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October 10, 2025 • 54 mins
Your brain weighs just three pounds, yet it’s capable of storing 2.5 petabytes of information (around 3 million hours of high-def TV). It fires signals as fast as a Formula 1 car speeding at 268 miles per hour, and has roughly 100 billion neurons (as many as the stars in the Milky Way).
Your brain generates about 20 watts of power - enough to light a dim bulb. But the most interesting part about this is that half of your powerful brain is devoted entirely to vision, processing images in as little as 13 milliseconds. That's 10x faster than the blink of an eye.
In this episode, Josh sits down with Dr. Meenal Agarwal, board-certified optometrist, author and host of the Uncover Your Eyes podcast, to explore how the brain and eyes work together and what it takes to keep them healthy.
TOPICS DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE:
- How your eyes work and the eye-brain connection
- How screens are creating poor eyesight
- What's causing vision loss in our world today
- How to repair eyesight
- Eyesight prevention and protecton for yourself and your kids
- How poor eyesight create slow reactions times and puts you at risk
- The gut-eye-brain connection
- Amazing facts about your brain (and your eyes)
More from Dr. Meenal Agarwal
Instagram: @dr.meenalagarwal
Podcast: Uncover Your Eyes
Website: drmeenal.com
Leave us a Review:
https://www.reversablepod.com/review
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Josh Dech (00:01.228)All right, this is the audio recording for episode 210 short on GLPY medication.
(00:01):
Josh Dech (00:17.454)For decades it was thought that if big pharma got their hands on a weight loss drug that actually worked, it'd be this billion dollar golden goose. Well today, drugs like Ozempic and Wake Gove and other GLP-1 medications completely blew that million, that billion dollar milestone out of the water, selling nearly 72, fuck I'm just gonna do the intro again guys.
It's that kind of day today, we're
Josh Dech (00:47.992)For decades, was said that a big pharma got their hands on a weight loss drug that actually worked. It'd this billion dollar golden goose. While drugs like Ozempic and Wegovi and other GLP-1 medications completely blew that milestone out of the water, selling nearly $72 billion worth in 2023 with projections as high as $139 billion in 2030. But did the billion dollars in sales actually prove it's both safe and effective?
Well in this episode, are going to dive into GLP-1 medications like Ozempic and Wegovi to look at the data and argue of course both sides. We're talking about where they actually came from and we'll dive into the history of these drugs, talking about things like what they were originally used for versus how they're being used today. We'll talk about the pros and cons of GLP-1 medications, the risks associated with them, and of course, we're going to see what the literature has to say.
Josh Dech (01:41.102)So the first question for the day is what is GLP-1? This stands for glucagon-like peptide. Now this is a natural hormone, it's made in the gut after eating, which triggers your body to release more insulin as needed. Especially if you have a higher carbohydrate or higher sugar meal, your body releases more insulin to keep your blood sugar down. Now GLP-1s are of course synthesized in a lab, and there's two main benefits.
The first is going to be slowed gastric emptying, which means you feel fuller for longer, which leads to decreased caloric consumption. So you're just going to eat less because your body's not hungry. The second thing you'll see is that it boosts insulin when blood sugars are high, meaning your blood sugar is up your body. So let's bring it down by increasing insulin. And it actually reduces the release of another hormone called glucagon. Now glucagon take sugars that are stored as glycogen in places like your liver. And it releases that sugar into your blood.
And so by reducing the release of sugars, also contributes to a lower blood sugar. So both of these effects are reducing appetite and lowering blood sugar and GLP-1 drugs can create weight loss, which is Big Pharma's golden goose.
Josh Dech (02:51.244)Now there are many drugs by this name, things like Xenotide, Liraglutide, Semiglutide, Dulaglutide, and there are even dual drugs with different peptides in them like Terzepotide. Now, historically speaking, there are lot of authoritative reviews that trace the biology of these hormones and their identification of them back to the 1980s and 1990s, the first drug being an Xenotide, which was a blend. Now these peptides were originally used for diabetes to control blood sugar.
