Healing IBD: Biologics, Diet, and the Path to Remission with Dr. Samir Kakodkar

This is the first episode of the Systema Health podcast! 🧬 If you have Crohn's disease or colitis and you want to go further, the best next step is to apply to work with us. Apply now: https://systema.health/apply-now ➡️ Want to start FREE? Check out our free Microcourse on the Systema approach to IBD: 🔗 https://systema.health/microcourse/ In this episode I sit down with my friend Dr. Samir Kakodkar 🩺, a gastroenterologist trained at Northwestern with advanced training specifically in inflammatory bowel disease. Samir has Crohn's himself, and so do I. We both work with IBD patients every day, and we both understand the mainstream side and the complementary side of this condition. This was also a special reboot of Samir's old "Against the Grain" podcast. He hadn't recorded in four years, and we got him back. We went deep. Here's some of what we get into: Why being in remission on your medication might still leave the gut in a vulnerable state, and the new research that shows it. How ultra processed foods damage the gut barrier 🍔, and why Crohn's isn't really a purely genetic disease. 🧬 The food additives hiding in things people think are healthy, even in baby formula and common IBD products. The one herbal treatment 🌿 Samir was deeply skeptical of, that's now helped some of his patients reach remission after failing every biologic An honest conversation about surgery, J pouch vs ostomy, and what quality of life really looks like. A controversial idea about how prednisone is used that Samir and I don't fully agree on. Why starting the right treatment early matters so much, and the data behind it. The cases where IBD seems to burn out or go into remission on its own. How Systema's systems based approach works, and why patient education is the future of chronic care. ℹ️ A quick note: Samir does not necessarily endorse everything I say, and I do not necessarily endorse everything he say. None of this is medical advice. Always work with your own GI doctor. #IBD #Crohns #UlcerativeColitis #CrohnsDisease #GutHealth #SystemaHealth