The Trusted Pharmacist

GI Doc Reveals Why Your Gut Test May Be Misleading w/ Dr. Vivian Asamoah

Gut health is one of the most talked-about areas of wellness…but it's also still one of the most misunderstood. Right now, it's very easy for someone to order a stool test, get a long report back, see a list of bacteria, parasites, yeast, or "imbalances." But here's the problem: more data doesn't always mean more clarity. And when we treat gut health the same way conventional medicine often treats symptoms, we end up recreating the exact problem we were trying to solve. Because the gut is not static. It changes with food, stress, sleep, circadian rhythm, trauma, hormones, environment, and even the season of life someone is in. A single test may give us useful information, but it cannot tell the whole story. And if we're not careful, we can become so focused on fixing the numbers that we miss the person sitting in front of us. So instead of asking, "What does this test say?" we have to ask, "What question are we trying to answer?" In this episode, I'm joined by Dr. Vivian Asamoah, a triple board-certified gastroenterologist trained at Johns Hopkins who went beyond conventional GI care to pursue integrative medicine. She now leads Houston Gastro Institute and an integrative functional GI practice, where she helps patients look beyond "normal" test results and get to the deeper patterns driving their symptoms. We get into why microbiome testing has limitations, what comprehensive stool testing can actually reveal, how trauma and stress affect the gut, and why PPIs are more complicated than people think. Things You'll Learn In This Episode A gut test is only a snapshot, not the whole story Your gut can shift based on what you eat and sleep, your stress levels, and even your circadian rhythm. How does current gut testing miss this? The real question is not "What test should I take?" Testing only matters when it answers a clear clinical question and changes the next step in care. So before ordering another lab, what should patients and practitioners be asking first? Gut symptoms can start outside the gut Trauma, grief, perimenopause, and nervous system dysregulation can all shape digestive health. What happens when we stop treating gut symptoms in isolation and start looking at the full timeline of a patient's life? The truth about PPIs Acid-suppressing medications like Nexium, omeprazole, and pantoprazole have become really popular. How do we know when acid suppression is necessary and when lifestyle, nutrition, and root-cause work should come first? Guest Bio Dr. Vivian Asamoah is a triple board-certified gastroenterologist who trained at Johns Hopkins and did something that most GI doctors would never do. She went further. She pursued an integrative medicine certification because she realized conventional training alone just wasn't actually enough to fix her patients. She now runs Houston Gastro Institute and has built one of the most unique root-cause GI practices in the country. To learn more, visit https://www.houstongastroinstitute.com/ [https://www.houstongastroinstitute.com/] or follow Dr. Asamoah on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/drvivianasamoah/] and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@dr.vivianasamoah/]. About Your Host Steve Hoffart is an award-winning pharmacist, entrepreneur, speaker and podcaster. As the visionary founder of Magnolia Pharmacy, Steve saw a need for a more personal pharmacy that could make a bigger impact. Today, Steve and his team of experts deliver on that promise, working with patients and their physicians to solve medication problems and offer personalized solutions to achieve better health and wellness. As host of The Trusted Pharmacist podcast and through his combined reach of over 1M on social media, Steve shares actionable advice on nutrition, supplements, and wellness strategies while advocating for meaningful change in healthcare. Stay Ahead with Steve the Pharmacist! Loving the show? Want more insights into how your body works? Head over to TheTrustedPharmacist.com [https://thetrustedpharmacist.com] and sign up with your email! You'll get the latest episodes, plus exclusive health tips to help you take charge of your wellness. Don't miss out – join me today!