And that was back in 2005 where they were being used relatively often. But today the benefits of weight loss have completely taken over the nation. And for those who struggle with weight loss, it's been able to help them for a number of reasons. Now to be clear, there are some people who genuinely struggle with weight loss.
Josh Dech (03:43.886)I'm gonna go back for the historical review one more time, cause I screwed up some stuff up. So we're looking at the history of GLP-1s, there's authoritative evidence that traces back the biology of these hormones being identified back in the early 1980s and 1990s. And the first drug being used was exenitide, which is also a blend. Now these peptides were originally used for diabetes to improve the control over blood sugar. And that was back in 2005 where they were being regularly used all over the place.
But today, the benefits of weight loss have completely taken over in a nation who struggles with weight loss for a number of reasons. Now, to be clear, there are some people who genuinely struggle with weight loss. Those are the ones with trauma and cortisol levels that are so high their insulin is constantly through the roof because the nervous system is overclocked at all times. There are people who may be living in toxic environments, which contributes to hormonal issues and many other reasons why they have weight loss resistance.
The problem with GLP-1 drugs in the USA and many other parts of the world is that people are using them to control their weight instead of working on themselves to control what they put in their mouths. It's simple as that. And so they're eating a bunch of junk food, which makes them fat, so they take GLP-1s to stay thin, and then they think they're hacking the system, but it just means that another disease will get you before obesity does.
Now, GLP-1s are still used for type 2 diabetes today. They improve the A1C, which is a marker your doctor can measure, which traces over the last three months or so your average blood sugar numbers to tell you if you're pre-diabetic, diabetic, or healthy. And it also works for weight. Now remember, type 2 diabetes is a growing problem due to the dietary choices, and type 2 diabetes is 100 % curable, not just manageable, but curable without medication through diet and lifestyle choices.
and it's currently being used.
Josh Dech (05:36.494)But of course these GLP-1s are currently being used for obesity and weight loss. Now studies show that a 2.4 milligram dose produces an average of a 15 % weight loss over 68 weeks versus 2 % in the placebo. Now some people do get more rapid weight loss, but 15 % of a 300 pound person is only 45 pounds over 68 weeks. So imagine what the result would be if you were just.
eating healthy food and doing your body the service of eating well, exercising often, getting sunlight and drinking clean water. Now again, the internet is just a toxic cesspool of garbage. So I'm gonna tell you again, I'm not picking on overweight people. I've known people who have truly struggled to lose weight because again, they're full of toxins, there's hormonal issues, GI issues, microbiome issues, or both. There's trauma, neurological issues, but that's not the majority. The probably 99 % of people using GLP-1s just have poor self-control, okay?
Just getting back to uses before we move on, we are seeing some benefits of GLP-1, right? It's reducing the risk of things like cardiovascular disease. But this is also, it goes hand in hand with insulin and blood sugar control because high insulin can create inflammation, high levels of blood sugar can create other levels of inflammation. And we know that reducing that reduces cardiac risk. So we see evidence as well of GLP-1 protecting kidneys against kidney disease. But again, high blood sugar damages your kidneys.
This is simply because inside the kidneys, all kinds of itty bitty fine little tubes like the nephron tubules, your blood will go through your kidneys, one blood cell at a time, like single file, just like your fingertips. And if you see people who are diabetic, pre-diabetic or along that line, who've actually lost fingers and toes, because what happens is the blood sugar gets into your blood and it thickens it. And so it's not gonna circulate through these single cell, single file capillary beds.
which means you're not getting oxygen to the tissues and the tissue dies. They go green, they turn black, they get cut off. The same thing happens in your kidneys. By reducing your blood sugar, you're reducing the damage on the kidneys because you're getting proper blood flow. So that's the ticket here. It's all about blood sugar regulation. So the question's gotta be asked. If we know there's benefits to weight loss, cardiovascular, we know there's benefits to kidneys because of the sugar, what are the problems? Well, your body was made to balance and self-regulate.
