Emails with Dr. Ray Peat
By ryan heeney / February 7th, 2024
Below I will post some of the email exchanges I had with him. I tried to pick a wide variety of emails, from the small technician stuff, to subjects about bigger ideas. I also chose emails that which had to due with issues I hadn’t heard him talk about much in interviews. I know there’s always a chance it could help others and I know that’s what Ray would have wanted.
I probably had 150-200 emails between Ray and myself to choose, which goes to show you how selfless he was. He never asked for anything in return and almost always replied to any question.
I put my questions and text in normal font and his answers in bold. The emails are in no particular order:
DATE - Nov 11, 2012
Hi Dr. Peat,
I would like to thank you for all the information you have put out there, finding your work was one of the most refreshing things I've experienced. After beginning your recommendations I have brought my TSH down from 8.5 to 3.2 with your diet recommendations alone. If you are able to answer a couple questions I have that would be great, if not that's perfectly OK and just consider this a “thank you” email. The only other change I experienced besides the drop in TSH regarding blood work was an increase in total cholesterol from 160 to 220, an increase in LDL from "normal range" to 166. My HDL was down a little bit as well. Also, I was just wondering what thyroid medication, or combination of medications you often recommend for people who are hypothyroid? Thank you for everything you've done though, a lot of people really do appreciate it, and thank you for getting me back into drawing/painting again.
Ray: I think that amount of increase in cholesterol is probably protective, helping to make more pregnenolone, progesterone, and DHEA, and if your thyroid function keeps improving, the cholesterol might gradually decrease a little. The thyroid products that I use myself are Cynomel and Cynoplus, that I get from Mexico, for example www.mymexicandrugstore.org
DATE - MARCH 27, 2021
Hello Dr. Peat,
I apologize if you've addressed this elsewhere... I tried looking around but I couldn't find a whole lot in the places I was looking. I was just curious if you know of a good way of briefly explaining to someone who was mildly familiar with nutrition why beta oxidation is still more inefficient to glucose oxidation when one molecule of something like palmitate can yield something like 129 ATP while one molecule of glucose can yield around 36 ATP. It's a bit confusing to me when coming from an angle of "the more ATP the better"... which I do believe to be true. Does it come down to carbon dioxide and the Bohr effect? Or is there a better way to answer the question of "why is beta oxidation inferior when it can yield more ATP per molecule?". If you had the chance to get around to responding to this that's terrific, if not no problem Dr. Peat and count this email as a thanks for all the audio interviews. They really help me understand the subject more.
Ray: Metabolic efficiency is good if you’re expecting a famine, but not generally; obese people usually have very inefficient metabolism, and can maintain their weight on few calories. Starvation, stress, and diabetes shift oxidation from glucose to fat, and increase the cellular ratio of NADH to NAD, affecting everything, producing less CO2 per oxygen. CO2 keeps intracellular pH protectively low, and inhibits the formation of lactate. Organisms don’t count molecules, so the “per molecule” argument doesn’t have any biological meaning.
Date - Mar 12, 2022
Hello Ray,
I may have misheard you in an interview once, but I just wanted to clarify a belief I thought you had mentioned, and that is that you don't believe that the universe is in a period of entropy (or moving that direction) but instead the universe is moving towards order or "negentropy".
Ray: For a perspective on mainstream astronomy, Halton Arp’s book Seeing Red is a very good introduction. (They wouldn’t let him use the big telescopes after his photographs showed very big red shifts between objects that appeared to be connected by visible strands of matter, suggesting that the shift corresponded to age rather than velocity.) In the 1950s, Nikolai A. Kozyrev observed and photographed luminous emissions in the craters of the moon. These observations were made in connection with his earlier work associating the mass of stars and planets with their temperature, a line of thinking following from his reconsideration of the laws of thermodynamics. When those principles were formulated, the dominant belief was that god had created, and set into motion at a particular time, a universe that was analogous to a clock that, when wound up at the beginning of time, could only run down. Kozyrev wondered what would follow (in physical theory) if that essentially Christian doctrine, the idea that physical laws would be the same if time were reversed, were rejected. It suggested that, instead of losing usable energy with the passage of time, systems would gain energy, in proportion to their mass, and this would explain stellar energy and the temperature of planets. He argued that the fusion theory of solar energy was disproved by the measured deficiency of solar neutrinos. His prediction of the temperature of planets according to their mass was supported decades later when more detailed measurements became possible. The assumption of randomness (e.g., in nuclear decay) was another implication of the belief that the universe is passively moving toward entropy.
