Our Research Team

Toshia Myers, Ph.D.

Director

Dr. Toshia Myers is the Executive Director & Research Director of the TrueNorth Health Foundation (TNHF). She began her career studying Plant Biology as an undergraduate at the Ohio State University and went on to earn a Doctorate of Philosophy in Biological Sciences from Columbia University. She has also completed postdoctoral fellowships at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the field of virology and the University of Copenhagen in the field of epigenetics.

Read More

Dr. Myers own health journey led her to explore numerous self-healing practices and believes that everyone can benefit from this knowledge. This is why she is thrilled to be leading the TNHF research team in conducting evidence-based research on the clinical effects of water-only fasting and dietary intervention. She has published numerous original research articles, case reports, popular articles, a textbook chapter, and is currently writing a book on water-only fasting.

Peer-Reviewed Publications

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/toshia.myers.1/bibliography/55179820/public/
 

Evelyn Zeiler, Ph.D.

Clinical Researcher

Dr. Evelyn Zeiler has been a clinical researcher for the TrueNorth Health Foundation (TNHF) since 2019. She received a Master's degree in Chemistry from Georg-August-University in Goettingen, Germany and studied natural product derivatives and their biological targets at the Technical University in Munich, Germany. She received a Dr. rer. nat. (Ph.D.) in Bioorganic Chemistry in 2012 and obtained a postdoctoral fellowship from the Origins of Life Initiative to study archaeal lipid biosynthesis at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA.

 

Read More

After her postdoctoral research, she spent one year working and studying organic agriculture at the Farmschool in Athol, MA. She was also progressively developing a natural lifestyle, experimented with short water-only fasts, and changed to a whole-plant-foods diet in 2016. 
Dr. Zeiler combines curiosity in the natural sciences with a desire to study optimal health as a clinical researcher at TNHF. In her free time she enjoys yoga, running, weight lifting, and creating healthy recipes.

Sahmla Gabriel, MUDr.

Clinical Researcher

Dr. Sahmla Gabriel is a clinical researcher for the TrueNorth Health Foundation (TNHF). She received her bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from Texas Women’s University. During her undergraduate studies, she researched stability of DNA telomeres, an important path in understanding longevity. She was also selected to participate in a competitive undergraduate research program at MD Anderson Cancer Center.  She later went on to pursue a Medical degree from the First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic. While in Prague she was also a researcher for the Institute of Immunology.

 

Read More

Originally from Brazil, Dr. Gabriel has always had an affinity for natural plant medicine. She is a firm believer in the body’s ability to heal when adequately equipped with nutrition, hydration, and rest. She was first introduced to therapeutic fasting during her medical studies in Europe. After receiving her medical degree and moving to California she became a clinical researcher for TNHF, where she can now combine her love for science and inquiry to help improve current medical practice.

Natasha Thompson, N.D.

Clinical Researcher

Dr. Natasha Thompson is a clinical researcher for the TrueNorth Health Foundation (TNHF). She received her bachelor’s degree in Biology from Providence College in Rhode Island. During her undergraduate studies, she researched climate effects on the sex expression of the wildflower, Lobelia siphilitica. After a brief job as a Genotyping Technician at The Jackson Laboratory in beautiful Bar Harbor, ME, she was compelled to pursue a naturopathic medical degree (N.D.) from The University of Bridgeport College of Naturopathic Medicine in Connecticut, where her interests centered around nutrition and herbal medicine. After graduation, she was thrilled to accept a residency position at TrueNorth Health Clinic in Santa Rosa, CA. 

Read More

Dr. Thompson found naturopathic medicine as an undergraduate student through the writings of Herbert Shelton, N.D., Andrew Weil, M.D., and Henry Lindlahr, N.D. She was later greatly impressed by the research of Caldwell Esselstyn, M.D., John McDougall, M.D., T. Colin Campbell, M.D., and Dean Ornish, M.D. As a physician, she is particularly passionate about informed consent and patient autonomy, and she considers herself a “medical conservative”, a term coined by John Mandrola, M.D. and colleagues in their paper “The Case for Being a Medical Conservative”, published in The American Journal of Medicine. She became a clinical researcher for TNHF after the birth of her first son. She has since settled on the coast of Southern RI with her husband and two sons, and she is incredibly grateful to work remotely with colleagues who share in appreciating the healing capacity of the body, given the proper environment.