PODCAST · health
The Habit Healers
by Laurie Marbas, MD, MBA
Welcome to The Habit Healers Podcast—where transformation starts with a single habit.Hosted by Dr. Laurie Marbas, this podcast is for anyone ready to break free from chronic health struggles, rewire their habits, and create lasting healing. Through powerful stories, science-backed strategies, and real-world tools, we dive deep into the micro shifts that lead to massive health transformations.You’ll learn how to heal beyond prescriptions—how to nourish your body, reprogram your mind, and build the habits that make vibrant health effortless. Whether you’re looking to reverse disease, boost energy, or finally make health a way of life, this podcast will show you how.Because true healing isn’t about willpower—it’s about design. And you’re always just one healing habit away. drlauriemarbas.substack.com
Episodes
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Can Years of Back Pain Be Unlearned in Four Weeks?
Chronic back pain that has lasted for years, plus an MRI that says disc degeneration or a disc bulge, can make it feel like your spine is simply wearing out. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I walk you through a clinical trial of pain reprocessing therapy that tells a very different...
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Are the Lectins in Beans Dangerous? One of Them Is.
Are lectins in beans dangerous? Can you cook dried kidney beans in a slow cooker? Here’s the truth: your beans were never the problem. The problem is a pot that never boiled long enough. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I walk you through a file of kidney bean poisonings that public...
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Should We All Be Taking a GLP-1?
Should you take a GLP-1 like semaglutide (Wegovy)? Before you ask whether these weight loss drugs work, I want you to ask a better question: how much risk did the people in the studies actually have, and do you have that same risk? In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I walk you through...
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Did someone say healthy chocolate cookie? Yes, they did!
Thank you Sloane, Catherine Wyatt-Morley, Heather in 🇬🇷, MB Parker, David Hawkins, and many others for tuning into my live video with Chef Martin Oswald! Join me for my next live video in the app. Get full access to The Habit Healers at drlauriemarbas.substack.com/subscribe
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Menopause Brain and the 8 Steps That Could Improve It
Menopause brain fog can feel like early dementia, but the research tells a much more hopeful story. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and in this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I’m breaking down what’s really behind perimenopause brain fog, forgetfulness, and memory lapses in midlife, and which…
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Get Stronger in About an Hour a Week With Six Lifts Without Complicated Routines
Strength training for beginners doesn’t have to mean rows of machines and hours at the gym. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I walk you through a simple full-body workout you do twice a week: six lifts that work every major muscle group in about an hour a week. If you’ve put off...
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Does Your Social Life Accidentally Increase Your Risks of Catching a Cold?
Why do some people catch every cold that goes around while others never seem to get sick? On this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I’m sharing research that changed how I think about your immune system and the common cold, and it has nothing to do with vitamin C. When healthy volunteers were...
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Batch Cooking Without Three Days of the Same Meal
At one point, I asked Chef Martin Oswald whether restaurant kitchens had robots doing all the prep. Not yet, he told me. A little later, as tray after tray of cooked vegetables appeared on his counter, I decided he must at least own a magic oven. If batch cooking has ever sounded like three days…
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Does Fasting Work Because You Ate in Fewer Hours, or Because You Ate Less?
Does intermittent fasting actually work, or does 16:8 fasting just help you eat less? On this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I’m walking you through what the research on time-restricted eating really shows about weight loss, autophagy, and metabolic health. If you’ve been keeping an eating...
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Can a Bright Lamp in the Morning Lift Winter Depression?
Does a light box for seasonal affective disorder really work, or did yours just never get a fair trial? In this episode, I walk through the research on light therapy for winter depression and the simple mistakes that keep it from working. On this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I take you...
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Do Women Need Testosterone After Menopause?
Is testosterone for women after menopause worth trying? If an online clinic has promised you that a testosterone cream will fix your low libido, energy, and weight, this episode looks at what the research actually shows. On this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I’m walking you through more...
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Why Can a 150-Pound Man Get Diabetes When a 300-Pound Man Does Not?
