WEBVTT - Gila Monster Heal Thyself 0:00:07.600 --> 0:00:11.200 Welcome to Creature future production of iHeartRadio. I'm your host 0:00:11.240 --> 0:00:15.720 of Many Parasites, Katie Golden. I studied psychology and evolutionary biology, 0:00:15.760 --> 0:00:19.960 and today on the show we are talking about animal doctors. 0:00:20.520 --> 0:00:25.560 Maybe they're not real medical doctors, but medicine and healo 0:00:25.560 --> 0:00:31.280 monsters heal thyself anyways, we're talking about medical discoveries that 0:00:32.320 --> 0:00:36.360 have been drawn from the evolutionary biology of animals. We're 0:00:36.360 --> 0:00:39.680 talking about animal research, not in the sense of the 0:00:40.000 --> 0:00:45.600 incredible sacrifice of say, mice, but actual evolutionary advantages that 0:00:45.680 --> 0:00:50.480 animals have that we learn from to directly create life saving, 0:00:50.760 --> 0:00:55.040 life changing medicines. From heala monsters who are a lot 0:00:55.120 --> 0:00:59.680 sweeter than they sound, to all sorts of deadly venom, 0:01:00.120 --> 0:01:04.080 and of course the age old question how do giraffes work? 0:01:04.600 --> 0:01:08.040 Joining me today is front of the show Real Life gastor, 0:01:08.200 --> 0:01:11.559 entrologist and host of the medical podcast House a Pod 0:01:12.040 --> 0:01:12.880 Cave Hodo. 0:01:13.120 --> 0:01:16.839 Welcome, Hey, thank you so much for having me back. 0:01:16.920 --> 0:01:19.280 I have to say, though I did not come prepared 0:01:19.319 --> 0:01:22.280 when you said it was going to be about animal doctors. 0:01:22.400 --> 0:01:25.920 I thought you meant like dogs and crocodiles in lab 0:01:25.959 --> 0:01:29.319 coats helping other animals, or maybe even treating humans like 0:01:29.400 --> 0:01:32.800 doctors that were animals. And this is I'm not I 0:01:32.800 --> 0:01:34.279 didn't prepare. I'm so sorry. 0:01:34.480 --> 0:01:40.360 I uh, it's it's all about Doggy Houser MD. No, sadly, 0:01:41.440 --> 0:01:44.800 I would. I would definitely be interested in a giraffe 0:01:44.920 --> 0:01:48.320 doctor kind of coming in with a giant stethoscope, and 0:01:49.960 --> 0:01:53.160 that would instantly put me at ease. I meant it 0:01:53.200 --> 0:01:55.680 more of that, Yeah. 0:01:55.520 --> 0:01:59.240 It would be amazing. Also the tie question, because copper 0:01:59.280 --> 0:02:03.360 bottom not only well, clearly the bottom okay, because that's 0:02:03.360 --> 0:02:05.280 a silly question to me because it's just a really 0:02:05.320 --> 0:02:08.720 long neck. But the problem is, you know those ties, 0:02:08.800 --> 0:02:12.079 they're terrible for fomites, and I don't recommend doctors wear 0:02:12.120 --> 0:02:14.359 them if you're in the clinical setting because that tie 0:02:14.400 --> 0:02:17.760 just brushes across everything. And imagine how bad that would 0:02:17.800 --> 0:02:20.000 be with a with a giraffe. It will be like 0:02:20.040 --> 0:02:24.000 a trump level tie just sweeping across the serengetti, picking 0:02:24.080 --> 0:02:27.280 up like foumtes and transmitting it to patients. A terrible idea. 0:02:27.440 --> 0:02:31.560 You think if elephants were doctors, like would they where 0:02:31.600 --> 0:02:32.760 would you put the mask? 0:02:32.919 --> 0:02:33.079 Right? 0:02:33.400 --> 0:02:36.280 The face mask? Because they've got the trunk which is 0:02:36.320 --> 0:02:39.120 what I assume they're using for all the surgeries. So 0:02:39.160 --> 0:02:40.920 do they put a mask like on the tip of 0:02:40.960 --> 0:02:43.400 the trunk, which but then the tip of their trunk 0:02:43.480 --> 0:02:46.639 is basically a hand, So then do they just wash it? 0:02:48.040 --> 0:02:50.640 Wow, that is an excellent question. I'm going to have 0:02:50.760 --> 0:02:55.200 to say, they put a sterile boy, how would they breathe? Yeah? No, 0:02:55.400 --> 0:02:58.040 I don't think they can be surgeons because their breathing 0:02:58.080 --> 0:03:03.640 apparatus is also essentially their hands, actile their hand, and 0:03:03.680 --> 0:03:07.359 we don't have the technology yet for breathable sterile gloves. So, 0:03:08.480 --> 0:03:10.040 and I'm not saying because I've tried to put a 0:03:10.080 --> 0:03:12.040 glove over my head or anything, I'm not saying I've 0:03:12.080 --> 0:03:14.680 done that. Maybe I have, maybe I haven't. But you 0:03:14.720 --> 0:03:19.280 can't breathe well in those things, so I don't recommend that. Yeah, 0:03:19.600 --> 0:03:22.400 I'm sorry. I'm sorry elephants out there. Yeah, I know 0:03:22.480 --> 0:03:25.960 I'm being ablest elephant. I don't think you're ready to 0:03:25.960 --> 0:03:26.520 be surgeons. 