Dr. Blair Cushing

04/13/2026

How do others feel about AI receptionists? As a small business owner, I find there are sooo many services really pushing this. And as a solo practice with no staff, I get the apparent benefit of reducing "missed" calls from potential patients who will just move on rather than leaving a message and waiting for a call back.

But as a consumer, my experience with businesses using AI receptionists has thus far been terrible. Feels like an extra road block to getting the assistance I'm looking for and I have never even once had it help accomplish what I need.
What say you - does AI answering the phone feel positive or negative when you're interacting with a business?

04/08/2026

Can confirm - playing in the dirt is good for you 😁

Interestingly, we also have some pretty impressive research that one of the best things we can do for kids with significant environmental allergies is to get them exposed to animals. 🐑 🐖 🐮 Petting zoo works, even your regular 🐈+🐕 but the more dirt the better! 👩🏻‍🌾

Whether it’s microbes in the dirt or fresh air—or both—researchers do know this: Gardening is strong medicine.

Dig Deeper: Follow the link in our bio to learn more by reading How Backyard Gardens Can Help Ease Depression and Anxiety: https://www.bluezones.com/2025/06/digging-for-mental-health-how-backyard-gardens-can-help-ease-depression-and-anxiety/

03/20/2026

Question: As a patient, how do you REALLY feel about doctors using AI scribes to record and produce notes from your visit?
Anecdotally, I find most patients say "yes" when I ask if it's okay, but also *seem* uncomfortable with it. I actually deliberately stopped using it after a few weeks trial for this reason. (That and I was doing WAY too much editing, would rather just write my thoughts directly than edit some computer's garbage output.) Also, I believe most of my colleagues are NOT properly consenting folks, meaning many patients don't even realize it's happening.

Sooo... what say you??? AI all good in the exam room, or not so much? 🧐

03/20/2026

I've been so impressed by the community response to this week's revelations about Cesar Chavez. Especially the recognition that these are not isolated incidents perpetuated by one man, but patterns of abuse that are so prevalent among those who attain power.
HEALING also happens most powerfully and sustainably through COMMUNITY. Thank you to those who are stepping up to create these safe spaces for that work to happen. 🙏

03/14/2026

So often patients will tell me, "I eat pretty healthy" but feel like they're also stalling out on their health goals.
A food journal can help us identify what might need to change and is the first step to creating an individualized food plan to meet your needs.

02/14/2026

I was interviewed for this story a few months ago and am extremely pleased to see it finally published and bringing attention to the highly unethical treatment of unaccompanied minors who are pregnant. Particularly notable for those of us in the Valley, this set up is literally taking advantage of the well-known hardships of the region to deliberately place already extremely vulnerable teens in the worst circumstances they could find.

It's a long piece, but very well researched by some outstanding journalists and very worth the read.

Government sources and advocates for migrant children worry the administration is concentrating pregnant unaccompanied minors in Texas to restrict their access to abortion.

02/11/2026

When the insurance company also OWNS the pharmacy AND your doctor's office, it is pretty easy to see that they are putting profits over people.

As one of the "little guys" trying my best to make it work on behalf of patients despite all of these systems being rigged against us, I highly support Congress intervening to break up the healthcare monopolies that hurt everyone.

Democrat Elizabeth Warren and Republican Josh Hawley don't agree on much, but they've found common ground on health care and affordability.

02/07/2026

Big fan of berries here! 👋 Berries pack a big punch with respect to nutrients and antioxidants, even in small quantities. When consumed whole, berries also come with a significantly lower glucose spike than you may see from tropical fruits.
How are you incorporating berries?

If you eat blueberries week after week, you get benefits like reduced artery stiffness and a boost in your natural killer cells, which are one of your body’s natural first lines of defense against viral infections and cancer. Watch the “Benefits of Blueberries for Artery Function” video at http://bit.ly/2H2BOb6 to learn more.

Dr. Greger's Daily Dozen recommends eating at least half a cup of berries every day. Take the Daily Dozen Challenge and see how easy it is to include some of the healthiest of healthy foods into your routine! http://bit.ly/DDchallenge

PMIDs: 22218162, 25150116

02/04/2026

On a near daily basis, I'm having to explain the benefits of Functional Medicine to my physician colleagues. Many patients may have heard of it, but aren't sure how it might be useful for them. So I wrote a new blog post to explain my own path to implementing Functional Medicine in my practice.

Nearly every day now I seem to find myself engaged with someone about Functional Medicine and how I have been incorporating it into my medic...

01/11/2026

Finally made myself a legit logo! Got some input from Gemini AI regarding my various tag lines. 😂 Might still do some editing, but wanted to ask what do some actual humans think???

12/31/2025

The top New Year's resolutions are consistently health-based, but where to begin? We're living in a time of information overload and even most "experts" online are often profiting from whatever product they are trying to convince you is THE solution to your problem.

Wish someone could just help you make sense of it all and help create your personal path to better health???
Everyone can benefit from Functional Medicine, no matter where you are starting in your health journey!
Book a new patient consult to take a deeper look and get physician guidance to untangle all the conflicting info that's holding you back.

12/23/2025

Oral GLP-1 semaglutide has already been out for a few years under the brand name Rybelsus for treatment of diabetes. But it's exciting to see it now approved for weight loss indication, especially with pricing that will make it more widely accessible for those without insurance coverage.

The approval gives Novo Nordisk a head start over chief rival Eli Lilly, which is racing to launch its own obesity pill.