Mike’s comment: In this blog Dru lays out the surprising reasons why when you eat can be as important as what you eat – and it has a lot to do with eating in sync with your circadian rhythm.

Read the blog here.

Mike’s comment: I’m a brain guy, and I can tell you without equivocation that good quality sleep is a BIG deal for your health. Sleep affects attention, mood, anxiety, daytime alertness, pain, and more. Andrew Huberman (a very cool Stanford professor) is a master at explaining the basic sleep principles that most of us don’t know. If you want to sleep better, learn in this podcast what you’re doing wrong. Once you know, you can change behaviors and environmental factors that may be overstimulating your brain at night.

This audio/video provides a host of information on what makes us sleepy, sleep soundly, and feel awake and alert. It covers a broad range of tools for anyone wishing to improve their sleep and wakeful state. The science and logic for each tool is described.

Find the audio on Apple Podcasts and the video on YouTube.

Mike’s comment: Dr. Panda is “the circadian rhythm expert.” His description of why changing the TIMING of eating has such broad implications on your health is mind-blowing. I asked myself how could I have not known this???? Adjusting your circadian rhythm can help change your metabolism, heal your gut, and be a key factor in overcoming a lot of issues, both physical and mental. This information is fundamental to helping you regulate your mood, anxiety and sleep.

Every organ and cell in our body has a 24-hour (circadian) clock. Circadian clocks turn thousands of genes on and off at the right time of the day or night to promote sleep or wakefulness. These rhythms work together to maintain a healthy balance of brain chemicals, hormones, and nutrients. When our rhythms break down, we’re more likely to suffer from a wide range of diseases, ranging from depression to cancer. We can tune our daily habits of eating, sleeping, or getting the right amount of light to sustain our circadian rhythms. Healthy rhythms nurture a healthy body and mind.

Dr. Panda is a professor at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, California. His work deals specifically with the timing of food and its relationship with our biological clocks governed by circadian rhythm as well the circadian rhythm in general.

Find the video on YouTube.

Mike’s comment: Most people have heard about blue light glasses by now and why you should avoid blue light sources at night. If you listen to Dr. Huberman’s podcast on sleep (another one on my “Favorites” list), you’ll realize that as a society we’re avoiding basic sleep science, including the fact that blue light messes with our sleep. Every screen or LCD/LED device in your house outputs blue light and contributes to less efficient sleep. You can do something about this many other things that interfere with sleep. It’s EASY. Here’s a great article detailing what you can do. The source sells sleep-related products, but I’ve read through their information, and it’s very helpful.

This article details the top 10 ways to avoid digital blue light from screens and lists 9 reasons to protect your eyes from it. Naturally occurring blue light isn’t the problem. Artificial light, particularly from screens, can be, especially when we do it for too long and at the wrong time of day. Why? It can cause eye strain and vision problems. It can suppress the production and release of melatonin, keep us from going to sleep or interfere with the quality of our sleep.

Read more here.

How do we help lower our chances of developing brain issues? There are a number of variables to consider ranging from sleep to exercise to stress reduction. But increasingly, research shows that we may be able to promote better brain health by using our forks. The foods we choose are the building blocks of our brains, influencing our brain circuitry.

Read more here

Mike’s comment: This is a really important podcast on mental health. I found Dr. Palmer’s strong statements about medication especially interesting.

We’re in the midst of a global mental health crisis, and mental illnesses are on the rise. But what causes mental illness? And why are mental health problems so hard to treat? On this podcast Dhru sits down with Dr. Chris Palmer to discuss a revolutionary new way of understanding and treating mental illness, specifically with a ketogenic diet and mitochondrial repair. Dr. Palmer shares some truly amazing stories about patients struggling with severe psychiatric illnesses who have been able to regain their health and independence along with a greater quality of life.

(1:48) -The role metabolism plays when it comes to mental health disorders
(2:42) -The patient who changed the way Dr. Palmer treats mental illness
(8:10) -The long-term outcomes of using medical interventions for depression
(18:32) -Dr. Palmer’s personal history with mental illness and what he noticed after making changes to his diet
(23:44) -The role mitochondria play in mental disorders
(53:11) -The causes of mitochondrial dysfunction
(1:01:26) -Pharmaceutical drugs and mitochondrial dysfunction
(1:14:23) -Understanding the current treatment model of mental health disorders
(1:21:30) -How to address metabolic health to improve mental disorders

Find it on Apple Podcasts and YouTube

Mike’s comment: Most people are unaware of the huge impact blood sugar has on sleep, panic attacks, anxiety, brain fog, fatigue and more. I found this podcast very informative and frequently refer clients to it. Dr. Hyman and Jessie Inchauspé do an excellent job of simplifying this critical topic.