0:03:26.800 --> 0:03:29.760 There's an elephant listening to this. His dreams have been crushed. 0:03:31.360 --> 0:03:32.520 I'm gonna get canceled for that. 0:03:34.040 --> 0:03:37.880 Unfortunately. No, we're not talking about adorable animals who are 0:03:37.920 --> 0:03:40.120 your doctors, but we are talking about the ways in 0:03:40.160 --> 0:03:45.080 which evolutionary changes in animals, these advantages that they have 0:03:45.680 --> 0:03:51.200 actually give inspiration to human medical researchers and help them 0:03:51.200 --> 0:03:57.000 make these fantastic discoveries, either directly from the animal or 0:03:57.200 --> 0:04:00.720 inspired by the biology of the animal. So the first 0:04:00.760 --> 0:04:03.000 one we're going to talk about, I think is it's 0:04:03.000 --> 0:04:07.480 a very relevant thing because it's it's like the medicine doujour. 0:04:08.680 --> 0:04:12.880 It is about heala monsters and the way that they 0:04:13.040 --> 0:04:17.560 led to the discovery of oziepic or semaglue tide, the 0:04:17.600 --> 0:04:19.279 more generic drug. 0:04:20.920 --> 0:04:23.040 I think it's I think that's fascinating. I think it 0:04:23.080 --> 0:04:27.000 really in and of itself is a fascinating topic. But 0:04:27.560 --> 0:04:32.039 I think, particularly in this day and age, when research 0:04:32.720 --> 0:04:37.440 is so under fire and our research systems, our healthcare systems, 0:04:37.800 --> 0:04:42.000 the whole scientific infrastructure of the United States is being 0:04:42.160 --> 0:04:45.560 sort of dismantled actively, I think it's really important to 0:04:45.560 --> 0:04:47.480 take a look at something like this and be like, Hey, 0:04:48.080 --> 0:04:52.840 this very important medication that's really commonly used and people 0:04:53.040 --> 0:04:58.600 love started from some research that probably seems silly to somebody. Rightly, 0:04:58.600 --> 0:05:01.720 somebody probably saw I'm you're probably gonna talk about this, 0:05:01.800 --> 0:05:04.279 But like I think it's so important to be like, Okay, 0:05:04.760 --> 0:05:07.599 this is why, like this random study that we did 0:05:07.760 --> 0:05:11.640 ten twenty years ago in the helo monster saliva, you know, 0:05:12.200 --> 0:05:14.760 is actually super important because at the time people were like, 0:05:14.760 --> 0:05:19.040 we're spending five million dollars on the the sex identity 0:05:19.120 --> 0:05:22.039 of the helo monster. Yeah, you know, like we're spending 0:05:22.080 --> 0:05:24.680 twenty million on spit of a lizard. Yeah, and like 0:05:24.760 --> 0:05:27.600 someone's getting crazy about that. But this is what can 0:05:27.640 --> 0:05:29.320 happen with research, with studies. 0:05:29.600 --> 0:05:34.000 That's exactly why we're talking about this today because it 0:05:34.080 --> 0:05:37.520 is something where we have all sorts of research going on, 0:05:37.720 --> 0:05:39.560 and a lot of it like will not make the 0:05:39.640 --> 0:05:44.800 news until there is something, as I guess sensational and 0:05:44.920 --> 0:05:49.280 revolutionary is something like semaglue tide. But meanwhile, the way 0:05:49.320 --> 0:05:52.919 that we came upon this drug, it was not just 0:05:52.960 --> 0:05:55.720 like this accidental one day, you know, you're mixing chemicals 0:05:55.720 --> 0:05:58.080 in a lab and oh, drug happens. It's from years 0:05:58.080 --> 0:06:02.320 and years, decades of rece and in this particular case, 0:06:02.360 --> 0:06:06.160 it was