Livestock are fattened with B vitamins to increase their metabolic efficiency, yielding more weight from less feed. For human weight loss, metabolic *inefficiency* is desirable. The widespread fortification of foods with B vitamins may inadvertently make our bodies better at storing calories as fat.

The fear that creatine causes hair loss originates from one 2009 study that found increased DHT levels but did not measure actual hair loss. This finding has never been replicated, and subsequent randomized controlled trials show no significant impact on hair outcomes or DHT levels versus a placebo.

The typical 5-gram dose of creatine primarily saturates the muscles, leaving little for the brain. Since some bioavailability is lost crossing the blood-brain barrier, higher doses (e.g., 20g) are required to achieve significant cognitive and neuroprotective benefits.

Increasing fiber intake may not improve gut health if an individual's microbiome is already depleted. Research suggests many people in the industrialized world have lost the specific microbes needed to break down diverse fibers. Without these microbes, the fiber passes through without providing benefits, highlighting the need to first restore microbial diversity.

Urolithin A, a powerful compound for mitochondrial health, is produced by gut bacteria after eating pomegranates. However, half the population lacks the necessary microbiome to perform this conversion, making direct supplementation the only reliable way to get its benefits.

The common practice of 'loading' creatine with high initial doses is primarily a tool used in scientific studies to saturate muscles quickly and shorten experiment timelines. For a typical user, a consistent daily maintenance dose achieves the same result over a month, making the loading phase unnecessary.

Unlike the complex fibers from whole foods, purified prebiotics can cause a bloom of a small number of bacteria specialized in consuming that single fiber type. This can lead to an overall decrease in microbial diversity as these few specialists outcompete other microbes. A wide variety of plant foods is a safer approach to fostering a diverse gut ecosystem.

While tongue scraping beneficially disrupts biofilm, following it with an antiseptic mouthwash is the "absolute worst scenario." The scraping action opens up pores and crypts on the tongue, allowing the antiseptic to penetrate deeper and more effectively kill the beneficial bacteria required for nitric oxide production and oral health.

Exercise improves cardiovascular health by stimulating nitric oxide production, which dilates blood vessels. Antiseptic mouthwash kills the oral bacteria essential for this nitric oxide pathway. Consequently, using mouthwash after a workout can completely reverse the blood pressure-lowering and cardiovascular benefits gained from exercise.