Objective vs. Subjective Health

Today we're going on a journey with Jelena Grozdanich, the founder of TheSecret.LA. What I love about Jelena is how intuitive she is about healthy living. In this interview we hear about her personal experiences and I interject with some science-based reflections that can help us understand her experiences.Enjoy!Follow Jelena on Instagram: @thesecret.laFollow us on Instagram: @science.of.selfcare

In this episode we discuss the drawbacks of high-protein diets and what this means for your health long-term. Share your thoughts on Instagram: @science.of.selfcare CITATIONS Kitada, M., Ogura, Y., Monno, I., & Koya, D. (2019). The impact of dietary protein intake on longevity and metabolic health. EBioMedicine, 43, 632–640. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ebiom.2019.... Levine, M. E., Suarez, J. A., Brandhorst, S., Balasubramanian, P., Cheng, C. W., Madia, F., Fontana, L., Mirisola, M. G., Guevara-Aguirre, J., Wan, J., Passarino, G., Kennedy, B. K., Wei, M., Cohen, P., Crimmins, E. M., & Longo, V. D. (2014). Low protein intake is associated with a major reduction in IGF-1, cancer, and overall mortality in the 65 and younger but not older population. Cell metabolism, 19(3), 407–417. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2014.0... Papadopoli, D., Boulay, K., Kazak, L., Pollak, M., Mallette, F., Topisirovic, I., & Hulea, L. (2019). mTOR as a central regulator of lifespan and aging. F1000Research, 8, F1000 Faculty Rev-998. https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000researc... Wahl, D., Solon-Biet, S. M., Wang, Q. P., Wali, J. A., Pulpitel, T., Clark, X., Raubenheimer, D., Senior, A. M., Sinclair, D. A., Cooney, G. J., de Cabo, R., Cogger, V. C., Simpson, S. J., & Le Couteur, D. G. (2018). Comparing the Effects of Low-Protein and High-Carbohydrate Diets and Caloric Restriction on Brain Aging in Mice. Cell reports, 25(8), 2234–2243.e6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2018... Weichhart T. (2018). mTOR as Regulator of Lifespan, Aging, and Cellular Senescence: A Mini-Review. Gerontology, 64(2), 127–134. https://doi.org/10.1159/000484629

In this episode, Robin discusses the importance of daily light exposure on your daily circadian rhythm, or sleep / wake cycle. Enjoy! And reach out on Instagram @science.of.selfcare.*Editors note: SAD stands for seasonal affectIVE disorderCITATIONSDautovich, N. D., Schreiber, D. R., Imel, J. L., Tighe, C. A., Shoji, K. D., Cyrus, J., Bryant, N., Lisech, A., O'Brien, C., & Dzierzewski, J. M. (2019). A systematic review of the amount and timing of light in association with objective and subjective sleep outcomes in community-dwelling adults. Sleep health, 5(1), 31–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleh.2018.09.006Dharani R, Lee CF, Theng ZX, Drury VB, Ngo C, Sandar M, et al.. Comparison of measurements of time outdoors and light levels as risk factors for myopia in young Singapore children. Eye (Lond). 2012;26(7):911–8. Epub 2012/05/09. doi: 10.1038/eye.2012.49 Duffy, J. F., & Czeisler, C. A. (2009). Effect of Light on Human Circadian Physiology. Sleep medicine clinics, 4(2), 165–177. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsmc.2009.01.004Vadnie, C. A., & McClung, C. A. (2017). Circadian Rhythm Disturbances in Mood Disorders: Insights into the Role of the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus. Neural plasticity, 2017, 1504507. https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/1504507Walker, M. (2018). Why we sleep. Penguin Books.

Consider this your crash course on epigenetics with Dr. Peter W Laird. Whether or not you've heard about epigenetics before, I guarantee you'll learn something new from this episode. This is the first of a series in which I'll be interviewing experts in health and science on their expertise, so if you have any specific topics you'd like us to cover, get in touch! For any super curious nerds who want to go into a deeper dive on Epigenetics, here are a few interesting papers published by Dr. Laird and colleagues: Knijnenburg, T. A., Wang, L., Zimmermann, M. T., Chambwe, N., Gao, G. F., Cherniack, A. D., Fan, H., Shen, H., Way, G. P., Greene, C. S., Liu, Y., Akbani, R., Feng, B., Donehower, L. A., Miller, C., Shen, Y., Karimi, M., Chen, H., Kim, P., Jia, P., … Wang, C. (2018). Genomic and Molecular Landscape of DNA Damage Repair Deficiency across The Cancer Genome Atlas. Cell reports, 23(1), 239–254.e6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2018.03.076Shen, H., & Laird, P. W. (2013). Interplay between the cancer genome and epigenome. Cell, 153(1), 38–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2013.03.008Shen, H., & Laird, P. W. (2012). In epigenetic therapy, less is more. Cell stem cell, 10(4), 353–354. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stem.2012.03.012

In this episode, Robin discusses the difference between objective and subjective information, and how they relate to each other in the context of our health.CITATIONSArias E, Heron M, Xu J. United States Life Tables, 2014. National vital statistics reports: from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, National Vital Statistics System. 2017;66:1–64. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]Oeppen J, Vaupel JW. Broken limits to life expectancy. Science. 2002;296:1029–1031. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

In this episode, Robin talks about the power of asking questions and how they can be used to coach ourselves.RESOURCESLearn more about the five why's : https://www.adb.org/publications/five-whys-techniqueCITATIONSKleinsinger F. (2018). The Unmet Challenge of Medication Nonadherence. The Permanente journal, 22, 18–033. https://doi.org/10.7812/TPP/18-033