from decades of research done on HeLa monsters, 0:06:07.000 --> 0:06:10.400 which are a type of lizard a reptile found in 0:06:10.640 --> 0:06:14.040 the southwestern United States as well as in Sonora, Mexico, 0:06:14.480 --> 0:06:17.400 and they are like in of in themselves. They're fascinating 0:06:17.400 --> 0:06:20.880 little creatures, like I love them so much. But in 0:06:20.880 --> 0:06:26.440 addition to being amazing animals, they have revolutionized human medicine, 0:06:26.480 --> 0:06:31.599 the treatment of diabetes, the obviously with o zimbic weight loss. 0:06:32.400 --> 0:06:36.360 But like you said, it's from these studies that when 0:06:36.360 --> 0:06:38.240 you first look at them, it's like, why do we 0:06:38.320 --> 0:06:42.520 care about HeLa monster venom? It's bad for you, end 0:06:42.600 --> 0:06:45.520 of study, right, helo monster venom. Don't get bitten by 0:06:45.520 --> 0:06:47.839 a HeLa monster. It's gonna hurt. Like, why would we 0:06:47.880 --> 0:06:50.880 need to study that? That's ridiculous. But in fact, these 0:06:50.920 --> 0:06:54.440 studies that seem strange, right, Like I remember these kind 0:06:54.440 --> 0:06:57.400 of anti science people were complaining about, Oh, there's all 0:06:57.440 --> 0:06:59.680 these studies done on birds song, why don't we care? 0:06:59.720 --> 0:07:02.440 Why do we care about that? Where in reality, like 0:07:02.480 --> 0:07:05.520 studies done on birdstrong and the crystallization of learning has 0:07:05.600 --> 0:07:08.760 huge implications for say like human learning. Even things like 0:07:08.800 --> 0:07:12.280 Alzheimer's are all sorts of things that are not immediately 0:07:12.440 --> 0:07:17.160 obvious from these studies that can become revolutionary and life 0:07:17.680 --> 0:07:22.480 changing and life saving for people. And so yeah, that's 0:07:22.800 --> 0:07:25.320 exactly what we're going to talk about today is all 0:07:25.360 --> 0:07:28.840 of these discoveries, these these animals that have led to discoveries, 0:07:28.840 --> 0:07:31.720 and then the people behind them, and the laboratories and 0:07:31.760 --> 0:07:36.120 the research institutes behind them. So heal monsters. It's actually 0:07:36.120 --> 0:07:38.400 if you're googling this you want a picture of them. 0:07:38.400 --> 0:07:42.960 It is spelled gila, so it looks like it should 0:07:42.960 --> 0:07:45.520 be pronounced gel a monster, but it's actually pronounced hel 0:07:45.520 --> 0:07:50.800 a monster. They're actually really beautiful lizards. They have this 0:07:50.960 --> 0:07:54.640 black and orange coloration. They have bumpy skin, this kind 0:07:54.640 --> 0:07:58.200 of like stout, chunky body. I think they're cute. I 0:07:58.200 --> 0:08:00.880 think most things are cute, but this one just has 0:08:00.960 --> 0:08:03.800 kind of like a little stoutness to it that I 0:08:03.800 --> 0:08:07.240 think makes it cute. They store a lot, do you think? 0:08:08.040 --> 0:08:10.360 Will you be honest with me, Are there any animals 0:08:10.360 --> 0:08:12.480 that you don't think are cute? You're not going to 0:08:12.560 --> 0:08:13.120 hurt their feels? 0:08:13.560 --> 0:08:18.880 I really hate silverfish. The insect the insect uh huh. 0:08:18.960 --> 0:08:23.400 I don't like cockroaches. They gross me out. Let's see 0:08:23.440 --> 0:08:25.840 what else is not cute? 0:08:26.080 --> 0:08:28.760 Anything not insect base that you don't think is cute. 0:08:29.160 --> 0:08:33.600 I'm asking for hot take here for this show. In particular, 0:08:33.640 --> 0:08:35.280 but I'm wondering what is. 0:08:35.320 --> 0:08:41.240 Not gosh, what is a not cute non insect? And 0:08:41.280 --> 0:08:44.400 also most insects are cute. That's a really good question 0:08:44.520 --> 0:08:47.280 really to me. Most insects are cute. 0:08:47.559 --> 0:08:49.960 But you see a close up of an ant's face, 0:08:50.040 --> 0:08:50.800 it's terrifying. 