Some Thoughts on 'Good Energy' by Dr. Casey Means

“…what it's threatening is their livelihoods, it's threatening their jobs, it's threatening the way that they do things. And every time that happens, whether it's the government or a way of doing business or whatever it is, the people that are holding the reins that have their hands on the switch. They go bat shit crazy.” 

—Speech by John Henry, owner of the Boston Red Sox in the film “Money Ball”

The book Good Energy: The Surprising Connection Between Metabolism and Limitless Health by Casey and Calley Means makes several charges against food manufacturers, any nonorganic food, doctors, medical organizations like the AMA and the American Dietetics Association, medical schools, Pharma, and food regulatory agencies. Alternatively, the Means offer support for activist organizations like the Environmental Working Group (EWG), eastern religions, and psychedelics. 

The Means have discussed the book in interviews with Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, Joe Rogan and a Senate Hearing but, before we go bat shit crazy, we should ask what evidence exists to support the charges.

For a start, whether you are reading the book or listening to the authors on a podcast, in a testimony, or in an interview, there is a lot of uncertainty in both the science and the recommendations. Good Energy is not a sacred text. In fact, there is no way that the science of nutrition can come close to producing a sacred text. One FDA Commissioner shortened “nutrition” to “not science” and shortened that to “nonsense” (read about it in Fixing Food). The data used in most nutrition studies, including those used in Good Energy, rely on what people “remember they have eaten”—not exactly a reliable foundation for scientific accuracy.

Read the full piece on Substack here.