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Ask Dr. Spar: What Is The Best Pre Workout Supplement For Men?—Part 2
In an earlier post, I talked about some of my favorite pre-workout supplements for men. But, as a triathlete and physician who works with a lot of athletes, I’ve learned there’s more to a good workout than vitamins and protein powder. Here are a few tips for getting...
5 Tips On How to Sleep Better and Deeper
Tired? You’re not the only one. According to a 2016 study by the Centers for Disease Control, one in three adults isn’t getting enough sleep on a regular basis. This statistic is troubling because not only does lack of sleep inhibit your ability to function at work...
Ask Dr. Spar: What Is The Best Pre Workout Supplement For Men?
Even if you’re working out at home because of COVID, it’s always good to maximize your efforts. These supplements can help you get that summer body before summer is over. I’m not just a physician who works with a lot of athletes—I also regularly compete as an athlete...
Feeling Old? 9 Signs You Have an Amino Acid Deficiency
Feeling old? Off your game? As I write about here, certain symptoms—joint pain, hearing loss, skin changes—can be indicators of fast aging. While there’s no way to know exactly how much longer you’ll live, there are clues that give you an idea of how your health is...
5 Natural Supplements to Increase Sperm Count
If you follow the news, you may have heard about a study published in 2017 that found sperm counts seem to be dropping at an alarming rate in the Western world. As reported by NPR, researchers looking at data from almost 43,000 men in dozens of industrialized...
The Best Heart Healthy Snacks on the Go
Eating well is an excellent way to boost overall health, and it can be especially beneficial for your heart—a concept I discuss in detail here. I’ve listed some of my favorite foods for heart attack and stroke prevention, and I recently wrote about the reverse heart...
Anti-aging for Men: The Best Anti-aging Skincare for Men
If you think guys don’t need to take care of their skin, think again. According to a study published in the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, the condition of a man’s skin influences people’s perception of his age, attractiveness, and...
The New Manhood
Throughout 2019, manhood was changing. #Metoo led to much-needed reflection on the part of many about what it means to be a man—as a friend and a romantic partner; as a father and a son; as a role model and supporter; as an advocate for and a partner to women; and...
3 Supplements of the Future – Nicotine, Lithium, and Nrf2
If someone offered you a magic pill that would fix all your problems, would you take it? Of course you would! That’s why the supplement industry is such big business. Lured by the promise of products that will make us younger, stronger, thinner, and smarter, Americans...
Best Ways to Diagnose and Treat ED Part II
Erectile dysfunction (ED) is treated pretty casually, but many people don’t realize how incredibly common this condition is. In fact, millions of Americans are affected by ED—including 1 in 2 men over the age of 40. I’ve written about ED before, but I’d like to take...
Racism Kills
In more ways than you think. Of course there are the direct and highly visible ways that we have seen recently, most notably and tragically with the killing of George Floyd, painfully evident for us to have been able to witness with our own eyes. Another wake up call...
Best Ways to Diagnose and Treat ED Part I
While you’re not likely to hear them talking about it in the locker room, many men experience erectile dysfunction (ED). According to UW Health, “Mild and moderate erectile dysfunction affects approximately 10 percent of men per decade of life (i.e., 50 percent of men...
Feeling Foggy? Try These Tricks to Boost Your Cognitive Performance
There are lots of reasons a person may wake up fuzzy-headed—one too many drinks the night before, not enough sleep, or maybe a combination of both. But for many men, this lack of cognitive clarity is a perpetual problem that goes beyond the occasional morning...
10 Tips to Live Younger Longer
In an earlier post, I listed ten tips to live younger longer. Since many of those items focus on physical aspects, I wanted to take some time to share ways you can keep your mind and spirit youthful, too. Once thought to be hard-wired after early childhood, the brain...
5 Supplements Everyone Should Take
In the post below, I explain that certain supplements are good for everybody, though you’ll ideally get individualized recommendations based on your specific health issues and goals. Here are five more supplements that everyone should take. But before I get started, a...
Do Your Own Ironman
During our current times I felt it appropriate to share an older blog post about the time I pushed myself to try a new challenge. I hope this post can offer an opportunity of reflection when facing hard times, that we are capable of overcoming challenges and can excel...
5 Stress Management Training Exercises
Whether it’s the demands of family, pressure at work, our current political climate, or all of the above, we all experience stress from time to time. But, as I explain here, stress that’s relentless rather than occasional can have serious negative effects on your...
If I’m Going To Drink What Are The Healthiest Alcohol Options?
Having a drink (or two) may be getting to be more of a habit while stuck at home. Given the consequences of overindulgence—not just addiction, but also increased risk of cancer and other serious conditions—and the fact you're going to drink anyway, what are the...