0:08:50.920 --> 0:08:53.559 It's yeah, that's pretty neat. But then when you zoom out, 0:08:53.559 --> 0:08:55.880 they're cute little babies. Also, if you zoom into a 0:08:55.960 --> 0:08:58.720 tartar grade, then they become cute, and then you zoom 0:08:58.720 --> 0:09:02.480 in even more are terrifying. So there's like different levels 0:09:02.480 --> 0:09:04.760 of zoom where it's like you zoom out from a 0:09:04.800 --> 0:09:07.000 tartar grade, you can't see it, so it's nothing. It's 0:09:07.000 --> 0:09:09.360 not cute, it's not ugly, it's nothing. You zoom in 0:09:09.440 --> 0:09:11.960 it's like, oh, it's like a chubby little teddy bear. 0:09:11.960 --> 0:09:13.760 And then you zoom in even more and it's like 0:09:13.800 --> 0:09:15.040 a dune sandworm. 0:09:16.360 --> 0:09:20.160 There's something about that that's really I think important for life. 0:09:20.480 --> 0:09:23.760 Like life is if you zoom to the wrong level, 0:09:24.120 --> 0:09:27.440 absolutely terrifying. If you zoom in or out to like 0:09:27.480 --> 0:09:30.280 the right level, like because if you're at the level 0:09:30.280 --> 0:09:32.440 that most of us are right now in zoom, what's 0:09:32.440 --> 0:09:35.360 happening in this country is terrifying. But you know, if 0:09:35.360 --> 0:09:38.800 I zoom way way out to where we're just like 0:09:38.880 --> 0:09:42.400 a globe that's floating in space, it's not so terrifying. 0:09:42.600 --> 0:09:45.360 I zoom way way into like this cup of coffee 0:09:45.360 --> 0:09:49.360 I'm having, then it's also good, but anywhere between is terrifying. 0:09:49.840 --> 0:09:52.920 Also, focal length, it's very important for selfies. Like if 0:09:52.960 --> 0:09:55.200 you take a selfie and you're like, ah, look awful, 0:09:55.559 --> 0:09:58.120 probably a bad focal length. Don't worry about it. 0:09:58.320 --> 0:10:01.920 So right, right, yeah. 0:10:01.280 --> 0:10:05.080 It's all no, no, it's all. It all ties in together, 0:10:05.840 --> 0:10:09.760 putting that, putting that on my corkboard of sanity over there. 0:10:10.200 --> 0:10:14.120 So yeah, they are these beautiful lizards. They're bumpy, they're 0:10:14.240 --> 0:10:16.800 they kind of have all of these little bumps, all 0:10:16.800 --> 0:10:21.200 of them, these like little uh pearl like protrusions. Uh. 0:10:21.320 --> 0:10:25.600 That's actually why their Latin name Hiloderma suspect them. The 0:10:25.679 --> 0:10:29.679 Heloderma in their name is like it stands for studded skin. 0:10:30.600 --> 0:10:33.280 Suspectum is a funny part of their name, and that 0:10:33.440 --> 0:10:36.480 is because the guy who discovered these was like, I 0:10:36.520 --> 0:10:39.600 suspect they might be venomous based on their teeth, and 0:10:39.640 --> 0:10:44.400 he was right, but sometimes scientists, Yeah, just like I 0:10:44.440 --> 0:10:48.280 suspect you're you're suspicious, So your name is Hiloderma, suspect them, 0:10:49.480 --> 0:10:53.720 but yeah it's sus It's a sus lizard. Uh yeah. 0:10:53.760 --> 0:10:58.000 But those little protrusions are called osteoderms. They're actually bony deposits, 0:10:58.000 --> 0:11:01.160 so they they're like calcium deposits. They're little. They're not 0:11:01.320 --> 0:11:06.360 really made of you know, epithelial tissue. They're made out 0:11:06.360 --> 0:11:09.400 of bony deposits, which is kind of interesting. So they're 0:11:09.480 --> 0:11:14.480 lumpy and bumpy and very cute in my opinion. Now, 0:11:14.600 --> 0:11:20.720 they are rather venomous, so they have this apisomatic coloration, 0:11:20.920 --> 0:11:24.240 meaning warning coloration, So they have the bright orange, the black, 0:11:24.559 --> 0:11:27.480 and this kind of beautiful striated pattern on their backs. 0:11:27.520 --> 0:11:30.520 But the purpose of that is to warn predators like, hey, 0:11:31.240 --> 0:11:36.079 you'd better not like, I'm pretty toxic. And they are 0:11:36.320 --> 0:11:40.760 quite venomous, so they have these sharp teeth that can 0:11:40.760 --> 0:11:44.880 inject venom. They also have very foul breath apparently that 0:11:44.920 --> 0:11:48.480 goes along with it, and pioneers thought that because their 0:11:48.520 --> 0:11:50.840 breath was kind of bad, they thought that they could 0:11:50.960 --> 0:11:54.040 kill either with their breath. Just the stinkiness of their 0:11:54.080 --> 0:11:57.760 breath or also kill with their bite with the venom. 