Most people don’t realize what kind of impact their favorite foods are having on their blood sugar, and subsequently their entire body. Feeling hungry even when you just ate, craving sweets, and dealing with acne, hormonal imbalances, and signs of aging like wrinkles are just a few of the many symptoms of blood sugar swings. When these go unchecked, more severe dysfunctions can occur.

Jessie Inchauspé, also known as the “Glucose Goddess,” reveals her hacks for balancing blood sugar and increasing insulin sensitivity.

Jessie holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from King’s College London and a master’s degree in biochemistry from Georgetown University. She’s the author of Glucose Revolution,

Find it on Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Mike’s comment: We see so many kids with problems like attention, sleep, behavior, emotional control and more. How many of these kids are being negatively impacted by their diet? I believe the answer is, MANY of them. The right diet is critical to optimal brain function. Making dietary adjustments can be hard for parents but the payoff can be big. Here are some practical ideas that might help.

In this excerpt from his latest book, Metabolical, Dr. Robert Lustig discusses the true impact of our kids’ high-sugar, low-nutrient diet. He also talks about why breakfast is the most dangerous meal for kids, and how it affects their behavior, cognition, and health.

Find the audio on Spotify and a blog about it on the Brain Hints website.

Mike’s comment: This podcast is long, but well worth listening to. Why? It’s the best explanation on the basics of reducing inflammation with diet that I’ve ever heard. Dr. Johnson covers diet issues that impact both children and adults. Reducing inflammation has HUGE implications for the brain. He also discusses the role—and challenges—of carbs. By the way, Dr. Johnson is one of the world’s leading experts in the area of diet and inflammation.

Why do we get fat? As Americans have gotten heavier, and disease rates have skyrocketed, there’ve been many theories: We’re eating too much fat. Too many carbs. An excess of sugar. Is our lifestyle or our diet to blame?

On this podcast Dhru talks with Dr. Richard Johnson about his team’s discovery of the fructose-powered survival switch—a metabolic pathway that animals in nature turn on and off as needed, but that our modern diet has permanently fixed in the “on position,” becoming a fat switch.

Dr. Johnson is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado in Denver and author Nature Wants Us to Be Fat.

Find it on Apple Podcasts.

Mike’s comment: This is a good article by a Harvard psychiatrist about the impact of foods on your brain and cognitive health.

If you’re constantly feeling tired and stressed, evaluating your diet might be a good place to start. Harvard psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo shares on CNBC the types of foods she avoids at the grocery store to maintain healthy energy levels and a happy brain — and what to eat instead.

Read the article here.

Mike’s comment: This is an excellent podcast by a terrific interviewer on the physiology of panic attacks.

On this podcast Dhru talks to Dr. Kristen Allott, a naturopathic physician, national speaker, and pioneering advocate for the use of whole foods nutrition in the treatment of mental health disorders. Together they examine the spectrum of anxiety, how diet can cause anxiety and panic attacks, and how managing blood glucose and nutrition are powerful tools for feeling better. She and Dhru discuss why it’s important to stay open to different options, especially if trying all the “right” things hasn’t been working for you.

Dr. Allot is a naturopathic physician, national speaker, and pioneering advocate for the use of whole foods nutrition in the treatment of mental health disorders. She is co-author of the book Fuel Your Brain, Not Your Anxiety: Stop the Cycle of Worry, Fatigue, and Sugar Cravings with Simple Protein-Rich Foods.

Find it on Apple Podcasts and YouTube

Mike’s comment: Dr. Drisko is a brilliant M.D. who does a great job interviewing Dr. Patrick regarding the impact of WiFi and other forms of EMF on the body and brain, such as mobile phones and other common electronic devices. This interview provides a lot of food for thought.

Listen here.

Mike’s comment: This podcast is for anyone who’s ever wondered what alcohol is doing to their brain or just how much alcohol is too much. There are plenty of surprises in this podcast—things you might never have realized—and much food for thought.

In this episode, Andrew discusses the physiological effects that drinking alcohol has on the brain and body at different levels of consumption and over time. He also describes genetic differences that predispose certain individuals to alcoholism and binge- or habit-drinking. He explains alcohol metabolism in simple terms and how it effectively acts as a poison, leading to cellular stress and damage.

Find the audio on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Watch the video on YouTube.