Brecka was arrested for theft in 2017
Doctors have accused one of social media's most lauded health gurus, known for “saving the life” of UFC mogul Dana White, of peddling fake cancer cures without a medical license.
Gary Brecka, 53, who has a combined 2.1 million followers on Instagram and TikTok and is popular with celebrities including Kendall Jenner and David Beckham, claims to be a “mortality expert” who “helps people achieve absolute peak function in their own bodies to reach”.
He recently made headlines when UFC President Dana White revealed that tests Brecka gave him revealed he would die early – triggering an incredible physical transformation.
But experts say the information was based on dubious science.
Doctors have also said that the wellness products Brecka sells on his website — which claim to increase oxygen delivery and reduce pain — and cost up to $134,000, do things that are “physiologically impossible.”
Dr. Jared Ross, a board-certified physician, told : “The evidence behind all of this is flimsy at best.” He called the prices “cruel.”
Doctors have also suggested that Mr Brecka has been in trouble with the law. In 2017, Brecka was arrested for theft – but the charges were soon dropped. He was also named in two lawsuits. One was filed in 2011 by Concord Capital Management seeking a default judgment of nearly $1 million against Mr. Brecka for amounts he owed.
Mr. Brecka, of Naples, Florida, is not a qualified medical professional or clinician.
He currently works for the performance-enhancing company 10X Health, which offers blood analysis for up to $599 and of which he is a co-founder. The company employs “medical professionals and wellness experts” to “help you live your best life.”
Mr. Brecka is credited with helping Dana White lose 39 pounds and transform his body
White (pictured left) previously sought medical help from “biohacker” Mr Brecka, who told the struggling mogul based on blood and DNA samples that he had just over ten years to live
Mr. Brecka, who is married to Instagram influencer Sage Workinger who is also co-founder of 10X Health, has not worked in a medical setting and is not certified in any specialty.
Before founding 10X Health, he was CEO of Streamline Medical Group, which provides anti-aging treatments including hormone therapy.
He previously worked in the insurance industry for two decades as CEO of life insurer Life Asset Group.
The company purchases existing life insurance policies to receive a death benefit and makes a profit when the insured person dies.
Mr. Brecka used medical records and demographic data to predict, down to the month, how quickly someone would die.
He holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Frostburg State University and a Bachelor of Science in Human Biology from the National University of Health Sciences.
He gives lectures and exhibitions and sells a range of services through 10X Health, including a personalized supplement protocol, genetic testing, blood testing, “True Body Optimization” and a “superhuman protocol.”
P Diddy, Steve Aoki and David Beckham are just some of Mr Brecka's other celebrity clients. He also appeared on an episode of The Kardashians, where he discussed the effects of hormonal fluctuations with supermodel Kendall Jenner.
In addition to being hired by celebrities to be their personal health guru, he also makes bold claims on his various platforms, including predicting life expectancy, claiming that antidepressants don't work, and claiming that migraines can be solved by drinking salt water .
Another 10XHealth co-founder, Grant Cardone, is a financial influencer who uses social media to sell training programs and real estate investments to his five million Instagram followers.
He is currently in the middle of an ongoing class action lawsuit filed in 2020 that accuses him of misleading investors via social media with exaggerated claims of inflated returns.
Mr. Brecka is best known for his role in the extreme health transformation of Dana White – who lost 39 pounds and dramatically transformed her body in the fall of 2022.
Gary Brecka did not respond to a request for comment.
Mr. White, who was known for his unfit body, appeared on the Action Junkeez Podcast in September 2022 and revealed that he had undergone blood tests which revealed he only had 10.4 years to live.
He praised Mr. Brecka for conducting the tests and making the prognosis. Mr White attributed much of his weight loss to an 86-hour water fast, which Gary Brecka reportedly “advised” him to do the entire time.
In November 2023, Mr. Brecka appeared on the hugely popular Joe Rogan Experience podcast to discuss his role in improving Mr. White's health. The episode was viewed over a million times on YouTube.
Mr Brecka said to Mr Rogan: “That’s him.” [Dana White] on hormone therapy…he's been on a strict ketogenic diet, he's been given a red light therapy bed, he's been given a PMF mat, he's started cold diving and he's using something called Hypermax multi-step oxygen therapy.”
