228 From Kitchen to Clinic: The Healing Power of Medicinal and Culinary Mushrooms with Dr. Anna Sitkoff
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
Release Date: 09/29/2025
240 From Hot Flashes to Harmony: Reclaim Vitality through Nutrition and Lifestyle Changes with Alison Bladh
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
In this enlightening conversation, Dr. Gillian Lockitch talks with Alison Bladh about navigating menopause and midlife with confidence, vitality, and grace. Alison shares over 35 years of experience helping women transform their health, beauty, and mindset through evidence-based nutrition, lifestyle, and self-care. Learn how small, realistic changes can rebalance hormones, improve sleep, manage weight, and restore radiant skin and energy—so you can age youthfully and thrive through every life stage. Alison Bladh is an award-winning nutritional therapist and aesthetician...
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239 Midlife Transformation: Ironman Playbook for Endurance, Longevity and Healthy Aging with Jeffrey Weiss
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
Can you build healthspan in your 50s, 60s and beyond? In our episode 239 conversation, Jeff Weiss says yes—and he’s got the miles to prove it. After his first 10K at 48, Jeff progressed to marathons, ultramarathons, and Ironman triathlons, discovering how structured training within smart guardrails, and the right mindset can unlock cardiovascular fitness, strength, confidence, and cognitive resilience in midlife. We explore practical ways to get started (and keep going), how to balance discomfort vs. danger, and why setting “big, hairy, audacious goals” fuels transformation far beyond...
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238 Perimenopause to Second Spring: Hormones, Hugs and Healthspan with Carla Wainwright
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
Coach and educator Carla Wainwright joins Dr. Gillian in episode 238 to reframe midlife (about 40–65) as a gateway rather than a decline. Drawing on science and somatic wisdom, Carla explains how shifting sex hormones affect metabolism, sleep, stress tolerance, and body composition—and why nervous‑system regulation, metabolic basics, and pleasure practices are foundational for healthspan. You’ll learn simple micro‑resets (breath, grounding, nature time), how to stack small rituals, and why cultivating daily moments of joy/connection boosts oxytocin and nitric oxide—two...
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237 Healthy Aging Made Practical: Mind, Environment, Diet, Activity, Community with Scott Fulton
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
In Episode 237, in conversation with Dr. Gillian Lockitch, Scott Fulton reframes “successful aging” as more years, more moments, more money. He unpacks his MEDAC model—Mind, Environment, Diet, Activity, Community—and shows how small, practical tweaks compound: design homes for longevity, manage toxin exposure sensibly, eat for quality/variety/fiber, move all day (not just “exercise”), train balance, and build supportive community. They also explore simple ways to measure what matters and why stepping outside your comfort zone is a powerful aging tool. Scott Fulton is...
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236 Bamboozled by "Evidence": Go Beyond Guidelines, Read the Studies and Question Dogma with Dr. Joseph Jacko
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
Are we being bamboozled by “evidence”? In episode 236 of Growing Older Living Younger, Dr. Joseph Jacko explains how pharmaceutic and other corporate funding skews what we are told, why absolute risk matters more than splashy headline statistics, and how a deeper understanding of hormones and our metabolism, the microbiome –brain connection, and regenerative tools can help you build real health and extend your healthspan,—not just live with and manage disease. We pull back the curtain on how corporate interests and publication bias can distort...
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235 The Summiteers Community: A Blueprint for Healthy Longevity with Don Cote PhD
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
In episode 235 of Growing Older Living Younger, Dr. Don Cote shares his extraordinary journey from humble beginnings to building a life of meaning, resilience, and purpose. With his background in cognitive behavioral science, business coaching, and decades of lived experience, Don reveals how his father’s wisdom and Napoleon Hill's "Think and Grow Rich" inspired him to develop his Life Works Life Mastery System, a step-by-step blueprint for transformation. We explore how you too can thrive in your later years, redefine a "successfull life" and build connections and community ...
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234 The Akashic Records: A Spiritual Map to Your Passion, Purpose and Vitality with Natasha Rocha
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
In this captivating episode of Growing Older Living Younger, Dr. Gillian Lockitch dives into the mystical yet deeply practical world of the Akashic Records with Natasha Rocha. Often described as the “Google of the spiritual world,” the Akashic Records are said to hold the blueprint of your soul—your purpose, gifts, and highest potential. Natasha shares her personal spiritual awakening, how she helps people access their soul’s blueprint, and why reconnecting with passion and purpose can reignite vitality at any age. This episode reveals how understanding your Akashic blueprint...
