Ancient Health Podcast

Spinning attacks, a full ear, a roar you can’t shut off: that’s the classic Ménière’s picture. But a migraine that never causes a headache can mimic it almost exactly. Dr. Chris Motley explains the one test that tells them apart (the audiogram), why every Ménière’s treatment seems to work (in the biggest drug trial, the placebo group got better too), what Chinese medicine wrote about the spinning room 1,800 years ago, and four steps to take before anyone treats your ear. Sources are in the show notes. Educational only, not medical advice.

0:00 T...

The viral fungus numbers are real: about 7,300 deaths and 130,000 hospitalizations a year, per the CDC. But those figures count fungal infections, not the mold behind your shower. Dr. Chris Motley explains what damp buildings probably do to health (asthma, wheeze, cough, respiratory infections), why a urine mycotoxin test can't tell you if your home is making you sick, how Chinese Medicine describes "dampness," and the step that matters most: find the water.

Sources below. Educational only, not medical advice.

Mold Testing:

ImmunoLytics: https://immunolytics.com/?wpam_id=474

Want more of The...

Tight jaw, shoulders up by your ears, waking at 3 a.m.? Somatic movement teacher Liz Tenuto, author of When the Body Speaks, joins Dr. Chris Motley to explore where the body holds stress, why she favors tiny, lazy movements over force, why animals shake it off, and how to recognize when you’re still bracing. Dr. Motley adds the Chinese Medicine perspective on the jaw and waking at 3 a.m.

Sources and corrections are included in the show notes.

Content note: This episode discusses trauma, emotional healing, and the mind-body connection. Take care while listening, an...

Tired, losing hair, and told your labs are “normal”? Endocrinologist Dr. Cassie Smith explains the new 2026 American Society of Hematology ferritin thresholds, why your thyroid needs iron, the pregnancy thyroid rule every woman on thyroid medication should know, the gut signs you may be ignoring, and her honest take on GLP-1 drugs. With Dr. Chris Motley.

00:00 Dr. Cassie Smith is back

01:08 Graves' disease in med school, at 130 beats a minute

02:38 "Normal" labs, and the fertility questions you sent in

03:33 Why fertility starts in the gut, and PCOS gets a ne...

Dr. Eboni Cornish, MD, of Amen Clinics and ILADS, returns for a third conversation, live in Nashville. She and Dr. Chris Motley talk about Lyme and other tick-borne infections in the brain: anxiety and depression, kids labeled ADHD, puberty flares, mold and memory, and why she calms the brain before treating anything. Plus her best question: when did your symptoms start, and where were you? Sources in the show notes. Educational only, not medical advice.

00:00 Depression, anxiety, and a Lyme test

00:39 Welcome: Dr. Eboni Cornish, live in Nashville 

02:20 From bored family doctor to L...

At 34, Dr. Stephen Hussey had a zero calcium score and a heart attack six months later. Dr. Chris Motley talks with him about what his tests missed, infrared light, structured water, and his case that the heart is more than a pump. Sources in the show notes. Remember: chest pain means call 911. Educational only, not medical advice.

00:00 Zero calcium score, heart attack at 34

00:24 Welcome to the Ancient Health Podcast

00:33 Meet Dr. Stephen Hussey 01:38 Hives, asthma, and type 1 diabetes at nine

03:04 Fit, healthy, perfect labs, then a heart attack<...

Normal TSH, still exhausted? Dr. Chris Motley explains the thyroid antibodies most people never get tested for, why a stomach infection called H. pylori keeps showing up alongside Hashimoto's, what a 2026 study found when it was treated, and what Chinese medicine has long said about digestion and a cold, tired body. 

(00:00) Your antibodies are five times normal, and "nothing to treat yet" 

(00:53) Welcome to the Ancient Health Podcast 

(01:02) The most common thyroid disease, and the least recognized 

(02:15) How your immune system attacks your thyroid: anti-TPO and anti-thyroglobulin 

(02:55) What your thyro...