“He didn't drink, we completely eliminated all white flour, white rice, white bread and white pasta from his diet.” And sugar of all kinds.'
But speaking to , top experts have accused Mr Brecka of using “impossible” science to make such predictions based on blood samples.
“There is no science to predict how long someone will live.” There are several factors that come into play,” said Dr. Horse.
“It’s much more complicated than blood and DNA samples,” he said.
Dr. Mike Varshavski, a board-certified family physician from New York, said in a YouTube video, “The idea of having a life expectancy is incredible.” I know Gary worked for a life insurance company and that's his trick, that is his thing where he tells people how long they will live.
“But human behavior is changing.” Changes in human risk. It is a constantly evolving state. To claim that you have control over or know exactly when someone is going to die is simply untrue.”
Studies have shown that the effect of added sugar on body weight is inconclusive because it involves excess calories.
“Replacing free sugar with sugar-free sweeteners does not help people control their weight in the long term,” said Francesco Branca, director of the WHO Department of Nutrition and Food Safety.
Likewise, using cold water alone has not been proven to be effective for weight loss.
There is limited evidence that repeated exposure to cold water can reduce the amount of unhealthy body fat.
Dr. Stacy Ingraham, who studies kinesiology and exercise physiology at the University of Minnesota, told CBS News that the cold actually slows down your metabolism.
“To burn the most calories, sauna and room temperature, no cold water immersion,” she said.
Gary Brecka with David Beckham, one of his clients
Mr. Brecka made one of his most outrageous claims in a talk at the 10X Ladies Conference when he proposed an unconventional “cure” for breast cancer.
He said that this “frequency,” which “comes from an area of the brain called gray matter” and radiates out of the human body, has the power to cure cancer.
He said that “energy” or “frequency” can be absorbed by others.
“You can get energy from conversations.” You can get energy from what I’m telling you right now. You can get energy from the people around you. Or they can drain your energy.'
Mr Brecka said: “There are 45,000 documented cases where women have been able to cure breast cancer by changing the frequency we send through our bodies. 'That's a fact.'
“I need to look at this research,” said Dr. Adam Nessim, a practicing physician from New York, in response to Mr. Brecka's lecture on YouTube.
This is a dangerous claim, he added, because “maybe there is someone who can get good medical care for their breast cancer who chooses the alternative medicine route and thinks that by changing their frequency they will be cured.” “, he said.
“But the reality is that modern medicine and the treatments you receive from your doctor who specializes in breast cancer have a much higher cure rate than what he just said about the frequency.”
Dr. Nessim added: “That doesn't mean there won't be case reports – isolated cases where the cancer has gone into remission and it's unclear why.”
“But there’s no way to prove it’s due to a change in your frequency.”
Another of Mr. Brecka's most controversial claims concerns mental health. A clip shared by a TikTok user discussing why common antidepressant SSRIs don't work has been viewed 3.6 million times.
Mr Brecka said that someone who has low serotonin levels is, by definition, depressed.
But Dr. Varshavski said, “No, we don't define it that way.” “We may have defined it that way years ago when that was our chemical imbalance model for depression.”
“I have never checked a patient's serotonin levels to diagnose depression. I don't know any doctor who does that. No organization does that.”
A 2023 study concluded that there is “no consistent evidence that serotonin plays a role in the pathophysiology of depression.”
Serotonin is a brain hormone that is also called the “happiness hormone” because of the feel-good feelings it creates.
Mr. Brecka also said that SSRIs don't work because they ration what little serotonin these people have. So by definition it never increases serotonin levels.”
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are a common antidepressant that increases serotonin levels in the brain.
Dr. Varshavski said, “SSRIs block the things that take up serotonin and allow the serotonin to do its job.”
“But why this mechanism actually works in depression is poorly understood.”
While there has been much debate about how antidepressants work, large studies such as Cochrane reviews have shown that SSRIs are effective.
Another claim made by Mr. Brecka is that migraines are due to sodium deficiency and can be resolved by drinking salt water.
Dr. Alo told : “If that were the case, no one would have migraines, we would just tell everyone to drink salt water.”