Josh Dech (07:51.735)And once we start aiding in peptides and adding hormones and medications, the auto regulation of your body managing itself, it gets screwed up. And so people in GLP-1 often deal with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea. We see slow gastric emptying, which can lead to fermentation of foods, dysbiosis and other GI issues. We've seen a lot of cases of gastroparesis, which is that means stomach paralysis, which is obviously a huge, huge problem. Some people experience muscle loss. And this is likely again due to poor diet, but
having a high protein intake and doing resistance training often can mitigate this muscle wasting or muscle loss. But again, you have to be careful. So it's not guaranteed to cut muscle, but if you have a poor protein or a protein deficient diet, if you're not eating like you should, you're not exercising often and treating your body well, you're gonna double down on the negative side effects. And there are a lot of horror stories around GLP-1 drugs. Look at Sharon Osborne. She lost 42 pounds in four months. She became extremely thin. It was now under a hundred pounds.
(00:22):
She dealt with chronic nausea and struggled to gain the weight back. Actress Amy Schumer, she lost 30 pounds, but she was bedridden with nausea, vomiting, chronic fatigue. There was an influencer, Remy Bader, batter, I don't know, but she dealt with daily vomiting. And after stopping ozempic, they had rebound hunger, binge eating, weight gain, and ultimately pursued bariatric surgery. And looking at the FDA, because of all these reports and all the information coming back after the mass release to the public, they had to add new warning labels to these drugs.
like bowel obstruction, gastroparesis, which is again, stomach paralysis. There are surgical complications like delayed gastric emptying, which in surgery can lead to aspiration. You're vomiting up your food and you inhale it, which can cause death, pneumonia and other stuff. There's even a story published in People Magazine. There was a woman named Juanita Gantt who used semiglutide, which allegedly led to complications which required to have her bowel removed. She had her large intestine removed. So there are other risks that we see that are documented.
gallbladder and biliary disease. That biliary is gonna be the bile ducts, the tubes in your liver where bile is gonna move through. And this is identified through a meta analysis of 76 different randomized controlled trials. They took the data, analyzed it and found the median issues. And they found that the risks of biliary and gallbladder disease were increased with the length in use and the amount of weight that was lost.
Josh Dech (10:14.286)Now, there were also risks of diabetic neuropathy, roughly between 1.8 to 3 % risk, which were mostly present in those with pre-existing diabetic conditions. So the question is, did they already have this lingering? Did the GLP ones make it worse? Did they cause it? We really don't know, but it's correlation, not causation. There's also a risk of pancreatitis that was identified, though relatively low and not that big of a deal for most people because they can get over it, but pancreatitis was a risk. And we even saw
thyroid C cell tumors in rodents that were identified but human casualties weren't established and there was research coming back saying no it was just in the mice not the humans but it's a risk to be aware of.
Josh Dech (11:00.76)So here's the thing, here's my thoughts on this.
So here are my thoughts sort of as an overall.
Josh Dech (11:10.008)So here are my thoughts just to summarize this whole thing. Should we be using GLP-1 medications like we go venosympic? Like all things, there is an allowance for it, but like all things pharmaceutical, there's also risk. You have to be aware and have to be careful. In cases of stubborn weight loss, insulin resistance, hormonal and toxic complications, it can be a useful tool, though a temporary tool would be best in helping someone lose weight to benefit their health and outcomes because we know a leaner body tends to be a healthier body.
But like anything else, what is the other cost? What are the risks? If you're eating junk food, you're not exercising, if you're not caring for your health and the ways that your body needs exercise, regular movement, fresh air, sunlight, healthy food, you're only doing GLP-1s for the weight loss benefits, then you have a lot of bridges to cross before even considering something like this with these kinds of risks associated. Now, if you're already doing all the things, you've addressed food, sleep, lifestyle, environmental toxins, stress, gut microbiome, hormones,
and you still don't have the results that you want, and there's no one else in your corner to aid you on your journey toward optimizing your health, then GLP-1s might be a good route for you. But again, best case scenario is temporary, tight trade up, slow, wean off. At the end of the day, it's a personal decision, and you can see all the doctors, you'll see all the billboards and TV commercials pushing these drugs because it is the big pharma golden goose to the tune of nearly $140 billion to be projected.
