I recently had the pleasure of hosting a panel of experts at London’s Fortnum and Mason's Food & Drink Studio at their Piccadilly store to discuss the wonderful world of mushrooms with Tim Spector, Tom Baxter and Ester Gaya. We discussed a range of topics including, what nootropic effects we know about with specific mushrooms and what research underpins this understanding. The use of psychedelic mushrooms and their potential uses in mental health and trauma. As well as how culinary...

Increasing fruit and vegetable consumption sounds so trivial, but I honestly believe that concerted efforts to increase this key measure of our diet quality would culminate in success. And by success I mean successfully improving people's health, but also increasing the wealth of our communities and alleviating our nation's food supply insecurity. To explore this concept further with me is Jonathan Pauling, CEO of Alexandra Rose, one of my favourite charities and one that Doctor’s Kitchen...

This episode of the podcast is a fun one with myself, Mrs Doctor’s Kitchen (Rochelle) and Dr Anita Mitra where we explain a bit of Rochelle’s journey through pregnancy. We discuss what she’s been eating, how I’ve been thinking about nutrition for her and what questions I’ve been dealing with over the preceding months to do with lifestyle, ingredients to support fetal development and prevent nausea. Dr Anita Mitra is an NHS doctor based in London working in Obstetrics & Gynaecology, with...

On today's episode of the Doctor’s Kitchen I sit down with Sakina Okoko, science writer and researcher at Doctor’s Kitchen, to discuss the most impactful tips from recent pods: Brain fog, gut health, alcohol, spices to beat colds and more. We have so many fascinating conversations with experts in their fields who not only expand our understanding of specific topics but also inspire us to change or add certain habits even in the office. But with so much content that we’re putting out, there’s...

There’s now so much research has shown that ultra-processed foods have been linked to high-blood pressure, heart disease and other serious illnesses, yet the average person in the UK gets a whopping 56% of their calories from UPFs, with an even higher figure for children.  But all this information can be quite overwhelming. And what we need are strategies to overcome this problem rather than reminders of how bad the issues are. Melissa has long been an advocate for making wholesome, healthy...

Is fruit juice just as bad as added sugar? What are the healthiest vegetables to eat for longevity? Is dairy helpful or harmful for our health? These are just some of the questions myself and Professor Tim Spector discuss on today’s podcast. It’s the third time we’ve sat down on the podcast and I’m sure it won’t be the last.  Our chat today dives into the 6 strategies for healthy eating that Tim details in his new book, including eating 30 Plants a Week, Pivoting Proteins from animal based to...

According to Alzheimer's research UK, over 50% of everyone listening to this podcast will be affected by dementia by either contracting the disease ourselves, caring for somebody with the disease or both. Dementia is due to impact 130 million people globally by 2050, and today it is the biggest killer in the UK. But we have no effective treatments, it’s diagnosed late in the disease process and prevention is hardly mentioned. Today I’m joined by Dr Louisa Nicola who has been studying this...

Mallika Basu is one of my absolute favourite people in food. Not only is she hilarious, she’s a writer, commentator and board adviser in food, drink and hospitality with two published cookbooks (Miss Masala: Real Indian Cooking for Busy Living and Masala: Indian Cooking for Modern Living). She writes a fantastic newsletter “More than Curry” covering the link between food, people and planet, as well as recipes with spice and flavour and stories on food and culture in other publications. During...

This podcast is primarily about nutrition and lifestyle, so why should we care about consciousness and self awareness? This is something I put today to Professor Anil Seth, a neuroscientist who has pioneered research into the brain basis of consciousness for more than twenty-five years. He is Professor of Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience and Director of the Centre for Consciousness Science at the University of Sussex and his TED talks on how your brain hallucinates reality have been...

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Kyle Stewart, NHS GP, Clinical Entrepreneur Fellow, and co-founder of Prof & Doc, to explore the surprising health benefits of watercress. We’re going to dive into how watercress could be a game-changer for skin health, helping with conditions like nappy rash, eczema, and more. Dr. Stewart shares insights from his pioneering work in phytochemical manipulation over the last 8 years and developing innovative skincare solutions that he’s now brought to...

Chet Sharma’s culinary intrigue, coupled with his academic and scientific interests, have made for an impressive and expansive career in hospitality. During his university studies, which ultimately led to a PhD in physics from the University of Oxford, he worked part time at a number of London’s leading Michelin-starred restaurants, including Benares and Locanda Locatelli. After discovering a passion for hospitality, he went on to work at two Michelin-starred Mugaritz, Simon Rogan’s Umbel...

Today we're diving into the fascinating world of genomics and personalised nutrition. We're joined by Dr. Stuart J. Grice, a distinguished biologist and former academic at the University of Oxford, whose groundbreaking research has explored the biological mechanisms behind neuromuscular disease, neurodegeneration, and neuropsychiatric disorders.  Together, we'll explore the big question: How can understanding your genetics shape your long-term health? We'll discuss the usefulness of genetic...