The Real Reason Antidepressants Aren't Fixing Your Brain Fog, Fatigue, and Gut Issues w/ Dr. Sakina Davis

When a woman is dealing with brain fog, gut issues, irritability, and just not feeling like herself… There are usually two paths she ends up taking. The first is the conventional healthcare one. A ten-minute doctor's visit, a quick look at basic labs, and then a prescription (often including an antidepressant) before being sent on her way. But here's the problem: that path never gets to the root cause. Because when a woman presents with a cluster of symptoms like fatigue, mood changes, gut issues, and low energy, the default diagnosis becomes anxiety or depression. And for many people we see, that's not what's actually going on, there's a deeper issue that needs to be addressed. There's an underlying inflammatory or autoimmune issue, immune dysfunction, or there's a breakdown happening in the body that hasn't been identified yet. And what she's experiencing aren't random symptoms; they're signals. Traditional healthcare and 10-minute visits aren't built to uncover complex, multi-system. And you definitely can't solve them by layering prescriptions on top of symptoms without understanding what's driving them in the first place. You need time, context, and someone willing to look at the full picture. And that's where a root-cause approach changes everything. Because instead of asking, "How do we manage this symptom?" It starts with a different question: "What's actually causing this in the first place?" In this episode, Dr. Sakina Davis, a functional medicine practitioner who specializes in root-cause care, returns to the show. We unpack what's really happening beneath symptoms like fatigue, gut issues, and brain fog, and why so many women are being misdiagnosed or dismissed in the process. We get into how autoimmune and inflammatory conditions actually show up, the patterns most doctors miss, and what it looks like to take a more comprehensive approach to testing, diagnosis, and treatment. Things You'll Learn In This Episode Labs can look "normal" while your body clearly isn't Most standard testing barely scratches the surface. So if everything comes back "fine," what are doctors not testing for, and what actually reveals inflammation and immune dysfunction? What a deeper diagnostic actually looks like From expanded thyroid panels to inflammatory markers and immune testing, what does comprehensive testing really involve, and how do you know when it's necessary? Your gut might be the problem, even if digestion seems "fine" You can be eating well and still not absorbing nutrients properly. What does it mean if your body isn't breaking down food the way it should—and how would you even know? The test no one wants to do… but can explain everything Stool testing sounds unpleasant, but it reveals things that nothing else can, bacteria balance, inflammation, and digestion issues. So what can it actually uncover about your health that other tests miss? Guest Bio Dr. Sakina Davis is a Bioidentical Hormone Specialist and fellowship-trained physician with 20+ years of experience. She is recognized as a pioneer in functional and regenerative medicine. As the founder of Woodlands Wellness and Cosmetic Center in The Woodlands, Texas, Dr. Davis offers a comprehensive range of medical and aesthetic services, with a focus on hormone optimization and weight management. Dr. Davis is a member of the American Academy of Anti-Aging, the Institute for Functional Medicine, and is part of the Longevity Docs group. Her approach combines cutting-edge treatments with a personalized, holistic focus. She is known for her dedication to patient care and for her active involvement in the community, supporting organizations like the Montgomery County Food Bank and CASA Advocates for Children. One patient shared, "Dr. Sakina Davis is very professional and spends enough time with you to treat the 'whole you'; everything is connected, and balancing hormones helps to treat and prevent many conditions." To learn more, visit https://woodlandswellness.com/ [https://woodlandswellness.com/]. About Your Host Steve Hoffart is an award-winning pharmacist, entrepreneur, speaker and podcaster. As the visionary founder of Magnolia Pharmacy, Steve saw a need for a more personal pharmacy that could make a bigger impact. Today, Steve and his team of experts deliver on that promise, working with patients and their physicians to solve medication problems and offer personalized solutions to achieve better health and wellness. As host of The Trusted Pharmacist podcast and through his combined reach of over 1M on social media, Steve shares actionable advice on nutrition, supplements, and wellness strategies while advocating for meaningful change in healthcare. Stay Ahead with Steve the Pharmacist! Loving the show? Want more insights into how your body works? Head over to TheTrustedPharmacist.com [https://thetrustedpharmacist.com] and sign up with your email! You'll get the latest episodes, plus exclusive health tips to help you take charge of your wellness. Don't miss out – join me today!