And when you use pharmaceuticals, everyone wins except for you. These drug companies get paid, the doctors get paid, the pharmaceutical reps who bring them in get paid. The shipping companies who ship it around the world and bring it your bloody door, they get paid. But you lose because you're the one taking the risk and you're paying for it with your money and with your health. Again, there are pros and cons, of course, but it is your choice. But at least now you have the information you need to make an informed choice. And that's my entire goal through this video, through this podcast and
That's all I got for you for now. But if you have any questions, make sure to send me an email, drop a comment below. We're gonna get back to you and answer them to the best of our ability because ultimately I'm here to teach you the things that you want to know, not what I think you should hear. Thanks so much for listening. We'll see you on the next one.
Josh Dech (00:01.228)All right, this is the audio recording for episode 210 short on GLPY medication.
(00:01):
Josh Dech (00:17.454)For decades it was thought that if big pharma got their hands on a weight loss drug that actually worked, it'd be this billion dollar golden goose. Well today, drugs like Ozempic and Wake Gove and other GLP-1 medications completely blew that million, that billion dollar milestone out of the water, selling nearly 72, fuck I'm just gonna do the intro again guys.
It's that kind of day today, we're
Josh Dech (00:47.992)For decades, was said that a big pharma got their hands on a weight loss drug that actually worked. It'd this billion dollar golden goose. While drugs like Ozempic and Wegovi and other GLP-1 medications completely blew that milestone out of the water, selling nearly $72 billion worth in 2023 with projections as high as $139 billion in 2030. But did the billion dollars in sales actually prove it's both safe and effective?
Well in this episode, are going to dive into GLP-1 medications like Ozempic and Wegovi to look at the data and argue of course both sides. We're talking about where they actually came from and we'll dive into the history of these drugs, talking about things like what they were originally used for versus how they're being used today. We'll talk about the pros and cons of GLP-1 medications, the risks associated with them, and of course, we're going to see what the literature has to say.
Josh Dech (01:41.102)So the first question for the day is what is GLP-1? This stands for glucagon-like peptide. Now this is a natural hormone, it's made in the gut after eating, which triggers your body to release more insulin as needed. Especially if you have a higher carbohydrate or higher sugar meal, your body releases more insulin to keep your blood sugar down. Now GLP-1s are of course synthesized in a lab, and there's two main benefits.
The first is going to be slowed gastric emptying, which means you feel fuller for longer, which leads to decreased caloric consumption. So you're just going to eat less because your body's not hungry. The second thing you'll see is that it boosts insulin when blood sugars are high, meaning your blood sugar is up your body. So let's bring it down by increasing insulin. And it actually reduces the release of another hormone called glucagon. Now glucagon take sugars that are stored as glycogen in places like your liver. And it releases that sugar into your blood.
And so by reducing the release of sugars, also contributes to a lower blood sugar. So both of these effects are reducing appetite and lowering blood sugar and GLP-1 drugs can create weight loss, which is Big Pharma's golden goose.
Josh Dech (02:51.244)Now there are many drugs by this name, things like Xenotide, Liraglutide, Semiglutide, Dulaglutide, and there are even dual drugs with different peptides in them like Terzepotide. Now, historically speaking, there are lot of authoritative reviews that trace the biology of these hormones and their identification of them back to the 1980s and 1990s, the first drug being an Xenotide, which was a blend. Now these peptides were originally used for diabetes to control blood sugar.
And that was back in 2005 where they were being used relatively often. But today the benefits of weight loss have completely taken over the nation. And for those who struggle with weight loss, it's been able to help them for a number of reasons. Now to be clear, there are some people who genuinely struggle with weight loss.
Josh Dech (03:43.886)I'm gonna go back for the historical review one more time, cause I screwed up some stuff up. So we're looking at the history of GLP-1s, there's authoritative evidence that traces back the biology of these hormones being identified back in the early 1980s and 1990s. And the first drug being used was exenitide, which is also a blend. Now these peptides were originally used for diabetes to improve the control over blood sugar. And that was back in 2005 where they were being regularly used all over the place.