0:11:59.400 --> 0:12:03.720 Can I ask question, am I confusing the HeLa monster 0:12:04.120 --> 0:12:08.240 with the Komodo dragon in that they bite their prey 0:12:08.440 --> 0:12:12.800 and it causes an infection that later kills their prey 0:12:12.800 --> 0:12:14.160 and when they catch up to them. Is that the 0:12:14.200 --> 0:12:14.920 Komodo dragon? 0:12:14.920 --> 0:12:18.160 That is the that is about like that idea is 0:12:18.200 --> 0:12:21.920 about the Komodo dragon. The Komodo dragon does have venom, 0:12:22.559 --> 0:12:27.199 and the idea that of the infection that's largely it's 0:12:27.240 --> 0:12:30.840 not exactly accurate because what happens is that the Komodo 0:12:30.960 --> 0:12:33.160 dragon will bite its prey and it'll try to take 0:12:33.200 --> 0:12:35.880 down its prey like right then and there, but often 0:12:35.880 --> 0:12:38.600 the prey will escape and the Komodo dragon has this 0:12:38.720 --> 0:12:41.520 amazing sense of smell, so it can just track its prey. 0:12:42.160 --> 0:12:46.880 And what prey animals often do in response to being 0:12:48.520 --> 0:12:50.480 tracked like that or being injured, as they'll go into 0:12:50.520 --> 0:12:54.480 a body of water and so they will have this 0:12:54.520 --> 0:12:56.320 big wound. They'll go into the body of water because 0:12:56.320 --> 0:12:58.880 they're trying to avoid the predator. And so that's where 0:12:58.920 --> 0:13:01.360 this idea comes from. That because then once they have 0:13:01.400 --> 0:13:03.640 that big wound and they go into the water, they 0:13:03.679 --> 0:13:06.319 can get a pretty nasty infection which could kill them 0:13:06.360 --> 0:13:09.720 even if the Komodo dragon doesn't find them. But generally speaking, 0:13:09.720 --> 0:13:14.280 the komodo dragon is an injecting it with venom with 0:13:14.640 --> 0:13:19.440 these like powerful toxins. It will track it down if 0:13:19.440 --> 0:13:21.960 it runs off, just like if a hunter shoots a 0:13:22.000 --> 0:13:23.720 deer and the deer runs off, you track it down 0:13:23.760 --> 0:13:26.439 to try to find it, but usually it is simply 0:13:26.600 --> 0:13:30.640 killed by the komodo dragon. Man, I'm not bought necessarily 0:13:30.640 --> 0:13:33.080 by an infection, but you do have these cases where 0:13:33.400 --> 0:13:36.320 even if it evades the komodo dragon and it tries 0:13:36.360 --> 0:13:38.840 to go into a body of water to sort of 0:13:38.880 --> 0:13:41.240 like hide from it, it can also die from infection. 0:13:41.360 --> 0:13:44.640 So that's where that idea comes from. Heala monsters are 0:13:45.000 --> 0:13:48.760 quite a bit smaller. They're only they weigh about two pounds. 0:13:48.800 --> 0:13:52.240 They're about a foot long, so that's about eight hundred grams, 0:13:53.360 --> 0:13:56.920 and they do they are predators, but they eat very 0:13:56.960 --> 0:14:03.400 small things, so rodents, little invertebrates, other lizards, reptiles, And 0:14:03.679 --> 0:14:06.679 it's actually thought because their prey is so small and 0:14:06.720 --> 0:14:10.760 relatively helpless, that the venom is not really necessary for 0:14:10.800 --> 0:14:13.320 their hunting, and it's mostly defensive, like so that they 0:14:13.320 --> 0:14:16.599 can bite predators, anything that would try to make a 0:14:16.640 --> 0:14:19.440 meal out of them. Because they're, you know, only only 0:14:19.480 --> 0:14:24.120 two pounds, they could possibly be eaten by something. And 0:14:24.800 --> 0:14:28.360 they also eat eggs, so they kind of they're a 0:14:28.360 --> 0:14:30.960 lot more chill, I would say, than something like a 0:14:31.040 --> 0:14:34.320 Kimodo dragon. They really just like to eat and sleep. 0:14:34.920 --> 0:14:39.560 And even though technically they are dangerous for people in 0:14:39.600 --> 0:14:41.560 the sense that if you're bitten by one, you really 0:14:41.560 --> 0:14:44.800 need to get medical attention because their venom is quite powerful, 0:14:46.040 --> 0:14:51.960 they very very rarely kill people. It's something that's easily treated. 