The new Dietary Guidelines for Americans will shape how the U.S. eats for the next five years — but are they based on science or industry influence?

In this episode of The Exam Room Podcast, host Chuck Carroll is joined by Dr. Neal Barnard, Dr. Hana Kahleova, and registered dietitian Anna Herby to break down the good, the bad, and the troubling truths behind the newly released guidelines.

In this episode, you'll learn:

- Why eight of nine panelists had major industry conflicts
- How meat and dairy ended up at the top of the new food pyramid
- Why protein recommendations were nearly doubled
- The hidden risks of saturated fat, red meat, and dairy
- Why whole grains and legumes were minimized
- What this means for heart disease, diabetes, and cancer risk
- Why a legal petition has been filed to challenge the guidelines

📕 Read the legal petition challenging the guidelines
👉 https://bit.ly/DGAPetition

🥦 Apply to become a Food For Life instructor
👉 https://bit.ly/FFLApply2026

- About Us -
The Physicians Committee is dedicated to saving lives through plant-based diets and ethical and effective scientific research. We combine the clout and expertise of more than 17,000 physicians with the dedicated actions of more than 175,000 members across the United States and around the world.

Are you struggling to lose weight and wondering if your metabolism is holding you back?

In this episode of The Exam Room, host Chuck Carroll sits down with Dr. Neal Barnard to separate metabolism myths from science — and reveal how food choices can dramatically change how many calories your body burns every day.

In this episode, you'll learn:

- Why "slow metabolism" is often misunderstood — and how it really works
- How high-fat diets can slow calorie burn at the cellular level
- Why restrictive dieting backfires and leads to weight regain
- How a low-fat, plant-based diet boosts the thermic effect of food
- The role fiber plays in fullness, gut health, and weight loss
- Why age does not prevent metabolic recovery
- How to increase calorie burn without counting calories or starving

If you're ready to stop fighting your body and start working with it, this episode offers a science-backed, sustainable approach to weight loss.

💚 Support our lifesaving research & this podcast
👉 https://PCRM.org/ExamRoomMatch

- About Us -
The Physicians Committee is dedicated to saving lives through plant-based diets and ethical and effective scientific research. We combine the clout and expertise of more than 17,000 physicians with the dedicated actions of more than 175,000 members across the United States and around the world.

Why do so many people quit their New Year's health goals—sometimes in just weeks?

In this milestone 700th episode of The Exam Room Podcast, Chuck Carroll is joined by Dr. Neal Barnard to explain why lasting health has nothing to do with willpower—and everything to do with motivation.

This conversation goes far beyond weight loss. You'll learn how a low-fat, plant-based diet can:
• Improve digestion and hormone balance
• Reduce joint pain, migraines, and inflammation
• Save hundreds of dollars each year
• Protect animals and the environment
• Improve long-term health and athletic performance

Dr. Barnard also shares unforgettable real-world stories from his research and personal life that reveal why understanding why you eat is the key to staying healthy for life.

💚 Support our lifesaving research & this podcast
All donations are matched through Dec. 31
👉 https://PCRM.org/ExamRoomMatch

- About Us -
The Physicians Committee is dedicated to saving lives through plant-based diets and ethical and effective scientific research. We combine the clout and expertise of more than 17,000 physicians with the dedicated actions of more than 175,000 members across the United States and around the world.

What if the most-watched health topics of 2025 could help you live healthier, longer, and with more control over your body?

This Best of The Exam Room Podcast 2025 compilation brings together the three pisodes that viewers couldn't stop watching — because they tackled problems that affect nearly everyone:

✔️ High cholesterol
✔️ Low fiber intake
✔️ Exposure to microplastics

This episode features highlights from separate interviews with Chuck Carroll and Dr. Michael Greger, Dr. Danielle Belardo, and Dr. Hana Kahleova — the conversations that delivered the most practical, science-backed value to viewers in 2025.

🥉 LOWER CHOLESTEROL NATURALLY

Learn how food can help lower LDL cholesterol without medication, which foods actively remove cholesterol from the body, and how small daily changes may reduce heart disease risk.

🥈 FIBER FOR HEART, GUT & WEIGHT HEALTH

Discover why fiber helps you feel fuller, supports heart health, improves digestion, and may make weight management easier — plus how to increase fiber safely without discomfort. And why Dr. Belardo eats an astonishing 90 grams of fiber every day!

🥇 MICROPLASTICS — AND HOW TO REDUCE THEM

Understand how microplastics enter your body, why they matter for long-term health, and what research suggests about using diet and movement to help your body clear them out. Dr. Kahleova shares how your food choices can help cleanse the body of microplastics naturally.

💚 Support our lifesaving research & this podcast
All donations are matched through Dec. 31
👉 https://PCRM.org/ExamRoomMatch

📕 Order Dr. Greger's book "Lower LDL Cholesterol Naturally with Food"
👉 https://amzn.to/4axoxri

About Us
The Physicians Committee is dedicated to saving lives through plant-based diets and ethical and effective scientific research. We combine the clout and expertise of more than 17,000 physicians with the dedicated actions of more than 175,000 members across the United States and around the world.

