Self talk is something we all do. It’s how communicate with ourselves and it can have a significant  impact on our health.
In this episode I give examples of cognitive distortions which can lead to poor self esteem, false beliefs and negative thinking.
Links:
Cognitive distortions and CBT: https://positivepsychology.com/cognitive-distortions/
Monkey brain: https://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2017/02/28/8-science-based-tricks-for-quieting-the-monkey-mind/?sh=699868ec1af6 
Self help therapies and mental health apps: https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/talking-therapies-medicine-treatments/talking-therapies-and-counselling/self-help-therapies/
There are many mental health apps which may be of benefit and there is also scope for doing CBT online. Disclosure: I am medical adviser to a web-based app called Leafyard which is AI driven and based on CBT: Leafyard.com/actnow Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Self talk

Dr Ayan Panja has been putting health into context as a doctor for over 25 years. He shares his expert generalist perspective on important themes around health &amp; wellbeing, pondering what impacts our health journeys, societal attitudes and meaning in our lives. SAVING LIVES IN SLOW MOTION is a bite-sized, enriching and mind-expanding podcast. Powerful messages, science, medicine and storytelling with a professional but informal tone. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Medicine

Science & Medicine

Health & Fitness

Mental Health

High blood pressure is the biggest modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease, which is still the leading cause of death worldwide.
It’s often called a silent killer because it has usually has no symptoms.
This episode give you the lowdown on high blood pressure (also known as essential hypertension).

 Links:
WHO page: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/hypertension
A summary of high blood pressure: https://www.healthline.com/health/high-blood-pressure-hypertension
Vitamin D and blood pressure in African-Americans: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3775458/
Salt and potassium: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7697211/
Low carb diets and blood pressure: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6695889/
NICE guideline for hypertension: https://www.england.nhs.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2019/11/NICE-NG136-Visual-Summary.pdf
Potassium enriched salt and blood pressure: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10863666/
Salt substitutes: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9532913/
Measuring blood pressure: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfwBpBXUYHs
Why blood pressure matters: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/health-matters-combating-high-blood-pressure/health-matters-combating-high-blood-pressure#
Resperate - the evidence is mixed, the effects small and it is not a substitute for any medication:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-pressure/expert-answers/resperate/faq-20057998#
https://northyorkshireccg.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/NYCCG-Resp-Devices-Hypertension_v1.0_01.07.2021.pdf Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

High Blood Pressure - the biggest silent killer?

Mind Body Medicine is fascinating but has been poorly understood over the years. I believe it is more important to try to understand better now more than ever as we are surrounded by medically unexplained symptoms and non-communicable symptoms and diseases. 
In this episode I look at the origins and theories behind it as well as link to the evidence in the show notes.
Links:
The Holmes-Rahe Stress scale: https://www.mindtools.com/avn893g/the-holmes-and-rahe-stress-scale
The effectiveness of mind-body medicine (narrative): https://journals.lww.com/mjhs/fulltext/2023/11020/effectiveness_of_mind_body_medicine.2.aspx
Somatising: https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/somatic-symptom-disorder/what-is-somatic-symptom-disorder
Opinion piece - a new ear of mind body medicine: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7486127/#
Views on Dr Sarno’s work: https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2017/10/2/16338094/dr-john-sarno-healing-back-pain
Mind Body Medicine in Crohn’s Disease: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnint.2022.960301/full
Mindfulness and meditation - effects on stress: https://www.apa.org/topics/mindfulness/meditation
Repressed emotions and physical health: https://www.healthline.com/health/repressed-emotions
Heart rate variability and stress: https://www.webmd.com/heart/what-is-heart-rate-variability
Mechanisms on how writing can help: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7957853/
Journaling and heart failure: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4927423/
Psychoneuroimmunology during COVID-19: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9075982/
THE HEALTH FIX: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Health-Fix-Dr-Ayan-Panja/dp/1914239326/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid;=&sr;= Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mind Body Medicine - a new and old frontier

This is a super hot topic in health care in some parts of the world at the moment. In this episode I look at how these drugs work and the pros and cons of taking them for weight loss purposes. 
Obesity, in some instances, is in essence a form of ‘malnutrition’ because of the nature of food consumed and how rates have increased rapidly over the last 40 years. 
Body Mass Index definition: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/health-21264134
Heart disease risk reduced by weight loss jab: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd188m73vn1o
Ultra processed food and your brain:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/junk_food_brain
Supersize Me: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Size_Me
Obesity health risks: https://www.healthline.com/health/obesity/how-obesity-affects-body
The genetics of obesity: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41576-021-00414-z
The story behind semaglutide: https://www.vox.com/22553793/gila-monster-lizard-venom-inspired-obesity-drug-semaglutide
Weight loss stats on semaglutide: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9486455/
Semaglutide can stop working and even if it works it may need to be taken forever:  https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/why-weight-loss-drugs-stop-working-how-to-break-past-ozempic-plateau#Hitting-a-weight-loss-plateau-after-a-year

 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Weight loss drugs - are the new blockbuster medicines really a solution for obesity?

CGM has changed lives for the better people with Type 1 Diabetes but nowadays people without diabetes use it as a tool. In this episode I look at the pros and cons of CGM and how it can be used as a lens into our general health and how it is linked to our gut microbiome amongst many other systems.

 Links:

 CGM early days review: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4717493/
Prof Partha Kar: https://gettingitrightfirsttime.co.uk/girft-diabetes-lead-awarded-obe-in-new-year-honours/
Red meat and gut bacteria: https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/gut-microbes-affect-harmful-compound-red-meat#
Akkermansia Muciniphilia: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8726741/
Gut bugs and metabolic disease: https://joe.bioscientifica.com/view/journals/joe/248/2/JOE-20-0473.xml#
Alcohol and blood glucose: https://blog.supersapiens.com/3-ways-alcohol-affects-your-glucose-levels/
Exercise and blood sugar: https://www.sugarfit.com/blog/workout-spikes-exercise-induced-gluconeogenesis/
Glucose spikes - the dangers?: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7530333/#:
The view of Harvard on CGM without diabetes:https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/is-blood-sugar-monitoring-without-diabetes-worthwhile-202106112473
Walking after meals: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/walking-after-eating
Advanced Glycation End Products (AGEs): https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10401445/#
THE HEALTH FIX - the ultimate health manual tailored to you: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Health-Fix-Dr-Ayan-Panja/dp/1914239326/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid;=&sr;=
25wktvbz Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Continuous Glucose Monitoring: life saver or wellbeing fad?

In this episode I look at smart phones. They have changed the way we live beyond imagination  but are they doing us any harm in terms of the way we think and behave?
Links:
Life before smartphones: https://medium.com/be-unique/before-smartphones-were-a-thing-87208717b8d7
Teenage brain: https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/teen/Pages/Whats-Going-On-in-the-Teenage-Brain.aspx
Teenagers and smart phones: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/are-smartphones-really-destroying-the-lives-of-teenagers/
Alpha brain waves: https://www.healthline.com/health/alpha-brain-waves#bottom-line
Multitasking and switching focus: https://neuroscience.stanford.edu/news/why-multitasking-does-more-harm-good
Phones and attention: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-36256-4#
Alpha waves: https://www.healthline.com/health/alpha-brain-waves
Dopamine fasting: https://www.sciencefocus.com/science/dopamine-fasting-smartphone-addiction Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Self talk

Download our free app to listen on your phone