Dr. Shivani Gupta watched diabetes move through her family in India, then studied Ayurveda to find out what could be done for it. She explains Vata, Pitta, and Kapha, what each type tends to eat and how each sleeps, her daily clock and seasonal eating, and the rockstar power of turmeric! Plus her proposal that menopause is a Vata shift. Code DRMOTLEY will give you 15% off Dr. Shivani’s incredible Ayurvedic formulas at Fusionary Formulas: https://fusionaryformulas.com/. Head here for Dr. Shivani’s first episode of the Ancient Health Podcast! https://youtu.be/i4QXlf4VIHY

Key...

The molluscum cream your dermatologist prescribed actually.…doesn't beat doing nothing. A 2017 Cochrane review of 22 trials says so. Dr. Chris Motley breaks down why watchful waiting is actually the evidence-backed call, what the new FDA-approved gel really does (and doesn't) fix, and why some kids' bumps won't quit for years while others clear in months.

[00:00:00] - The pediatrician who said "just wait it out" 

[00:00:48] - Welcome to the Ancient Health Podcast

[00:01:01]- Six million cases a year, and why some kids are more exposed than others [00:02:36] - The jolt: a systematic review of 22 tri...

A viral post claims a stomach infection reversal reversed a man's hair loss in 28 days. Dr. Chris Motley checks the science: how H. pylori shuts down your stomach acid, why that starves your hair follicles of iron and B12 before it shows up on a blood test, and why the popular kill stack for it fails for a specific group of people. 

00:00:00 - The claim: hair regrowth in 28 days

00:01:46 - Welcome to the Ancient Health Podcast

00:01:59 - Why this post landed differently this time

00:03:47 - "It is something that is serious": t...

Your eye exam came back normal, but your vision still isn't right. Dr. Chris Motley explains the Traditional Chinese Medicine case for why liver health, not just age, may be behind your floaters, flashes, or dim vision, including his own story of vision loss and recovery. He covers the real embryology behind "the eyes are a map of the brain," the labs he uses when a standard eye exam comes back clean, and the herbs and acupressure points he recommends for eye strength.

[00:00:00] - Opening: why your eyes might be showing signs your eye doctor can't explain <...

A child is doing fine, doing homework, laughing easily, getting along with everyone, and then over a few weeks they become someone else. Explosive anger over nothing. Can't sit still. Can't focus. Grades fall off a cliff, and the school has one word ready: ADHD. In this solo episode, Dr. Chris Motley asks the question almost nobody in that meeting asks: what if the personality change didn't start in the child's personality at all, but with a tick bite nobody noticed?

Dr. Motley explains why a sudden, overnight personality change in a child, explosive anger, isolation, loss...

If you have swollen lymph nodes, this episode will teach you how your mighty glymphatic system drains toxins from your brain to what in Chinese Medicine is called your stomach 12 point. In this episode, Doctor Chris Motley explains the ins and outs of caring for your lymphatic system and how to promote lymphatic drainage through the activation of your triple warmer in Chinese Medicine. He also shares how to look after your body's lymph flow while taking a GLP-1, and the right way to do lymphatic massage on yourself.

Key Points from this episode:

The...

Fall doesn't always cause your sinus congestion. It just knows how to find whatever was already sitting there. In this episode, Dr. Chris Motley walks through the Traditional Chinese Medicine map that connects the exact location of a headache or a patch of sinus pressure to a specific internal organ, and why that map keeps showing up in his practice.

Key Takeaways

Your headache location is diagnostic, not random.A two-week case of post-nasal drip traced back to a bladder infection: Dr. Motley's patient cleared her sinus congestion only after he treated her bladder and...

Why are so many young women experiencing painful periods, endometriosis, Hashimoto's and hormonal chaos? After falling ill with Graves Disease in medical school, functional endocrinologist Dr. Cassie Smith made it her life’s mission to chase these kinds of questions. In her new book Fix Your Gut, Fix Your Hormones (https://a.co/d/0gbCrVD6) she tackles the real gut-hormone connection behind estrogen dominance, PCOS, thyroid dysfunction, and painful periods. Dr. Smith shares the answers she found, a roadmap for better health, better periods and common-sense steps to become the CEO of your own health. 

In this epi...