0:14:53.120 --> 0:14:57.760 It is not generally deadly. The only cases that have 0:14:58.160 --> 0:15:02.000 resulted in fatalities for healthy adult human beings is that 0:15:02.680 --> 0:15:04.840 is when someone doesn't go to get treatment, if the 0:15:04.880 --> 0:15:08.160 treatment's mismanaged or I guess there was a couple of 0:15:08.240 --> 0:15:12.360 cases where someone was like really really drunk, uh, and so, 0:15:12.440 --> 0:15:15.120 which would explain why they're getting bitten by a heal 0:15:15.280 --> 0:15:16.600 monster probably picking it like. 0:15:16.560 --> 0:15:22.800 What was and again, yeah, so yeah, that's that is 0:15:22.960 --> 0:15:25.240 very cool. That is very neat. I also would like 0:15:25.280 --> 0:15:28.720 credit for not making and in this economy joke when 0:15:28.720 --> 0:15:31.480 you brought up eggs. I would like credit for that. 0:15:32.120 --> 0:15:35.600 Yeah, the main the main threat, the main threat to 0:15:35.640 --> 0:15:43.560 healo monsters right now is inflation egg inflation. Uh, their bit. 0:15:43.520 --> 0:15:45.440 It's like jazz. It's the jokes you don't make, you 0:15:45.520 --> 0:15:45.960 know what I mean. 0:15:46.080 --> 0:15:48.760 It's it's the negative space around the jokes that make 0:15:48.800 --> 0:15:54.520 it funny. The venom is apparently extremely painful though, so 0:15:54.560 --> 0:15:57.600 you don't really want to get bitten by. Some YouTuber 0:15:57.640 --> 0:16:01.560 who got himself bitten by one of these called it 0:16:02.080 --> 0:16:04.840 like it felt like lava in his veins or something. 0:16:05.480 --> 0:16:07.520 But honestly, you know, if you're a YouTuber and you 0:16:08.200 --> 0:16:11.160 intentionally seek out these bites, I don't have a huge 0:16:11.160 --> 0:16:15.880 amount of sympathy, but yeah, so it can be very painful, 0:16:16.040 --> 0:16:19.240 but it's general. These guys generally do not kill people. 0:16:19.320 --> 0:16:23.040 It's only in very rare, very sort of freak incidents 0:16:23.080 --> 0:16:25.200 that they'll kill people. And also they just don't bite. 0:16:25.280 --> 0:16:27.480 They don't they don't want to bite you unless you 0:16:27.560 --> 0:16:30.720 really mess with them because they just want to eat 0:16:30.800 --> 0:16:33.320 a lot and sleep a lot. That is their whole 0:16:33.360 --> 0:16:33.960 life plan. 0:16:35.800 --> 0:16:40.080 You're making a good argument for their adorability and their friendliness, 0:16:40.360 --> 0:16:42.360 and I'm keeping an open mind. I mean, the cookie 0:16:42.360 --> 0:16:44.800 monster is a monster. And he's adorable wit and it's 0:16:44.840 --> 0:16:47.200 in his name, So I get it. You're you're making 0:16:47.200 --> 0:16:47.880 a good argument. 0:16:48.120 --> 0:16:53.480 They are kind of cookie monsters because they they really 0:16:53.520 --> 0:16:57.480 love snacking. So juveniles are able to eat fifty percent 0:16:57.600 --> 0:17:00.680 of their body weight in one sitting, like one meal, 0:17:01.000 --> 0:17:03.560 so that's like half half of their whole body weight 0:17:03.600 --> 0:17:06.639 in one meal. Adults can eat over thirty percent of 0:17:06.680 --> 0:17:10.399 their body weight in a single meal. So they all 0:17:10.480 --> 0:17:12.960 just eat huge meals and then they don't have to 0:17:13.000 --> 0:17:15.920 eat for weeks or months at a time. They're just 0:17:16.200 --> 0:17:18.960 napping and trying to stay out of trouble in the meantime. 