Can you reverse type 2 diabetes? And why do some thin people develop insulin resistance and high blood sugar while others at a much higher weight have perfect labs? I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and in this episode I walk you through the personal fat threshold, the idea that changed how I think about…
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Why You Should Never Trust a Percentage in a Headline
Relative risk vs absolute risk: it’s the one distinction that changes how you read every health headline. In this episode, I’m walking you through how to read a medical study, so a big percentage in the news never misleads you again. Welcome to The Habit Healers Podcast. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas…
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How do you get stronger when your old workout routine no longer fits?
Menopause joint pain can change how exercise feels almost overnight. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I sit down with sports scientist and personal trainer Patricia Siegel to talk about strength training and exercise during menopause, and what to do when your body starts responding...
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How do you get stronger when your old workout routine no longer fits?
I ran a personal best at the Boston Half Marathon with my daughter. Shortly afterward, around the time of my last period, I developed horrible joint pain. Activities I had done for years suddenly came with significant discomfort. I shared that experience with Patricia Siegel because advice to...
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One Plum, Three Very Different Dishes
Chef Martin Oswald placed each halved plum skin-side down across a crumbly walnut crust. That one small move kept the juice inside the fruit as it baked, but it also explained the larger idea behind our latest cooking session. He was not trying to make a familiar dessert better by simply taking...
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Why the Two-Pound Phone Was Better for Your Brain
Smartphone addiction isn’t a willpower problem. In this episode, I explain why you can’t stop checking your phone, what all that screen time is doing to your brain, your sleep, and your relationships, and how to break the habit with a simple digital detox plan. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and on this...
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Did Your Brain Accidentally Decide You're Out of Willpower?
Is willpower really a limited resource that runs out by the end of the day? If you’ve ever said “I’ve got nothing left” right before giving in at night, this episode on the science of willpower and self-control is for you. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and on this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast I...
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Her DEXA Scan Said Bone Loss. She Used My Osteoporosis Protocol. The Next One Said Bone Gain.
Osteopenia, a DEXA scan showing bone loss, and a prescription for Fosamax: that’s where Peggy was at 69. Two and a half years later, her bone density scan showed a 6.2 percent gain in her left hip. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I walk you through her story and what it can teach…
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Getting Older Barely Lowers Testosterone. So What Does? (Audio)
Low testosterone isn’t just about age. If your lab results came back low, you’ve probably been told it’s simply part of getting older. In this episode, I break down what the research actually shows about what lowers testosterone in men, and which changes are tied to the biggest shifts. I count…
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Did Your Sugar Ban Accidentally Start the Binge?
Is sugar addictive, or is something else driving your sugar cravings and binge eating? In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I look at the famous rat studies behind the idea of sugar addiction, and what they actually tested. Here’s the part most people miss. The rats that looked…
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What Keeps a Butternut Squash Muffin Moist the Next Day?
Thank you DrLinJo SHE HEALS, Olamide Amosu, Michal Tal, Anna Kilmurray, MB Parker, and many others for tuning into my live video with Chef Martin Oswald! Join me for my next live video in the app. Get full access to The Habit Healers at drlauriemarbas.substack.com/subscribe
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Can Sitting by a Window Steady Your Blood Sugar?
What if the health benefits of spending time outside reach all the way to your blood sugar? In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I count down five studies showing how daily time outdoors and natural light support blood sugar, sleep, stress, heart health, and connection. I start in an...
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The 30 Day Bowl Challenge. Here Is How to Lose Fat Without Counting Calories (Audio)
Want to lose weight without counting calories or feeling hungry all the time? On this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and I’m walking you through a simple 30-day volume eating challenge: one bowl, filled to the rim, three meals a day, plus strength training twice a...
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The Guide to Spotting Junk Science
Why do health studies contradict each other so often, and how do you know which headlines to trust? In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I’m teaching you how to read health research like a scientist, starting with the correlation vs causation trap that fooled some of the best researchers...
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Do you really need heavy weights to build muscle, or can light weights and bodyweight work?
Can lifting light weights build muscle? If you’ve been doing three sets of ten with the same small dumbbells for years and seeing no change, this episode is for you. I’m walking through what strength training research actually shows about light vs heavy weights, and the one number most people…
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Your Muscles Are Not Sore From Lactic Acid. So What Is Making Them Hurt?