Is Going Gluten-Free Enough? The Hidden Problem in "Healthy" Foods w/ Dr Steven Gundry

The default rules of "healthy eating" are something we've all heard: eat whole grains, load up on vegetables, and if you really want to make an impact, go gluten-free. But what if the foods you're doubling down on… the ones you believe are fixing your health… are quietly driving inflammation, weight gain, and even chronic disease? When it comes to nutrition, the story isn't just that some foods are good and others are bad. It's that many of the foods we've been taught to trust contain naturally occurring compounds, like lectins, that can actually work against our health. For some people, that doesn't just show up as digestive issues. It can show up as autoimmune conditions, brain fog, metabolic dysfunction, and even more serious conditions like neurodegeneration and addiction patterns. And here's where it gets even more interesting. Ancient cultures didn't blindly eat these foods. They prepared them in very specific ways, fermenting, peeling, pressure cooking, and processing them to reduce these compounds before consumption. In other words, they understood that these foods needed to be handled carefully. Modern diets, on the other hand, often skip those steps entirely, exposing us to levels our bodies may not be equipped to deal with. So, could your "healthy plate" be causing inflammation and illness? What foods actually damage our health, and what do we eat instead? In this episode, former cardiac surgeon, regenerative medicine expert, and bestselling author of "The Plant Paradox," Dr. Steven Gundry, He shares how compounds like lectins interact with the gut, why so many conditions may trace back to gut dysfunction, and what most people are missing when it comes to food and long-term health. Things You'll Learn In This Episode The problem isn't just junk food… It's the stuff you trust It's easy to blame sugar and processed food. It's harder to question the "clean" staples sitting at the center of your diet. What if the issue isn't what you avoid, but what you keep doubling down on? It doesn't start where it shows up Inflammation, autoimmune issues, and even cognitive decline look like separate problems. But what if they're all downstream signals of the same breakdown happening in the gut? Your biology decides what's "healthy," not the label The same food can heal one person and quietly wreck another. If your gut and microbiome aren't functioning properly, are you eating foods… or feeding the problem? Traditional diets were protective Peeling, fermenting, and pressure cooking weren't random habits. Do these safeguards combat the compounds the body struggles to handle? Guest Bio Dr. Steven Gundry is a former cardiac surgeon, regenerative medicine expert, Director and Founder of the International Heart & Lung Institute, as well as the Center for Restorative Medicine. He is also the author of the bestselling books "The Gut-Brain Paradox" and "The Plant Paradox." He is also the host of the chart-topping Dr. Gundry Podcast [https://www.youtube.com/c/DrGundry]. He has worked in medicine for over 40 years, and today his focus is on teaching people how to avoid surgery by using my unique vision of human nutrition. Dr. Gundry's mission is to improve people's health, happiness, and longevity by making simple changes to their diets. To learn more, visit https://drgundry.com/ [https://drgundry.com/] and follow @drstevengundry [https://www.instagram.com/drstevengundry/] on Instagram. About Your Host Steve Hoffart is an award-winning pharmacist, entrepreneur, speaker and podcaster. As the visionary founder of Magnolia Pharmacy, Steve saw a need for a more personal pharmacy that could make a bigger impact. Today, Steve and his team of experts deliver on that promise, working with patients and their physicians to solve medication problems and offer personalized solutions to achieve better health and wellness. As host of The Trusted Pharmacist podcast and through his combined reach of over 1M on social media, Steve shares actionable advice on nutrition, supplements, and wellness strategies while advocating for meaningful change in healthcare. Stay Ahead with Steve the Pharmacist! Loving the show? Want more insights into how your body works? Head over to TheTrustedPharmacist.com [https://thetrustedpharmacist.com] and sign up with your email! You'll get the latest episodes, plus exclusive health tips to help you take charge of your wellness. Don't miss out – join me today!

