Physiology you can use.
Evidence-based, root-cause health writing from Dr. Andrew Simon — naturopathic philosophy threaded with functional and conventional medicine. Short, cited, and practical.
Functional Medicine
Functional Medicine, Explained: Root-Cause Care Backed by Evidence
What functional medicine actually is, how it differs from conventional care, and why naturopathic physicians were practicing it long before it had a name — from Seattle's Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB.
8 min read →Beyond "Normal": The Lab Tests That Actually Explain How You Feel
A 'normal' lab panel can hide years of drift. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains the functional lab tests — fasting insulin, full thyroid, nutrients, inflammation — that reveal what standard screening misses.
6 min read →Root Cause vs. Symptom: Two Ways to Practice Medicine
Suppressing a symptom and fixing its cause are different acts of medicine. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains the root-cause approach — when to use each, and why one mechanism often drives many complaints.
6 min read →The Four Foundations: Fix These Before Anything Exotic
Before advanced testing or supplement stacks, four foundations decide most of how you feel. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB on sleep, food, movement, and stress — the unglamorous levers that work.
6 min read →Why Naturopathic Doctors Were the First Functional Medicine Physicians
Functional medicine is often sold as new. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains how licensed naturopathic physicians have practiced its core principles for over a century — and what an ND can actually do in Washington State.
6 min read →Long COVID
Long COVID: The Five Mechanisms and a Recovery Roadmap
Long COVID is not deconditioning or anxiety — it has measurable biology. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB, Washington State's naturopathic Long COVID advisor, maps the five mechanisms and a four-pillar recovery plan.
9 min read →Brain Fog After COVID Isn't in Your Head: The Neuroinflammation Story
Post-COVID brain fog has measurable biology — inflammation in the brain itself. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains neuroinflammation, why it happens, and the levers that help.
6 min read →Post-Exertional Malaise: Why Rest Beats Pushing in Long COVID
The crash after activity in Long COVID isn't deconditioning — it's measurable biology. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains post-exertional malaise and why pacing beats pushing.
4 min read →Retraining a Dysregulated Nervous System: HRV Biofeedback for POTS
POTS and post-COVID dysautonomia come from a nervous system that lost its balance. Dr. Andrew Simon, BCB explains HRV biofeedback for POTS — a non-exertional way to rebuild autonomic regulation.
6 min read →The Gut–Serotonin–Brain Axis in Long COVID
A landmark 2023 study connected Long COVID to depleted serotonin — starting in the gut. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains the gut–serotonin–brain axis and why 'brain fog' deserves a real look.
6 min read →Longevity & Prevention
Longevity Is Built in the Decade You're In: A Prevention Blueprint
The heart attack at sixty began at thirty-two. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB lays out the numbers that predict how you age and a decade-by-decade prevention blueprint rooted in functional and naturopathic medicine.
8 min read →ApoB: The Better Number for Heart Disease Risk
Standard cholesterol can miss real cardiovascular risk. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains ApoB — why counting atherogenic particles predicts heart disease better than LDL cholesterol, and when to test it.
6 min read →Five Numbers That Predict Your Next Decade
A handful of modifiable numbers predict how well you'll age better than almost anything. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB on the five metrics — fitness, ApoB, fasting insulin, blood pressure, and strength — to actually track.
6 min read →The Grip Test: Why Grip Strength Predicts How You Age
Grip strength at midlife predicts mortality, disability, and independence decades later. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains the science — and the one-minute daily practice that pushes back.
4 min read →VO2max: The Vital Sign Your Doctor Isn't Measuring
Cardiorespiratory fitness predicts survival better than most risk factors — yet it's rarely measured. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains VO2max, why it's a vital sign, and how to raise it.
6 min read →Weight Loss & Muscle
Muscle-First Weight Loss: Losing Fat Without Losing Yourself
Up to a third of the weight lost on a crash diet or GLP-1 medication can be muscle. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains muscle-first weight loss — protecting the lean mass that determines how you age.
8 min read →GLP-1 Done Right: Protein, Training, and What to Monitor
GLP-1 medications work — but can strip muscle if used carelessly. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB lays out the muscle-first protocol: protein targets, resistance training, and what your prescriber should monitor.