Depression / Stress / Anxiety Test: 5 Ways to Self-Diagnose
Whether dealing with a tight deadline at work, struggling to meet demands from family, or worrying about politics, we all feel depressed, stressed, and anxious sometimes. But what if these feelings are more than just occasional? According to the World Health...
5 Top Supplements For Brain Health
As I explain below, aging takes its toll on your cognitive abilities as well as your physical ones. Memories become fuzzy, you find yourself misplacing your keys on an all-too-regular basis, and your work performance isn’t as on point as it used to be. Luckily, there...
What the F Happened and How Do I Deal With It?
I know your inbox is full of subject lines like this. I’d like to humbly add to the litany of recommendations and present some suggestions on how to deal with this whole crazy COVID-19 situation. First of all, let’s acknowledge this is tough on all of us...in many...
What Is Biohacking and Should I Do It?
I respect the quest for taking advantage of new technology and scientific discoveries in order to improve our lives, especially our health. Biohacking was one of the biggest trends in 2018, led by Dave Asprey, founder of Bulletproof and author of The Bulletproof Diet....
Why Do Men Need Doctors? (Podcast Featuring Dr. Myles Spar)
The other day, I sat down with the prestigious Los Angeles-based chiropractor, Dr. Michael Pound, to be a guest on his podcast called "Heal Better Fast". I met him while presenting at Duke University for a fellowship program he’s doing in Integrative Medicine. It was...
Neuroplasticity
When it comes to your brain, you actually can teach an old dog new tricks. Once thought to be hard-wired after early childhood, the brain actually has a remarkable ability to change and heal itself. Known as neuroplasticity, this remodeling due to our environment,...
Exercise
Fix Your Brain Every day I have patients who come to me asking what they should take to help prevent memory loss or to treat depression or “brain fog” – a loss of ability to concentrate fully. Though people often come to me looking for a magic pill, there is one...
Heart and Health: How Basic Diet Changes Can Affect Heart Health
You’ve heard about unhealthy foods causing heart problems—some restaurants even give decadent menu items names like “the heart attack burger”. But diet can also positively affect your heart and health? Tweaking your eating habits can improve your blood pressure and...
Is Your Life Killing You?
A tight deadline at work, sitting in traffic, falling behind in responding to emails… We all experience stress from time to time. But what happens when that stress becomes constant rather than occasional? This persistent exposure to stress over a long period of time...
Heart Attack and Stroke Prevention—What You Need to Know
If you’re a man of a certain age, you’ve probably heard some pretty frightening statistics about cardiovascular disease, like the fact that it accounts for about 1 in 3 deaths in the United States, or that it kills more people every year than all forms of cancer and...
Epigenetics
If you think genetic predisposition means certain conditions are inevitable, think again. Far from being at the mercy of your genes, you can affect which ones are turned on and off—not just in yourself but in your children and grandchildren—through lifestyle choices...
The Intermittent Fasting Diet: Know the Facts and if You Should Try It
Have you heard people talking about intermittent fasting? Fasting involves organizing your eating into a schedule of extended periods without food consumption punctuated by smaller windows where you’re allowed to eat, and proponents claim it can help you lose weight,...
The Power of Positive Thinking and Your Health
When Norman Vincent Peale published The Power of Positive Thinking in 1952, the idea that you could improve the quality of your life by simply having a good attitude was a novel one. Although many were skeptical, the book became a bestseller, and people are still...
One Week Stress Management Plan
Stress. Between struggling to meet work and family demands and worrying about the state of the world, most of us deal with it occasionally. But what if it’s relentless? As I explain here, the persistent exposure to stress over a long period of time is known as chronic...
Healthy(ish) Drinks for Your Winter Party
My healthy alcohol options for the holidays blog post was so popular, I decided to share some other healthy-ish options for those of you continuing to celebrate into the new year. Whether you’re doing apres-ski or hosting an Oscar party, entertaining doesn’t mean you...
How to Stay Healthy Over the Holidays
The holiday season is upon us, and while it can be a happy time shared with family and friends, it can also be incredibly stressful—not to mention hard on your waistline. In a 2016 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the weight of American...
4 Habits That Help You Prevent Memory Loss
Do you find yourself losing your keys on a too-regular basis? Are you struggling to keep track of details at the office? Many of us work hard to keep our bodies fit as we age, but we don’t always do the same for our brains. Here are four habits that help you prevent...
The Most Effective Fat-Burning Workouts
One of the the things I hear over and over again from my patients is how hard it can be to find time for exercise. Let me tell you, I get it! As a physician with a family who also happens to be an Ironman triathlete—an experience I talk about here—I’m painfully aware...