Dr. Ross said: “We don't fully understand what causes migraines, there are numerous different hypotheses.”
Migraines are thought to be due to things like hormonal changes, medications, alcohol, caffeine, and stress.
Sheri Berger, a registered dietitian and dietitian at Consumer Health Digest, told : “Sodium deficiency is not very common. If you don't exercise excessively and drink plenty of water, you're at risk of a condition called hyponatremia, which results in low levels of sodium in your blood.
“But this occurs in very rare cases – the normal person does not suffer from low sodium levels in the blood, so I don't think this is a common cause of migraines.”
Migraines affect 47 million American adults. Americans now eat an average of more than 3.4 grams of salt per day, well above the federal recommendation of less than 2.3 grams per day.
The idea that you can relieve migraines by drinking salt water is “bad information to give to the public,” Ms. Berger said.
“We get more than enough sodium in our diet from the processed foods we eat and the salt we add to foods.”
“If you consume too much sodium, you are at risk for high blood pressure, fluid retention, bloating, and similar problems.”
Mr. Brecka during one of his lectures
Mr. Brecka poses with Mario Lopez and Kit Hoover after his appearance on the Access Hollywood show
Another of Mr. Brecka's outdated claims involves cholesterol, which he described as “probably the most maligned and misunderstood compound in the entire human body” in a video with “high performance trainer” Colin Yurcisin.
“It's not really the amount of LDL cholesterol in your blood that matters.” “What matters is the size of that molecule,” he claimed.
Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, sometimes called “bad” cholesterol, makes up most of your body’s cholesterol. High LDL cholesterol increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.
“The lower the cholesterol level becomes, the more dangerous it becomes.” The larger it becomes, the healthier and less dangerous it becomes.
Mr. Brecka explained: “As your blood fat levels go up, your cholesterol levels become lower and more dangerous. “As your blood fat levels go down, your cholesterol levels go up and become less dangerous.”
But Dr. Alo accused Mr Brecka of citing outdated science. “The size of the LDL particles literally makes no difference,” he said.
“All LDL particles, even the large ones, are atherogenic,” said Dr. Alo told .
Atherogenic means that the particles promote the formation of fatty plaques in the arteries, which can lead to heart disease, heart attacks and strokes.
Dr. Alo said: “In the late '90s we thought that the size of LDL particles mattered and that the smaller ones caused more heart disease than the larger ones.”
“But as time went on and we investigated it, more and more data came to light, and it turned out that that wasn’t true.”
“All of these particles, no matter how big or small, they all cause heart disease.”
“Please stop this nonsense,” said Dr. Alo.
On Mr. Brecks' website, he offers a genetic test for $600 that purports to give customers “a map to help them identify where there might be one based on their body's ability to break down and use certain vitamins and nutrients.” There is a nutrient deficiency.”
Dr. Neal Smoller, a licensed pharmacist in New York, said in a blog post, “Your genes don't tell you whether you're high or low in vitamins.”
“Genetic testing can actually determine whether there are mutations or variants in key genes that code for enzymes that may process vitamins,” he said.
But he added that “it’s much more complicated than that.”
Dr. Smoller said, “Any reputable medical professional who knows anything about this topic will tell you that most DNA testing involving consumers is nothing more than entertainment.”
“We have about 24,000 genes.” We know the function of about 12,000. We can test about 5,000. I hope this context will help people understand what these DNA testing companies are actually capable of. A little, but not much.'
Mr. Brecka also sells a 10-fold PEMF (pulsed electromagnetic field) mat for $5,000. Clients should lie on the “magnetic field of the PEMF mat” for an eight-minute session, the website recommends.
“This is said to give you 12 hours of pure charging as each red blood cell receives 1B oxygen molecules (oxygen on steroids). This one step can result in a 30 to 900 percent increase in oxygen transport.”
For just $133,561, customers can get the “Superhuman Protocol Complete Package,” which includes a PEMF mat, red light bed, and oxygen delivery system.
Dr. Alo said: “The red light stuff, the oxygen mask, the hydrogenators… there is no scientific evidence that any of that is actually helpful.”
Many studies of red light therapy involve only a very small number of people and do not use a placebo group.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, there is currently not enough evidence to support most uses.