Tommy Wood MD PhD: Brain Health, CTE & Dementia Risk – TFP #033

In this episode of The Feldman Protocol, can the environment you go home to matter more than the brain injury itself? Tommy Wood (MD PhD) makes the case that how you use your brain is the primary driver of how it functions — then digs into CTE mechanics, the myth of the brain "sloshing" in the skull, why animal models of concussion may fundamentally miss the point, ketogenic diets and mental health, AI as orthotic vs. prosthetic, and why obsessing over sleep data might hurt you more than poor sleep.

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⏱ Chapters

3:04 – Tommy's background & book origin

6:03 – Medicine vs. research career path

9:27 – UK vs. US medical debt & freedom

13:40 – How Tommy became a brain person

17:14 – The Stimulated Mind: core themes

21:37 – Use it to improve it: the science

26:34 – Brain specialization trade-offs

34:32 – Human cognition: 10 bits/second

39:06 – Blindfolded Rubik's Cube & subroutines

43:31 – Myth of multitasking

46:03 – Neonatal brain injury research

50:09 – Therapeutic hypothermia explained

54:44 – Home environment predicts recovery

58:39 – Rugby vs. American football & CTE

1:00:19 – What CTE actually is

1:06:40 – Brain doesn't slosh — the real mechanism

1:11:05 – Why animal concussion models fail

1:17:44 – The Q-collar: does it work?

1:21:33 – Valsalva & protecting the brain

1:28:32 – Nutrition & the brain: three levers

1:38:28 – Ketogenic diet: then vs. now

1:46:05 – Energy availability U-shaped curve

1:51:26 – Insulin resistance & fat cell dynamics

1:58:48 – Calories in/out vs. carb-insulin debate

2:03:37 – The BROAD Study & behavior change

2:12:36 – AI & LLMs: net benefit or detriment?

2:17:09 – Orthotic vs. prosthetic framework

2:21:08 – MIT essay study unpacked

2:33:20 – Google effect & changing memory use

2:40:11 – AI slop flooding academia

2:47:15 – Artificial sweeteners & neurotoxicity

2:50:04 – Why sleep is critical for the brain

2:52:11 – Orthosomnia: when sleep tracking backfires

2:57:58 – Where to find Tommy & the book

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