HER

Can an active lifestyle ward off Alzheimer's? That was the focus of our guest's article in the Wall Street Journal. It's also the topic of her latest book Mind Thief: The Story of Alzheimer's.

Alzheimer’s lingers for years, with patients’ outward appearance unaffected while their cognitive functions fade away, and there is still no proven way to treat Alzheimer’s because its causes remain unknown. In her book, Han Yu examines over a century of research and controversy, presenting a comprehensive and engaging history of Alzheimer’s that demystifies efforts to understand the disease.

Han Yu is a professor in the Department of English at Kansas State University, where she teaches technical communication, science writing, and engineering writing.

Today we hear why she wrote the book, how an English professor wrote a book about science, and the importance of movement at all stages of life. 

Have you had enough of this pandemic already?! Over a year of our lives lost or on hold, just like that. People are exhausted, frustrated, and more in this crazy time. But through it all, one thing that's really lacking here is historical context.

Dr. Richard Gunderman is Chancellor's Professor of Radiology, Pediatrics, Medical Education, Philosophy, Liberal Arts, Philanthropy, and Medical Humanities and Health Studies at Indiana University. He is also John A Campbell Professor of Radiology and in 2019-21 serves as Bicentennial Professor.

He is also the author of the new book Contagion: Plagues, Pandemics, and Cures from the Black Death to Covid-19 and Beyond. In the book, Dr. Gunderman offers insight into how pandemics begin, how they spread, and how societies, both ancient and modern, have coped.

Behind every disease is a story, from the natural history of the disease and its course in the individual to the disease’s discovery and eradication. From the impact of tuberculosis on English dynastic history to the makeup of our DNA; from the ravages of the Black Death to the discovery of antibodies; and from the deadliest plagues of the ancient world to twenty-first-century pandemics, transmissible diseases have an incredible variety of tales to tell.

Is it mission impossible to date in a COVID world? Our guest today says ABSOLUTELY NOT! It's just virtual!

With online speed dating events, video dates, virtual meetup groups, and the good old apps, there are plenty of ways to still meet people, even if you're not at a bar or in-person event.

Laura Bilotta is an Author, Radio Host, Dating Coach, Matchmaker, and Founder of the successful dating website Single in the City.ca. Since its early beginnings, Laura’s efforts and expertise have allowed Single in the City to become one of the largest event-based dating companies in the Greater Toronto Area. Laura’s expert knowledge of dating etiquette, relationships, and human behaviour form the base of her experience.

In this episode, she gives us tips for having the best video dates, common mistakes people make when they're dating online, how to transition to meet up in person during a pandemic, and creative date ideas. 

We're diving into a whole new topic here on the HER Podcast today: medical cannabis.

As cannabis use grows and garners more public interest, it still has a long history of stigma and legal troubles. Best friends turned business partners Gina Dubbé and Dr. Leslie Apgar are here to tell us all about their journey to opening a medical dispensary. Dr. Apgar is a board-certified OBGYN with 17 years of experience in direct patient care. She has a passion for helping patients find ease and health through quality medical cannabis and natural medicine. She is also the co-founder and medical director of Greenhouse Wellness, a medical cannabis dispensary, as well as Co-Founder of Blissiva, a female-focused cannabis line.

And Gina is a serial entrepreneur and venture capitalist with a proven track record of grown successful businesses in emerging industries. Currently, she serves as the managing director and co-founder of Greenhouse Wellness, an award-winning dispensary in Maryland; Blissiva, a female-focused cannabis line; and co-founder of TheraPearl, a revolutionary hot and cold compress.

They talk about the obstacles they faced starting not only a dispensary but a women-owned dispensary in Maryland, the future of the medical & recreational industries nationwide, the process of getting a prescription, and more.

When a woman gets pregnant or is trying to get pregnant - she is constantly given a list of what to avoid, and what not to do.

And this is why Dr. Nicole Avena wrote her new book What To Eat When You Want To Get Pregnant. It is an approachable guide to what to eat - as opposed to what to avoid - while pregnant and nursing, to support the mother's health and the baby's development during each stage of pregnancy; with 50 recipes!

New research suggests that the foods you eat during pregnancy can have lasting effects on your baby’s brain development and behavior, as well as your waistline. Drawing from medicine, nutrition, and psychology, this easy-to-follow guide, gives you a clear understanding of what your body really needs and how certain foods contribute to the development of a healthy and happy baby.

Dr. Nicole Avena is a research neuroscientist, author, and expert in the fields of nutrition, diet, and addiction. She received a Ph.D. in Neuroscience and Psychology from Princeton University, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship in molecular biology at The Rockefeller University in New York City.

Wrapping your head around the keto diet can be confusing. But lucky for us, Gary Taubes has written a book to simplify the diet and break it down to its fundamental idea: carbohydrates are fattening.

Gary Taubes is an investigative science and health journalist and co-founder of the non-profit Nutrition Science Initiative, and the author of many diet books including The Case Against Sugar, Why We Get Fat and What to Do About It, and his latest, The Case For Keto.

The Case For Keto puts the ketogenic diet movement in the necessary historical and scientific perspective. It makes clear the vital misconceptions in how we've come to think about obesity and diet and uses the collected clinical experience of the medical community to provide essential practical advice, including why eating ketogenic can work for children and detailed steps for how to abstain from starches, grains, and sugars and to keep it up for life.