How much is too much activity? The Physical Activity Paradox
How to Health
Is long been promoted that any activity is good for you. And in fact many people need to be doing more, but recent research indicates that not all types activity are good for you. In this episode, we discuss what types of activity may actually be harmful, what is the physical activity paradox, can you do too much activity and the biology behind it all. Select references cited in this podcast: The physical activity paradox in cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality: the contemporary Copenhagen General Population Study with 104 046 adults: When Moving is the Only Option: The Role of...
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How to Prevent Dementia
How to Health
Every three seconds someone in the world is diagnosed with dementia- a disease that leads to a decrease in mental function. There's currently no cure for dementia making prevention all the more important. In this episode we discuss what is dementia (and how it's not just a thing of ageing), what are the risk factors and how you do and eat affects your chances of getting (or not getting) dementia. Select references cited in this podcast: Association of daily step count and intensity with incident dementia in 78 430 adults living in the UK: Flavanoid-rich foods , dementia risk, and...
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How Behavioural Economics Shapes Your Health Decisions
How to Health
Everyday you make thousands of decisions that affect your health. This includes deciding what to eat, whether to exercise or not, and how much sleep you get. Whether you know or not, you're bombarded with information that influences your decisions. Behavioural economics is a theory that tries to explain why people may make different decisions in different contexts even if those decisions aren't always in their best interest. In this episode we discuss what behavioural economics is, how human laziness leads to decisions we don't want and how you can make use of behavioural economics to make...
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How Pollution Affects Your Health
How to Health
It's estimated that 99% of the world breathes air that exceeds the recommended limits for pollution. Air pollution increases your chances for heart and other disease. But it's not just air pollution that's a problem, noise pollution also can affect your heart. In this episode, we discuss the health risks of being exposed to pollution, how air and noise pollution affect your health and things you can do to reduce your pollution exposure. Select references cited in this podcast: Associations of outdoor fine particulate air pollution and cardiovascular disease in 157 436 individuals from 21...
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Your Weight is Not Your Health
How to Health
The global weight loss industry will be worth $400 billion by 2030. And while most people who are trying to lose weight will say they're doing it for their health, your weight is not a good indicator of how healthy you are. In this episode we discuss how people started to equate weight with health, the role of excess body fat (and not weight) in health, what you need body fat for and when changes in weight are good and when they're not. References cited in this podcast: Canadian Adult Obesity Clinical Practice Guidelines: Weight Circumference and All-cause Mortality in a Large US Cohort: ...
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How bad is sodium in your diet?
How to Health
Sodium (and salt for that matter) has been made out to be the villain when it comes to nutrition. In fact, without sodium, you wouldn't be alive. While high amounts of salt in the diet are related to high blood pressure, the evidence to support a link with heart and other diseases isn't clear. In this episode we discuss why you need sodium, how much is too much, is sodium as harmful as we're told and how getting more potassium can help. References cited in this podcast: Urinary Sodium and Potassium Excretion, Mortality, and Cardiovascular Events: Sources of potassium in...
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How important is breakfast? Really.
How to Health
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Or is it? Most people have some sort of breakfast some of the time. There are also plenty of studies linking breakfast to weight loss, health and even school performance. But is the idea of breakfast based on science or what cereal companies tell us? In this episode, we discuss why people think breakfast is important, how it affects your health and what happens if you don't eat breakfast. References cited in this podcast: The Importance of Breakfast in Atherosclerotic Disease: Insights from the PESA Study: Effect of breakfast on weight...
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How Microplastics Affect Your Health
How to Health
The average person consumes 39 000 to 52 000 microplastic particles per year through food and drink. This number doubles when taking into account how many microplastics we might inhale. Microplastics have been found in blood samples and almost every organ in the human body. In this episode, we discuss what are microplastics, how they get into your body, how they affect your health and how to avoid being exposed to them. References cited in this podcast: Human Consumption of Microplastics: Polypropylene microplastics promote metastatic features in human breast cancer: Microplastics and...
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How to Counter All that Sitting
How to Health
The average person sits for more than 6-8 hours. While we can't avoid sitting (and sometimes it's necessary), most of us do too much and continuous sitting can increase your risk for disases such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer and dementia, and early death. In this episode we discuss the problems with sitting, how it affects your metabolism, can your exercise counteract sitting and provide you with tips on how to reduce your sitting. References cited in this podcast: Association of Sitting Time with Mortality and Cardiovascular Events in High-Income, Middle-Income and Low-Income...
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How Processed Foods Affect Your Health
How to Health
From frozen vegetables to heat-and-serve burritos, processed foods are all around us and make up a large portion of most people’s diet. Ultra-processed foods, such soda pop, frozen meals and soup, have been associated with heart disease, cancer, diabetes and early death, but can all these foods be grouped together, and can processed foods be part of a healthy diet? In this episode, we discuss what makes a food a processed food, how processed foods affect your health and whether you should be concerned if they’re in your diet. Some references cited in the podcast: Ultra-processed...
info_outlineThe heart is the only muscle in your body that never rests. And for good reason. Over the course of your life, your heart will beat over 2.5 billion times. But even with such a vital organ, things can go wrong. In this podcast, we discuss the role of the heart in your body, what happens if things go wrong, and most importantly, how to take care of it.
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