Dr. John La Puma is a board-certified internist and two-time New York Times bestselling author who has spent his career asking a simple question: Why are modern humans so sick in environments we were never designed to live in?Early in his career, Dr. La Puma co-taught the first Culinary Medicine course at a U.S. medical school, and helped bring food, metabolism, and lifestyle back into mainstream medical education. Culinary medicine is now taught in medical schools across the country and around the world. His focus recently widened beyond food to the environment shaping human biology. His work examines how light, movement, time outdoors, and daily exposure to nature influence sleep, focus, metabolic health, immune function, and resilience. His research show that they are often more powerful than medications or devices alone. Dr. La Puma lives and works in Santa Barbara, California, where he continues to study and live the relationship between environment, lifestyle and long-term health.
Advance PraiseLa Puma connects the dots between light, air, and metabolism with the clarity of a scientist and the heart of a humanist. Drawing on decades of clinical practice and peer-reviewed research, he shows how intentional time outdoors can meaningfully extend healthspan. - Mike Roizen, MD, New York Times-bestselling author; Co-Founder, RealAge Dr. La Puma brings scientific rigor to what many sense intuitively: time outdoors is a biologic necessity. Indoor Epidemic reframes nature exposure as a measurable medical intervention, not a lifestyle preference. - Stefanos N. Kales, MD, MPH, Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School John La Puma is an important voice in ecological medicine. What's new here is treating time in nature as a vital sign-prescribed with clinical precision and practical clarity. - Daphne Miller, MD, author of Farmacology and The Jungle Effect With clarity and evidence, La Puma shows how light, air, and environment shape metabolism and resilience. This book makes a compelling case for reconnecting human biology to the living world. - Jeff Tkach, CEO, Rodale Institute Indoor Epidemic is a powerful wake-up call for families. Dr. La Puma shows that nature is not a luxury but a daily biologic need, offering evidence-based Outdoor Rx strategies that restore sleep, mood, and resilience. - Tanya Altmann, MD, Pediatrician and bestselling author Full of practical wisdom, this timely and important book reminds us why we must reintroduce nature into our lives-deliberately and daily. - Sue Stuart-Smith, MD, author of The Well-Gardened Mind This gentle, practical prescription-morning light, daily movement, quieter evenings-helps you sleep deeper, think clearer, and feel more alive in a screen-bound world."" - Michael Crawford, Olivier & Tony Award winner