It's another Q&A edition of Optimal Health Daily, and I'm Dr. Neil Malick.

Hey there, happy Friday, and welcome to another Q&A edition of Optimal Health Daily,

where I answer your health questions related to fitness, diet and nutrition, and lots more.

You send in the questions, and I answer them for you.

And if you do send in a question, we'll physically mail you a copy of our hardcover workbook as long as you're in the U.S. and we have some left. And if you're outside of the U.S., still send in a question because we'll email you a digital version of the workbook. Now, I'll tell you how to send in a question at the end of the show. But once a month, usually during the first

Q&A episode of the month, I mention a bit about my background and my credentials so you can

better understand where my perspectives come from. And this is the first Q&A of the month, if you

can believe it. So, it's time. Now, while I've always been obsessed with Batman, I wasn't always

interested in nutrition, exercise, health, or wellness. You been obsessed with Batman, I wasn't always interested in nutrition,

exercise, health, or wellness. You know, all the things I talk about on this podcast, I really didn't care about for a long time. But being diagnosed with a chronic disease at the age of 19

definitely changed my life's purpose. It was then I decided to focus my attention on helping others. That way, no one else had to

experience a chronic disease diagnosis like I did. To do that, I wanted to be sure I had some

credibility. Now, this is not meant to be a humble brag, but instead gain your trust. I received both

my master's and doctoral degrees in public health.

And to really make sure I covered all of my bases,

I also became a registered dietitian nutritionist,

a certified health education specialist,

and a certified exercise physiologist through the American College of Sports Medicine.

Now, I've been teaching in higher education for a long time now and am currently faculty within the

California State University system. I've published peer-reviewed studies. I've presented at

national and international conferences and have been interviewed by over 70 different media outlets

for my expertise on basically all the things I talk about on this podcast. So I say all of this

...