The People's Scientist

Come celebrate with me in this special episode where I reflect on the last 5 years and the most important lessons this podcast has taught me. The lessons didn't come from a study or a classroom. They came from life experience. These lessons have had a really big impact on my life and I hope that they may spark something positive in you too. I am looking forward to the next years to come with you!...

As I gaze out my window, captivated by the raindrops, the thought struck me – what makes the sound of rain so incredibly calming? Thus, the inspiration for episode 157 was born. In today's installment, I delve into the effects that environmental sounds can exert on our stress management, sleep patterns, hormonal balance, and neurobiology. It's my belief that these impacts are often subtle, operati...

Wow what a year! 2023 was filled with a lot of wonderful changes to my scientific career. Thank you for coming along this ride with me. Come hang out with me as I countdown the top 3 most listened to episodes on the People's Scientist podcast of 2023. Which episode was your favorite? Want to buy me a coffee to say thanks for the episode? You can do so via Venmo or Patreon below. Venmo ID: Steph-Ca...

I am so excited to be back producing episode 155 of The People's Scientist podcast. Thank you for allowing me to take a few months off from the show as I transitioned into my new role. Today I am excited to share a recent study with you in which scientists investigated a simple strategy we can all start using today that may enhance our memory and cognition. It has to do with one of our five senses...

In Episode 154 of The People's Scientist podcast, I discuss how consuming food, sugar, alcohol, nicotine, opioids, cocaine, are all consummatory behaviors; we are consuming substances with reinforcing and potentially addictive qualities. As such, there is much neurobiological overlap in eating and drug addiction. This nutritional perspective on drug addiction can open the door for novel treatments...

Today in Episode 153, I share with you a recent study published by Amin and colleagues in JAMA Psychiatry this year. This study includes over 125,000 people to correlate the plasma metabolome containing 249 metabolites to the diagnosis of major depressive disorder. I share additional clinical trials to take these findings and give us all some actionable information. Tune in for details! Main Refer...

In Episode 152, I was inspired by the song lyrics I danced to for this episode and chose to dive into the Neuroscience of Perseverance. Perseverance is distinct from resilience but the two are still very much interconnected. Resilience is an umbrella term, representing our ability to bounce back from adversity, our ability to adapt to change, and maintain a positive outlook. On the other hand, per...

In Episode 151, I discuss neuroplasticity as an adaptive process of the brain that can either be detrimental or beneficial. I discuss drug addiction, mental health, hormones, psychedelics, exercise, meditation, and more. I also discuss how I think the concept of neuroplasticity can support the notion of the freedom for change as opposed to determinism. Neuroplasticity can empower us to change our...

In the 150th Episode of the People Scientist podcast, I want to share with you, from my 17 years of experience in this field, some top evidenced based nutrition strategies that I think are easy to incorporate and likely to have a significant impact on our brain health and mental well-being. Any guesses as to what my top three suggestions are? Tune in to find out! Want to buy me a coffee to say tha...

In Episode 149 of The People's Scientist podcast I share brain imaging studies that provide insight into what brain regions are involved in lying. Lying may require more cognitive demand and as such there might be certain signs of a lie. Why do we lie? Common lying is associated with lower self-esteem and quality of life. As such, perhaps lying is meant to inflate a sense of self or to create a be...

In episode 148, I go through the details of two recent studies investigating the impact of fasting on hunger and craving circuits within the brain. After one bout of fasting, persistent amplification of excitatory activity was noted onto agouti-related protein neurons of the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus. I believe these studies provide an understanding as to why we may binge and re-gain wei...

Today in Episode 147, I have the great joy of interviewing Naval Officer, LTJG Joseph Gills, who led his team to achieving the award Thor's Hammer by obtaining the top scores in the Pacific Fleet competition of 2022. LTJG Gills goes through personal examples and suggestions to achieve good leadership and how to work with bad leadership. For example, he mentions how being a leader is a gift, an opp...