But today, the benefits of weight loss have completely taken over in a nation who struggles with weight loss for a number of reasons. Now, to be clear, there are some people who genuinely struggle with weight loss. Those are the ones with trauma and cortisol levels that are so high their insulin is constantly through the roof because the nervous system is overclocked at all times. There are people who may be living in toxic environments, which contributes to hormonal issues and many other reasons why they have weight loss resistance.
The problem with GLP-1 drugs in the USA and many other parts of the world is that people are using them to control their weight instead of working on themselves to control what they put in their mouths. It's simple as that. And so they're eating a bunch of junk food, which makes them fat, so they take GLP-1s to stay thin, and then they think they're hacking the system, but it just means that another disease will get you before obesity does.
Now, GLP-1s are still used for type 2 diabetes today. They improve the A1C, which is a marker your doctor can measure, which traces over the last three months or so your average blood sugar numbers to tell you if you're pre-diabetic, diabetic, or healthy. And it also works for weight. Now remember, type 2 diabetes is a growing problem due to the dietary choices, and type 2 diabetes is 100 % curable, not just manageable, but curable without medication through diet and lifestyle choices.
and it's currently being used.
Josh Dech (05:36.494)But of course these GLP-1s are currently being used for obesity and weight loss. Now studies show that a 2.4 milligram dose produces an average of a 15 % weight loss over 68 weeks versus 2 % in the placebo. Now some people do get more rapid weight loss, but 15 % of a 300 pound person is only 45 pounds over 68 weeks. So imagine what the result would be if you were just.
eating healthy food and doing your body the service of eating well, exercising often, getting sunlight and drinking clean water. Now again, the internet is just a toxic cesspool of garbage. So I'm gonna tell you again, I'm not picking on overweight people. I've known people who have truly struggled to lose weight because again, they're full of toxins, there's hormonal issues, GI issues, microbiome issues, or both. There's trauma, neurological issues, but that's not the majority. The probably 99 % of people using GLP-1s just have poor self-control, okay?
Just getting back to uses before we move on, we are seeing some benefits of GLP-1, right? It's reducing the risk of things like cardiovascular disease. But this is also, it goes hand in hand with insulin and blood sugar control because high insulin can create inflammation, high levels of blood sugar can create other levels of inflammation. And we know that reducing that reduces cardiac risk. So we see evidence as well of GLP-1 protecting kidneys against kidney disease. But again, high blood sugar damages your kidneys.
This is simply because inside the kidneys, all kinds of itty bitty fine little tubes like the nephron tubules, your blood will go through your kidneys, one blood cell at a time, like single file, just like your fingertips. And if you see people who are diabetic, pre-diabetic or along that line, who've actually lost fingers and toes, because what happens is the blood sugar gets into your blood and it thickens it. And so it's not gonna circulate through these single cell, single file capillary beds.
which means you're not getting oxygen to the tissues and the tissue dies. They go green, they turn black, they get cut off. The same thing happens in your kidneys. By reducing your blood sugar, you're reducing the damage on the kidneys because you're getting proper blood flow. So that's the ticket here. It's all about blood sugar regulation. So the question's gotta be asked. If we know there's benefits to weight loss, cardiovascular, we know there's benefits to kidneys because of the sugar, what are the problems? Well, your body was made to balance and self-regulate.
Josh Dech (07:51.735)And once we start aiding in peptides and adding hormones and medications, the auto regulation of your body managing itself, it gets screwed up. And so people in GLP-1 often deal with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea. We see slow gastric emptying, which can lead to fermentation of foods, dysbiosis and other GI issues. We've seen a lot of cases of gastroparesis, which is that means stomach paralysis, which is obviously a huge, huge problem. Some people experience muscle loss. And this is likely again due to poor diet, but
having a high protein intake and doing resistance training often can mitigate this muscle wasting or muscle loss. But again, you have to be careful. So it's not guaranteed to cut muscle, but if you have a poor protein or a protein deficient diet, if you're not eating like you should, you're not exercising often and treating your body well, you're gonna double down on the negative side effects. And there are a lot of horror stories around GLP-1 drugs. Look at Sharon Osborne. She lost 42 pounds in four months. She became extremely thin. It was now under a hundred pounds.