After performing thousands of open-heart surgeries, Dr. Philip Ovadia recognized that the vast majority were preventable…if his patients had improved their metabolic health in the first place. In this episode, Dr. Chris Motley sat down with heart surgeon, author and podcaster Dr. Philip Ovadia to learn about the underrated relationship between insulin resistance and heart disease, and what you need to know to arm yourself at home and in the doctor’s office. Small correction from the intro: Dr. Ovadia is a board-certified cardiac surgeon, not a cardiologist. He has performed over 3,000 heart surgeries across 25-plus years

If...

Children are on screens 7 to 9 hours a day according to the latest data. In  this episode, Dr. Chris Motley sat down with Dr. Stacy Jagger, aka “Dr. Sassy,” family therapist, mental health expert and author of The 30-Day Blackout to learn how a month-long digital detox for the whole family regulates a child’s nervous system, resolves many behavioral issues and even ADHD symptoms naturally, and allows struggling families to find healing and connection. 

Content Warning: There is a brief mention of childhood sexual abuse toward the end of the episode. The subject is not lingered on. 

Dr...

Alzheimer's disease has increased 134% since the year 2000. Over 7 million Americans are currently living with full-blown Alzheimer's disease. Not mild cognitive impairment, not brain fog, but diagnosed Alzheimer's. One in five women and one in ten men will receive that diagnosis in their lifetime. And according to ALZ.org, the risk has gone up 134% in just 24 years. For many people, this is not a genetic crisis: it’s a lifestyle crisis, and that means it is largely preventable.

In this episode, Dr. Chris Motley sits down with integrative nurse practitioner, author and Alzheimer's prevention advocate Dani Williamson — whose moth...

What if that moldy AirBnB wasn’t the true cause of your illness, even after you found mycotoxins in your lab work? What if there was a deeper emotion behind it? In this episode, Dr. Chris Motley sits down with Dr. Howard Cohn to talk about emotional root causes, stacking protocols to truly get well and the tool that gives his patients six months of therapy in under a minute. Learn more at https://biostacking.com/, where you can sign up to learn all the protocols and transformative health education discussed in this episode.

Dr. Howard Cohn ha...

A rash baffled 25 years of dermatologists. It disappeared in a week once Dr. Steven Zodkoy traced it to a childhood memory. Here's what that case, and the concept of a "biofilm," has to do with your migraines and your bladder. Dr. Chris Motley sits down with Dr. Steven Zodkoy, a chiropractor and applied kinesiologist who became the first in his field to pass the American College of Nutrition exam, a credential previously reserved for MDs and PhDs. Thirty-five years into practice, Dr. Zodkoy specializes in the patient conventional medicine gave up on: the migraine sufferer, the "recurring UTI" patient...

A viral documentary sent thousands of people rushing to pull their teeth. The theory behind it — the focal infection theory — dates back to a dentist in the 1920s named Weston Price, was largely rejected by the mid-twentieth century, and yet has roared back to life on the internet with enough force to create genuine panic. Dr. Chris Motley isn't here to add to that panic. He's here to do something more useful: look at the science and arguments behind both sides of the issue, and surface the conversation about oral health and the whole-body connection that nobody in mainstream dent...

Has a nasty virus ever swept through your family, completely derailing your summer vacation? In this heavily requested episode, Dr. Chris Motley shares his best advice for staying healthy while traveling, his personal travel kit with all his essentials plus the 4 pillars to keeping the whole family well when you’re far from home. 

Whether you’re packing for your next trip or you want to curate your ready-to-go health travel kit, get your notepads and pens out for this one, and scroll down for the full travel kit listed below!

In this episode, you’ll lear...

Most subjects of a recent study who slept on pads connected to the ground, as part of an earthing protocol, gained significant relief from arthritis, asthma, PMS, sleep apnea and hypertension. We're a generation that's uniquely separated from the Earth. We spend much of our lives in cars, we live in high-rises, and spend the majority of our days working indoors. Why does this matter? Because we're electric beings who actually need the negative ions from standing in the ground, the ocean and even on rocks to support our health outcomes.

In this episode Doctor Chris Motley...

Is mouth taping actually safe — or could it be closing your body's emergency exit while a bigger problem goes undetected?

