EPISODE #175 ROUNDTABLE SPECIAL: 20% of People Have an Organ Aging Faster Than It Should! - Featuring Dr. Josh Axe and Dr. Will Cole
Episode of The Dylan Gemelli Podcast · October 22, 2026 · 1 h 57 min
Dylan Gemelli hosts Dr. Josh Axe and Dr. Will Cole to discuss cellular health, organ aging, heart risk markers, sleep, faith, peptides, and diet.
Summary
In this first roundtable episode, host Dylan Gemelli spoke with functional medicine practitioners Josh Axe and Will Cole about their co-authored book Heal Your Cells. Cole cited a 2023 Stanford study finding that about one in five people have an organ aging faster than others, with elevated risk of heart attack or neurodegeneration; Axe argued from clinical experience that the real figure is closer to 50%. The guests outlined blood markers they use, including fasting glucose, A1c, triglycerides, hs-CRP, homocysteine, liver enzymes, ApoB, Lp(a), and NMR particle testing, and Cole argued that inflammation rather than cholesterol drives cardiovascular risk. Gemelli recounted discovering elevated Lp(a) and arterial plaque despite his fitness background, after his father died of a heart attack at 59.
Axe described insulin resistance as cells becoming 'deaf' to insulin and argued that insulin and cortisol are the master hormones. Both guests named poor sleep and circadian disruption as primary drivers, discussed the 3 a.m. waking pattern as a sign of high cortisol, and recommended vagal toning through breathwork, gargling, journaling, and vagus nerve stimulation devices. Gemelli described a breathwork-based 'soul surgery' with Dr. Sean Drake and his morning prayer routine, and the three discussed childhood trauma, forgiveness, and faith, with Gemelli framing health as 'mind, body, and God' and Cole citing a study linking regular faith practice to a 33% reduction in all-cause mortality.
Later segments covered peptides, where Axe predicted continued legalization and warned that restriction pushes patients to gray markets; criticism of conventional medicine and hospital food; longevity via gut health, weight training, and walking; and diet, where all three rejected one-size-fits-all approaches such as permanent keto, carnivore, or vegan diets in favor of bioindividuality. They discussed seed oils, with Axe favoring extra virgin olive oil, the reliability of AI tools on natural medicine, protein trends, and fiber, before closing with reflections on personalized medicine and faith.
Chapters
- 1:08
Introduction and Heal Your Cells
Gemelli introduces the roundtable and Axe and Cole describe their book on cellular medicine.
- 2:34
Cellular health and organ aging
Cole and Axe discuss the Stanford study on organs aging faster and early signs of dysfunction from childhood onward.
- 11:09
Blood markers and cholesterol
Cole lays out optimal lab ranges and argues inflammation and particle quality matter more than total cholesterol.
- 15:52
Gemelli's heart scare and insulin resistance
Gemelli shares his Lp(a) and plaque discovery, and Axe explains insulin resistance and the roles of insulin and cortisol.
- 20:37
Sleep, circadian rhythm and recovery
The three discuss poor sleep as a driver of insulin resistance and the importance of rest for athletes.
- 29:21
Cortisol, the 3 a.m. wake-up and vagal tone
The guests explain early waking as a cortisol issue and recommend vagal toning practices including gargling and stimulation devices.
- 35:08
Emotional healing, trauma and faith
Gemelli describes his breathwork healing experience and the group discusses trauma, forgiveness and faith-based medicine.
- 46:02
Mind, body and God
Gemelli presents his mind-body-God framework and the guests cite research linking faith practice to longevity.
- 56:23
Peptides and conventional versus functional medicine
The group debates peptide regulation, gray markets, cancer care, and resistance to functional medicine.
- 1:07:45
Longevity: gut health and exercise
Cole emphasizes gut health and Axe emphasizes weight training and walking for mitochondrial health.
- 1:16:53
Diets, seed oils and AI research
The guests reject extreme diets in favor of bioindividuality, discuss seed oils and olive oil, and critique AI tools' health bias.
- 1:36:41
Favorite foods, protein, fiber and closing thoughts
After a lighthearted food segment, they discuss protein trends and fiber before sharing final messages.
Key points
What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.
- Will Cole
Cole cites a Stanford study finding that about one in five people, roughly 22 million Americans, have an organ aging faster than others.
“one in five people in the study, it equals to about 22 million Americans, have one organ aging more rapidly than other organs”
- Josh Axe
Axe argues from clinical experience that the share of people with an organ aging too fast is far higher than the study found, near 50%.
“I think that number is radically higher. I think it's probably closer to 50%”
- Will Cole
Cole argues total cholesterol alone is a poor predictor because about half of heart attack and stroke patients have normal or low cholesterol.
“Total cholesterol by itself, it's like flipping a coin. It's about 50% of people who have heart attacks and strokes have normal to low cholesterol”
- Will Cole
Cole contends that inflammation damaging cholesterol-carrying particles, not cholesterol itself, drives cardiovascular deaths.
“The reality is it's not cholesterol that's killing people. It's the inflammation that damages the particles that carry cholesterol that's the issue”
- Josh Axe
Axe argues that correcting insulin and cortisol will bring other hormones back into balance.
“If you would just fix insulin and cortisol, every other hormone would go back to where it should be”
- Josh Axe
Axe names poor sleep as the biggest driver of insulin resistance, saying under six hours of sleep sharply spikes insulin.