Movember Men’s Health Month
November. For many it signals the start of the holiday season, but it’s also the month that men all over the world will grow a moustache. Why? An annual event known as Movember (Mo=moustache + November) encourages guys to grow moustaches as a way of raising awareness...
Top 3 Supplements for Hair Growth
Hair loss can be tough to handle. You have so much power when it comes to optimizing your physical and mental health, but when your hair starts thinning, there’s not a damn thing you can do about it. Or is there? As I explain here, hereditary hair loss (androgenic...
Techniques for Building Muscle Mass
Do you feel like you never see the results you want no matter how hard you hit the gym? Has your fitness level plateaued? As a triathlete who works with a lot of athletes, I get it. The good news is, you may only need to do a bit of tweaking in order to achieve your...
Top 3 Meditation Misconceptions
As a guy with a busy life who has a tendency to push myself pretty hard, I sometimes find it hard to slow down. But as an integrative physician, I know all too well how important relaxation and release are for overall health. That’s why I’m such a big proponent of...
How a Morning Ritual Can Make You More Productive
Do you find yourself hitting snooze over and over again every morning? Do you drag yourself out of bed so late that you end up rushing to get to work on time? Are you dependent on coffee to get you out the door? For too many of us, the morning grind is a struggle that...
5 Steps to Looking 10 Years Younger
We all know our appearance doesn’t matter as much as what’s on the inside, but that doesn’t mean we don’t care about how we look, especially as we get older. Short of turning back the hands of time—or getting plastic surgery—what can we do to look better as we age?...
An Ounce of Prevention Is Worth a Pound of Cure
You’ve probably heard the old adage about an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of cure, right? Perhaps nowhere is this more true than with your health. After all, if given a choice between preventing disease and treating it, who wouldn’t choose to stop sickness...
Top 5 Exercises to Boost Libido
A sudden dip in sex drive can be disturbing, particularly if you don’t know what’s causing it. Testosterone levels are typically a big factor, but late nights, long hours at work, and underlying relationship issues can all impact libido. While it may be tempting to...
Top 3 Sexual Health Issues and Treatments
Sex. It’s not just about pleasure, which is important, but also an integral part of intimacy, connection, and fun. Many men have issues with sexual function, which range from low libido to premature ejaculation to erectile dysfunction. Others are concerned about the...
Top 3 Foods to Increase Sex Drive
A demanding job, the tumultuous political landscape, physical exhaustion, aging, side effects from medication…There are a lot of reasons why a man may find his libido lagging. While it’s perfectly normal to experience ups and downs when it comes to sexual desire, you...
Top 3 Exciting Breakthroughs in Modern Medicine
One of the things I love most about medicine is the breakneck speed at which it advances. New discoveries are being made everyday, and technology is constantly being incorporated in thrilling and innovative ways. Here are my top three exciting breakthroughs in modern...
Where Your Donation Dollars Do the Most Good
It’s hard not to feel overwhelmed by all the awful things happening in the world. Climate change, war, poverty, natural disasters… Sometimes life feels like a constant barrage of really bad news. In the face of so much suffering, many of us feel compelled to help. But...
Top 5 Biggest Health Misconceptions
We are truly living in the age of information. Thanks to the internet and the ubiquity of smartphones, everything you want to know (and a lot of stuff you don’t) is only a few clicks away. But if there’s one lesson you learn when spending time online, it’s this: Don’t...
The Roadmap to Winning
I believe that health is the most important tool you have in your quest to win – to win at what matters most to you. Hence my tagline, “when you’re healthy, you can win!” But health is more than just the absence of disease. And it’s more than just not being sick....
Could Your Annual Physical Be Missing Something
For many men, the annual physical is the only time they see a medical professional all year. And, while they may have a rote conversation with their doctor and receive a basic exam, most of these men will walk out of the clinic knowing just as little about their...
Do Fat-Burning Supplements Really Work
The rise of social media has taken the marketing of weight loss supplements to a whole new level. So-called “influencers” ranging from movie stars to fitness gurus use their platforms to hawk products to their many followers, claiming they themselves use and benefit...
Scientifically-Validated Six-Pack Diet Techniques
Women aren’t the only ones who are constantly bombarded with seemingly unattainable body images. You only need to turn on your TV or flip open a men’s magazine to see shirtless guys with bulging biceps and washboard abs. First of all, remind yourself that those guys...
5 Natural Ways to Boost Testosterone
Hormone imbalance is an issue often discussed in women’s health, but it’s a problem for men, too. Remember puberty? Your hormones were going crazy, and it probably affected your quality of life. As you age, your hormone levels can get similarly out of whack, causing...
