5HT #100: craniosacral therapy + toxic exposure test + 3 more healthyish things

Next up in my series on the wild world of woo: craniosacral therapy 💆‍♂️. 

Craniosacral therapy, or CST, is a gentle, non-invasive bodywork meant to release tension around the skull, spine, and sacrum.

It’s touted for helping with conditions like headaches, insomnia, constipation, and neck pain. More recently, it’s become popular among babies (er—or for babies?), especially those with latching issues, tongue-ties, colic, or reflux. These days, you can barely open TikTok without seeing a baby melting into bliss during a craniosacral session.

We actually tried CST for our first kiddo, annnnd I don’t think it made any difference 😬. At the time, it felt like one of those things you’re supposed to try as a new parent in Austin. And when your baby is struggling to latch, you’re much more likely to try anything that might help.

CST is based on the idea that subtle manipulation of the skull and sacrum can influence the flow of cerebrospinal fluid and, by extension, the nervous system. Sounds plausible enough. The problem is science doesn’t really support the premise.

Most evidence for CST is anecdotal or unconvincing. One systematic review found CST produces no benefits in any of the MSK or non-MSK conditions assessed, though there is some limited evidence it may help with migraine or headache symptoms in adults. 

But, hey, like with all woo, there’s nuance.

Babies can respond intensely to gentle touch, being spoken to softly, slow rhythmic movement, and calm environments. All of that happens during CST. So the effects in those TikTok videos may be real, buuuut it’s more likely nervous system soothing than skull manipulation. (FWIW, adults respond well to that stuff too LOL.)

And look, a reader emailed me last year saying craniosacral therapy seemed to relax their son. I believe it. The anecdotes are real. The mechanism? Still not well-proven. 🤷

My take: CST is probably harmless when done gently and appropriately, and if it helps you or your baby relax, great, but I wouldn’t personally recommend it.

Long-time 5HT readers will know I’ve been big into Lineage Provisions’ beef sticks and healthy snacks. Then, Lineage told me they were launching their first “Protein Bar for Humans,” and I’d be among the earliest people to try them.

To be real, I was pretty nervous. 

I’ve tried, er, every healthyish protein bar out there (and even wrote about my experience trying 25+ of them last year). I’m a tough critic. I was really worried I wouldn’t like them and then have to have that very awkward conversation.

Buuut what a relief it is to share that the Lineage Provisions bars are not just good, they’re awesome. I need to try more than a couple (I’ve already ordered more myself), but so far I think they’re actually my new favorite—even better than the ones I ranked previously—and I don’t say that lightly!

Packing 20g of high-quality protein, the macros and ingredients in these bars are as good as it gets, competing with what imo are truly best-in-class bars. They launched with two flavors—Chocolate and Berry—and I got an early taste of both. The Chocolate one was especially delicious. It had the perfect amount of sweetness and a satisfying texture. Think Tootsie Roll (but healthy). 

The best part is they’re made with real ingredients that naturally taste good. And not many of them, either! You won’t find 🙅🏻‍♂️ seed oils, 🙅🏻‍♂️ sugar alcohols, 🙅🏻‍♂️ gums, 🙅🏻‍♂️ emulsifiers, 🙅🏻‍♂️ fiber syrups, or 🙅🏻‍♂️ fillers in these bars. 

Instead, you’ll find:

💁🏻‍♂️ Raw honey & coconut nectar for sweetness
💁🏻‍♂️ Organic cacao or organic berries for flavor
💁🏻‍♂️ Grass-fed beef tallow for rich, stable fat  

If you want a healthyish-approved protein bar you can eat consistently and feel good about, Lineage Provisions gets my full reco. Annnd (!) they're offering 5HT readers 15% off the protein bars to celebrate their re-launch (they sold out in 2.5 days when they first launched, and they’re now back in stock)! 🥳

I recently was given the opportunity to take an extreme lab-grade blood test from VibrantAmerica they call Toxin Zoomer, which assesses how everyday toxic exposures and detox pathways shape your health. (Vibrant is among the largest, most respected labs in the world; they mostly work with longevity clinics and concierge doctors.)

The biggest takeaway: I'm not poisoned 👍.

But the fact is, we live on planet Earth, and there's a loooot of toxicity out there. 

My report showed traces of phthalates, plastics, pesticides, and heavy metals. Some heavy metal findings (almost certainly) were leftovers from my heart ablation. I also had low-to-moderate markers for air and environmental toxins.

Here’s a look at some:

Zooming out, this reminded me that even healthy people are exposed to lots of low-level stuff, and it’s worth reducing exposure where we can.

Zooming in, there was nothing alarming enough to make me want to build a bunker 😆, but enough to make me think more seriously about supporting detox.

“Detox” is mostly a nonsense word and your body—your liver esp—is pretty good at it already. Buuut it does seem there are some natural ways to help your body do more of it. Think less viral detox teas and foot detox pads 🙄 and more supporting the systems already doing the work.

One lever to look at (and Claude encouraged me to look at) is glutathione production. More on that below.

Ultimately, this is probablyyy a more extreme preventative panel, and I don’t think everyone needs to run out and get one. That said, I found it genuinely interesting because it flagged things that may still be hanging around from my heart ablation. 

Would I do it again? Probably, at least to see if what’s leftover goes away—though I can get some of that covered through Function. Relatedly, I actually plan to share more on what early prevention tests I do/don’t do soon.

If you’re curious about toxicity, know that Toxin Zoomer isn’t something you can order yourself online (yet), but you can likely find it at a longevity clinic or ask your doctor about it.

Let’s talk glutathione.

Glutathione is an antioxidant that helps neutralize free radicals and supports natural detoxification pathways. It's composed of three amino acids—glutamate, glycine, and cysteine. I think of it basically like your body’s internal Roomba.

Both Claude and ChatGPT encouraged me to up my glutathione based on my Toxin Zoomer readout. You can take it directly, though standard oral glutathione has mixed bioavailability. Liposomal glutathione is designed to absorb better (I wrote about liposomal supplements here), but it’s also very pricey. 

IMO, the smarter play is helping your body make more of its own. So here’s how I’m thinking about supporting it 👇:

Feels obvious to double down on:

Feels worth testing:

Still feels TBD for me: 

Also helpful but less sexy: 

Love the concept of naming your anxiety to separate you from the feeling… and there’s actual science behind this too. Turns out labeling emotions can reduce their intensity and help you better regulate them more effectively.

See this week’s Neural Hack to name your anxiety and talk back to it. I named mine Galahad. (Galahad could use a vacation.)

Directions: Copy, paste, and fill in the prompt below to personify and then “talk” with your anxiety.

👋 Who are you again? I’m Derek Flanzraich—founder of two venture-backed startups in Greatist (👍) and Ness (👎). I’ve worked with brands like GoodRx, Parsley, Midi, Ro, NOCD, and Peloton. I now run Healthyish Content, a premium health content & SEO agency (among other things).

Every Thursday, I share 5 health things I feel strongly about so you can live healthyish. (Disclaimer: I’m more your friend with health benefits. None of this is medical advice.) Also some links are affiliate links, but they influence my decisions zero.

Oh, you also feel strongly about some health things? Hit reply—I’d love to hear it.