Heavy Metals, Pesticides, Microplastics, Forever Chemicals + Detox Myths & Truths | Deep Dive

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We've been going back and forth on what to call these shorter solo episodes - Emily from my clinical team jokingly called them "hot takes" right before we started recording, and I corrected her: we've landed on "Deep Dive." Either way, this is where Emily or Andrea from my telehealth team and I get granular on a single topic pulled from what we're actually seeing move the needle for our patients, as a companion to Heal Your Cells, the book I wrote with Dr. Josh Axe on cellular longevity. Today's topic: environmental toxins.

I want to be upfront about the goal here, because this topic gets abused in both directions. I'm not trying to fearmonger you into thinking you need to live in a bubble - that bubble doesn't exist, and your body is far more resilient than the wellness internet gives it credit for. But I also don't want to wave away a real and ubiquitous part of modern life. So we tried to strike an honest balance across the four categories that come up most with our patients: heavy metals, mold, PFAs and other forever chemicals, and pesticides and herbicides.

On heavy metals, the most important thing I can tell people is that context and dose matter enormously. Naturally occurring levels of something like lead in soil-grown vegetables aren't automatically dangerous - mercury is the exception, where there's really no established safe level. What these metals actually do once they build up is deplete glutathione, your body's master antioxidant, create what I call a "leaky mitochondria," and displace essential minerals like magnesium, zinc, and selenium. For testing, I lean on blood and urine over hair testing, which I think is, at best, a weak snapshot that shouldn't be used by itself. And on seafood specifically - I'll probably take some heat for this, but "wild-caught" by itself isn't the gold standard it used to be. Our oceans are dirtier than they used to be, and it matters more whether the fish is actually tested. I'd rather see people eating smaller fish like anchovies and sardines, or supporting regenerative aquaculture brands, than assuming wild-caught automatically means clean.

Mold was the one I most wanted to clear up a misconception on. A positive urine mycotoxin test by itself does not mean you have mold toxicity - it often just means your body is doing exactly what it's supposed to do and clearing it out. The only way that result means anything is paired with your actual symptoms and additional labs. I've seen people hang onto a single lab result for years and build an entire identity around it, when the fuller picture never supported that fear in the first place.

PFAs and forever chemicals are the ones I think people underestimate the most, because of how quietly they work. They're endocrine disruptors - they blunt the cellular communication that hormones depend on, and they are, true to their name, nearly impossible for your body (or the environment) to clear. They're hiding in things people don't expect: register receipts, non-stick cookware (one scratch on a Teflon pan can release more than 9,000 plastic particles), and anything marketed as wrinkle-free, stain-resistant, or waterproof. Small swaps toward natural fabrics and fewer unnecessary purchases go a long way here.

The part of this conversation I think matters most, though, came up almost as an aside: golf courses are sprayed with pesticides and herbicides four to seven times more heavily than the average farm. If you're trying to reduce your toxic burden, proximity to a golf course may be a bigger and more overlooked variable than proximity to a traditional farm. Removing the source is always the most effective lever, even when it isn't always realistic - and when it isn't, water filtration (testing your actual water first, rather than guessing), the EWG's Clean Fifteen and Dirty Dozen lists, and supporting local organic growers are the next-best moves.

We closed by walking through the three real phases of detoxification - biotransformation, conjugation, and excretion - because I think people skip straight to buying a cleanse without understanding that phase one can actually make a toxin more reactive before your body finishes clearing it. The foundational, low-cost things still matter most: regular bowel movements, sweating, quality sleep, nutrient-dense protein and sulfur-rich foods like onions, garlic, and eggs to build glutathione, and enough fiber. You can't avoid this stuff entirely - that's just the reality of living in a modern world - but you have far more agency over it than you think.

A few of my favorite things we cover in this episode: 

• The core thread tying every deep dive together: the cell danger response can't distinguish a physical threat from a mental, emotional, or spiritual one — toxins are one more input that makes cells feel "unsafe"
• Heavy metals 101: naturally occurring levels in soil-grown produce (like lead) aren't automatically dangerous - context and dose matter, though mercury is the exception with no established safe level
• How heavy metals damage the body: they deplete glutathione and key enzymes, create a "leaky mitochondria," spike reactive oxygen species, and displace essential minerals like magnesium, zinc, and selenium
• Testing heavy metals: blood (direct toxicity plus antibody binding) and urine are the most reliable; hair testing is a weak, easily-confounded snapshot that shouldn't be used alone
• Seafood and mercury: "wild-caught" alone isn't the gold standard it used to be given ocean contamination - go for small fish (anchovies, sardines, salmon, halibut, trout, bass) and third-party tested or regenerative aquaculture brands over large predatory fish like tuna, swordfish, and shark
• Mold and mycotoxins: a positive urine mycotoxin test by itself does NOT mean mold toxicity - it often just means your body is successfully clearing it; needs to be paired with symptoms and labs like TGF-beta1, C3A/C4A, and MSH
• A genetic layer for mold: HLA (human leukocyte antigen) status can explain why some people's bodies never fully resolve a mold exposure and stay in a hypervigilant, inflamed state
• PFAs and "forever chemicals" act as endocrine disruptors — they blunt cellular receptor communication, driving the same loss of cellular "self-recognition" and accelerated organ aging seen with other toxins, and they barely break down in the body or environment
• Where forever chemicals hide: receipts, non-stick cookware (one scratch on a Teflon pan can release over 9,000 plastic particles), and anything marketed as wrinkle-free, stain-resistant, or waterproof
• Pesticides and herbicides: proximity to a golf course may be a bigger exposure risk than proximity to a farm - golf courses are sprayed 4 to 7 times more heavily than the average farm
• Practical reduction steps: EWG's Clean Fifteen/Dirty Dozen lists, rinsing conventional produce, buying organic/local when possible, and testing well or municipal water before choosing a filter
• The three phases of liver detoxification: phase 1 (biotransformation, which can temporarily make a toxin MORE reactive), phase 2 (conjugation - binding it to glutathione or a methyl group), and phase 3 (actual excretion)
• Practical detox support: prioritizing the body's natural exits (regular bowel movements, sweating, quality sleep), sulfur-rich foods (onions, garlic, eggs, asparagus, Brussels sprouts) and the amino acids cysteine and glycine to build glutathione, curcumin for Nrf2 pathway support, proper electrolyte hydration, and 25-30g of fiber a day
• Retesting matters: tracking labs over time with telehealth patients to confirm a protocol is actually moving the needle rather than guessing

Products Mentioned:

• Heal Your Cells with Dr. Will Cole (co-written with Dr. Josh Axe) 
• Seatopia - regenerative aquaculture / sustainably farmed, third-party tested fish
• LongevityRx Trillion - probiotic/prebiotic/parabiotic/postbiotic gut health formula 
• My Tap Score - at-home water testing 
• Environmental Working Group (EWG) Clean Fifteen / Dirty Dozen guides 
• drwillcole.com - free articles and clinic protocols/shop for heavy metals, mold, and other environmental toxin support

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Happy listening, and we hope you learned a little bit more on the art of being well!

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In Health,

Dr. Will Cole