The Made to Thrive Show

We always assumed brain trauma was acute and in the moment, but the truth is damage slowly accumulates and we can neither see nor often feel it. This TBI chronic neuroinflammation is invisible and silently compromising our cognitive health and performance. But we have the tools and technologies to uncover what’s really going on beneath the surface, mapping out our own unique, personalised brain terrain. And more importantly, we can use those insights to deploy targeted therapeutic protocols, addressing vulnerabilities and supporting the brain’s remarkable capacity to repair and regenerate. That’s what my guest today calls “backfilling the brain”.

Dr. Greg Eckel is a Naturopathic Physician & Licensed Acupuncturist. His integrative approach combines traditional healing practices with modern technologies, emphasising prevention, wellness and the treatment of chronic illness. His personal journey took a profound turn when his wife was diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, inspiring a deep exploration of regenerative medicine and brain health. This led him to develop a brain regeneration programme and a nasal spray designed to target neuroinflammation. Today, his work incorporates sound and laser technologies, bioenergetics, regenerative therapies and mind-body techniques, driven by his belief that frequency-based medicine represents an important frontier in healthcare.

Contact:
Website - https://agemed.org
Website - https://brainregen.com 

Join us as we explore:
Neuro-regeneration - yes renewing and regrowing the brain with the Eckel protocol.
Why uncovering and mapping the biological terrain is Dr Eckel’s key success step.
The risk of TBI is not just the one-off event - it’s the cumulative traumas and chronic neuroinflammation. 
The Silver Tsunami, and tackling Parkinson’s with a root cause, functional approach and whether factors are casual or correlative. 
Hyperbaric chamber therapy for TBIs and “backfilling” TBIs.
Plasmalogens, mitochondria, peptides, lasers and other components of and treatment tools to treat biological terrain.
Post-viral syndrome. 
Mentions
Book - End of Alzheimer’s, Dr Dale Bredesen
Book - When Brains Collide, Dr Michael Lewis
Diagnostic - P300, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P300_(neuroscience) 
Diagnostic - Me Screen, https://www.mescreen.co.za
Support the show
Follow Steve's socials:

Instagram | LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | Twitter | TikTok

Support the show on Patreon:

As much as we love doing it, there are costs involved and any contribution will allow us to keep going and keep finding the best guests in the world to share their health expertise with you. I’d be grateful and feel so blessed by your support: https://www.patreon.com/MadeToThriveShow

Send me a WhatsApp to +27 64 871 0308.

Disclaimer: Please see the link for our disclaimer policy for all of our content: https://madetothrive.co.za/terms-and-conditions-and-privacy-policy/

Two suitcases each, four kids, one Border Collie, and one-way tickets to rural southern India. That’s what it took for Dr. Ravi Kumar to begin healing from burnout. After a decade of working 100-hour weeks, surviving on minimal sleep and even less self-care, the once unstoppable and seemingly invincible neurosurgeon reached a breaking point. He knew that if he didn’t make a radical, meaningful change to his lifestyle, he might not survive much longer. And remarkably, within just a month of unplugging from the relentless demands of his former life, his physiology began returning to normal. Dr. Kumar eventually returned to the United States, but he was no longer the same man who had left. Today, he works only part-time as a neurosurgeon, having redirected much of his time, energy and purpose towards a different kind of healing: empowering people with the knowledge to take control of their own health. 

Dr. Ravi Kumar is a board-certified neurosurgeon and an assistant professor of neurosurgery at the University of North Carolina. He earned his MD from Texas A&M University College of Medicine in 2010 and completed his neurosurgery residency at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, in 2017. He has trained and operated in the highest-stakes corner of clinical care, where the difference between what the evidence says and what actually helps a patient is not academic. The Dr. Kumar Discovery grew out of a simple frustration: most health information the public sees is either watered-down, wrong, or sold. Dr. Kumar started this platform to do the opposite, to read the primary research himself and translate what it genuinely shows, including when the honest answer is “we don’t know yet.”