Sore muscles two days after a workout? That delayed ache, known as DOMS or delayed onset muscle soreness, isn’t caused by lactic acid, and it isn’t proof your workout worked. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and on this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I’m walking you through what the science actually...
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If Your Family Won’t Get On Board With Eating Better, Stop Asking Them To
Trying to eat healthy when your family doesn’t want to change? If you’re cooking two dinners every night or giving up on your own goals to keep the peace, this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast is for you. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and today I’m walking you through what the research says about...
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How Do You Turn a Basic Lentil Soup Into Something You’ll Want to Make Again?
Chef Martin Oswald put onions and carrots into a dry pan, let them begin to brown, then added just enough water to lift the browned bits from the bottom. He let that water cook away and did it again. That was the first useful surprise in this week’s live. A basic lentil soup does not have to…
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Why Is Your Cholesterol Still High When You Are Eating Right? (Audio)
Why is my cholesterol still high after changing my diet? If you’ve cut saturated fat, eaten more plants, and your LDL cholesterol barely moved, this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast is for you. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and today I’m walking you through what your cholesterol number is really...
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What Should You Change First to Protect Your Memory? A Clue From 102 Nuns’ Brains
High blood pressure may be the most overlooked risk factor for dementia, and it’s the one you can actually check at home. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I walk you through what the research shows about blood pressure and brain health, and why the first step toward memory loss...
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If Heart Disease Runs in Your Family, Do Your Habits Matter?
If heart disease runs in your family, does changing what you eat even matter? In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I share my own family history of early heart attacks and walk through what the research says about genetics, LDL cholesterol, and lifestyle, including a 2026 diet trial in...
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Does Your Blood Sugar Really Need to Stay Below 140 All Day?
Is a blood sugar spike above 140 after eating actually a problem if you don’t have diabetes? If you wear a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) and feel a little sting every time the line climbs, this episode is for you. Welcome to The Habit Healers Podcast. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, a board-certified...
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Why Do Healthy Food Swaps Sometimes Leave You Unsatisfied?
Thank you Luanne Novak, David Hawkins, Catherine G, Karen Frye, K Nauman, and many others for tuning into my live video with Chef Martin Oswald! Join me for my next live video in the app. Get full access to The Habit Healers at drlauriemarbas.substack.com/subscribe
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10 Ways to Protect Your Independence, Built Into Your Everyday Routine
Functional fitness for older adults is really about one question: what do you want to keep doing on your own? In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I walk you through ten everyday activities of daily living, from getting out of bed to carrying groceries home, and the simple strength,...
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Your Smoothie Was Breakfast. Why Are You Hungry an Hour Later?
Why am I hungry after a smoothie? If your healthy breakfast smoothie leaves you standing in front of the pantry an hour later, this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast is for you. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and today I’m digging into the science of satiety: why liquid calories don’t keep you full…
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How to Know If a Treatment Is Actually Worth the Side Effects
How to Read a Medical Study and Actually Decide: Number Needed to Treat, the 10-Minute Triage, and Your Values Your doctor says a new treatment looks promising. Before you say yes, there is one number you should ask for: the Number Needed to Treat. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast…
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She Reversed Prediabetes With 6 Habits That Don't Require a Gym, a Diet, or a Doctor's Visit
Can you reverse prediabetes naturally and lower your fasting blood sugar without medication? One of my Substack readers went from a fasting glucose of 116 to 91 in four months using six small daily habits, and I’m walking you through every one of them. If you’ve seen a fasting blood sugar reading...
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Why Do the Earliest Signs of Parkinson’s Show Up Outside the Brain?
What if the earliest signs of Parkinson’s disease show up in your gut, years before the first tremor? In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I walk through what the research on the gut brain connection, diet, exercise, and sleep is telling us about how Parkinson’s actually begins. I’m Dr....
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Alcohol Raises Cancer Risk. If You’ve Been Drinking for Years, What Does Cutting Back Now Change?
Does alcohol cause cancer, and does quitting actually lower your risk? Most women have never been given a straight answer about alcohol and breast cancer risk, so today I want to give you one, including the study finding that made quitting look like the wrong move. In this episode of The Habit...
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The Real Reason Your Exercise Habit Never Lasts and What to Do Instead
Why can’t you stick to an exercise routine? It may have nothing to do with discipline. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I explain the research finding that best predicts exercise adherence, and it’s not your trainer, your program, or your willpower. It’s how the workout feels while...