In this episode, we discuss why raw food diets and other similar hypes won't transform your health. In fact, "boring old cooking" may just be one of the healthiest habits of all... CITATIONSDewanto, V., Wu, X., Adom, K. K., & Liu, R. H. (2002). Thermal Processing Enhances the Nutritional Value of Tomatoes by Increasing Total Antioxidant Activity. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 50(10), 3010-3014. doi:10.1021/jf0115589Ercolini, D., & Fogliano, V. (2018). Food Design To Feed the Human Gut Microbiota. Journal of agricultural and food chemistry, 66(15), 3754–3758. doi:10.1021/acs.jafc.8b00456Hartmann, P., Ramseier A., Gudat F., Mihatsch M.J., Polasek W. (1994). [Normal weight of the brain in adults in relation to age, sex, body height and weight]. [Article in German]. Institut fur Statistik und Okonometrie der Universitat Basel. Pathologe, 15(3), 165-70.Jia, H., & Lubetkin, E. I. (2020). Life expectancy and active life expectancy by marital status among older U.S. adults: Results from the U.S. Medicare Health Outcome Survey (HOS). SSM - population health, 12, 100642. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssmph.2020.100642Koebnick, C., Strassner, C., Hoffmann, I., & Leitzmann, C. (1999). Consequences of a Long-Term Raw Food Diet on Body Weight and Menstruation: Results of a Questionnaire Survey. Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism, 43(2), 69-79. doi:10.1159/000012770Li, Q., Li, T., Liu, C., Chen, J., Zhang, R., Zhang, Z., . . . Mcclements, D. J. (2016). Potential physicochemical basis of Mediterranean diet effect: Ability of emulsified olive oil to increase carotenoid bioaccessibility in raw and cooked tomatoes. Food Research International, 89, 320-329. doi:10.1016/j.foodres.2016.08.014Livny, O., Reifen, R., Levy, I., Madar, Z., Faulks, R., Southon, S., & Schwartz, B. (2003). ?-carotene bioavailability from differently processed carrot meals in human ileostomy volunteers. European Journal of Nutrition, 42(6), 338-345. doi:10.1007/s00394-003-0430-6Renaud, A., Jamart, A., Goossens, B., & Ross, C. (2013). A Longitudinal Study on Feeding Behaviour and Activity Patterns of Released Chimpanzees in Conkouati-Douli National Park, Republic of Congo. Animals : an open access journal from MDPI, 3(2), 532–550. doi:10.3390/ani3020532Sonnenburg, J., & Sonnenburg, E. (2016). The good gut: Taking control of your weight, your mood, and your long-term health. New York: Penguin Books.Wrangham, R. W. (2010). Catching fire: How cooking made us human. London: Profile.

In this episode, Robin shares some interesting facts about our sense of smell. She talks a little about our neuro-anatomy, how we can capture memories with scent and the Proust Phenomenon. Enjoy!CITATIONSHerz, R. S., & Schooler, J. W. (2002). A naturalistic study of autobiographical memories evoked by olfactory and visual cues: testing the Proustian hypothesis. The American journal of psychology, 115(1), 21–32.Toffolo MB, Smeets MA, van den Hout MA. (2012) Proust revisited: odours as triggers of aversive memories. Cogn Emotion 26, 83–92Simon Chu, John J. Downes, Odour-evoked Autobiographical Memories: Psychological Investigations of Proustian Phenomena, Chemical Senses, Volume 25, Issue 1, February 2000, Pages 111–116, https://doi.org/10.1093/chemse/25.1.111

In this episode, we talk about the benefits of walking from a biochemical standpoint. Robin shares some tips on how to incorporate more walking into your day, so that you can continue to support for mental and physical well-being.CITATIONSBogdanis, G. C., Vangelakoudi, A., & Maridaki, M. (2008). Peak fat oxidation rate during walking in sedentary overweight men and women. Journal of sports science & medicine, 7(4), 525–531.Hackney, A. C. (2006). Stress and the neuroendocrine system: the role of exercise as a stressor and modifier of stress. Expert Review of Endocrinology & Metabolism, 1(6), 783–792. doi: 10.1586/17446651.1.6.783Hill, E. E., Zack, E., Battaglini, C., Viru, M., Viru, A., & Hackney, A. C. (2008). Exercise and circulating Cortisol levels: The intensity threshold effect. Journal of Endocrinological Investigation, 31(7), 587–591. doi: 10.1007/bf03345606Hillman, C. H., Pontifex, M. B., Raine, L. B., Castelli, D. M., Hall, E. E., & Kramer, A. F. (2009). The effect of acute treadmill walking on cognitive control and academic achievement in preadolescent children. Neuroscience, 159(3), 1044–1054.Jacks, D. E., Sowash, J., Anning, J., Mcgloughlin, T., & Andres, F. (1999). Effect Of Exercise At Three Intensities On Salivary Cortisol. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 31(Supplement). doi: 10.1097/00005768-199905001-01290Le, H., Khankhanian, P., Joshi, N., Maa, J., & Crevensten, H. (2014). Patients recovering from abdominal surgery who walked with volunteers had improved postoperative recovery profiles during their hospitalization. World journal of surgery, 38(8), 1961–1965. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-014-2491-5Varma, V. R., Chuang, Y. F., Harris, G. C., Tan, E. J., & Carlson, M. C. (2015). Low-intensity daily walking activity is associated with hippocampal volume in older adults. Hippocampus, 25(5), 605–615. https://doi.org/10.1002/hipo.22397Zietek, P., Zietek, J., Szczypior, K., & Safranow, K. (2015). Effect of adding one 15-minute-walk on the day of surgery to fast-track rehabilitation after total knee arthroplasty: a randomized, single-blind study. European journal of physical and rehabilitation medicine, 51(3), 245–252.