“the amount that your insulin spikes from less than six hours of sleep is just wild”
- Josh Axe
Axe recommends gargling for about two minutes as the fastest way he has found to enter a parasympathetic state.
“but I truly think gargling... is the fastest single way to get yourself into the state”
- Josh Axe
Axe says unresolved childhood trauma is usually behind patients who plateau in their healing.
“at least 90% of the time, if I have a patient and they start seeing some results, but then they just hit this plateau”
- Dylan Gemelli
Gemelli frames total health as mind, body, and God rather than mind, body, and spirit.
“It's mind, body and God. And that connection that I have found to align full health”
- Will Cole
Cole cites a Harvard study linking regular faith practice to a 33% lower risk of all-cause mortality over 16 years.
“33 percent decreased risk of all-cause mortality over a 16-year period i think it was”
- Josh Axe
Axe warns that barring functional medicine practitioners from prescribing peptides will push people to unsafe gray and black markets.
“if you make it to where even functional medicine practitioners can't prescribe them and recommend them, people are just going to go to the gray and black market”
- Will Cole
Cole argues critics of functional medicine are on the wrong side of history, citing institutions like the Cleveland Clinic opening functional medicine centers.
“they're on the wrong side of history i mean the mainstream institutions like the cleveland clinic don't open up multi-million dollar functional medicine centers”
- Will Cole
Cole contends that U.S. hospital food reflects why the country spends the most on health care yet has poor outcomes.
“why the United States spends more than any country. We have the shortest lifespan and the most chronic disease”
- Josh Axe
Axe says weight training is the fastest way to increase mitochondria because muscle is highly mitochondria-dense.
“the fastest way you can increase mitochondria is through weight training”
- Josh Axe
Axe argues most people should not follow ketogenic or carnivore diets long-term, favoring individualized omnivorous eating.
“I don't think most people should be following a ketogenic diet. I don't think most people should be following a carnivore diet”
- Josh Axe
Axe recommends extra virgin olive oil as the healthiest cooking oil, sidestepping the seed oil versus saturated fat debate.
“extra virgin olive oil absolutely is by far the healthiest oil most people can consume”
- Dylan Gemelli
Gemelli reports his Lp(a) dropped from 330 to the 90s on his higher-fat, lower-calorie diet, which he had been told was impossible.
“my LP little a started at 330. It's gone down into the 90s, which I told was impossible”
Linked moment · 1:35:51Skip to 1:35:51 using a listen link in the info box.
Josh AxeAxe says AI tools vary in their stance on natural medicine, with Grok the most friendly and Google's Gemini among the most hostile.
“I mean, Grok is probably one of the most friendly towards natural medicine”
- Will Cole
Cole praises HHS for raising protein guidance slightly but warns against obsessive protein-fortified products.
“I actually think it's great what the HHS did recently with highlighting it and increasing it slightly”
- Josh Axe
Axe argues a fiber-free carnivore diet is not ideal long-term for most people.
“I don't think that for, for most people being carnivore is a great diet longterm”
People
In the conversation
- Dylan GemelliPodcast host with a sales and entrepreneurial background
- Josh AxeFunctional medicine practitioner, author, and co-author of Heal Your Cells
- Will ColeFunctional medicine practitioner, author, and co-author of Heal Your Cells
Discussed
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr.Health secretary whose appointment Jesse Kelly cited as coalition-building
- A. W. TozerAmerican Christian pastor and author quoted by Axe
- Lisa MillerRetired chief investigator from Colorado who proposed the evolved wrench attack theory
- Gabrielle LyonPhysician known for muscle-centric medicine
- James DiNicolantonioCardiovascular research scientist who discussed carnivore diet acidity
- Paul SaladinoPhysician and carnivore diet advocate
- Brigham BuhlerPeptide expert who testified before the Senate
- Sean DrakePractitioner who guided Gemelli through a breathwork 'soul surgery'
Topics
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From the publisher
Welcome to my special 175th EPISODE! This is also my very first special roundtable interview! I could not have had two better than Dr. Josh Axe and Dr. Will Cole as my first guests! These roundtables are a gathering of the most brilliant and impactful minds, coming together to offer deep thoughts and insights of the most discussed aspects of health, wellness and faith! These roundtables will be continuing as special episodes each month to continue to do God's work in bringing as many of us together to make the biggest impact possible!! ENJOY!! For years, I thought that if I ate right, trained hard, stayed disciplined, and took care of my body, I was doing everything I needed to stay healthy. But I've learned that being healthy on the outside doesn't always mean everything is healthy on the inside. My father passed away from a heart attack at just 59 years old. And despite everything I've done to take care of myself, I recently discovered that I have elevated Lp(a) levels and plaque in my arteries. That was a wake-up call. It made me realize just how much can be happening inside our bodies without us ever knowing it. That's why this conversation with Dr. Josh Axe and Dr. Will Cole was so important to me. Dr. Josh Axe and Dr. Will Cole are leading voices in functional medicine, bestselling authors, and longtime advocates for looking beyond symptoms to understand the underlying factors affecting our health. Together, they've written Heal Your Cells, a book exploring how cellular health, inflammation, metabolism, and lifestyle may influence chronic disease and the aging process. We talked about how our organs can age faster than our bodies, the hidden risks of heart disease, and how stress and trauma affect our health. One of the most meaningful parts for me was discussing faith and how true health goes beyond the physical. It's about caring for our minds, bodies, and our relationship with God. And it made me wonder: What if the biggest threats to our health are the th…
Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on October 23, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.