Podcast

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E63 Is it safe to drink coffee during pregnancy?

Coffee is one of the most popular and safest stimulants that we consume. But during pregnancy, and potentially even when planning a pregnancy, it is one ‘legal drug’ where advice for women becomes a little more prescriptive. Alcohol, soft cheeses, raw fish and even raw sprouts are all foods that are best to limit or avoid during pregnancy. So, should coffee be added to the list and if so, how much is a safe amount to drink? That is what I’ll explore in this podcast.

Links referred to in the podcast
Impact of coffee on successful IVF treatment
Meta-analysis on effect of caffeine on pregnancy outcomes
Effect of caffeine in healthy adults, pregnant women, adolescents, and children
Should caffeine recommendations during pregnancy be lowered?

E62 Can micronutrient supplements prevent or treat respiratory tract infections?

Coughing, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, fatigue. The classic collection of symptoms synonymous with an acute respiratory tract infection. From the common cold right through to the flu, it is something most people are faced with many times over in their life. So what role nutrition, in particular micronutrient supplements, in helping to bolster your immune system to stop you from getting sick in the first place or helping to fight off an illness once an infection takes hold? In this podcast, I’ll look at the current state of play for the role of supplemental vitamin C, vitamin D and zinc in tackling acute respiratory tract infections.

Links referred to in the podcast
Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold
Zinc for preventing and treating the common cold
Vitamin D and ARIs
2021 meta-analysis of micronutrients and ARIs

E61 Inflammation: the good, the bad and the ugly

Inflammation is now getting top billing as the latest health concern you should be worrying about. From avoiding so-called inflammatory foods to eating anti-inflammatory foods to treat and even cure inflammation, is there no disease that cannot be explained by our understanding of inflammation? Far from something scary, inflammation is a natural process that helps your body heal and defend itself from harm. It is only when inflammation becomes chronic that the story changes. In this podcast, I’ll explain just what exactly inflammation is, what causes it, when it is good and when it is bad, and importantly: what role diet and lifestyle habits play in inflammation.

Links referred to in the podcast
Mediterranean diet and inflammation
Effect of probiotics on inflammatory markers
Meta-analysis of dairy foods and inflammation

E60 Apple cider vinegar: superfood or super scam?

Move aside coconut oil, your time in the superfood spotlight has passed. Today it is apple cider vinegar, the latest all-natural, all wholesome, all singing, all dancing superfood that’s here to save you from just about anything that ails you. With claims ranging from sterilising toothbrushes, curing diabetes and melting away waistlines, in this podcast I’ll look behind the apple cider trend to see what the science has to say.

Links referred to in the podcast
ACV and weight loss clinical trial 1
ACV and weight loss clinical trial 2
Meta-analysis of ACV and blood glucose responses
Review of ACV, glucose responses and potential mechanisms

E59 Improving cancer survival with diet and lifestyle choices

Eating well and positive lifestyle choices are an important part of reducing a person’s risk of cancer. But when it comes to food choices for people who have survived cancer, key themes surface. A healthy diet and other lifestyle changes are just as important to improve the chances of surviving cancer and reducing its chance of coming back. In this podcast, I’ll look at what the scientific evidence says about lifestyle choices in improving cancer survivability and what are the key recommendations someone with cancer should aim for.

Links referred to in the podcast
Adherence to cancer prevention guidelines and cancer survivability
Meta-analysis of the effect of diet on mortality and cancer recurrence among cancer survivors
Physical activity and cancer survival in men
Physical activity and colon cancer recurrence
Alternative cancer diets

E58 Lifestyle keys to cutting cancer risk

If you believe that cancer is a disease that strikes from nowhere with very little in your control that can prevent it, then you would be wrong on both counts. A person’s risk of cancer can be significantly lessened by simple and fairly obvious nutrition and lifestyle changes. In this podcast, I’ll explore where you should put most of your focus and spoiler alert, none of it has to do with avoiding 5G signals, GMO foods, artificial sweeteners, underarm deodorants or acid causing foods.