In this episode, Dr. Chris Motley takes on one of the biggest wellness trends of the moment: mouth taping. And while he's firmly in the camp that nasal breathing is one of the most underrated things you can do for your health, he brings a unique perspective to the discussion… your mouth could be wanting to open at night for a reason, and taping it shut without finding out why could mean masking undiagnosed sleep apnea, hidden sinu...

A parasite is crawling across 34 states, with thousands of confirmed cases across America. Cyclospora is causing that explosive diarrhea, aka the parasite flu, you’ve no doubt heard about in the news. In this episode, Dr. Chris Motley lays out the facts about what we know, his best advice for avoiding contamination and your full treatment options from both modern and ancient science.

Where the outbreak stands

Current as of publication, July 21, 2026. This story is moving quickly, so check the CDC and FDA pages below for the latest.

FDA and CD...

If you had a chronic case of strep as a kid it may be lingering around your organs. Here’s what you can do about it. In this episode, Dr. Motley explains why recurring strep infections are not new infections at all, they are the same bacteria getting more antibiotic-resistant each time. He connects chronic strep to anemia, autoimmune disease, and PANS/PANDAS, then walks through the herbs and lab tests he uses to root it out.

This is a re-post of an earlier episode to highlight the importance of this issue and raise awareness. Scroll down fo...

Mastic Gum is an ancient remedy that's been shown in a clinical study to kill off H-Pylori, and other research suggests it reduces oral bacteria. Is this viral cure hyped up or is there weight behind these claims?

Mastic Gum is composed of resin from the chios tree in the Mediterranean: Hippocrates prescribed it to patients and it's been used medicinally for over 2,500 years. In this episode, Dr. Chris Motley examines the research and gets to the bottom of how effective this might be for fighting bacteria, ulcers and keeping your mouth clean.

Get Dr...

Should you be wearing sunglasses? We always thought the eyes just had one job: to see color and send pictures of our environment to our brains, but did you know that they also have a sensor that tells the brain when it’s time to get going for the day and when it’s time to sleep? That sensor can get disrupted when you head out with sunglasses on. In this episode, Dr. Motley weighs the pros and cons of sunglasses (at least in the morning!) by examining the science of light and circadian rhythms.

In this epis...

Do you have heart flutters, palpitations, or chest tightness , but your EKG comes back "perfect" and your stress test says you're fine? Dr. Chris Motley breaks down a connection most doctors never check: the direct link between your kidneys, bladder, and urinary tract system and the health of your heart.

In this episode, Dr. Motley explains how hidden kidney infections, bladder infections, UTIs, and even kidney stones can create heart palpitations, brain fog, tingling in the hands and feet, and shortness of breath — all while standard urine tests come back completely normal. He breaks down why most UT...

This chemical was banned in Europe 20 years ago...so why is it in the tap water of over 40 million Americans? In this episode, Doctor Chris Motley breaks down what the research found on frogs exposed to Atrazine and what this means for you.

The company that makes this herbicide went to great pains to keep this research hidden, but in this episode you'll learn how it can get into drinking water, the possible hormonal effects and - crucially - how you can keep your body safe from pesticides with a few simple steps and an assist from...

For the last 400 years when medical researchers conducted an autopsy they would throw this away as medical waste, not realizing it was actually a powerful connective organ...now Western science has finally caught up with Chinese Medicine in discovering the power of fascia. What is fascia in your body and how can learning about it benefit you?

In this episode you'll learn:

What fascia tissue is and how it connects every system in your body, allowing for strength and mobility.

How your fascia actually communicates throughout your body. If one organ has an...

Have you ever wanted to see how AI could help with your health journey, but you had concerns, or you were too overwhelmed to know where to start? Holistic practitioner and recovery coach Lorrie Rivers joins Dr. Motley to walk through practical tips and best practices for using ChatGPT in your quest to be the CEO of your own health. Lorrie teaches how to empower yourself by approaching modern technology with the ancient arts of curiosity and dialogue to cut through overwhelm and find breakthroughs in your chronic illness journey.

In this episode you'll learn:

...

There's a viral social media post claiming that you're 300% more likely to develop skin cancer when you use sunscreen. What's the truth? Is sunscreen safe to use?