Top 3 Food Documentaries to Change Your Diet Forever
More and more people are stopping to consider where their food comes from, as well as the effect their dietary choices may be having on their health. Perhaps you’re considering modifying the way you eat but aren’t sure about the best way to educate yourself. With all...
Is All This Buzz About CBD Legit? A Post in Honor of 4/20 Day
The short answer is – yes. CBD, cannabidiol, can help with many medical issues, just not as many as you see claims about. But I want to focus on what it CAN do to help you – not what it can’t. And, most importantly, how it is different from THC and how to identify...
3 Research-Proven Ways to Increase Life Expectancy
Given the constant advances in science, medicine, and technology, you’d think the average life expectancy in the United States would increase every year, right? Wrong. According to reports released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in late 2018,...
Smart Drugs: What to Know When Using Nootropics for Focus and Concentration
Have you ever read about a wealthy and successful entrepreneur and wondered what he’s doing that you’re not? The answer could be, well, drugs. In Silicon Valley, where you can’t throw a rock without hitting a genius with a billion dollar idea, some of the best and...
Top Health Risks for Men: 6 Key Threats to Be Aware of
Men experience worse long-term health than women and die on average six years earlier, according to men’s health awareness organization the Movember Foundation. Worse, this gap in life expectancy has been increasing in recent years. Why is this? Part of the reason may...
Healthy(ish) Super Bowl Drinks for Your Big Party
Whether your favorite team makes it to the big game or not (as an Angeleno who used to live in New Orleans, I am still reeling from their playoff game), the Super Bowl is an excellent excuse to throw a party. This year, why not skip boring old beer and go for...
Ditching the Snacks for Foods That Help You Focus
Unhealthy snacking can undermine even the most well-intentioned person. When you’re hungry, all dietary intentions fly out the window. Do you find yourself hitting the vending machine every afternoon in an effort to power through the work day, only to crash an hour...
3 Coping Skills for Depression That Help You Take Back Control
Given the current political landscape and post-holiday season, it’s hard to avoid feeling depressed and anxious sometimes. But what if these feelings are more than just occasional? According to the World Health Organization, more than 300 million people worldwide...
Strengthening Your Thinking Ability: 5 Tricks to Faster Thinking
The signs of physical aging tend to be pretty obvious—hair thins and/or turns grey, joints get creaky, muscles start to lose their definition. But when it comes to the impact of growing older on your brain, things aren’t always so clear. Maybe the right word is always...
What Is Biohacking and Should I Do It? 4 of the Best Biohacking Tricks
The do-it-yourself (DIY) movement has thoroughly permeated our culture. People are doing everything from brewing their own beer to butchering their own meat, often in the interest of saving money while learning something new. But what happens when you apply the DIY...
Top 5 Supplements to Increase Sex Drive
Supplements can be a powerful tool for helping you achieve your goals, especially when you follow a regimen that’s tailored to meet your specific needs. I’ve written about supplements a lot—you can read about some of my general favorites here, and I’ve also listed...
Men’s Health: Three Tests That Could Save Your Life
If you’re relying on the basic tests you get at your annual physical to measure your health, you may not be seeing the whole picture. Many diseases won’t be caught, much less prevented, by the American Medical Associations’s standard of care testing. Or maybe you...
How Much Protein Do I Really Need? Simple Explanation of Protein Intake
Protein. We all know it’s important for our health, but beyond that, things can get a little murky. How much protein do I really need? What kind? What are good food sources of protein? What about protein powders? As an athlete and a physician who works with athletes,...
The Mindfulness Meditation Apps You Won’t Be Able to Live Without
Regular readers of this blog are likely familiar with my passionate belief in the power of mindfulness. When it comes to keeping your stress levels in check—whether at work or elsewhere —mindfulness meditation has been scientifically proven to be effective. In one...
Common Foods That Cause Cancer and How to Avoid Them at the Grocery Store
It would be nice if you could trust that everything available at the grocery store is safe. Unfortunately, many of the foods people eat on a regular basis are potentially carcinogenic. Here are some common foods that may cause cancer and how to avoid them at the...
Telomere Testing: The Benefits of Knowing Your Cellular Age
What are telomeres and what can they tell us about our health? Let’s take a look at telomere testing and the benefits of knowing your cellular age.
Are You in a Slump? Try These 4 Foods That Improve Mood
Feeling low lately? You’re not the only one. According to the World Health Organization, more than 300 million people worldwide suffer from depression, a condition that, unlike the normal and temporary response to life’s challenges, can become a serious and...