Advice to ‘eat the rainbow’ has been circulating in the nutrition sphere for some time. And no, it is not a call to action to get more Skittles in your life. Instead, it is all about choosing a variety of fruits and vegetables primarily based on their colour. Red, blue, orange, purple, yellow and green are the important colours here. And those colours occur because of the presence of a family of different polyphenol and other phytonutrient and other phytonutrients naturally found in foods. It is those coloured pigments that could explain many of the health benefits from eating these foods on your longevity, body weight, blood lipids and risk of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease. In this podcast episode, I’ll explore the science behind ‘eating the rainbow’.

Links referred to in the podcast

• Review of colourful pigments in fruits and vegetables and health https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/27/13/4061/htm

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If variety is the spice of life, then for some, a hot chilli dish is the ultimate way to add spice to life. But outside of the Mexican fiesta party happening inside your mouth and the waterworks from your sweat glands, could there be some benefits for your health? It's time to turn up the heat on chillies as I look at the science and health benefits linked to eating them.

Links referred to in the podcast

• Effects of capsaicinoids supplementation on metabolic syndrome https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-77983-2
• Effect of capsaicinoids on sports performance https://journals.humankinetics.com/view/journals/ijspp/16/4/article-p464.xml

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Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) are a popular sports supplement with bodybuilders and athletes. But you don’t need to look for them in a bottle as our diet naturally contains them as part of the amino acid building blocks of protein. With claims of increased muscle protein synthesis, decreased muscle protein breakdown, enhanced endurance and less muscle soreness, they seem to be an essential supplement that no athlete can do without. In this episode, I’ll look at those claims and explore the evidence. TL;DR – save your money on BCAA supplements and just eat a variety of high-protein foods which is what athletes pretty much do already.

Links referred to in the podcast

• AIS fact sheet on BCAAs https://www.ausport.gov.au/ais/nutrition/supplements/group_c/bcaaleucine

Episode transcript
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Counselling and medication gain most of the treatment attention for depression, but the promise of dietary changes to help to improve the outlook of people with depression and other common conditions such as anxiety is gaining traction. Welcome to the rapidly moving world of nutritional psychiatry which is uncovering key links between diet and mental health. And one such dietary pattern, the Mediterranean diet, is now building a research base behind it to support a change to the dietary themes this diet promotes to help improve mental health. And that’s what I’ll be exploring more about in this podcast episode.

Links referred to in the podcast

• SMILES trial https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-017-0791-y
• Effect of a Mediterranean diet with fish oil on depression https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29215971
• Effect of a Mediterranean diet on depression in young men https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35441666

Episode transcript
To access the full episode transcript, go to the following link and select the individual podcast episode and then click on the ‘Transcript’ tab https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com

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Nitrates are inorganic compounds found in many vegetables such as spinach, celery, radishes, and lettuce, but beetroot is one of the highest sources. Nitrate contributes to the production of nitric oxide, which has an important role to play in immune function as well as regulating the tone of blood vessels which impacts blood pressure. In this podcast, I look at the evidence for using nitrate-rich beetroot juice to treat high blood pressure as well as its role as a supplement to improve athletic performance.

Links referred to in the podcast

• Nitrates from beetroot juice and effect on hypertension https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35369064
• IOC consensus statement on dietary supplements and the high-performance athlete https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/52/7/439

Episode transcript
To access the full episode transcript, go to the following link and select the individual podcast episode and then click on the ‘Transcript’ tab https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com

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Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of the most common gastrointestinal complaints. With no one single identified trigger or treatment, IBS can be a minefield for a person to try and get on top of. Diet changes are one area that can have a positive impact on IBS and in this podcast, I’ll look at the current evidence for different approaches with a focus on the popular low-FODMAP diet as well as probiotic supplements.

Links referred to in the podcast

• Low-FODMAP diet and IBS review 2018 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30046155
• Low-FODMAP diet and probiotics in IBS review 2022 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35355730

Episode transcript
To access the full episode transcript, go to the following link and select the individual podcast episode and then click on the ‘Transcript’ tab https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com 

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Magnesium is a key mineral that is essential for muscle contractions and nerve transmission while also keeping your heart beating steadily and your immune system strong. Of the many health conditions linked to magnesium, it is poor sleep quality that often comes up as a reason to take magnesium supplements. In this podcast, I’ll look at the latest evidence for magnesium and sleep. And then I’ll profile the main food sources of magnesium and critique the merits of the many different supplemental forms of magnesium.

Links referred to in the podcast

• Systematic review of magnesium and sleep quality https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35184264

Episode transcript
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Caffeine is a popular go-to supplement for many athletes. And for good reason. Not only is it the key component of one of the world’s most widely used legal drugs – I’m talking about coffee here people – it is also a sports supplement that is well supported by scientific evidence. Caffeine can offer a performance-enhancing benefit by providing a small, but worthwhile, enhancement of performance over a range of exercise situations from short-duration events right through to endurance events. In this podcast, I look at the role of caffeine specifically in resistance exercise and outline what could be the minimum amount needed for a benefit.

Links referred to in the podcast

• IOC consensus statement on dietary supplements and the high-performance athlete https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/52/7/439
• Caffeine and resistance exercise meta-analysis https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35203046
• Sports Dietitians Australia  www.sportsdietitians.com.au

Episode transcript
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Eating nuts as part of a healthy diet is good for your heart. They’re also a super nutritious snack for any time of the day. But, what about all that fat? Be fearful not of fat as not only is the type of fat found in nuts considered healthy, but a major systematic review finds little impact of eating nuts on body weight. And that’s what I’ll cover in today’s episode.

Links referred to in the podcast

• Systematic review of nuts and body weight https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/obr.13330

Episode transcript
To access the full episode transcript, go to the following link and select the individual podcast episode and then click on the ‘Transcript’ tab https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com

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Plant-based eating is on-trend and has been for some time. Fuelled by health, environmental and ethical personal choices, we are seeing more people than ever adopt this way of eating. But there is no one ‘right’ way to eat. And even within a framework of ‘mostly plants’, it is possible to do it well and not so well. In this podcast, I’ll look at the latest research comparing different types of plant-based diets to one that includes meat and see how they compare on the nutrient wins and losses scoreboard.

Links referred to in the podcast

• Systematic review of plant-based diets compared to meat eaters https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35010904
• Healthy and unhealthy plant-based diets https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34379193 

Episode transcript
To access the full episode transcript, go to the following link and select the individual podcast episode and then click on the ‘Transcript’ tab https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com

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