Welcome to SELF Principle, a 501c(3) nonprofit focusing on evidence-based health, nutrition, fitness, and wellness research. I’m Dr. Sean Hashmi, board-certified kidney disease and obesity medicine specialist, father of two beautiful daughters and one lucky man to have married my soulmate. :) I got into medicine because of losing my sister. My passion for nutrition and wellness started with...

When it comes to kidney disease and nutrition, the information can get quite confusing. Let's look at the research behind fruits and vegetables in patients undergoing hemodialysis. How does eating fruits and vegetables affect their risk of all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, infection, and cancer mortality? Video Transcript

Longevity is one of the most important topics for all of us, but what are the lifestyle factors that increase longevity? And which are the ones that are most effective? In this video, I'll cover 5 of the lifestyle factors that have been scientifically proven to increase longevity. Watch to find out!

The trendy ketogenic diet promises quick and easy weight loss. Before you try it, learn what this low-carb eating approach could actually mean for your health. Learn the ins and outs of the diet, including risks and benefits

What are the benefits of fasting? Well, let me start with the bad news. A head-to-head trial showed no difference in weight loss with fasting versus simply cutting calories. But that's not where the story ends. It turns out fasting is terrific for many things, such as lowering your visceral fat and decreasing insulin resistance, and lowering LDL. In...

What are some beneficial effects of fasting? After about 12 hours of fasting all the way up to 36 hours, you actually have an increase in the breakdown of triglycerides or fat. In addition, you have increased parasympathetic activity. What does that mean? Your heart rate starts to slow down a little bit, and your blood pressure goes down....

Let's look at vegans versus a standard American diet. It turns out that when you compare vegans to the Western diet, vegans had a 26% lower risk of non-cardiovascular non-cancer mortality. Also, if you looked at Pesco vegetarians, meaning people who are predominantly vegan but still eating fish, they had a 19% reduction in all-cause mortality. They had a...

There's so much talk out there about healthy eating. And by now everybody has heard fruits, vegetables, cutting out salt is good for you. But the question is, do people follow it? The answer is no. If you look at the average American, they eat only about one to one and a half cups of vegetables per day. Recommendation:...

We have so much data on how fasting is really good for you. But some of you have been asking a question-what are the different types of fasting? Here's a basic understanding of the three main types in the intermittent fasting category. The first one is time-restricted feeding (TRF or TRE). Very simply, you have a daily eating window...

What's the healthy plate model, and how can it help you to live a healthier life? Look at your plate in three sections. First, 50% of your plate should be filled with fruits and vegetables. Specifically, two-thirds should be vegetables, and one-third should be fruit. Then, for the remaining 50% of the plate, fill up 25% with healthy proteins:...

We have so much data on how fasting is really good for you. But some of you have been asking a question-what are the different types of fasting? Here's a basic understanding of the three main types in the intermittent fasting category.  The first one is time-restricted feeding (TRF or TRE). Very simply, you have a daily eating window...

Nelson Campbell is the founder of the nonprofit PlantPure Communities (PPC) and the PlantPure business. He also directed and wrote PlantPure Nation, a film that examines the political and economic factors that have suppressed information on the benefits of plant-based nutrition, while making the connections of this idea to medical practice, farming, food deserts, and climate change. PPC, the...

Five heart-healthy tips you can start doing right now. Number one: aim for sleeping seven to 9 hours. In a large study looking at adults over 45, people sleeping less than 6 hours a night had twice the risk of heart attack or stroke than those who slept more. Number two: move more. In another large study, they found that...

We have talked about all sorts of studies on living longer, lowering your risk of heart disease, heart attack, and stroke. But the one thing that we haven't touched on so much is what happens in our golden years. One of the most devastating illnesses is dementia. Essentially, this disease is about forgetting things: forgetting who you are; forgetting your...

What's the mechanism behind how coffee protects your liver? Well, it turns out coffee is incredible at doing several things. First, it lowers cell growth. So if you have cancer cells that rapidly divide, coffee will slow their growth. Coffee also stimulates the breakdown of cells. In other words, cancer cells die faster. That's called apoptosis. Another thing coffee...

How does coffee affect your risk of dying? What? Let's take a look at the evidence. One of the largest studies looked at ten European countries, half a million people, with a follow-up of 16.4 years. The authors found that your risk of all-cause mortality, meaning dying from any disease, was 12% lower for men and 7% lower for...

What's the link between exercise and kidney disease? The more you exercise, the healthier you become, the more blood you drive to the kidney, and you get more benefits. If you look at studies exercising as little as 30 minutes a day, three to five times per week, can lower your risk of getting kidney disease by 18%. So...

What are five simple things you can do right now to lower your risk of developing kidney disease? Number one, make sure that you're exercising regularly. Studies show as little as 30 minutes of exercise three or more times per week can dramatically lower your risk of developing kidney disease. Don't eat late dinners, and don't snack before bedtime....

Walking is one of the most underrated exercises. When it comes to diabetes, walking can be very helpful in lowering blood sugars. However, what is the best way to walk, and what time of the day is optimal for glucose control. Here we look at interesting research comparing 45 minutes of continuous walking versus 15 minutes of walking after...

Does exercising improve your metabolism and help you burn more calories? Can you increase weight loss? I sit down with an evolutionary anthropologist at Duke University, Dr. Herman Pontzer. We dive into his new highly acclaimed book, Burn, to debunk common myths about metabolism, weight loss, and more.

How do you achieve better nutrition in the quest for a healthier life? It's not through crash diets or quick-fix schemes. In this interview, we get to hear Dr. Benjamin Ha's approach to optimizing health through progress over perfection! Dr. Ben Ha is a native of North Carolina but has lived in Bakersfield, California since 2003. He followed in...