07:15]

• On Psychobiotics:
  "Psychobiotics is the next phase of mental health...It can change your entire mental state."
  — Dr. Amy Shah [15:10]

• On Quick Microbiome Change:
  “Gut bacteria starts to change in three days.”
  — Dr. Amy Shah [22:19]

• On Blue Light and Sleep:
  “One bout of blue light delays your melatonin by 90 minutes.”
  — Dr. Amy Shah [28:38]

• On Mindset and Gut Health:
  “What you think can change your gut bacteria.”
  — Dr. Amy Shah [35:41]

• On Ultra-Processed Foods:
  “That ultra processed food diet, which by the way, today is how most people are eating most of the time, 60% of the calories that we consume. That right there explains the obesity epidemic.”
  — Max Lugavere [71:42]

• On Light and Dopamine:
  “If you're up in the middle of the night and looking at lights...you’re going to suppress your dopamine levels and it can lead to bad places.”
  — Dr. Andrew Huberman [82:40]

Episode Toolbox: “Dr. Amy Shah’s Daily Gut Health Formula”

• Probiotic foods: 4 servings/day (yogurt, kimchi, etc.)
• Prebiotic fiber: E.g., psyllium husk, beans, leafy greens
• Complex carbs & good fats: Replace sugar with sweet potato, beans, avocado
• Movement: At least one sunny, brisk walk/day
• Sleep ritual: Dark, cool, tech-free zone before bed
• Positive connection: Share meals, laughter, gratitude — it shapes your bugs