Links referred to in the podcast
WCRF cancer prevention recommendations
Adherence to WCRF recommendations and cancer risk reduction

E57 The carnivore diet raises the middle finger to the plant-based trend

Want to eat the exact opposite of plant-based? Then the carnivore diet has you covered. A diet that consists entirely of animal foods and zero carbs and plants, it offers the promise of weight loss and a cure for all that ails you from autoimmune diseases to depression. Of all the trends that buck conventional nutrition advice, the carnivore diet lies several standard deviations to the right of the diet crazy curve. In this podcast, I look at what created the carnivore diet trend, what it involves, and importantly: what can we say about its health merits.

Links referred to in the podcast
Google Trends data for carnivore diet searches
Meeting essential nutrient needs on the carnivore diet
Red meat and TMAO production

E56 Calcium: foods, functions and supplemental forms

Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the body and it’s not just there for making healthy bones. Calcium is needed to move muscles, send nerve signals and release hormones. While dairy gets a lot of the attention for being a good source of calcium, there are plenty of other foods that help meet your needs too. In this podcast, I look at the roles of calcium, the consequences of not getting enough and tackle the controversial area of if calcium supplements are to be recommended or not.

Links referred to in the podcast
Dairy and bone health review 2018
Dairy and bone health review 2019
Calcium supplements: the good, the bad and the ugly

E55 Collagen supplements: legit or Insta influencer fairy dust?

Collagen supplements are big business. And is it any wonder when they are touted as the elixir for youthful and glowing skin. With plenty of A-list celebrities singing its praises, it’s no wonder collagen is having a moment in the spotlight. And a look at Google Trends shows search interest in collagen supplements really took off at the start of 2019 and it is showing no signs of slowing down. Reading the shopping list of health claims made about collagen – from turning back the clock on your skin, treating joint pain and even ‘healing your gut’ – you should rightly raise your sceptical flag. Yet when you look at the scientific evidence, there could just be some validity to some of these claims. That’s what I’ll be exploring in this podcast.

Links referred to in the podcast
Clinical trial of collagen supplementation and skin health in women
Systematic review of the effect of collagen supplementation on skin
Meta-analysis of the effect of collagen supplementation on osteoarthritis

E54 Alkaline diets: the antithesis of how human physiology works

What if I told you that all it takes to lose weight, boost energy and prevent diseases like arthritis, osteoporosis and cancer was to eat the right foods to keep the pH of your body in the alkaline zone? Well, if I were prepared to throw out every bit of scientific knowledge that I have of how the human body works to buffer against acidity and alkalinity then sure, I could tell you that. But I’m not. Instead, in this podcast, I’m going to investigate those wild health claims made by the celebrity-endorsed alkaline diet and explain why it is pseudoscience squared.

E53 Coeliac disease, gluten sensitivity and the rise of gluten-free diets

Coeliac disease affects less than 1 percent of the population, yet, despite its relative rarity, there has been an explosion in the adoption of a gluten-free lifestyle. It is becoming more and more common for people to report having problematic reactions to foods containing gluten. Termed non-coeliac gluten sensitivity, this is a condition still in search of a defined disease despite having a large degree of overlap in symptoms with coeliac disease. In this podcast, I’ll explore the connection between coeliac disease, gluten sensitivity and gluten.

Links referred to in the podcast
Clinical trial of gluten challenge in people with gluten sensitivity
Nutritional quality of gluten vs gluten-free foods

E52 The rise of meatless meat

There was a time when plant-based meat substitutes were the exclusive domain of vegetarians and vegans. Now the food science technology behind these plant-based foods has come of age with products designed to closely look, feel, taste and even bleed like the real thing. The rise of meatless meats is all about meeting the demands of traditional meat-eaters who want to cut down on meat and are looking for plant-based protein alternatives. But are these foods really a healthier alternative to their animal counterparts? That’s what I’ll explore in this podcast.

Links referred to in the podcast
Beyond Meat environmental impact
CHOICE survey of plant-based meats

E51 How do the plant-based milks stack up?

Gone are the days when cow’s milk was the only choice at the supermarket. There has been an explosion in recent years of plant-based non-dairy alternative milks. From the very familiar soy milk, we now have almond, coconut, oat, and rice milk plus a host of others joining the party. How well these contender alt-milks stack up against the ‘reference standard’ of cow’s milk is what I’ll be digging into in this podcast.

Links referred to in the podcast
Scientific review of plant-based milks
CHOICE review of almond milks