A doctor of integrative biology and neuroscientist, she has just published “Your Optimized Health,” a 10-step program to improve your health and increase your life expectancy by up to ten years! Emilie Steinbach is Mathilde Serrell’s guest this morning.

Steinbach presents an innovative approach to well-being and longevity. Her field of research, integrative biology, focuses on the interactions between the different organs and systems of the human body. Rather than analyzing diseases from an isolated perspective, she adopts a holistic view in which each element of lifestyle plays a crucial role. ”  It’s really trying to study the human being as if it were a planet ,  ” she illustrates. She thus highlights the close link between diet, sleep, stress management, and mental health, asserting that these factors cannot be separated.

Diet, its key role in the proper functioning of our brain

Among the essential recommendations of her protocol, the neuroscientist highlights the importance of the first meal of the day. According to her, a protein-rich breakfast stimulates the production of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and norepinephrine: ”  The proportion of protein in breakfast can boost the synthesis of neurotransmitters such as dopamine or norepinephrine, which have an impact on our cognitive capacity and motivation .  ” She first experienced this discovery herself. Diagnosed with ADHD as a child, she instinctively changed her diet one day by replacing sugary foods with protein. She quickly observed positive effects on her attention and cognitive abilities. This change, which may seem trivial, marked a turning point in her life and reinforced her conviction that diet plays a key role in brain function. Based on extensive scientific research, she emphasizes that a simple change in eating habits can have significant repercussions on longevity . “A study that took projections by taking groups of participants who eat poorly and who change their diet from a Western-style diet to a Mediterranean-style diet showed that they could gain, before the age of 20, more than ten years of life. And if they start just before the age of 40, up to ten years of life ,” she explains.

Adipose tissue: a key organ in appetite regulation

Another central point of the neuroscience researcher’s research concerns the role of adipose tissue, long perceived as a simple fatty deposit without any real function. However, according to the scientist, this view is reductive, because adipose tissue is actually an organ in its own right, active and involved in many biological functions . Contrary to the popular belief that fat is only a passive energy reserve, it plays a fundamental role in communication between organs, particularly with the brain. “Fat is an organ in its own right (…) it sends lots of different signals ,” she explains.  Among these signals, leptin occupies a key place . This hormone, secreted by fat cells, is responsible for regulating appetite. Normally, when a person gains weight, their body releases more leptin to send a message to the brain indicating that it is time to reduce food intake. ”  Normally, when we accumulate fat, we release more and more leptin, which sends a message to the brain to stop eating,  ” explains the researcher. However, this mechanism can become disrupted in cases of excess weight, particularly in people suffering from obesity. By constantly being exposed to high levels of leptin, the brain ends up no longer being receptive to it. It then enters a state of leptin resistance, which means that it no longer correctly receives the satiety signal. As a result, the feeling of hunger persists, pushing us to eat more, which maintains a vicious cycle that is difficult to break.

The impact of our lifestyle on our health

Emilie Steinbach emphasizes that a balanced lifestyle is not only based on nutrition, but also on restful sleep and regular exposure to natural light , elements she considers fundamental pillars of health. Sleep plays a major role in cell regeneration and hormonal balance. She recommends adopting regular rhythms and limiting caffeine consumption at the end of the day to improve the quality of sleep. Exposure to natural light is also essential: “You have to know that you gain a lot of life points if you spend 20 minutes in daylight in the morning, it’s essential ,” she says. This simple action helps regulate the biological clock and improve mood and energy throughout the day . Our thoughts, social interactions, and perception of the world directly influence our physical well-being. “The way I tell my life story, for example, strongly influences the course of my life. Yes, our beliefs, our thoughts, the people we hang out with, all of that is part of our lifestyle,” she explains.