World-leading microbiome scientist and surgeon with over two decades of experience, Dr James Kinross, is on the podcast today talking about everything to do with the gut. Dark Matter is his first book and I highly recommend you check it out. http://dark-matter.org.uk/ We talk about:  Signs that your poop is unhealthySome of James favourite foods and nutrition strategies to improve the gutWhy we need to think like conservationists, and recognise that our guts are being radically altered and...

On today’s episode I’m diving into the science of weight loss. This episode is all about how to lose weight in a healthy way, maintain that weight loss and live a healthier life. We haven’t discussed weight loss in detail on the podcast before, but enough people have asked me about it so I thought we could dive into some common questions and misconceptions about weight loss. I’ll dive into: The science of weight lossWhether there are diets that are best for weight loss?Are there foods that...

On today’s episode I have a good friend of mine, Camille Vidal, creator of Mindful Cocktails and founder of La Maison Wellness, to talk to me about reducing alcohol consumption and improving our relationship with drinking. Camille Vidal is a globally recognised bartender and drinks expert turned mindfulness, Yoga and Meditation teacher.  And she’s a true pioneer in this field. Camille (aka @mindfullycami), is on a mission to inspire the world to bring mindfulness into the glass, showing that...

Today we’re going to be reviewing early signs to detect dementia as well as food and lifestyle that can potentially prevent dementia. The estimated total societal cost of dementia in 2019 in the US was $1313 billion and with the number of people suffering dementia set to increase by 300% globally over the next 20 years, this is something we need to address as early as possible. We have many examples of “successful cognitive agers” who have lived vibrant lives well into their 80s and 90s – and...

Today’s episode is a dive into the evidence-based diet and lifestyle habits to ease the menopause transition. This is based on research we did for our latest health goal on the Doctor’s Kitchen app that has now launched! Due to huge demand our internal and external research team reviewed the nutrition literature to identify beneficial foods and nutrients specifically to help with the “Menopause”. You can now find a large selection of recipes and personalised suggestions based on your dietary...

Today we’re diving deep into the wonderful world of coffee with my good friend Alex Higham.  In this episode we talk about the attributes of coffee and why it seems to have benefits for brain and heart health. We also talk through the healthiest brewing methods for coffee from espresso, to aeropress, to cafetiere and Alex’s experiments looking at the caffeine content of different brewing styles. We talk about how sourcing and roasting methods can affect the polyphenol concentration of the...

This podcast is a deeply personal one for me. Not just because I resonate so much with Jassa and his experience of not having a true sense of identity, but because I’m expecting a child with my wife late this year who will be of mixed heritage.  My wife is Italian and I’m Indian so our child will be both Indian and Italian, rather than half Indian and half Italian. I never really thought of being half something and half something else as ever really something to pay attention to, but...

If you’ve suffered heartburn, reflux, bloating, indigestion, stomach pain or nausea, this is the episode for you. Today we’re giving you an integrative approach to help with gastritis – combining pharmaceuticals with lifestyle and alternative tools. I’ll be talking though Causes, symptoms and medications for gastritis and when to see a doctorWhat specific lifestyle factors can influence gastritisFoods to eat and avoidProtective eating habitsHerbal/alternative therapiesAnd my gastritis...

Vinegar shots, gummies and acetic acid based drinks are everywhere. But what’s the evidence behind them and can they live up to the claims of improving blood sugar regulation, prevent type 2 diabetes and even lowering cholesterol. Well the team and I decided to deep dive into this subject and we found some surprising results. Is it worth a shot, listen on to find out our take on vinegar for health benefits and how to source and prepare your vinegar if you’re interested in giving it a go...

Today’s snacksize Doctor’s Kitchen podcast is about how Dr Louise Newson figured out she was menopausal. Why women struggle with weight during and after the menopause,  is the key question I’m put to Dr Louise Newson on #223 What Women need to know about the Menopause. But during this episode, Louise told me the story of how she figured out that she was menopausal, and despite being a specialist, an experienced GP she still missed the key obvious signs. 🎬 Watch the podcast on YouTube here You...

Dr. Uma Naidoo has spent her life exploring the unique connection between food and brain health. Her first book, 2020’s groundbreaking This Is Your Brain on Food, offered readers around the world a better understanding of the many ways our diets impact our mental, emotional, and cognitive wellbeing, and provided a useful blueprint for working through conditions like depression, OCD, PTSD, dementia, and more. Her next book “Calm your mind with food” is a deeper exploration of this. Today we...

For this week’s bonus podcast we have Dominique Woolf on the show - I’m super excited to host her. We also cooked a beautiful dish in the Doctor’s Kitchen studio, a Salmon Curry, which we made Doctor’s Kitchen friendly with more veg and fibre.  If you don’t know Dominique, she won the “great cookbook challenge with Jamie Oliver” with her simple accessible Asian recipes. Her books became Sunday times best sellers and she has a wealth of knowledge and knack of fusing multiple different...