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Five Health Experiments You Can Run on Yourself Starting Monday
Your fitness tracker, your continuous glucose monitor, and your home blood pressure cuff are all giving you real numbers. The problem is that most of those numbers are noise, and reacting to them can quietly make your health worse. In this episode I walk you through a hundred-year-old method that...
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You Don’t Need to Exercise Every Day. Here’s How to Make Two Days Count.
Is exercising only on the weekend enough? If you sit at a desk all week and cram your workouts into Saturday and Sunday, the research on weekend warrior exercise is better news than you think. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I walk you through what nearly 93,000 adults wearing...
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The Cure for Sitting Disease Isn't Standing. It's This.
Is sitting too much really the problem, or is it the chair? In this episode I explore the surprising science of floor sitting, sitting disease, and why your standing desk may not be protecting you the way you think. I share what researchers found when they studied the Hadza, a hunter-gatherer...
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When Does Stress Actually Raise Your Blood Sugar?
Why is your blood sugar high when you didn’t eat anything extra? If stress and cortisol are spiking your glucose, the answer may come down to one thing nobody talks about: timing. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and I’m unpacking the strange, specific way…
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Are you tired, losing hair, or unable to keep your legs still at night? One blood test could explain the cause.
Tired all the time but your bloodwork keeps coming back normal? In this episode, I explain iron deficiency without anemia, the hidden gap between a normal complete blood count and low ferritin that leaves so many women exhausted with no answers. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and on The Habit Healers...
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Before You “Just Do Kegels," Listen To This
Bladder leaks are one of the most common problems women quietly live with, and one of the least talked about. If you leak urine when you laugh, cough, sneeze, or exercise, or a sudden, hard-to-put-off urge sends you racing for the bathroom, this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast is for you.…
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Five Evidence-Based Habits, Stacked Together, Slow Your Aging.
Can you actually slow biological aging with small daily habits? New research on epigenetic clocks says yes, and the effect sizes might surprise you, because they look tiny until you run them forward over twenty-five years. In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and…
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What If Meal Prep Didn’t Mean Eating the Same Thing All Week?
The moment that got me was when Chef Martin Oswald took a plain batch of hummus and turned it into a curry sauce. He loosened it with a little liquid, added yellow curry, fresh ginger, and a small amount of soy sauce, then folded in roasted vegetables he had already cooked. Minutes earlier, that...
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The Sleep Paradox: Why Everything You're Doing to Fix Your Insomnia Is Making It Worse
If you struggle with chronic insomnia, wake up at 3 AM with your mind racing, or feel tired but wired no matter how perfect your sleep hygiene is, this episode is for you. I’m Dr. Laurie Marbas, and on today’s episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, I’m walking you through what the research…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Welcome to The Habit Healers Podcast—where transformation starts with a single habit.Hosted by Dr. Laurie Marbas, this podcast is for anyone ready to break free from chronic health struggles, rewire their habits, and create lasting healing. Through powerful stories, science-backed strategies, and real-world tools, we dive deep into the micro shifts that lead to massive health transformations.You’ll learn how to heal beyond prescriptions—how to nourish your body, reprogram your mind, and build the habits that make vibrant health effortless. Whether you’re looking to reverse disease, boost energy, or finally make health a way of life, this podcast will show you how.Because true healing isn’t about willpower—it’s about design. And you’re always just one healing habit away.
drlauriemarbas.substack.com
HOSTED BY
Laurie Marbas, MD, MBA
CATEGORIES
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The Habit Healers have?
The Habit Healers currently has 283 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The Habit Healers about?
Welcome to The Habit Healers Podcast—where transformation starts with a single habit.Hosted by Dr. Laurie Marbas, this podcast is for anyone ready to break free from chronic health struggles, rewire their habits, and create lasting healing. Through powerful stories, science-backed strategies, and...
How often does The Habit Healers release new episodes?
The Habit Healers publishes regularly with 283 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to The Habit Healers?
You can listen to The Habit Healers on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The Habit Healers?
The Habit Healers is created and hosted by Laurie Marbas, MD, MBA.
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