Contact:
Website - https://drkumardiscovery.com

Join us as we explore:
How a high-performing neurosurgeon burnt out completely, received no answers from the medical fraternity and to recover sold his home and medical practice and moved his family of 4 kids and a dog to southern India.
How sleep architecture reflects overall health and vitality, brain washes and Alzheimer’s and how our sleep architecture changes as we age.
A neuroscience breakdown of deep sleep and REM sleep.
The shocking increase in dementia risk by chronically sleeping less than 6 hours.
How creatine creates energy.
The biggest sleep stressors, the best sleep and stress supplements and pink noise
Support the show
Follow Steve's socials:

Instagram | LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | Twitter | TikTok

Support the show on Patreon:

As much as we love doing it, there are costs involved and any contribution will allow us to keep going and keep finding the best guests in the world to share their health expertise with you. I’d be grateful and feel so blessed by your support: https://www.patreon.com/MadeToThriveShow

Send me a WhatsApp to +27 64 871 0308.

Disclaimer: Please see the link for our disclaimer policy for all of our content: https://madetothrive.co.za/terms-and-conditions-and-privacy-policy/

What I loved about this episode is that Dr Adeel Khan isn’t interested in hype. He’s refreshingly cautious about the overpromising surrounding certain longevity interventions and even AI, and he backs up his perspective with real-world clinical experience and firsthand research—including spending four months in China, witnessing the cutting edge of regenerative medicine. Meanwhile, across his clinics, Dr Khan is already exploring and working with some of the most exciting emerging therapies in medicine, from peptides and follistatin gene therapy to MUSE stem cells and the rapidly evolving field of proteomics. This is a true regenerative medicine masterclass, with a clinician who isn’t afraid to speak openly and honestly about the science, the results, the limitations, the costs and, crucially, how accessible these therapies really are.
Dr Adeel Khan is a leading voice in regenerative medicine, pioneering innovative approaches to health, longevity and recovery through stem cell therapies, peptides and cellular repair. His work has attracted international attention, with high-profile clients reportedly including Chris Hemsworth, Tony Robbins and Chris Bumstead. Through collaborations with scientists and medical specialists across North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, he has helped establish Eterna Health, a clinic focused on emerging regenerative therapies. 

Contact:
Website - https://eterna.health

Join us as we explore:
A regenerative health masterclass from a practitioner working everyday with cutting-edge tools on high-performance clients.
The regenerative medicine cost pyramid, cellular terrain, peptides, the Wolverine stack, Klotho, follistatin gene therapy and the emerging field of proteomics.
Why proteomics are more important than genomics.
The two most exciting things coming from peptide medicine.
The destructive impact of cortisone. 
MUSE stem cells, how to make them naturally and why their “stress enduring” nature makes them uniquely effective and risk-free as an intervention.
Stem cell harvesting and storage.
How far ahead China’s regenerative medicine sector is and why Hainan Island is the hub.

Mentions:
Proteomics - Sedona, https://www.sedonahealth.com
Proteomics - SomaScan, https://somalogic.com/somascan-platform/ 

Support the show
Follow Steve's socials:

Instagram | LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | Twitter | TikTok

Support the show on Patreon:

As much as we love doing it, there are costs involved and any contribution will allow us to keep going and keep finding the best guests in the world to share their health expertise with you. I’d be grateful and feel so blessed by your support: https://www.patreon.com/MadeToThriveShow

Send me a WhatsApp to +27 64 871 0308.

Disclaimer: Please see the link for our disclaimer policy for all of our content: https://madetothrive.co.za/terms-and-conditions-and-privacy-policy/

Do you know what the first symptom is for 50% of cardiovascular disease patients? A heart attack or sudden cardiac death. That’s the terrifying reality of a disease that can progress silently for decades before making its presence known. But what if we could identify the danger long before symptoms appear? In today’s episode with diagnostic radiologist extraordinaire Dr James Thompson, we explore the cutting edge of preventative cardiology, from revolutionary diagnostic technologies and advanced cardiac imaging to the rapidly evolving power of AI to detect hidden risks, personalize interventions and potentially save lives. 
James J. Thompson, D.O., is a diagnostic radiologist and physicist specializing in advanced cardiovascular imaging, including cardiac CT and cardiovascular MRI. With more than 20 years of experience in cardiovascular imaging, his work combines clinical medicine, imaging physics, and emerging technologies in artificial intelligence. Dr. Thompson has extensive experience developing advanced cardiovascular imaging programs, including launching cardiac CT and cardiovascular MRI services, developing imaging protocols, and educating physicians and clinical teams. His clinical interests include coronary CT angiography, cardiovascular MRI, adult congenital heart disease, preventative cardiovascular imaging and quantitative imaging. His academic and research interests focus on the integration of artificial intelligence and advanced imaging technologies into cardiovascular care, with particular emphasis on earlier disease detection, improved diagnostic capabilities and the development of clinically meaningful imaging technologies. 