0:17:21.160 --> 0:17:27.000 Not bad, yeah, sunbathing, napping and eating just huge amounts 0:17:27.040 --> 0:17:29.920 just like it's it really is the life. And it's 0:17:29.960 --> 0:17:35.720 also that whole that ability of theirs to eat a 0:17:35.800 --> 0:17:38.399 huge amount and then just kind of loaf around and 0:17:38.560 --> 0:17:42.520 digest it really slowly is the whole reason that they 0:17:42.600 --> 0:17:47.240 have led to the discovery of semaglutide o zebic, the 0:17:47.440 --> 0:17:51.800 GLP one agonist. So this comes from a hormone in 0:17:51.920 --> 0:17:57.880 heala monsters, so they can slow down their digestion, their 0:17:57.920 --> 0:18:02.920 metabolism and eat just a few meals a year, and 0:18:03.080 --> 0:18:06.920 so this Also, in addition, this very slow metabolism means 0:18:06.960 --> 0:18:11.000 that their relatively long lived lizard and captivity, they can 0:18:11.040 --> 0:18:14.120 live up to about forty years, so they have this 0:18:14.200 --> 0:18:19.359 really fantastic slow digestion, slow gastric emptying. You can probably 0:18:19.400 --> 0:18:21.399 kind of see where I'm going with this if you 0:18:21.440 --> 0:18:26.520 know anything about semaglue tide, so xendon four is a 0:18:26.600 --> 0:18:30.520 peptide derived from the heel monster venom, and it can 0:18:30.560 --> 0:18:36.600 be used as a GLP one receptor agonist. Which, don't worry, 0:18:36.640 --> 0:18:40.000 I'm going to explain these things because or maybe I'll 0:18:40.000 --> 0:18:42.560 get caved up explain them because I think he probably 0:18:42.640 --> 0:18:44.639 knows about them a little more than I do. 0:18:44.920 --> 0:18:47.199 So you're doing great, Thank you. 0:18:47.200 --> 0:18:49.920 I appreciate that. But I'm also lazy, So tell tell 0:18:49.960 --> 0:18:53.360 the listeners what is the What is a GLP one 0:18:54.119 --> 0:18:55.680 receptor agonist? 0:18:56.880 --> 0:19:00.000 So some of glue tide this medication that you're taught 0:19:00.000 --> 0:19:02.560 talking about these things like ozembic with go V and 0:19:02.640 --> 0:19:05.879 I think the other one is Rebel says, I forget 0:19:05.880 --> 0:19:08.360 the actual name of it, but what it is, it's 0:19:08.359 --> 0:19:12.879 a medication that mimics the action of the GLP one hormone. 0:19:13.359 --> 0:19:15.960 And what that does is it helps regulate your blood 0:19:16.000 --> 0:19:19.480 sugar levels. It reduces the appetitis you mentioned, and a 0:19:19.480 --> 0:19:22.320 big part of that is by slowing down gastric emptying, 0:19:22.400 --> 0:19:26.480 which means the way your stomach normally works is you know, 0:19:26.600 --> 0:19:31.359 it digested things, it's smashing things up, it's putting in 0:19:31.440 --> 0:19:34.520 all the right stuff to break down with acid the 0:19:34.560 --> 0:19:37.560 food that you're eating, and then it empties into your 0:19:37.560 --> 0:19:41.200 small intestine. And this is all part of a normal process. 0:19:41.240 --> 0:19:45.160 And when your stomach's empty, that helps trigger your hunger. 0:19:45.480 --> 0:19:47.000 There's a lot of things that go into hunger, but 0:19:47.040 --> 0:19:51.680 that's one of them. And then if you have slow emptying, 0:19:51.880 --> 0:19:54.600 if things are just slow down in your gut, that 0:19:54.600 --> 0:19:56.639 can be a problem for some people. But it's also 0:19:56.840 --> 0:20:01.360 a way to reduce people's appetites and what's happening here. 0:20:01.359 --> 0:20:05.400 So it's actually pretty effective for helping with weight loss, 0:20:05.440 --> 0:20:09.639 it's pretty effective for controlling blood sugar. And now you know, 0:20:09.640 --> 0:20:13.560 we give it to patients as weekly injections. This other 0:20:13.640 --> 0:20:16.480 one as a tablets roybelsis but I don't it's not 0:20:16.560 --> 0:20:20.080 quite as common yet, So it's actually we're probably gonna 0:20:20.080 --> 0:20:23.200 find this isn't aside, but I think over the coming 0:20:23.280 --> 0:20:26.199 years We're probably gonna find more uses for it. I mean, 0:20:26.240 --> 0:20:29.359 there's people who are studying its use for alcohol cravings 0:20:30.320 --> 0:20:33.440 and alcohol use disorder, so we might find other things 0:20:33.440 --> 0:20:36.320 that go along with it. But the major thing it's 0:20:36.320 --> 0:20:40.320 gonna do, as you mentioned with humans here, is in 0:20:40.400 --> 0:20:42.680 terms of weight loss, to slow down the way your 0:20:42.680 --> 0:20:45.320 gut moves things through. So because