ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Your fasting insulin is 25 and your doctor says it's "normal." Dr. Tim and Mia Scott sit down with functional pharmacist Dr. Melody Hartzler (PharmToTable) to explain why "normal" and "optimal" are not the same thing — and why that gap might be the reason you feel exhausted, inflamed, and dismissed.
Dr. Hartzler pulls back the curtain on what most people don't know pharmacists can actually do: manage medications, order labs, and run functional medicine consults under a collaborative practice agreement — all without ever setting foot in a hospital. In this episode, she breaks down:
- Why fasting insulin can predict diabetes risk a full decade before your A1C ever budges
- The truth about PPIs (heartburn medications): why they're meant for 14 days, not 14 years, and what long-term use is actually doing to your gut, your iron, and your brain
- Lipoprotein(a), the genetic cardiovascular risk marker almost nobody checks — and why the guidelines only ask for it once in a lifetime
- Why heart disease is the #1 killer of women, starts quietly in your 30s and 40s, and gets ignored while everyone's worried about breast cancer
- The real difference between treating symptoms and treating root cause (and why your "20 supplements" might not be the answer)
This episode kicks off part two of our 10-part series leading up to the Northwest Ohio Women's Health Summit. Dr. Hartzler will be speaking live on Saturday, October 10th, where she'll dig deeper into women's cardiovascular health and how to actually act on it. Tickets are available both in-person and via livestream at summit.rixahealth.com — so no excuse not to be there, wherever you are.
Health Without the System is hosted by Dr. Tim Scott and Mia Scott, CNP, for people who are done being told their labs are "fine" when they don't feel fine at all.
This podcast is for education and conversation, not medical advice. Always talk to your own healthcare provider before making changes to your health, medications, or lifestyle.
