Peter Ballerstedt, PhD, has become one of the Society of Metabolic Health Practitioners’ most active and visible ambassadors.
During a recent Ovadia Heart Health Telemedicine livestream hosted by Ovadia Heart Health coach Chris Cornell, Dr. Ballerstedt discussed his upcoming return to the Symposium for Metabolic Health in San Diego, his work connecting agricultural and metabolic health communities, and why he believes The SMHP has an important role to play beyond the clinical world.
Dr. Ballerstedt, known by many as “The Sod Father,” has a PhD in forage management and ruminant nutrition. Over the last 15 years, he has become a respected voice in the low-carb and metabolic health community by helping bridge conversations around food systems, animal-source nutrition,protein sources, sustainability, ruminant agriculture and chronic disease.
“I really have developed this kind of role of building bridges between the communities that I’m now a part of,” Dr. Ballerstedt said during the livestream. “And they’re naturally connected, but because of a lot of factors that we could talk about, we haven’t been good at engagement across that divide.”
That bridge-building has become especially important through his work with The SMHP. Although Ballerstedt is not a medical professional, he has been involved with the organization since its early days and has helped bring the metabolic health message into communities that may not otherwise encounter it, including agricultural, grazing, forage and livestock groups.
In the livestream, Ballerstedt described organizing presentations, exhibiting at events and helping introduce SMHP resources to audiences outside the traditional clinical setting. He also emphasized that people do not need to be physicians, researchers or clinicians to help advance the message of metabolic health.
“We don’t all need to be professionals with this,” Ballerstedt said. “We find a way that we can contribute, that we can be models, we can be persuasive.”
That philosophy has been reflected in Ballerstedt’s own efforts. In recent years, he has invested significant time and energy into representing the SMHP at agricultural and grazing events, securing exhibition tables, creating signs and table displays, printing materials, purchasing books and sharing resources with attendees. His poster presentations at the Symposium for Metabolic Health have also encouraged others to consider how they might become ambassadors for metabolic health within their own professional communities.
Ballerstedt will once again speak at the Symposium for Metabolic Health in San Diego, scheduled for Aug. 13–16, 2026. His upcoming presentation, “The Fat of the Land,” will explore questions around animal fat, ruminants, protein quality, malnutrition, sustainability and the role of animal-source foods in addressing chronic disease.
The San Diego symposium will also include a dedicated Focus Day on the metabolic roots of obesity, type 2 diabetes and metabolic therapies, along with presentations from leading clinicians, researchers and advocates in the metabolic health space.
For Ballerstedt, gatherings like the Symposium are critically important not only because of the science and clinical data presented, but because of the relationships and community they create.
“There’s just tremendous opportunities to speak to people, get to know each other, ask questions, learn,” he said.