How Different Diets Impact Your Health | Dr. Christopher Gardner

Andrew Huberman

May 12, 2025

Episode description

My guest is Dr. Christopher Gardner, Ph.D., professor of medicine and director of nutrition studies at Stanford. He is known for his pioneering research on the impact of dietary interventions on weight loss and health.

We compare ketogenic, vegetarian, vegan and omnivorous diets—and why there is no one-size-fits-all approach. All agree, however, that eliminating or dramatically reducing processed foods is best for health.

We discuss the protein needs controversy; plant vs. animal proteins; the importance of fiber and low-sugar fermented foods for gut health and inflammation; and how diet affects gene expression. We also review food allergies—including gluten, wheat, dairy and soy—as well as raw dairy.

The episode offers data-supported advice for healthier eating.

Read the episode show notes: https://go.hubermanlab.com/S64A31j

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*Dr. Christopher Gardner*
Stanford academic profile: https://med.stanford.edu/profiles/christopher-gardner
Stanford Nutrition Studies Research Group: https://med.stanford.edu/nutrition
Publications: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=NIFfgHkAAAAJ
Plant-Based Diet Initiative: https://web.stanford.edu/group/nutrition/cgi-bin/pbdi/wordpress/about
TEDxBoston Talk: https://youtu.be/mhJDUqZ3ZKc?si=kazHHgPb-WpgUXAS
X: https://x.com/gardnerphd
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cgardnerphd
Threads: https://www.threads.com/@cgardnerphd
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-gardner-9a52298
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/cgardnerphd.bsky.social

*Timestamps*
00:00:00 Christopher Gardner
00:02:32 Is there a Best Diet?, Individual Needs, Geography & Diet, Lactose
00:11:02 Sponsors: Eight Sleep & Mateina
00:13:49 Raw Milk, Lactose Intolerance
00:20:33 Wheat Allergies, Gluten Intolerance; Celiac Disease
00:25:12 Processed Foods, Food Dyes, Research Outcomes, NOVA Classification, GRAS
00:33:44 Processed Foods, Economic & Time Considerations, US vs European Products
00:39:59 Food Industry Funding, Investigator Influence, Equipoise, Transparency
00:50:10 Sponsors: AG1 & BetterHelp
00:53:11 Industry Funding, National Institute of Health (NIH)
00:56:41 Whole Food, Plant-Based Diet; Diet Comparison, DIETFITS, A TO Z Study
01:10:24 Nutrition Naming, Omnivore, Meat, Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO)
01:17:14 Transforming American Diet; Taste, Health & Environment
01:22:26 Sponsor: LMNT
01:23:43 Food Preparation, Chefs, Improve School Food
01:29:54 Scalability, Mega-Farms, Small Farm & Farmer Loss
01:34:25 Protein Requirements, Dietary Protein Recommendations, Standard Deviations
01:45:33 Protein & Storage
01:52:12 Plants & Complete Proteins?, Legumes, Bioavailability
02:01:58 Sponsor: Levels
02:03:17 Beyond Meat, Impossible Meat, Ingredients, Sourcing Meat, Salt
02:09:18 Vegan vs Omnivore Diet, Twin Study, Cardiometabolic Markers, Genes, Microbiome
02:20:24 Health Science Communication, DEXA; “Protein Flip” Diet; Food Patterns, Caloric Intake
02:31:29 Microbiome, Inflammation, Fiber, Tool: Low-Sugar, Fermented Food
02:45:32 Acknowledgements
02:47:55 Zero-Cost Support, YouTube, Spotify & Apple Follow & Reviews, Sponsors, YouTube Feedback, Protocols Book, Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter

Disclaimer & Disclosures: https://www.hubermanlab.com/disclaimer

Episode description

Mindsip insights from this episode:

Build gut microbial diversity before increasing fiber intake

People with low baseline gut microbial diversity can have an adverse inflammatory reaction to a sudden high-fiber diet, suggesting diversity should be built up first.

#fiber

#microbiome

Adopt vegan diet to reverse biological age

In a study of identical twins, the twin on a vegan diet for just eight weeks became biologically younger based on epigenetic clocks and had longer telomeres.

#biological-age

#vegan

Debunk the myth: plants contain all amino acids

The belief that plant proteins are 'incomplete' or 'missing' amino acids is a myth; all plants contain all 20 amino acids, just in different proportions than meat.

#nutrition

#protein

Understand protein RDA as a threshold for 97.5% of the population

The Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for protein is not an average requirement but is set two standard deviations above the estimated average, designed to be sufficient for 97.5% of the population.

#nutrition

#protein

Collaborate with chefs to transform institutional diets

The most effective way to improve a population's diet is not through education but by working with chefs to make healthy, sustainable food unapologetically delicious in institutional settings.

#nutrition

#sustainability

Try the protein flip to prioritize plant-based foods

The 'protein flip' is a dietary concept that makes vegetables, grains, and beans the center of the plate, using meat as a smaller condiment or side dish.

#nutrition

#plant-based

Address investigator bias to improve nutrition science integrity

Investigator bias, such as designing a study to make one diet look better than another, can be a bigger problem in nutrition science than direct industry funding.