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233 Generation Restoration: Healing Nature and Ourselves with Tim Christophersen
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
Tim Christophersen, one of the world’s leading voices on ecosystem restoration, joins Dr. Gillian Lockitch for episode 233 of the Growing Older Living Younger podcast. With over 25 years of experience shaping global climate and biodiversity policy at the United Nations and now leading sustainability initiatives at Salesforce, Tim discusses how restoring our relationship with nature is essential not only for planetary health but very much so for our personal health and longevity. From the philosophy of ecological literacy to regenerative farming, urban green equity, and...
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232 Primal Health Design: Reverse Your Biological Age with Dr. Kavin Mistry
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
In this episode, Dr. Gillian Lockitch welcomes Dr. Kavin Mistry to discuss how aligning with our primal design can help us reverse biological age. Drawing from neuroscience, the Hadzabe tribe, and his seven paradigms of Primal Health Design, Dr. Mistry explains how circadian rhythms, primal alignment, gut microbiome health, neuroplasticity, and emotional connection contribute to resilience and longevity. He also shares practical daily habits—like stillness practices and his free morning routine—that can transform health at any age. This conversation offers...
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002 Darlene Shearer: On Entrepreneurship
Growing Older Living Younger: About longevity, wellness, healthspan,
'Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work .' (Thomas Edison) 'People tell me ‘you’re not the same person that I was 20 years ago’ and I say good! I don’t want to be that same person, I want to grow' (Darlene Shearer) Darlene Shearer is an entrepreneur who, over the past 3 decades has built and run a global business in health, beauty, and anti-aging. As the first Team Elite in Canada, she has mentored and trained new entrepreneurs of diverse ages, backgrounds and cultures. Darlene has more energy, optimism, and passion for life than many...
info_outlineIn this episode, Dr. Gillian Lockitch welcomes Dr. Anna Sitkoff for a fascinating discussion on medicinal mushrooms and their role in promoting healthy aging. Listeners will learn how mushrooms support brain function, mood, cortisol balance, immune health, and longevity. From shiitake and oyster mushrooms to reishi and lion’s mane, Anna explains the science behind these ancient remedies and shares practical tips for integrating culinary and medicinal mushrooms into your daily routine.
Dr. Anna Sitkoff is a licensed naturopathic doctor and medicinal mushroom expert with over a decade of experience blending clinical practice with hands-on laboratory research. She is the co-founder and Chief Science Officer of Lucidum Medicinals, where she formulates evidence-based mushroom supplements designed to support immune, lung, and nervous system health. Internationally recognized for her expertise in functional medicine, women’s health, and herbalism, Dr. Sitkoff is passionate about empowering patients and practitioners with natural, science-based therapies and recipes that fit into everyday life.
Episode Timeline
00:00 – Guest introduction and welcome to the podcast
05:24 – Anna’s early influences, family health challenges, and discovery of medicinal mushrooms
08:29 – Journey through naturopathic school, laboratory cancer research, and starting her mushroom supplement company
12:29 – What defines a mushroom, the role of mycelium, and why substrate matters for bioactive compounds
17:00 – Culinary vs. medicinal mushrooms: oyster, shiitake, maitake, and the common white mushroom
19:52 – Ergothioneine and its neuroprotective role in aging and mitochondrial health
25:10 – Reishi: the “mushroom of immortality,” immune benefits, and bone broth extractions
30:08 – Lion’s Mane, nerve growth factor, BDNF, mood, memory, and cognitive protection
34:09 – Practical tips for daily mushroom use: cooking, extracts, powders, and broths
35:40 – Wrap-up, gratitude, and where to connect with Dr. Sitkoff
Download your complimentary Guide from Dr. Lockitch
Quick Guide to Medicinal and Culinary Mushrooms
Learn about Dr. Sitkoff and medicinal mushrooms
drannasitkoff.comInstagram @drannasitkoff
Connect with Dr. Gillian Lockitch
Email: askdrgill@gmail.com
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Growing Older Living Younger Short Guide: The Benefits of Reishi and Cordyceps