Mail Order vs. Your Local Pharmacy: The Trade Off No One's Talking About w/ Monique Whitney

Most people think the reason their prescriptions are expensive is simple: drug companies set the price, insurance helps cover it, and what you pay at the counter is just "how it is." But that story falls apart the second you look a little closer. Because the price you pay for the same medication can swing from $6 to $200+, depending on where and how you get it. And most of that difference has nothing to do with the drug itself. What's actually happening is that there's an entire layer of the system most patients never see. A layer that doesn't just influence pricing, but actively controls which medications you can access, where you're allowed to fill them, and even whether your local pharmacy survives. And here's where the real cost shows up, because this doesn't stop at price. When patients are pushed into systems they don't understand, adherence drops. Medications get delayed, skipped, or abandoned altogether. Care becomes fragmented. And the one place that consistently acts as a frontline healthcare touchpoint, the local pharmacy, gets replaced with centralized, mail-order systems that were never designed to deliver personalized care. Because when a $6 medication turns into $211… when pharmacies close despite being essential healthcare access points… when patients are steered, restricted, or overcharged without realizing it… That's not just inefficiency; that's a system that quietly trades outcomes for margins. So the real question becomes: if the system patients trust is actually working against them, what's really driving drug prices, and what is it costing us beyond the prescription itself? In this episode, I'm joined by Monique Whitney, Executive Director of Pharmacists United for Truth and Transparency, who has spent over a decade exposing what's actually happening behind the scenes. She shares what's really behind expensive prescriptions, pharmacy closures, and the rise of mail-order pharmacies. Things You'll Learn In This Episode Drug prices aren't driven by the drug itself The same medication can cost a few dollars or hundreds. If pricing isn't tied to the product, what is it tied to, and who controls that difference? Access to medication is being controlled, not just priced The system can dictate where you fill prescriptions, what drugs you're allowed to take, and even push you away from your local pharmacy. Why is pharmacy access being engineered? "Convenience" platforms often come at a hidden cost From discount cards to mail-order pharmacies, many tools marketed as savings solutions are actually extracting value through fees, data, or steering. If it looks like you're saving money, where is that money being made back? A patient problem, not a business problem When pharmacies shut down, patients lose access, delay care, or end up in emergency systems that cost far more. If the most accessible healthcare provider disappears, what does that do to the entire system upstream? Guest Bio Monique Whitney is the Executive Director at Pharmacists United for Truth & Transparency. As the Executive Director of PUTT, she works to advance the role of pharmacists as trusted healthcare providers and advocates for patient safety. PUTT is a 501(c)3 organization committed to promoting transparency, integrity, and accountability in pharmacy care. In Monique's role, she leads a team of dedicated professionals (who are also volunteers) in developing and implementing strategic initiatives to ensure patient access and end pharmacy deserts. She collaborates with key stakeholders, including healthcare professionals, policymakers, and industry leaders, to drive positive change and ensure patients can access safe, effective, and affordable medications at their local pharmacy. With a deep understanding of the complex healthcare landscape and regulatory environment, Monique brings a wealth of experience in advocacy, public policy, and organizational leadership. She is committed to fostering a culture of transparency and accountability in the U.S. healthcare system that works to the benefit of everyone. To learn more, go to https://www.truthrx.org/ [https://www.truthrx.org/], and to look up drug cost disparities in your state, go to https://www.audittricare.org/ [https://www.audittricare.org/]. About Your Host Steve Hoffart is an award-winning pharmacist, entrepreneur, speaker and podcaster. As the visionary founder of Magnolia Pharmacy, Steve saw a need for a more personal pharmacy that could make a bigger impact. Today, Steve and his team of experts deliver on that promise, working with patients and their physicians to solve medication problems and offer personalized solutions to achieve better health and wellness. As host of The Trusted Pharmacist podcast and through his combined reach of over 1M on social media, Steve shares actionable advice on nutrition, supplements, and wellness strategies while advocating for meaningful change in healthcare. Stay Ahead with Steve the Pharmacist! Loving the show? Want more insights into how your body works? Head over to TheTrustedPharmacist.com [https://thetrustedpharmacist.com] and sign up with your email! You'll get the latest episodes, plus exclusive health tips to help you take charge of your wellness. Don't miss out – join me today!

