Blooming Wellness
Dr. Eek's Health & Wellness Blog
What If Cancer Could Be Remembered Instead of Eradicated? Listen on Causes or Cures: What if cancer didn’t always have to be destroyed to be controlled? What if, instead, the immune system could remember cancer the way it remembers a virus, quietly watching, recognizing, and responding years—or even decades—later? That question sits at the center …
Listen on Causes or Cures: Microplastics are everywhere, including inside the human body. As concern grows, an interesting research question emerges: Can probiotics help protect us from microplastics? On a recent episode of Causes or Cures, I talk with Dr. Christian Pacher-Deutsch, a researcher in gastroenterology and hepatology, about his latest study and what the …
Listen on Causes or Cures: Artificial sweeteners are everywhere. They’re in diet sodas, protein bars, yogurts, chewing gum, and “healthier” versions of foods many people turn to when they’re trying to cut back on sugar, lose weight, or manage blood sugar. But over the years, questions have lingered:Do artificial sweeteners actually help…or could they quietly …
Listen on Causes or Cures: What’s the link between psychedelics and trauma, while the trauma is happening? Trauma research usually looks backward. Most studies examine people months or years after a traumatic event, long after memory consolidation, meaning-making, and coping strategies have already begun to reshape the experience. But what happens at the moment trauma …
Listen on Causes or Cures: Are poinsettias poisonous? Every December, poinsettias reappear and so does the panic. Someone gifts a beautiful red plant, and suddenly the room fills with warnings about poisoned pets, sick kids, and emergency vet visits. I grew up in a house with lots of animals. Anytime someone brought home a poinsettia …
Sometimes science hides in a lab. Sometimes it rides the Milan metro in a Batman cape. This study, led by Francesco Pagnini, asked a surprisingly wholesome public health question. Can something unexpected, like seeing Batman on your morning commute, jolt people out of autopilot just long enough to make them more aware of others, including …
copyrighted to Dr. Eeks because this is my life. ;) “Had an exorcist on the podcast who talks to demons. Just booked a doctor who talks to angels.” Friend: “How is this remotely connected to Causes or Cures?” “Spiritual comorbidities. Try to keep up.” ********************************************************************************************************** Pancake flipping: my quarterly ego reset. ********************************************************************************************************** Every time I …
Sometimes a scientific paper drops that makes you go:“Wait… what?!” This one did exactly that. A team of researchers just published a study on something called ant yogurt, a traditional practice from parts of Turkey and Bulgaria where people used ants (yes, real ants) to kick-start milk fermentation when no yogurt starter was available. Sounds …
Listen to the episode: Causes or Cures — “Why Single Women Are Happier Than Single Men” Forget the “sad cat lady” cliché. New research led by Elaine Hoan, PhD candidate in the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto, shows that single women report higher happiness than single men. On this episode of Causes …
Copyrighted: Dr. Eeks (Erinkate Stair, MD, MPH) On Causes or Cures: Listen now: Click here to listen to “Truth Serum” from my Causes or Cures website, Apple, Spotify, etc. Disclaimer: Entertainment only. I am not a public health historian. I am a gremlin who reads too much and asks weird questions. The Hook: Once upon …
We live in a world where every week a new headline promises that a drug cuts your risk in half or slashes disease by a huge percentage. Sounds impressive. But those numbers often leave out context that actually matters for your real world health decisions. In public health we talk about absolute risk reduction and …
By: Dr. Eeks (ErinKate Stair, MD, MPH) Trust in medical and public health leaders has been eroding for decades. People often miss a slow slide until something dramatic makes them look up. Then they mistake it for something new. For medicine and public health, that “big thing” was the COVID pandemic. Way Back When: Historical …