6 min read →How Much Protein You Actually Need to Protect Muscle
The protein RDA was set to prevent deficiency, not to protect muscle as you age. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB on realistic protein targets, timing, and quality for healthy aging and weight loss.
6 min read →Weight Regain and the Set Point: Making Loss Stick
Why does lost weight come back? Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains the biology of the set point — hormonal and metabolic adaptations that defend old weight — and how to make weight loss durable.
6 min read →Why Body Composition Beats the Scale
The scale can't tell fat from muscle — and that difference is your health. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains body composition, why it matters more than weight, and how to track it.
5 min read →Mind-Body & Nervous System
Train Your Nervous System: Biofeedback, HRV, and the Polyvagal Ladder
Your nervous system is trainable like a muscle. Dr. Andrew Simon, BCB — board-certified in biofeedback since 2011 — explains HRV, the polyvagal ladder, and how mind-body medicine builds measurable calm.
8 min read →Biofeedback, Mindfulness, and Focus: Training Attention, ADHD, and a Calmer Nervous System
Attention isn't just willpower — it rides on the state of your nervous system. Dr. Andrew Simon, BCB on paced breathing, mindfulness, and biofeedback for focus, anxiety, and ADHD — including an honest read of what the evidence supports.
7 min read →Breathwork for Anxiety and Panic: The Physiology of a Slow Exhale
The fastest way to calm your nervous system is already in your body. Dr. Andrew Simon, BCB explains the physiology of slow breathing — and simple, evidence-backed breathwork for anxiety and panic.
5 min read →HRV Biofeedback for Blood Pressure: Slow Breathing, the Baroreflex, and the Hyperventilation Trap
Slow, paced breathing can lower blood pressure by retraining the baroreflex and correcting subtle over-breathing. Dr. Andrew Simon, BCB explains the physiology of HRV biofeedback for hypertension — honestly graded as an adjunct to standard care.
7 min read →HRV: The Number That Tracks Your Stress
Heart rate variability is a window into your autonomic nervous system — and it's trainable. Dr. Andrew Simon, BCB explains what HRV measures and how biofeedback trains it.
3 min read →The Polyvagal Ladder: Three Nervous-System States
Why do you swing between anxious, calm, and shut down? Dr. Andrew Simon, BCB explains the polyvagal ladder — three autonomic states — and how to climb back toward safety on purpose.
6 min read →Thermal Biofeedback and Autogenic Training for IBS: Warming Your Hands to Calm Your Gut
IBS is a gut–brain disorder, which is why calming the nervous system can calm the gut. Dr. Andrew Simon, BCB on thermal biofeedback and autogenic training for irritable bowel syndrome — what they are, how they work, and what the evidence honestly supports.
7 min read →Exercise & Movement
Exercise Is Medicine: The Most Under-Prescribed Treatment We Have
If exercise were a pill, it would be the most powerful drug in the formulary. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB — with a background in exercise science — on how movement heals and how to dose it.
8 min read →Fast-Twitch, Slow-Twitch: Training Both as You Age
Aging steals fast-twitch muscle first — the fibers behind power and balance. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains muscle fiber types and how to train both to stay strong, quick, and independent.
6 min read →How to Dose Exercise: RPE and METs Made Simple
Exercise is medicine — but only at the right dose. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains RPE and METs, two simple tools to gauge intensity so you train hard enough to help without overdoing it.
6 min read →Pain Science: Breaking the Fear-Avoidance Cycle
Chronic pain isn't always a sign of ongoing damage — and fear of it can make it worse. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains the fear-avoidance cycle and how understanding pain helps break it.
6 min read →Sitting Is a Hazard — Here's What to Do About It
Prolonged sitting raises disease and death risk even if you exercise. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains the science of sedentary time — and simple, realistic ways to break it up.
5 min read →Metabolic Health & Nutrition
Insulin Resistance Is a Slope, Not a Switch
Type 2 diabetes develops over a decade of silent, reversible insulin resistance. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains how to catch metabolic drift early — and reverse it — with functional and naturopathic medicine.
8 min read →Blood Sugar Stability Without Dieting
Stable blood sugar means steadier energy, fewer cravings, and lower long-term risk — no crash diet required. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB on the practical habits that flatten your glucose curve.