Are ultra-processed foods the hidden reason weight loss feels impossible?

Chuck Carroll is joined by Dr. Jim Loomis, medical director at Barnard Medical Center, to break down the science behind ultra-processed foods and their powerful impact on weight gain, metabolism, hunger, and fat storage.

From packaged snacks and fast food to so-called "healthy" convenience items, ultra-processed foods now make up a majority of the modern diet. Dr. Loomis explains how these foods affect appetite hormones, blood sugar, calorie intake, and the body's ability to lose weight — and why simply "eating less" often doesn't work when ultra-processed foods dominate the plate.

You'll learn:

- What qualifies as an ultra-processed food
- Why these foods drive overeating and cravings
- How ultra-processed foods interfere with fat loss
- The role of fiber, nutrients, and food quality in weight control
- What to eat instead to support sustainable weight loss

Whether you're trying to lose weight, improve metabolic health, or understand why progress has stalled, this episode delivers practical, evidence-based answers.

❤️ Work with The Doc & Chef
Use code CHUCK for free month!
https://plantbasedcenter.com/membership

🙏 Support PCRM
https://pcrm.org/examroommatch

About Us
The Physicians Committee is dedicated to saving lives through plant-based diets and ethical and effective scientific research. We combine the clout and expertise of more than 17,000 physicians with the dedicated actions of more than 175,000 members across the United States and around the world.

GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Zepbound are changing medicine — but at what cost?

In this episode of The Exam Room Podcast, host Chuck Carroll sits down with Ben Urich, PharmD, PhD, to break down the real-world data behind the GLP-1 explosion.

You'll learn:

- How many people are actually using GLP-1 drugs
- Why most users stop — and why that's starting to change
- The true cost of GLP-1 medications to employers and health plans
- Common and serious side effects to be aware of
- Why GLP-1s are now being studied for Alzheimer's disease and addiction
- What the future holds as more than 30 new drugs enter the pipeline

This is a must-watch conversation for anyone considering GLP-1 medications, currently using Ozempic or Wegovy, or wondering where modern weight-loss medicine is headed next.

🙏 Support PCRM
https://pcrm.org/examroommatch

Is cheese really addictive? According to Dr. Neal Barnard, the answer is a resounding YES. The brain reacts nearly identically to cheese as it does narcotics and alcohol. While it sounds shocking, these claims are backed by science.

In this episode of The Exam Room Podcast, Chuck Carroll sits down with the author of The Cheese Trap to uncover how opioid-like compounds concentrated in cheese—activate powerful pleasure pathways, why U.S. cheese consumption has exploded to nearly 40 pounds per person per year, and how the dairy industry keeps us hooked.

You'll discover:
• The opiate chemistry of cheese
• How cheese contributes to obesity and diabetes
• The link between dairy hormones and breast cancer
• Why kids are showing early artery damage
• Which cheeses contain the highest casomorphin levels
• The surprising role of sodium and saturated fat
• How quitting cheese can dramatically improve health

If you've ever said, "I could go vegan except for cheese," this is an episode you cannot miss.

This episode is sponsored by The Gregory J. Reiter Memorial Fund. Visit their website: https://gregoryreiterfund.org

📕 The Cheese Trap Book
https://amzn.to/44TdtRt

🙏 Support PCRM
https://www.pcrm.org/donate

🎟️ ICNM 2026 Tickets
https://bit.ly/ICNM2026

About Us
The Physicians Committee is dedicated to saving lives through plant-based diets and ethical and effective scientific research. We combine the clout and expertise of more than 17,000 physicians with the dedicated actions of more than 175,000 members across the United States and around the world.

Discover the truth about omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in this eye-opening interview with Dr. Kaixiong (Calvin) Ye, one of the world's leading genetic epidemiologists studying nutrition and chronic disease.

Dr. Ye joins Chuck Carroll to explain new findings on:

- Whether omega-6 is really inflammatory

- How omega-3 and omega-6 impact cancer and mortality

- Why the omega-6:omega-3 ratio is misleading

- The controversy around omega-3 and prostate cancer

- How genetics influence omega-3 metabolism

- What precision nutrition will look like in the future

You'll learn what the latest science says about who benefits most from omega-3, what blood biomarkers really mean, and why two people eating the same food may get very different health outcomes.

📚 Omega 3 and Omega 6 Cancer Study
https://bit.ly/OmegaCancerStudy

🎟️ ICNM 2026 Tickets
https://bit.ly/ICNM2026

About Us
The Physicians Committee is dedicated to saving lives through plant-based diets and ethical and effective scientific research. We combine the clout and expertise of more than 17,000 physicians with the dedicated actions of more than 175,000 members across the United States and around the world.