Contact:
Website - https://drjamesthomps.com

Join us as we explore:
Why preventative cardiac care is the most important proactive health step you can take right now.
No, your “good” CAC score does not put your in the clear for cardiovascular event risk but AI is here to give us exact visuals and measurements of the most dangerous arterial plaque at the vessel level.  
From soft to non-calcified to vulnerable to high risk plaque - why you need to understand and measure this.
Why you have to know your VAT.
Why a negative CTA test gives you a predictive value of nearly 100% and why Dr Thompson does not believe in doing imaging just for imaging sake.
Why AI is NOT actually going to make radiologists extinct, but actually enhance their skills in disease identification and prevention.
Mentions:
Research - Williams M, Wereski R, Tuck C et al.
Coronary CT angiography-guided management of patients with stable chest pain: 10-year outcomes from the SCOT-HEART randomised controlled trial in Scotland, The Lancet, 405, 329-337
Research - NICE guidelines, https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance

Support the show
Follow Steve's socials:

Instagram | LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | Twitter | TikTok

Support the show on Patreon:

As much as we love doing it, there are costs involved and any contribution will allow us to keep going and keep finding the best guests in the world to share their health expertise with you. I’d be grateful and feel so blessed by your support: https://www.patreon.com/MadeToThriveShow

Send me a WhatsApp to +27 64 871 0308.

Disclaimer: Please see the link for our disclaimer policy for all of our content: https://madetothrive.co.za/terms-and-conditions-and-privacy-policy/

Will AI really cure cancer? Will we one day have nanobots swimming through our bloodstream, clearing the deadly plaque from our arteries? My guest today, Rajeev Kapur, believes this kind of future is coming—and perhaps sooner than we think. But while we wait for tomorrow’s breakthroughs, Rajeev wants to empower us to harness AI today, helping ordinary people get the most out of what may prove to be one of the greatest revolutions in human history.

Rajeev Kapur helps non-technical leaders turn AI from a vague ambition into clear, practical results. A seasoned executive and plain-English educator, he cuts through the noise. His work focuses on education, government, and SMBs, where budgets are tight, and outcomes must be visible. He brings stakeholders together around shared understanding, clear ownership, realistic timelines, and measurable success. A keynote speaker and author of AI Made Simple, Rajeev combines real-world leadership with repeatable frameworks, so teams leave with momentum—not just inspiration. He has served as CEO of 1105 Media, Inc. for over a decade, drawing on decades of global business, strategy, and leadership experience to help organizations innovate and grow. 

Contact:
Website - https://www.rajeev.ai

Join us as we explore:
Making AI healthcare simple - which LLM to invest in, privacy, identity left risks and data confidentiality.
3 critical steps on how to use AI in collaboration with your doctor.
Will AI really create the history altering medical breakthroughs expected?
The Superman effect.
Will physicians and hospitals who do not partner with AI become defunct?
Mentions
Tools - OpenEvidence, https://www.openevidence.com 
Book - AI Made Simple, https://www.amazon.com/Made-Simple-Beginners-Generative-Intelligence-ebook/dp/B0FP3XPVN5?th=1&psc=1
Product - Ammortal Chamber, https://ammortal.com/products/ammortal-chamber 

Support the show
Follow Steve's socials:

Instagram | LinkedIn | YouTube | Facebook | Twitter | TikTok

Support the show on Patreon:

As much as we love doing it, there are costs involved and any contribution will allow us to keep going and keep finding the best guests in the world to share their health expertise with you. I’d be grateful and feel so blessed by your support: https://www.patreon.com/MadeToThriveShow

Send me a WhatsApp to +27 64 871 0308.

Disclaimer: Please see the link for our disclaimer policy for all of our content: https://madetothrive.co.za/terms-and-conditions-and-privacy-policy/