6 min read →Fiber and the Microbiome: The Most Underrated Nutrient
Fiber may be the single most underrated nutrient for long-term health. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains how fiber feeds your gut microbiome, lowers disease risk, and how much you actually need.
6 min read →Mitochondria: Where Your Energy Actually Comes From
Fatigue often traces back to your mitochondria — the cellular engines that make your energy. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains mitochondrial health and the habits that build more of them.
6 min read →Why the Protein RDA Is Too Low for Healthy Aging
The protein RDA prevents deficiency — it doesn't optimize metabolism, satiety, or aging. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB on protein's metabolic benefits and realistic targets for healthy aging.
6 min read →Sleep & Circadian Health
Sleep: The Foundation Under Everything Else
Sleep is upstream of metabolism, mood, immunity, and longevity. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB on why sleep is the foundation of health — and the evidence-based way to fix it without leaning on pills.
8 min read →Circadian Rhythm and Light: Reset Your Body Clock
Your body runs on a 24-hour clock set largely by light. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains circadian rhythm, how modern light disrupts it, and simple ways to reset it for better sleep and metabolism.
6 min read →How Sleep Debt Wrecks Metabolism and Immunity
Short sleep isn't just tiring — it raises blood sugar, appetite, and inflammation. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains how sleep debt sabotages metabolism and immunity, and why you can't fully 'catch up.'
6 min read →Insomnia: Why CBT-I Beats Sleeping Pills
For chronic insomnia, the most effective long-term treatment isn't a pill — it's CBT-I. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia and why guidelines recommend it first.
6 min read →Sleep Apnea: The Signs Most People Miss
Obstructive sleep apnea is common, often undiagnosed, and quietly raises cardiovascular risk. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains the signs of sleep apnea most people miss — and why it's worth catching.
6 min read →Women's Health & Aging
Menopause Is Cardiometabolic, Not Just Hot Flashes
Menopause reshapes heart, metabolic, bone, and brain health — not just temperature. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB reframes the menopause transition as a cardiometabolic turning point and what to do about it.
8 min read →Bone, Heart, and Brain: Protecting Them Through Menopause
Menopause accelerates risk to bones, heart, and brain as estrogen declines. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains how to protect all three during the menopause transition — with lifestyle and, when appropriate, therapy.
7 min read →Evidence-Based Botanicals for Menopause
Which menopause herbs actually work? Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB gives an honest, evidence-graded look at black cohosh, soy, and other botanicals for menopausal symptoms — and where the real options are.
6 min read →Muscle and Hormones in Midlife: Why Strength Matters More
In midlife, hormonal change and muscle loss compound — making strength training more important than ever. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB on why muscle is the anchor of healthy aging for women.
6 min read →The Perimenopause Timeline: What's Actually Happening
Perimenopause can start years before your last period and bring symptoms that surprise you. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB maps the perimenopause timeline and the hormonal shifts driving it.
6 min read →Integrative & Naturopathic Medicine
What Evidence-Based Naturopathic & Integrative Medicine Really Is
Naturopathic medicine done right is disciplined, licensed, and evidence-graded — not mystical. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains what integrative medicine really is, and how to tell rigor from marketing.
8 min read →Anti-Inflammatory Nutrition: Beyond the Buzzword
'Anti-inflammatory' is everywhere — but what does it actually mean? Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains the real science of anti-inflammatory nutrition and the eating pattern with the strongest evidence.
6 min read →Botanicals With Real Evidence: Curcumin and Friends
Some herbal remedies have genuine clinical evidence; many don't. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB separates botanicals that work from marketing — starting with curcumin — and how to use them safely.
6 min read →Strong, Suggestive, or Anecdotal: How to Read Health Evidence
Not all 'studies show' claims are equal. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB teaches how to read health evidence — the hierarchy, what makes a claim strong vs. anecdotal, and how to spot marketing dressed as science.
6 min read →The Science of Acupuncture: A Neurovascular Model
Acupuncture isn't magic — it's physiology. Dr. Andrew Simon, ND, BCB explains the modern neurovascular model of how acupuncture works, and what the clinical evidence actually shows for pain.
6 min read →Prefer a deep dive?
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