HoldsUp

David Perlmutter

David Perlmutter is a neurologist and author focusing on cognitive health and neurodegenerative disorders. His published research investigates Alzheimer's disease prevention, intracerebral fructose and uric acid metabolism, and brain inflammation. His work also covers clinical evaluations of treatments for Parkinson's disease, gluten sensitivity, and statin use.

66 claims checked on air: 9 context 2 contradicted 5 overstated 47 supported 3 unverified

What they said on air - overstated

0:05:09overstatedmoderateWhy 1 in 2 Seniors Get Alzheimer's (And How to Be the Except

Positive TSPO scans showing microglial activation are observed in Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple system atrophy, progressive supranuclear palsy, major depressive disorder, PTSD, and long COVID.

"we see that the TSPO scan is positive, as you would expect, in Alzheimer's, in Parkinson's, in multiple system atrophy, progressive supranuclear palsy, major depressive disorder, post-traumatic stress, and even long COVID." (said at 0:05:09)

While translocator protein (TSPO) PET imaging reliably shows increased radiotracer uptake (reflecting glial activation/neuroinflammation) in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple system atrophy (MSA), and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), as well as in corticolimbic circuits in major depressive disorder, the claim is overstated for PTSD and long COVID. In long COVID, case-control TSPO PET studies have found that TSPO availability is not significantly elevated compared to healthy controls. In PTSD, in vivo TSPO PET imaging studies frequently report decreased TSPO binding (neuroimmune suppression) rather than increased TSPO signals.

0:12:24overstatedmoderateWhy 1 in 2 Seniors Get Alzheimer's (And How to Be the Except

Having type 2 diabetes increases the risk of developing Parkinson's disease by 85%.

"If you have type 2 diabetes, your risk of Parkinson's is increased by 85%." (said at 0:12:24)

Type 2 diabetes is associated with an increased risk of Parkinson's disease, but large meta-analyses show the relative risk increase is substantially lower than 85%. Comprehensive meta-analyses of prospective cohort studies consistently estimate an increased risk of roughly 15% to 37% (e.g., summary RR = 1.27, 95% CI 1.20–1.35 in a meta-analysis of 15 cohort studies encompassing nearly 30 million participants; RR = 1.22, 95% CI 1.08–1.37 in a 25-study meta-analysis). Claiming an 85% increase significantly overstates the effect size observed in the epidemiologic literature.

1:07:42overstatedlowWhy 1 in 2 Seniors Get Alzheimer's (And How to Be the Except

Interventional trials using lifestyle modification have proven effective in improving cognitive outcomes in individuals with established Alzheimer's disease.

"interventional trials using lifestyle modification have proven effective even in individuals with established Alzheimer's disease." (said at 1:07:42)

While a 2024 randomized controlled phase 2 trial by Ornish et al. (n=51) demonstrated improvements or stabilization in cognitive and functional measures (such as CGIC, CDR-SB, and CDR-Global) following a 20-week intensive multidomain lifestyle intervention in patients with mild cognitive impairment or early dementia due to Alzheimer's disease, stating that lifestyle modification has 'proven effective' in established Alzheimer's disease overstates the evidence. The existing evidence is preliminary, derived from a small sample over a short duration, and most large multidomain lifestyle trials (e.g., FINGER) have focused on dementia prevention in at-risk older adults rather than treatment of established Alzheimer's disease.

1:03:45overstatedhighParkinson's Is a Man-Made Disease: The Chemicals Linked to a

The Lancet report identified 14 modifiable risk factors for dementia.

"Yeah, you know that Lancet report was actually quite interesting because they identified 14 modifiable factors and most of them dealt with our metabolism." (said at 1:03:45)

The speaker's statement bundles two claims: 1. The Lancet report identified 14 modifiable risk factors for dementia: This is SUPPORTED. The 2024 Lancet Commission report on dementia prevention, intervention, and care updated its model to 14 modifiable risk factors (adding high LDL cholesterol and untreated vision loss to the 12 factors from the 2020 report). 2. Most of them dealt with metabolism: This is CONTRADICTED. Only a minority of the 14 factors are primary metabolic/cardiometabolic markers (e.g., diabetes, obesity, high LDL cholesterol, hypertension). The majority comprise sensory, cognitive, behavioral, and environmental factors, including lower early-life education, hearing loss, vision loss, traumatic brain injury, depression, social isolation, smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, and air pollution. Following the rubric to score bundled assertions by their least accurate part, the overall verdict is overstated/contradicted.

0:28:20overstatedlowYour Anxiety Is a Metabolic Problem, Not a Mental One | Dr.

Non-stroboscopic 40 Hz light stimulation from Optoceutics (the EVY light) achieves a 94% adherence rate and produces significant improvements in mood, energy, focus, sleep, and memory.

"And that's why this company sees a 94% adherence rate and significant improvements across various metrics including mood, energy, focus, sleep, and memory. And the light is called the EVY light." (said at 0:28:20)

While non-stroboscopic 40 Hz light stimulation using invisible spectral flicker (developed by Optoceutics for the EVY light) was designed to improve tolerability and has demonstrated high adherence in pilot feasibility testing (e.g., >86% in a pilot clinical trial), the claim that it produces significant improvements across mood, energy, focus, sleep, and memory is overstated. In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled pilot trial of 40 Hz invisible spectral flicker in patients with Alzheimer's disease (PMID 36776073), only preliminary exploratory trends in cognition and volumetric MRI were observed, and the authors noted that efficacy must be tested in larger-scale clinical trials. Published trials have not established statistically significant clinical improvements across mood, energy, focus, sleep, and memory.

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