The Spark Factor: The Secret to Supercharging Energy, Becoming Resilient, and Feeling Better Than Ever

by Molly Maloof

Overview

Foreword by Dave Asprey

A breakthrough program for women to revive their lost energy and vitality, developed by a leading biohacker and physician

Inside of you, there is a spark—it’s what animates you, and without it, you could not live. This energy creation isn’t mystical, nor is it spiritual; it is science. We know from research that our cellular machinery transforms the food we eat and the air we breathe into the electricity that fuels us. With the right lifestyle inputs, we glow with energy; but when the demands on our bodies exceed our capacity—as is true for so many of us—we become burned out, mentally and physically. 

Now, in The Spark Factor, Dr. Molly Maloof shares a program uniquely tailored to the biology of women—a plan that targets the mitochondria, the power source of the cells. As Dr. Maloof shows, the intense, all-or-nothing approaches commonly used by biohackers to optimize health—including sustained fasting, ultra-low-carb diets, and intense training—can be harmful, especially for women, because they create excessive stress in an already-stressed body, which can make us tired, weak, and prone to illness.

Dr. Maloof’s innovative program—which has been used successfully by her patients—offers lifestyle changes that target the unique biology of women and provide immediate and long-term benefits. Instead of denying our bodies, we need to listen to what they are telling us. Once we become aware of our physical needs, we can give ourselves the resources to become more connected, nourished, safe, and strong—at both the micro- and the macro-level.

With cutting-edge biohacking insights, strategies for personalized nutrition, hormonal health and stress management, The Spark Factor is the book women have been waiting for to help them reclaim their vitality and achieve lasting health.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063207233
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	01/31/2023
Sold by:	HARPERCOLLINS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	336
Sales rank:	357,348
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Dr. Molly Maloof provides health optimization and personalized medicine to high achieving entrepreneurs, investors, and technology executives. For three years she taught a pioneering course on healthspan in the Wellness Department of the Medical School at Stanford University before launching her own company, inspired by her unique philosophy of health. Since 2012, she has worked as an advisor or consultant to more than 50 companies in the digital health, consumer health, and biotechnology industries. Dr. Maloof is on the frontier of personalized medicine, digital health technologies, biofeedback assisted lifestyle interventions, psychedelic medicine, and science-backed wellness products and services. 

Table of Contents

Foreword Dave Asprey ix

Introduction xiii

Part I The Human Energy Crisis

Chapter 1 Energy Powers Life 3

Chapter 2 Mitochondria: Your Cellular Batteries 19

Chapter 3 The Quantified Self: Biohacking to Create Health 41

Part II Making More Batteries

Chapter 4 Movement Is Life's Energy Signal 59

Chapter 5 Biohacking Energy Through Exercise 77

Part III Charging Your Batteries

Chapter 6 Transforming Food into Energy 103

Chapter 7 Blood Sugar Is the Ultimate Energy Biomarker 125

Chapter 8 The Gut-Energy Connection 141

Chapter 9 Biohacking Energy Metabolism 151

Part IV Using Your Batteries

Chapter 10 Stress Drains Your Batteries 171

Chapter 11 Biohacking to Recharge 191

Part V Plugging in Your Batteries

Chapter 12 The Hormone-Energy Connection 217

Chapter 13 Biohacking Your Sexual Spark 241

Chapter 14 Connection Is the Key to Longevity 253

Acknowledgments 267

How co Do an Elimination Diet 269

Resources 273

Notes 275

Index 299

Editorial Reviews

Globally, we are sick and losing our spark of aliveness. Enter The Spark Factor. At the intersection of metabolism, blood sugar stabilization, hormone balance, and biohacking, this smart book provides the answers you seek for radiant health.”
— Sara Gottfried, M.D., four-time New York Times bestselling author, and Director of Precision Medicine at Marcus Institute of Integrative Health, Thomas Jefferson University

"The Spark Factor offers a cornucopia of biohacking options, from easy to complex and from no-tech to low-tech to high-tech. Molly makes biohacking approachable and fun. After all, what subject is more interesting than the inner workings of you?"
— Frank Lipman, MD, New York Times bestselling author of The New Health Rules

“Dr. Molly has more than a decade of experience as one of the leading doctors in Silicon Valley and consultants in health tech. Now in this game-changing book, she's offering everyone the latest tools to increase energy and resilience for immediate results and long-term wellbeing."
— Max Lugavere, New York Times bestselling author of Genius Foods

"Dr. Molly is on the cutting edge of longevity science and is an amazing resource for those looking to achieve vitality and lasting health."
— Jason Wachob, Founder & Co-CEO, mindbodygreen

"The more we learn about health, the more we understand a central truth: metabolism matters. What Molly calls a ‘spark’ is the flash of energy that comes from the ‘powerhouse of the cell’—the mitochondria. In The Spark Factor, Dr. Molly outlines a clear approach for every woman to light up her cells with vigor."
— Benjamin Bikman, PhD, author of Why We Get Sick

“Dr. Molly helped me work through a stressful point in my life and find new ways to manage challenges. Her data-driven yet holistic approach in The Spark Factor will offer women an opportunity to learn about her unique philosophy of health.”
— Allison Janney, Academy Award-winning actress

"For far too long, the biohacking industry has relied on research on men, assuming it also applies to women. With The Spark Factor, we finally have a book that takes women’s unique physiology into consideration and provides simple, yet effective steps to optimize your health." — Dr. Jolene Brighten, NMD, FABNE, author of Is This Normal

“Dr. Molly Maloof is a true pioneer in personalized medicine and has distilled the most relevant health optimization concepts and science-based tools into this book. This is the first women-centric book that advances the emerging science of biohacking into practical human application.” — Dominic D'Agostino, PhD, Associate Professor; USF Morsani College of Medicine

From the Publisher