Recent content by John D Hirsch MD

It has been awhile since my last post. I have been busy. I retired to southwest Florida and sold my interest in Doctor Eco Systems. I will still be a champion for all natural healthy foods for the aquarium industry and for those who thought this was shameful advertising, I will continue to...

Amino acid supplements. Thoughts from a non-believer. Let?s start with some basic biochemistry. There are roughly 20 amino acids, half are nonessential and half are essential. Essential amino acids cannot be synthesized by animal cells and must be derived from outside sources such as algae or...

I don?t know how many of you saw the recent report on the effects of stress on human lipid profiles. It has long been recognized that diet and exercise can have a positive impact on health, cholesterol and lipid levels. Medical science has now added stress as a risk factor. Stress is mediated...

any egg can be frozen and I PM you a response. I want to refrain from talking about my specific products in the forum.

Nutrition research is hard because you have so many variables to control and results are rarely seen immediately. Just like there are Republicans and Democrats, ideologically there are all natural advocates and supplement advocates. That flavors any claims and likely it won?t be changed by any...

Then why do so few fish fry survive? What happens to them? I assume they are eaten. I have had the same diving experience as Paul B and was particularly interested in the feeding habits of the reef inhabitants. Doc

As hobbyist we have a variety of food options. Those options include stable at room temperature products (pellets, flakes, and freeze dried), refrigerated products, frozen products, fresh products, and live products. There are risks and benefits to each category. Some use preservatives to extend...

great post. I agree that a closed ecosystem is a stressful environment and that it is very different from the wild oceans but that doesn't mean we can't try. It is a personal choice and hopefully an educated choice for every hobbyist. Supplements are now part of our lexicon, but the science for...

Paul Great photos and amazing record of healthy reef inhabitants. You should be proud of this accomplishment. I suspect in the wild, living that long would be like winning the lottery. Doesn't make you wonder what the life expectancy is for our captive reef inhabitants? This could not be...

absolutely. Beneficial bacteria are critical for digestion in all animals and they need a safe place to live, reproduce, and aid in digestion, manufacture enzymes and some water soluble vitamins for use by the host. Mother Nature may have varied the location but the function is unchanged. I...

Thanks Boomer for your posts, they are always appreciated. For the record, the appendix is an appendage off the cecum and has no know function just like your pyloric caeca. Funny how that works. Readers now have apposing views on healthy nutrition which is the object of this forum.

Thales, I don't understand your comments. We both agree that gut loading is important. In prepared food it is gut loaded. It is the last meal before harvesting and flash freezing. Their guts are filled with all natural wild caught foods including phytoplantkon and zooplankton that consume...

Boomer, the anlage of the pyloric caeca in higher animals is the the cecum and appendix and that form exists in all animals as it is a place for critical bacteria to assist in digestion and production of vital nutrients. It is definitely not unique.

great photo of your Hippo and what do you feed?

Dear Larry Thank you for posting in the aquarium nutrition forum. One of life's lessons I learned is there are many paths to the top of the mountain and they all work. Some work better than others, but they all work. There is much we can agree on Your company produces excellent natural foods...