Stronger Minds

Ninety percent of us experience food cravings – the intense desire to eat a specific food that is often distinct from physiological hunger. But if they’re not about being hungry, why do we get them, what do our cravings mean and what, if anything, should we do about them? In this week’s episode of the Stronger Minds Podcast, we’re digging in to the Science of Food Cravings.Urge surfingFeelings Wheel___Newsletter sign up How to Build a Healthy Brain* Unprocessed: What Your Diet is Doing to Your Brain* Patreon Original music by Juan Iglesias *Affiliate links The information shared on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you heard on this podcast. Reliance on any information provided here is solely at your own risk. Remember, your health is unique to you, so consult your healthcare provider for guidance tailored to your personal needs.

Over the last few years you may have heard a lot of talk about the gut-brain axis. But do you know what it is? And more to the point, why should you care? In this week’s episode I’m giving you a beginner's guide to the gut-brain axis. ___Newsletter sign up How to Build a Healthy Brain* Unprocessed: What Your Diet is Doing to Your Brain* Patreon Original music by Juan Iglesias *Affiliate links The information shared on this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you heard on this podcast. Reliance on any information provided here is solely at your own risk. Remember, your health is unique to you, so consult your healthcare provider for guidance tailored to your personal needs.

Artificial intelligence permeates the full range of our lives, from something as casual as a song recommendation to matching us with our perfect partner. But, increasingly, we are building relationships with AI itself. Last week mother filed a wrongful death civil lawsuit against Character.AI, a generative AI chatbot platform. She says that the technology played a key role in her teenage son’s death by suicide. In this week’s episode, what happens when the human brain meets AI?If you are based in the US, and need urgent mental health assistance, call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org to access online chat from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. In the UK, people having mental health crises can contact the Samaritans at 116 123 or jo@samaritans.org.  If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.  US deaths by suicideAccess to a firearmPareidolia New York Times Article___Newsletter sign up How to Build a Healthy Brain* Unprocessed: What Your Diet is Doing to Your Brain* Patreon Original music by Juan Iglesias *Affiliate links

Anger is an emotion that a lot of people struggle with. We find it uncomfortable, overwhelming and unwelcome. Many people simply don’t know what to do when they feel angry. One common suggestion is to let it out in an act of safe aggression like punching a pillow. In fact an entire industry of rage rooms – spaces devoted to wilful, rage-fuelled destruction – often with a baseball bat - has emerged, encouraging people to work through their fury at a colleague by smashing things. But…does it work? In this week’s episode, I’m exploring the science behind 'blowing off steam'.Original paperUnderstanding Anger EpisodeImage credit: By mrAnmol - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=132764560___Newsletter sign up How to Build a Healthy Brain* Unprocessed: What Your Diet is Doing to Your Brain* Patreon Original music by Juan Iglesias *Affiliate links

Here are the episodes of BBC Radio 4s The Food Programme (and Start the Week) that I have appeared on, in case you would like to listen.Food and Mood: how eating affects your mental healthBroadcast: 19th July 2020Start the Week - The food we eat13th February 2023Feeding Your Brain: A User's GuideBroadcast: 30th July 2023The Brain Gut ConnectionBroadcast: 27th September 2024

The signal to stop eating comes from your stomach when it is full, right? Well…kinda but that’s not the whole story. This week’s episode is all about the science of satiety.Newsletter sign up How to Build a Healthy Brain* Unprocessed: What Your Diet is Doing to Your Brain* Patreon *Affiliate links

Greater social and political awareness, mediated by social media, has allowed more of us to participate in important social movements. But it’s also given us unprecedented access to horror. From body cams of police brutality and killings to harrowing images of war. To what extent is it our responsibility to bear witness to these events versus the need to protect our own wellbeing? The whys and hows of managing horror is the subject of this week’s Stronger Minds Podcast.Newsletter sign up How to Build a Healthy Brain* Unprocessed: What Your Diet is Doing to Your Brain* Patreon*Affiliate links

The average full term baby weighs just over 7lbs. One pound of that is the baby’s brain. Nature, via the mother’s body, devotes enormous amounts of energy into building the baby’s brain during and just after pregnancy. And as you’ve heard me say many, many times, the brain is the hungriest organ in the body and requires specific nutrients from the diet for proper structure and function.So why, dear listeners, is brain development completely absent from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guideline update on pregnancy and child nutrition?In this week’s episode I am a starting a teeny tiny beef with NICE.Think Through NutritionThe Food ProgrammeNICE Maternal & Child Nutrition Stakeholder List___Newsletter sign up How to Build a Healthy Brain* Unprocessed: What Your Diet is Doing to Your Brain* Patreon Original music by Juan Iglesias *Affiliate links