Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death in the US with hypertension or high blood pressure implicated as the primary cause. Controlling hypertension is and has been a major focus of public health initiatives. Often the advice for blood pressure issues is to reduce your salt intake. How does salt cause high levels of blood pressure? What does sugar have to do with hypertension? What are you eating that may be containing too much sodium or sugar and negatively effecting your blood pressure? As nutritionists and dietitians, we’ll be talking about this food connection to your blood pressure and what you can do about it.

After considerable sleep research, sleep has been shown to be one of the most important and perhaps one of the least understood aspects of our life, wellness, and longevity. Our show topic this week is how lack of sleep slows your metabolism. The ideal amount of sleep for weight loss is between 7 ½ to 9 hours most nights, so if you aren’t getting adequate sleep, tune in! We are offering steps for getting better quality sleep by covering what foods and drinks cause us to wake up, sleep supplements many find helpful, research findings, and actions steps you can try right away.

It is estimated that 15 to 20 million Americans struggle with osteoporosis and 80% of those are women. 1 in 2 women by the age of 50 will break a bone because of osteoporosis. With that staggering statistic, what can we do right now to maintain strong and healthy bones? What food should we eat, whether we are 70 years old or 50 or 30 or 20 or even a teen, to start changing those numbers for the better? We need strong but flexible bones - not hard and brittle bones. In today’s show, we’ll discuss what substances rob our bones of nutrients and what foods to incorporate to create those strong, flexible bones.

When many of us hear the word “menopause”, we might automatically think hot flashes, and yes, about 80% of menopausal women experience hot flashes. In addition to hot flashes, menopausal women can also experience insomnia, anxiety, mood swings, and depression, which are less likely to be talked about. During perimenopause when there is a fluctuation of hormones, mood swings can often occur and, usually, we can find a nutritional answer to alleviate symptoms. Today we will be discussing the hormone connection to depression and anxiety plus offer some nutritional solutions to consider.

In a recent Dishing Up Nutrition episode, we talked about how and why sugar has a hold on us. Today, we want to cover all the places sugar may show up in the foods around us. Some might be obvious sources of sugar and some might surprise you! Once you know what to look for, you’ll know what to avoid and what to eat instead to reach those health goals and reduce the hold sugar has on you.

It may surprise you that your body is well-equipped to rid your body of toxins and you don’t have to buy expensive detox formulas. When people want to make a quick change or shed those extra pounds, they look to a fast detox scheme. Sounds good, but in reality, it doesn’t work that way. To detox, our bodies need a high-quality, real food plan that will support our liver. In this show, we’ll talk about everyday foods available right in your kitchen that you can use to support the 3-step process of detoxing and what quick, simple, and delicious recipes you can start incorporating into your meals.

Does sugar have you hooked? Do you feel you are addicted to sugar, and you just have to have some to feel normal? Do you have a sweet tooth that always has you thinking about where to get your next treat? Maybe you have said to yourself, I could just ____ (insert your health goal), if I could just stop eating sugar. Why is something that tastes so good also be so bad for us? Today we want to explore some of the reasons sugar has a hold over many of us with two special hosts who share their personal connection to the sugar habit.

The last couple years have given us plenty to drink about, but how does alcohol play into our health? What are some of the common health risks of drinking? How does alcohol impact women specifically? Today, we’ll talk about why drinking can be detrimental to your health goals and give you some points to ponder when considering giving up (or limiting) this habit.

What is PCOS and why are so many women struggling with it today? PCOS stands for polycystic ovarian syndrome and is one of the most common hormonal disorders found in women from puberty to post-menopause. It is the leading cause of infertility and it can have many different symptoms. Today we are discussing what those symptoms are and the common causes of polycystic ovarian syndrome. The first steps in helping women overcome PCOS and infertility is to help them see the impact that their eating habits have on their hormones, so we’ll also cover nutritional solutions to help realign hormone balance and find relief from symptoms.

In the past 30 years, reams of research have been published about the damaging effects of gluten. Many people have cut out gluten because of their joint pain, heartburn, blood sugar issues, cravings for gluten-containing products, skin conditions, chronic diarrhea and other digestive problems, like intestinal permeability (also known as leaky gut). While only 1% of people have been diagnosed with the genetic disorder of celiac disease, there are more folks with a gluten sensitivity, which can be challenging to diagnose. In this show, join three of our nutritionists as they discuss the research on gluten and insight into why eliminating gluten from your diet might be a good experiment for your family.