Are prevention-focused labs and early screening actually catching disease before conventional medicine would, and is anyone doing enough of it? In this episode, Amber Warren, PA-C is joined by Michael Orloff, PA-C, a board-certified physician assistant who spent over a decade in emergency and trauma medicine before transitioning to functional medicine, to explore how cardiometabolic testing, early cancer screening, and lifestyle-first care can help patients stay out of the healthcare system altogether. Mike shares what he's seeing after his first year at FMI, coming from years of treating end-stage disease in the ER, and breaks down why he focuses on ApoB and lipoprotein(a) instead of relying on standard cholesterol panels alone, how zone-based training and lactate threshold testing let him build truly individualized cardiovascular prescriptions, and why insulin sensitivity sits at the center of long-term metabolic health. He also discusses why cancer screening guidelines often lag behind what he sees clinically, why radon exposure is an overlooked cancer risk in the Treasure Valley, and how simple, low-effort movement, like walking after meals, can meaningfully shift blood sugar and body composition. Whether you're trying to make sense of your cholesterol labs, curious about CGMs, thinking about weight loss, or just want a clearer picture of what proactive, data-driven prevention actually looks like, this episode offers practical insight from someone treating these issues every day. In this episode, you'll learn: How ApoB and lipoprotein(a) provide a more complete cardiovascular risk picture than LDL alone How zone two training, lactate threshold, and VO2 max testing personalize exercise prescriptions Why insulin sensitivity is central to cardiometabolic and metabolic health Practical levers for sustainable weight loss: dietary restriction, meal timing, and portion control How a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) reveals real-time, individualized blood sugar patterns Why early cancer screening, including colonoscopies, PSA, and CA-125, may need to start earlier than conventional guidelines suggest How environmental factors like radon exposure raise cancer risk in the Treasure Valley Why time, not motivation, is often the biggest barrier to aging well, and how to work around it Stay tuned for more conversations on functional medicine, cardiometabolic health, cancer prevention, longevity, and optimizing your health from the inside out!
