Nutrition is very misunderstood, including within the physician and dietitian community. What are some of the biggest misconceptions people have about nitrate and red meat? What are the best oils to use in your cooking? How do nitrate and metformin improve the gut biome? On this episode, I have a fascinating discussion with nutrition expert, Morgan Pfiffner, about important facets of nutrition and health that people often miss. You cannot benefit from nitrate if you don’t have the bacteria in your mouth to metabolize it. -Morgan Pfiffner   Three Takeaways Endothelial dysfunction is a precursor to the various diseases of aging. You don’t have to eat nitrate-rich foods raw. It’s fairly stable-- you can cook with it and it won’t disintegrate. In order to get the true nutritional value of meat, it has to be rare or seared. If it’s overcooked its nutritional value from a protein bio-availability standpoint is nil.   At the start of the show, Morgan shared how he got into nutrition and how nutrition is one of most poorly understood facets of health. We discussed nitrate, the best sources of it and one of the biggest misconceptions people have about red meat. We talked about why it’s so important to have control over what you eat. We also discussed: Why every disease has a metabolic initiator How nitrate is affected by things like mouthwash How metformin can improve the gut biome   Food is the most powerful drug known to man, but unfortunately we’re not taught this enough by health authorities. The truth is, if you can control what goes into your mouth, you can control any aspect or phase in your life and have power over it. The molecular cascade that goes on when a human being consumes the right food is mesmerizing. Nitrate is one of the most important things you can consume to improve your nutrition. It can lower blood pressure and improve your gut biome, and the best source of it is green, leafy vegetables. Ultimately it is a great tool for decreasing the risk of cardiovascular disease.   Guest Bio Morgan is a researcher, primarily interested in the role of diet on biological gases and cardiovascular disease. Follow him on Twitter @MorganPfiffner or check out his website thehealthhammer.wordpress.com for more information.