In this episode Doctor Motley breaks down the research, and brings a new lens to the debate: what did ancient cultures do for skin health?

Here's what you'll learn in this episode:

*Research has found chemicals in your sunscreen like oxybenzone can affect your estrogen and testosterone levels and block Vitamin D, - which is an important hormone, not just a vitamin! - plus some healthy...

What if the chronic illness you've been fighting your whole life began with your childhood and your family of origin? Unresolved childhood trauma lives in your thyroid, your gut, and your joints, and it can be inherited. Nurse practitioner Dani Williamson and mental health specialist Dr. Stacy Jagger join Dr. Chris Motley and Dr. Anis Khalaf to discuss this hopeful message: you can reverse these cycles of physical and emotional pain. From digital detox to elimination diets to EMDR, this episode is a roadmap for breaking the generational cycle of pain, disease, and disconnection — for good.

Content Ad...

Having trouble getting pregnant and can't figure out why? Struggling to lose weight even if you're a gym rat? The answer to both problems may be that your nervous system doesn't feel safe. And if so your body will block fertility, weight loss, and hormone balance every single time. 

In this special live episode of the Ancient Health Podcast, Doctor Chris Motley, along with Dr. Anis Khalaf, interviewed Dr. Kela Smith, a hormone + fertility specialist, and creator of the Hormone Puzzle and the Hormone Puzzle Podcast, and Terry Barga a restorative fitness expert and producer of Nashville F...

Who is better equipped to teach us about spiritual health than an exorcist? Father Dan Reehil, Roman Catholic priest, exorcist for the Diocese of Nashville, and host of the Battle Ready podcast, joins Dr. Chris Motley and Dr. Anis Khalaf for a live conversation that bridges spiritual warfare, self-discipline, and whole-body health in a way you've never heard before.

How’s your spirit these days? We’re pretty conscious of our minds and bodies, but we also must be aligned with our spiritual health for true balance. Father Dan’s message to us? Spiritual growth requires discipline, and in...

Can your beliefs impact your healing? As science begins to catch up to what people of faith have always known, it’s clear that believing you can be healthy is key to beating the odds. Jordan Rubin, health coach, natural health entrepreneur and author of The Biblio Diet and The Makers Diet, would call this faith. 

In this special live episode of the Ancient Health Podcast at 2026’s WillCo WellFest, Jordan shares with Dr. Motley and Dr. Anis Khalaf how he found healing amidst a dire health prognosis (twice!) and how essential faith and hope are for conqu...

What if the thing that saved your mental health wasn't a pill, a program, or a therapist — but a stranger in a gym telling you that you looked terrible and needed a cold shower? Get 12% off an Ice Barrel or Chiller with code DRMOTLEY at https://shorturl.at/3Ejhb. 

That's the real origin story of Ice Barrel.

Wyatt Ewing didn't build Ice Barrel for athletes. He built it because cold therapy stopped his anxiety and depression when nothing else could. In this episode, Dr. Motley and the founder of Ice Barrel go deep on the ner...

Went to your doctor in your early 40s with sudden anxiety, insomnia, brain fog or unexplained weight gain — and walked out with an antidepressant? Author and nurse practitioner Dani Williamson joins Dr. Chris Motley to explain why SSRIs are not the answer to perimenopause, what's actually happening in your body as estrogen drops, and how healing your gut can bring your thyroid and hormones back into balance. 

Key Takeaways from this Conversation:

Women are being prescribed SSRIs for anxiety when the real cause is perimenopause. There’s no SSRI for that. 

Estrogen-loss comes with m...

After a serious heart attack with no conventional warning signs, Dr. John Kim went searching for answers. He was shocked to find what conventional testing never unearthed: he was unknowingly fighting a Bartonella infection, a heavy mycotoxin load and parasites. This was when the pharmacist turned functional medicine practitioner learned the role cellular energy plays in health breakdowns, and, vitally, in healing. 

In this episode, you’ll learn about cell-danger response and the connection between biotoxins and mitochondrial dysfunction (did you know if your cells are healthy they repel parasites?!). Dr. Kim shares his best tips for cel...