#104 Dr. Ben Bikman: How To Reverse Insulin Resistance Through Diet, Exercise, & Sleep

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Rhonda Patrick, Ph.D.

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4.8 • 5.5K Ratings

🗓️ 11 July 2025

⏱️ 181 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

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Insulin resistance silently shapes the trajectory of nearly every major chronic disease, yet it's often overlooked until blood sugar abnormalities become obvious. In this episode, Dr. Ben Bikman exposes the dietary culprits that drive metabolic dysfunction and highlights actionable, evidence-based tactics for improving metabolic health. Ben also addresses pressing questions about popular weight loss medications like Ozempic and other GLP-1 agonists: Are they groundbreaking solutions, or shortcuts with hidden metabolic consequences?

Timestamps:

(0:00) Introduction
(4:51) Can you be insulin resistant with normal glucose levels?
(8:30) Can glucose monitors detect hidden insulin resistance?
(10:01) What your skin reveals about insulin resistance
(11:25) Why is insulin resistance behind so many chronic diseases?
(15:46) Does obesity cause insulin resistance—or vice versa?
(22:38) Insulin’s surprising roles beyond blood sugar control
(23:36) What’s driving weight gain—insulin or calories?
(30:30) Do saturated fats cause insulin resistance?
(37:02) Why refined carbs amplify risks from saturated fat
(40:04) Fructose vs. refined sugar—which spikes insulin more?
(41:01) High-carb vs. keto—which diet controls hunger better?
(45:27) Why low-carb diets might provide a metabolic advantage
(47:36) Does exercise give you metabolic ‘wiggle room’?
(52:00) Why strength training beats cardio for insulin sensitivity
(54:03) Should you lower insulin before cutting calories?
(57:12) Does meal frequency drive insulin resistance?
(1:00:32) Is nighttime snacking giving you insomnia?
(1:02:24) Can a sugary breakfast lead to overeating later?
(1:07:19) Does late-night eating disrupt sleep more than blue light?
(1:08:59) Can one bad night’s sleep trigger insulin resistance?
(1:12:23) Can air pollution cause weight gain?
(1:16:15) Vaping vs. smoking—which is worse for metabolic health?
(1:17:40) Can statins and antidepressants trigger weight gain?
(1:20:22) How to reverse insulin resistance in 90 days
(1:26:59) Does apple cider vinegar really lower blood sugar?
(1:30:54) Ketone supplements—are the metabolic benefits real?
(1:36:34) Why some ethnicities get diabetes without obesity
(1:44:28) How oversized fat cells trigger metabolic chaos
(1:49:28) Do seed oils silently promote insulin resistance?
(1:52:44) Seed oils—always harmful or only when heated?
(1:58:35) Fat, muscle, or liver—where does insulin resistance start?
(2:04:21) Do fat cells shrink or disappear with weight loss?
(2:07:05) Are shrunken fat cells still insulin resistant?
(2:08:15) Can exercise and cold therapy specifically shrink visceral fat?
(2:09:40) Injecting insulin for muscle—are the risks worth it?
(2:12:45) Are drugs like Ozempic a shortcut or solution for obesity?
(2:19:12) Are current GLP-1 agonist doses too high?
(2:20:02) Microdosing GLP-1 drugs—a solution for carb cravings?
(2:26:01) Do these medications cause muscle loss—or is it poor nutrition?
(2:28:30) Do GLP-1 agonist benefits extend beyond weight loss?
(2:30:41) Could these treatments actually promote longevity?
(2:36:12) The dark side of GLP-1 drugs—can they trigger depression?
(2:39:31) Insulin vs. glucose—what really drives accelerated aging?
(2:44:34) How high glucose levels damage cells—from glycolysis to sorbitol
(2:46:40) How insulin shuts down your body’s stress defenses
(2:51:15) Which biomarkers best predict biological aging?
(2:55:05) One simple breakfast change to lower insulin
(2:57:19) Does eating dinner early improve insulin sensitivity?

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0:00.0	Insulin resistance is increasingly recognized as a key contributor to chronic diseases, such as obesity,
0:05.7	diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and even cognitive decline, often developing silently,
0:11.0	years before conventional tests detect a problem. Yet most people don't realize they're insulin
0:15.7	resistant until blood glucose tests finally flash a warning sign, often decades too late.
0:22.2	The reality is, is that millions of people are unknowingly walking around with persistently elevated insulin levels,
0:27.6	what we might call pre-pre-diabetes, and this silent dysfunction has profound implications
0:32.7	for their long-term metabolic health, disease risk, and longevity. Today I'm joined by Dr. Ben Bickman,
0:39.0	an expert in insulin metabolism and one of the most insightful voices in unraveling the complexities
0:44.4	behind insulin resistance. Dr. Bickman is a professor of physiology and developmental biology
0:49.7	at Brigham Young University, whose research has reshaped our understanding of insulin's broader
0:54.4	roles far beyond glucose regulation. His work highlights how insulin resistance differentially
0:59.8	impacts muscle, liver, and fat tissue, the critical roles environmental toxins play, and the
1:05.6	practical interventions that can significantly restore insulin sensitivity. In this episode, Ben and I dive deep into crucial topics,
1:13.8	including why insulin resistance remains hidden until advanced stages,
1:18.2	how to detect it early through simple tests,
1:20.7	and actionable first steps to reverse insulin resistance immediately.
1:24.7	What insulin's broader physiological roles are beyond just blood glucose,
1:29.2	its profound influence on fat storage, appetite regulation, inflammation, and chronic disease.
1:34.9	We also discuss macronutrients and insulin sensitivity, discussing how different dietary compounds
1:40.4	like refined carbohydrates, sugars, even certain types of fats like saturated fats
1:45.1	and polyunsaturated fats uniquely impact insulin signaling, inflammation, and metabolic health,
1:50.8	as well as their relative roles in driving insulin resistance. We discuss how meal timing,
	...

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