Akil Palanisamy M.D.

09/25/2026

During a trip to India found this beautiful and delicious dragonfruit—it’s a powerful source of polyphenols, betalains, and prebiotic fiber that supports a healthy gut microbiome. It feeds your akkermansia gut bacteria, the most important bacteria for healthy blood sugar, weight regulation and metabolism, and promotes the production of beneficial metabolites. Also provides fuel for microbial diversity. Red and pink dragon fruit are particularly rich in colorful antioxidant compounds. Don’t just count vitamins and minerals—seek out the thousands of phytonutrients in brightly colored whole plant foods that help nourish both you and your microbiome

07/07/2026

Olive oil and cancer risk

07/02/2026

Always open to wisdom from any source - this message from a fortune cookie at a local buffet restaurant was timely. A good reminder about flowing with life and not offering any resistance or judgment about the present moment but appreciating everything that it contains. Although it is a very simple idea to go with the flow it is actually quite challenging to implement but I believe this can lead to a significant amount of ease and peace if implemented correctly. Thoughts?

06/09/2026

Microplastics and Kimchi

05/11/2026

Odds are that the olive oil you have at home is a fake as >70% are not true EVOO. Either it’s low quality falsely marked as virgin or extra-virgin or it’s been mixed with other oils of dubious quality like canola or soybean oil. At worst, it’s not at all but a vegetable oil disguised with coloring and aroma. Costco has good quality control and yes although this is not ideal because it is in a plastic bottle I would rather get true authentic extra virgin olive oil in plastic rather than a beautiful glass bottle, plus $17 for 2 L is a good deal for an organic product. There are incredible health benefits including heart health and longevity as well as anti-inflammatory effects from true olive oil so it's worth it to try to find the real deal. Pro tip - when you swallow a spoonful of true EVOO you should get a peppery flavor from the oleoreupin which is one of the key antioxidants!

05/08/2026

My friend and colleague Dr. Cynthia Li, MD has just released her new book, The Medicine of Flow — a guide to embodying flow as a state of internal coherence that can transform your healing journey, wherever you are. Drawing on ancient wisdom, cutting-edge science, and her own remarkable story, it's both deeply personal and practically useful. If you or someone you love is on a healing journey, this one is worth exploring.

The Medicine of Flow: Harmonizing Your Inner State for Effortless Healing

05/05/2026

Turmeric as a prebiotic for your gut microbiome

03/24/2026

Join me for my course on longevity and gut health starting in 2 weeks where we will cover nutrition, the microbiome, toxins, etc and principles of longevity from Ayurveda and Functional Medicine. Also I will be teaching 14 pranayama breathwork techniques from Ayurveda to boost energy and focus -
Https://theshiftnetwork.com/course/01APalanisamy01_26/short

Activate multidimensional medical intuition to scan beyond the surface and uncover the hidden trauma, ancestral imprints, and soul contracts that can keep illness repeating across generations.

03/12/2026

Join me for a free hour long online presentation on March 19 about the gut longevity connection, learn my top ten superfoods for the microbiome and longevity and 2 pranayama breathwork techniques from Ayurveda to boost energy and focus (anuloma viloma and kapalabhati) -

A Free Video Event With Harvard-Trained Physician, Integrative Medicine Expert &; Best-Selling Author Dr. Akil Palanisamy, MD

02/17/2026

Delighted to find this organic at Costco which is as delicious as it is good for you - maitake mushrooms are rich in beta-glucans that strengthen the immune system by increasing activity of crucial cells called natural killer cells and supporting T-cell function. Studies show immune improvement in up to 40% of cancer types and clinical benefit in about 60–70% of certain cancers, helping the body better detect abnormal cells, support metabolic health, improve your microbiome and promote long-term disease and cancer prevention.