Me: I didn't have much knowledge about astronomy before this, and this is really turning all I thought I knew about the subject on its head. It's very interesting to think about. I've ordered the book "Seeing Red" and in the meantime I am watching lectures given by Halton on YouTube. I'm currently watching a lecture called "Halton Arp Intrinsic Red Shift". If this is the direction of things, where do you believe it eventually leads us?
Ray: I agree with Teilhard de Chardin and Vladimir Vernadsky, that organization is cumulative and progressive. A.I. Zotin and Jeremy England have worked on related things.
DATE - JUNE 30, 2020
Good morning Ray,
I was curious about some of PUFA’s main roles in nature. It seems like it helps animals ease into a state of torpor/hibernation, but I was curious if you knew any of the other major roles PUFA plays in nature that actually benefits the system (as opposed to the havoc it wreaks on us humans). If you were interested in replying to this question, a big thank you in advance.'
Ray: Saturated fats are stiff at low temperature, so organisms living at lower temperature desaturate them so they can be metabolized. At higher temperatures the PUFA are subject to harmful oxidation, so are formed only in very limited amounts for special purposes.
Me: That’s very interesting. In the plant world, why are nuts and seeds largely composed of PUFA? What purpose would it serve in that context?
Ray: They store energy for growth. In a hot climate, nuts (coconuts and macadamia) are likely to have saturated fat; even fish in the Amazon tributaries that are very warm have saturated fats in a degree similar to butter. If you puts sweaters on pigs, their fat becomes more saturated. Soybeans grown in warm regions are more saturated. Highly saturated animals live longest.
DATE - DECEMBER 22, 2013
Hello Dr. Peat,
I recently started supplementing 30 mg of erfa thyroid once in the morning. I have been doing this for 7 days now. The first few days the thyroid would make me feel very good. This would last about 5 hours. Slowly over the last 4 days or so it seems like I need much more sleep, it seems like I could lay down and sleep at any point in the day, my mood seems more down than before, and it seems like I'm a bit more cold than usual (not positive about that though). I've only been taking my temperature and pulse in the morning, they seem to fluctuate between 97 and 97.5 and my pulse stays around 70. I've kept my calories about the same, mostly pro thyroid foods.
Ray: It normally takes about two weeks to feel the full effect of a given amount of thyroid. Your temperature and pulse rate could increase gradually during that time. By making metabolism more efficient, thyroid can improve the ability to relax and sleep, lowering adrenaline.
DATE - April 16, 2021
Hello Ray,
I wonder where we would have found ample salt say 30,000 years ago along the equator that supported healthy, high metabolic systems. Is there a food source I'm not thinking of? Sugar, calcium, sunshine, etc. all seem they would be readily available in an environment of abundance but I can't seem to think where one would find salt in those times to help support a high metabolism.
Ray: There are many geological deposits, salt lakes, and such. People that eat mostly vegetables depend on those or the ocean for salt to balance their high potassium intake, but people like the Eskimos who eat mostly animal foods can get along without it, since blood and extracellular fluids have a lot of sodium.
DATE - MARCH 16, 2021
Hello Ray,
How would you define the "two different types of metabolism" when speaking to a group of people who aren't that familiar with nutrition and the metabolism, but at the same time would also be motivated to look into the topic themselves? Would you say "oxidative vs glycolytic"…"efficient vs stressed"…"Sugar burning vs fat burning"… Or maybe some other version of the dichotomy I'm not thinking of?
Ray: All of those pairs are good ways to describe the differences in metabolism. Comparing the effects of CO2 to lactate is helpful, too.
DATE - AUGUST 20, 2020
Hello Dr. Peat,
I'm having trouble sourcing penicillin and all I can find on the internet is "Cilicaine VK" which comes in 250 mg tablets. Is this the same as penicillin or would it still be worth looking for the real penicillin VK.
Ray: Phenoxymethylpenicillin is the right chemical, and usually contains potassium; penicillin G procaine is a different chemical, using procaine instead of potassium. Cilicaine is described some places as containing phenoxymethylpenicillin, but elsewhat is described differently. The presence of procaine could make it more allergenic.
