Uploaded November 2023 | Updated September 2026, 5 hours ago
Chris Masterjohn, PhD is the Founder and Scientific Director of the mitochondrial test mito.me. Dr. Chris Masterjohn has a PhD in Nutritional Sciences, and critiques Gary Brecka's nutritional claims made on The Joe Rogan Experience.
Brecka does an excellent job getting important messages out: put nutrition over drugs; sunlight- grounding- breathwork-based morning routine, nutrition has a huge impact on mental health, folic acid is a terrible form of folate, hypothyroidism can be fixed, cold exposure, and more.
Brecka also is right to focus on methylation: deficient methylation can lead to fatty liver disease, birth defects, cardiovascular disease, fatigue, poor exercise capacity, histamine intolerance, difficulty ignoring negative thoughts and thought patterns, depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, histamine intolerance, and possibly cancer.
Methylation problems could also worsen blood sugar, sleep, joint health, and the risk of psychosis, and make you startled more often or increase muscle tension.
However, Brecka focuses exclusively on a test of 5 genes without any biochemical testing, and methylation issues could be any of 26 nutrient deficiencies or impairments in literally hundreds of genes.
You need whole genome sequencing instead. I recommend this one: chrismasterjohnphd.com/genome
For my methylation protocol and the low-hanging fruit, or for comprehensive screenings to leave no stone unturned, see here:
chrismasterjohnphd.substack.com/p/your-mthfr-is-one-of-26-nutrient
For the right way to approach genetics, see here:
chrismasterjohnphd.substack.com/p/unlocking-performance-and-longevity
00:00 How Gary Brecka Got Dana White's Blood Pressure Down With Nutrition Instead of Drugs
00:12 Summary
00:58 Points of Agreement
02:09 Brecka's Educational Background
03:09 Does Everything That Enters the Body Need to Be Methylated?
04:02 T4 is not Methylated to T3 in the Gut
05:45 Conversion of Synthetic Folic Acid to Food Folate Is Unrelated to MTHFR
06:19 Folic Acid Does Prevent Neural Tube Defects
06:50 Are Carnivore Diets Really High in Folate?
07:14 A Report of 5 Genes Is Not Worth $500 and Won't Give You All the Answers You Need
08:38 Sticky Thoughts: Limits to Knowing Your COMT Status
09:14 Adderall Does Not Speed Up the CNS to Catch up to the Mind
09:56 Brecka's Report Won't Find the Reason for ADHD
11:04 Not Everyone Benefits From Trimethylglycine (TMG)
13:01 Lots of Reasons for Poor Sleep Beyond Low SAMe
13:59 Some People Need More Carbohydrate For Sleep
15:51 Carbs Are Needed for Methylation, And There are Hundreds of Things That Can Go Wrong
19:29 Potassium Is As Important As Sodium
20:33 We All Have Highly Unique Super-Unlocks for Our Metabolism That Can't Be Caught on a Test for 5 Genes
For more information and to read more of my work, visit chrismasterjohn-phd.com
Do You Have Hidden Mitochondrial Dysfunction?
Mitochondrial dysfunction is one of the earliest signs of aging and chronic disease—and most people don’t know they have it. Mitome is the first at-home test that measures your cellular energy directly and gives you a personalized roadmap to optimize energy, slow aging, and protect against disease.
Find it here at mito.me
Chris Masterjohn, PhD is the Founder and Scientific Director of the mitochondrial test mito.me. Dr. Chris Masterjohn has a PhD in Nutritional Sciences, and critiques Gary Brecka's nutritional claims made on The Joe Rogan Experience.
Brecka does an excellent job getting important messages out: put nutrition over drugs; sunlight- grounding- breathwork-based morning routine, nutrition has a huge impact on mental health, folic acid is a terrible form of folate, hypothyroidism can be fixed, cold exposure, and more.
Brecka also is right to focus on methylation: deficient methylation can lead to fatty liver disease, birth defects, cardiovascular disease, fatigue, poor exercise capacity, histamine intolerance, difficulty ignoring negative thoughts and thought patterns, depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, histamine intolerance, and possibly cancer.
Methylation problems could also worsen blood sugar, sleep, joint health, and the risk of psychosis, and make you startled more often or increase muscle tension.
However, Brecka focuses exclusively on a test of 5 genes without any biochemical testing, and methylation issues could be any of 26 nutrient deficiencies or impairments in literally hundreds of genes.
You need whole genome sequencing instead. I recommend this one: chrismasterjohnphd.com/genome
For my methylation protocol and the low-hanging fruit, or for comprehensive screenings to leave no stone unturned, see here:
chrismasterjohnphd.substack.com/p/your-mthfr-is-one-of-26-nutrient
For the right way to approach genetics, see here:
chrismasterjohnphd.substack.com/p/unlocking-performance-and-longevity
00:00 How Gary Brecka Got Dana White's Blood Pressure Down With Nutrition Instead of Drugs
00:12 Summary
00:58 Points of Agreement
02:09 Brecka's Educational Background
03:09 Does Everything That Enters the Body Need to Be Methylated?
04:02 T4 is not Methylated to T3 in the Gut
05:45 Conversion of Synthetic Folic Acid to Food Folate Is Unrelated to MTHFR
06:19 Folic Acid Does Prevent Neural Tube Defects
06:50 Are Carnivore Diets Really High in Folate?
07:14 A Report of 5 Genes Is Not Worth $500 and Won't Give You All the Answers You Need
08:38 Sticky Thoughts: Limits to Knowing Your COMT Status
09:14 Adderall Does Not Speed Up the CNS to Catch up to the Mind
09:56 Brecka's Report Won't Find the Reason for ADHD
11:04 Not Everyone Benefits From Trimethylglycine (TMG)
13:01 Lots of Reasons for Poor Sleep Beyond Low SAMe
13:59 Some People Need More Carbohydrate For Sleep
15:51 Carbs Are Needed for Methylation, And There are Hundreds of Things That Can Go Wrong
19:29 Potassium Is As Important As Sodium
20:33 We All Have Highly Unique Super-Unlocks for Our Metabolism That Can't Be Caught on a Test for 5 Genes
For more information and to read more of my work, visit chrismasterjohn-phd.com
Do You Have Hidden Mitochondrial Dysfunction?
Mitochondrial dysfunction is one of the earliest signs of aging and chronic disease—and most people don’t know they have it. Mitome is the first at-home test that measures your cellular energy directly and gives you a personalized roadmap to optimize energy, slow aging, and protect against disease.
Find it here at mito.me