of that, you can 0:20:45.320 --> 0:20:47.280 also get side effects from it. There are people who 0:20:47.320 --> 0:20:50.680 are gonna get nausea, vomiting, might even get like constantpation 0:20:50.880 --> 0:20:54.080 or even diarrhea or some alternation of the two. There's 0:20:54.680 --> 0:20:58.480 some serious risks that can happen. It's pretty rare, but 0:20:58.680 --> 0:21:02.520 problems with the thyroid, pancreatitis or inflammation of your pink risk. 0:21:02.880 --> 0:21:06.480 I've seen gall bladders that have had stones before they 0:21:06.520 --> 0:21:10.400 started the medication become inflamed because of the stones because 0:21:10.440 --> 0:21:12.159 things aren't moving the way they should. There's like a 0:21:12.160 --> 0:21:14.800 little bit more chance of infection there. So there's some 0:21:14.840 --> 0:21:18.199 serious risk too with these medications. But that is the 0:21:18.240 --> 0:21:21.760 basic overview of semiglue tides and what they're doing for 0:21:21.920 --> 0:21:23.879 you here in these medications. 0:21:23.800 --> 0:21:26.359 Right, And it's like any medication, right, you kind of 0:21:26.359 --> 0:21:29.600 have to weigh the potential benefits with the risks, right, 0:21:29.640 --> 0:21:32.680 like if you that's right, yeah, diabetes, and you need 0:21:32.720 --> 0:21:35.560 it to regulate your blood sugar. The risks of the 0:21:35.640 --> 0:21:39.720 medication may be outweighed by the benefits you get, or 0:21:39.920 --> 0:21:44.320 you know, if you really really need help with weight loss, 0:21:44.320 --> 0:21:46.400 and like nothing else has worked, and it's affecting your 0:21:46.440 --> 0:21:49.840 health as long as you tolerate it well, as long 0:21:49.840 --> 0:21:52.520 as the side effects are not so grave, like it 0:21:52.960 --> 0:21:56.560 might be something you want to take. But and it's 0:21:56.600 --> 0:21:59.840 also very individual, right, like some people will respond better 0:21:59.880 --> 0:22:02.080 to it than others. It's it's not like a mirror. 0:22:02.440 --> 0:22:05.600 There's not like a miracle pill that makes everyone better. 0:22:06.720 --> 0:22:09.480 But it's that's exactly right. And I think that's a 0:22:09.600 --> 0:22:11.480 really great point, is that every it has to be 0:22:11.520 --> 0:22:14.360 tailored for the person, and it's not for everybody, and 0:22:14.480 --> 0:22:17.000 there should always be with any medication. There should be 0:22:17.040 --> 0:22:20.760 some risk and benefit analysis that somebody is doing. And 0:22:20.840 --> 0:22:24.360 everything has some risk, there's no doubt. So and it's 0:22:24.600 --> 0:22:27.640 it's not perfect, but you know it is. It does 0:22:27.680 --> 0:22:29.840 seem to be helpful, and so far all the studies 0:22:29.880 --> 0:22:32.359 show that works, and we see it in plenty of patients, 0:22:32.359 --> 0:22:34.680 and you see it and I'm sure everyone knows somebody 0:22:34.720 --> 0:22:37.760 at this point who has lost weight on one of 0:22:37.760 --> 0:22:41.400 these medications, so that that benefit in the long run 0:22:41.440 --> 0:22:43.639 in terms of their health probably outweighs the risks for 0:22:43.720 --> 0:22:44.800 most people, but not everyone. 0:22:44.880 --> 0:22:47.639 Yeah, yeah, no, it's for sure an individual thing. I 0:22:47.680 --> 0:22:50.960 also have to emphasize, like, please don't find a heal 0:22:50.960 --> 0:22:53.640 a monster and like have it bite you. That will 0:22:53.680 --> 0:22:56.760 not work. It will not it won't be the same. 0:22:56.840 --> 0:22:59.800 I know it's tempting because of drug prices. 0:22:59.400 --> 0:23:01.560 In the US so much cheaper. 0:23:01.400 --> 0:23:06.160 Our terrible healthcare system, and it seems like it might 0:23:06.200 --> 0:23:09.080 seem like a good time, a good idea, especially if 0:23:09.080 --> 0:23:11.760 you're really drunk. But don't do that. The heal a 0:23:11.840 --> 0:23:14.040 monster doesn't want to be involved in that. And also 0:23:14.240 --> 0:23:17.520 it will just hurt a lot and cause. 0:23:17.280 --> 0:23:20.959