(00:22):
She dealt with chronic nausea and struggled to gain the weight back. Actress Amy Schumer, she lost 30 pounds, but she was bedridden with nausea, vomiting, chronic fatigue. There was an influencer, Remy Bader, batter, I don't know, but she dealt with daily vomiting. And after stopping ozempic, they had rebound hunger, binge eating, weight gain, and ultimately pursued bariatric surgery. And looking at the FDA, because of all these reports and all the information coming back after the mass release to the public, they had to add new warning labels to these drugs.
like bowel obstruction, gastroparesis, which is again, stomach paralysis. There are surgical complications like delayed gastric emptying, which in surgery can lead to aspiration. You're vomiting up your food and you inhale it, which can cause death, pneumonia and other stuff. There's even a story published in People Magazine. There was a woman named Juanita Gantt who used semiglutide, which allegedly led to complications which required to have her bowel removed. She had her large intestine removed. So there are other risks that we see that are documented.
gallbladder and biliary disease. That biliary is gonna be the bile ducts, the tubes in your liver where bile is gonna move through. And this is identified through a meta analysis of 76 different randomized controlled trials. They took the data, analyzed it and found the median issues. And they found that the risks of biliary and gallbladder disease were increased with the length in use and the amount of weight that was lost.
Josh Dech (10:14.286)Now, there were also risks of diabetic neuropathy, roughly between 1.8 to 3 % risk, which were mostly present in those with pre-existing diabetic conditions. So the question is, did they already have this lingering? Did the GLP ones make it worse? Did they cause it? We really don't know, but it's correlation, not causation. There's also a risk of pancreatitis that was identified, though relatively low and not that big of a deal for most people because they can get over it, but pancreatitis was a risk. And we even saw
thyroid C cell tumors in rodents that were identified but human casualties weren't established and there was research coming back saying no it was just in the mice not the humans but it's a risk to be aware of.
Josh Dech (11:00.76)So here's the thing, here's my thoughts on this.
So here are my thoughts sort of as an overall.
Josh Dech (11:10.008)So here are my thoughts just to summarize this whole thing. Should we be using GLP-1 medications like we go venosympic? Like all things, there is an allowance for it, but like all things pharmaceutical, there's also risk. You have to be aware and have to be careful. In cases of stubborn weight loss, insulin resistance, hormonal and toxic complications, it can be a useful tool, though a temporary tool would be best in helping someone lose weight to benefit their health and outcomes because we know a leaner body tends to be a healthier body.
But like anything else, what is the other cost? What are the risks? If you're eating junk food, you're not exercising, if you're not caring for your health and the ways that your body needs exercise, regular movement, fresh air, sunlight, healthy food, you're only doing GLP-1s for the weight loss benefits, then you have a lot of bridges to cross before even considering something like this with these kinds of risks associated. Now, if you're already doing all the things, you've addressed food, sleep, lifestyle, environmental toxins, stress, gut microbiome, hormones,
and you still don't have the results that you want, and there's no one else in your corner to aid you on your journey toward optimizing your health, then GLP-1s might be a good route for you. But again, best case scenario is temporary, tight trade up, slow, wean off. At the end of the day, it's a personal decision, and you can see all the doctors, you'll see all the billboards and TV commercials pushing these drugs because it is the big pharma golden goose to the tune of nearly $140 billion to be projected.
And when you use pharmaceuticals, everyone wins except for you. These drug companies get paid, the doctors get paid, the pharmaceutical reps who bring them in get paid. The shipping companies who ship it around the world and bring it your bloody door, they get paid. But you lose because you're the one taking the risk and you're paying for it with your money and with your health. Again, there are pros and cons, of course, but it is your choice. But at least now you have the information you need to make an informed choice. And that's my entire goal through this video, through this podcast and
That's all I got for you for now. But if you have any questions, make sure to send me an email, drop a comment below. We're gonna get back to you and answer them to the best of our ability because ultimately I'm here to teach you the things that you want to know, not what I think you should hear. Thanks so much for listening. We'll see you on the next one.
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