December 3, 2019
Hello Dr. Peat,
I was curious as to what your thoughts were on the concept that order and chaos are the two “fundamental forces” in the universe. After reading into Taoism and things like "yin-yang", and learning about the importance of the balance of order and chaos in all things, I've been noticing these two forces in every aspect of life. It seems that masculine/feminine, conservative/liberal, left hemisphere of the brain/right hemisphere of the brain etc. are all dualities with order and chaos at their core. Neither order or chaos being "bad" or "good", but rather the balance between them being good and bringing harmony. Order representing that which is structured, explored, traditional, old-fashioned, and inhibited. Chaos being that which is unknown, new, rejuvenating, creative, and passionate. When thinking about this in the context of health, the metabolism and nutrition... does the cell/tissue maybe represent "order"?... And energy (ATP) represent "chaos"? Has the rejuvenating, feminine force of the flow of energy been forgotten in mainstream nutrition?
I think chaos or disorder is a matter of degree, and relation. In ecosystems, interactions create changing orders.
The flow of energy is an organizing principle. Active and passive both contribute to new order. I think Ewald Hering and Samuel Butler were right in seeing memory as a basic property of matter. In the last 100 years, an ideology has been constructed to deny that, but I think now there’s a trend back toward that attitude. V.I. Vernadsky, N. A. Kozyrev, and Jeremy England have explored different aspects of this principle.
DATE - APRIL 8, 2019
Hello Dr. Peat,
I was wondering if I could ask a question regarding high triglycerides. Someone I’m close to is showing a high triglyceride number on their latest blood test. They are a little confused because they are actually slightly underweight and are quite lean. If you had the time and had any quick, general feedback it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Ray: Common causes are a high starch diet, high estrogen, and low vitamin D.
Me: Terrific Dr. Peat, thank you. I will have her look into her starch intake as well as her levels of estrogen and vitamin D. Out of curiosity, what is the mechanism for how starch intake might be a contributing factor to high triglyceride blood levels.
Ray: I think it depends on the bacteria that grow on it, producing endotoxin and stress, and the hormone changes.
DATE - NOVEMBER 28, 2017
Hello Dr. Peat,
I wonder wondering if you had an opinion on the snack food "Bugles". We have them every night and I was wondering if you would consider this a "safe food" to have daily. I included an image with the nutrition label and ingredients list. If you have the time, thank you in advance. "Degermed yellow corn meal, coconut oil, sugar, salt, baking soda. Freshness preserved by BHT".
Ray: Pretty good; similar things made with tortilla masa are more digestible.
Me: Great, thank you, did you have any opinion on the BHT listed in the ingredients? While skimming through an article of yours I came across this, "BHT, BHA, and many natural compounds (derived from industrial and agricultural wastes) are often said to be "better than vitamin E" as antioxidants. Anything that can be oxidized and reduced (melatonin, estrogen, tryptophan, carotene, etc.) will function as an antioxidant in some system, but in other circumstances, it can be a pro-oxidant.” Would this mean that the BHT in this food is not ideal?
In large amounts it's very mildly toxic, but compared to things in most prepared foods it’s not bad.
DATE - FEBRUARY 23, 2017
Hello Dr. Peat,
Someone I am close with to went to his yearly physical and underwent a comprehensive blood test. His prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level was 7.8 ng/mL, which I'm sure you're aware is a bit on the high side. While reviewing past blood panels we could see a steady trend upwards throughout the years. So he scheduled an appointment with a urologist for a biopsy and in the meantime wanted to see if he could improve his PSA number through lifestyle changes. After a month of losing 15 pounds, eliminating alcohol and cleaning up his diet he has gotten his number down to 4.7 ng/mL. I was wondering if you could help me make sense of this. After reading your article "Prostate Cancer" it got me thinking and I relayed some information to him. Would his reduction of body fat, cleaning up his eating habits and eliminating alcohol contributed to improved PSA levels? Would you have any advice in continuing to bring the number down further? If you have the time to reply, then a big thank you in advance. Also a big thank you in general for the information you've put out over the years.
I think PSA is a defensive response to inflammation, and things that reduce intestinal irritation and estrogen help to lower it. Thyroid and aspirin usually help to lower PSA.