The Real Reason High-Performing Women Hit a Wall in Midlife (It's Not Willpower) w/ Cynthia Thurlow

For most of their lives, high-performing women rely on their drive, willpower, and discipline to accomplish their goals, build their careers, and manage their busy lives. And then they get to midlife, and suddenly it feels like the wheels have fallen off. The same discipline, strategies, and mindset that once drove results suddenly stop working. The workouts don't hit the same; your metabolism slows down, and you can't push through things the way you could before. What if this isn't a failure of effort, but a fundamental shift in biology? Because what's happening in perimenopause isn't subtle. Hormones are fluctuating unpredictably, the gut microbiome is changing, stress tolerance drops, sleep architecture shifts, and systems that once buffered pressure start to lose that capacity. And for many, it goes deeper than physiology. Emotional stress that was once manageable suddenly isn't, and old emotional traumas start to resurface. What's actually happening in perimenopause and menopause to cause these changes? Cynthia Thurlow knows this from experience. As a clinician working in high-pressure cardiology, she hit a wall, dealing with weight loss resistance, poor sleep, anxiety, and burnout at a time when no one had prepared her for what perimenopause actually looks like. Ultimately, it led to a complete re-evaluation of how she approached her health and a shift away from traditional clinical practice toward educating and advocating for women navigating midlife. In this episode, speaker, midlife health advocate, menopause expert, and author of the new book The Menopause Gut, Cynthia shares what's actually changing in midlife, and why the answer isn't more effort, but a completely different way of working with your body. Things You'll Learn In This Episode You don't have a willpower problem When discipline, restriction, and pushing through stop producing results, what does that reveal about the limits of willpower in a changing body? Perimenopause is a systems shift, not a single hormone problem If hormones, gut health, stress response, and sleep are all changing at once, are we oversimplifying what's actually happening? Why symptoms feel sudden (even though the process isn't) If these changes build over the years beneath the surface, why does it feel like everything falls apart all at once? You can't override biology; you have to realign with it When your body is asking for different inputs, more recovery, more nourishment, better boundaries, what happens if you keep responding the old way? PS. If you enjoy the show, remember to leave a review on your favorite podcast app! Reviews help the podcast reach a wider audience and help more people. Guest Bio Cynthia Thurlow is a speaker, podcast host, midlife health advocate, menopause, nutrition, intermittent fasting expert, and author of the new book, The Menopause Gut. She's a nurse practitioner, CEO, and founder of the Everyday Wellness Project. She has over 9.6 million views on her second TEDx talk (Intermittent Fasting: Transformational Technique). With over 20 years of experience in health and wellness, Cynthia has been featured on ABC, FOX5, KTLA, CW, Medium, Entrepreneur, and The Megyn Kelly Show. To learn more, visit https://www.cynthiathurlow.com/ [https://www.cynthiathurlow.com/], follow Cynthia on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/cynthia_thurlow_/], and buy her book on Amazon or your bookstore of choice. About Your Host Steve Hoffart is an award-winning pharmacist, entrepreneur, speaker and podcaster. As the visionary founder of Magnolia Pharmacy, Steve saw a need for a more personal pharmacy that could make a bigger impact. Today, Steve and his team of experts deliver on that promise, working with patients and their physicians to solve medication problems and offer personalized solutions to achieve better health and wellness. As host of The Trusted Pharmacist podcast and through his combined reach of over 1M on social media, Steve shares actionable advice on nutrition, supplements, and wellness strategies while advocating for meaningful change in healthcare. Stay Ahead with Steve the Pharmacist! Loving the show? Want more insights into how your body works? Head over to TheTrustedPharmacist.com [https://thetrustedpharmacist.com] and sign up with your email! You'll get the latest episodes, plus exclusive health tips to help you take charge of your wellness. Don't miss out – join me today!