In Episode 146 I share some recent scientific evidence on the Neuroscience of Itch. We have yet to fully grasp this relatively new area of science but we appreciate that sensory fibers in the skin send signals along our spinal cord to the thalamus of our brain. But did you know that scratching can be contagious? If we see someone scratch, we may feel inclined to unconsciously scratch as well. This...

In episode 145 I share some scientific evidence on intestinal barrier dysfunction AKA: leaky gut. I use analogies to explain what leaky gut is, how this can contribute to brain inflammation, dementia, major depressive disorder, and scientific evidence on how to promote the health of our intestines and brain. Tune in for details! Want to buy me a coffee to say thanks for the episode? You can do so...

Episode 144 is a special episode as a recent conversation with my sister sparked this topic! My sister and I were talking about how the attitude toward food has changed drastically over the last several decades. We talk about our personal experiences in the context of diets, how hormones may be involved, intuitive eating, how nutrition clinical trials should focus on mental health and efficacy, an...

In episode 143, I continue with the theme of love for February but approach it from the opposite direction and share the Neuroscience of Heartbreak. Heartbreak is an intense emotional pain arising from the loss of a valuable relationship. In this episode I share Neuroimaging studies that indicate emotional pain recruits the same brain regions as physical pain. How scientists speculate that chronic...

In Episode 142, I share some neuroscience on trust and vulnerability. To trust, we make ourselves vulnerable by relying on another individual to fulfill their role. The main reason why employees leave their job and why marriages end in divorce is because of a lack of trust, communication and appreciation. So clearly, trust is central to the success of strong relationships. In this episode I give s...

In Episode 141 of The People's Scientist podcast, I propose a theory; are we addicted to our rises in blood insulin? Back in the 1940s, injections of insulin were given to treat anxiety and neurosis. They noted that injections of insulin induced a calming effect, sedation, and enhanced motivation to obtain food. In more recent studies we see that insulin may act on brain reward regions. Higher ins...

At many points in our life, we are likely to need to start over; in relationships, careers, school, etc. Here in Episode 140 of The People's Scientist podcast, I share clinical studies that provide some insight on how we can enhance our success in starting over. I highlight three key components: 1) Overcoming our fear of rejection/failure 2) Increasing self-confidence 3) Creating goals and instill...

In episode 139, as the year 2022 comes to a close, I reflect on the episodes of 2022. I covered topics from the benefits of indoor plants, how horror movies may make us more resilient, the neuroscience of greed, rejection, social anxiety, embarrassment, intuitive eating, a new exercise metabolite lac-phe, the neuroscience behind the pursuit of happiness and so much more. In today's episode I go th...

In episode 138 I dive into two of my recent publications. In the first clinical trial I discuss how we used the technique of metabolomics to quantify the plasma oxylipidome. Here we link smoking status to peripheral artery disease with the oxylipidome. In the second study, we provide evidence that genetics may play a role in the propensity for nicotine addiction, cigarette smoking, and lung diseas...

In Episode 137 of The People's Scientist podcast, I share some scientific evidence on the Neuroscience and Psychology of Greed. Often thought to be a personality trait with negative connotations, I offer an alternative perspective. I go through a Psychology test with you to determine our level of greed, other personality traits associated with greed, and insightful neuroimaging studies. Tune in fo...

A recent study by Li and colleague coming from the Charles Zuker lab suggests that the wanting of sugar and fat has to do with a specific population of cells within the vagus nerve that responds to sugar or fat to activate my favorite brain region, the nucleus of the tracts solitarius (nTS). This was independent of taste in the mouth and smell from the olfactory epithelium. These findings can expl...

Happy Halloween my People's Scientist Army! Today in Episode 135 I dive into some scientific evidence on the Neuroscience and Psychology of Nightmares. I discuss many theories on nightmares dating back to the 1800s and earlier. Nightmares used to be called Incubus or Wizard Pressing, thought to be related to supernatural phenomenon. I also go into observational studies that identified different pe...

In Episode 134 of The People's Scientist podcast, I go into the details on the Neuroscience and Psychology of Embarrassment. We study embarrassment because it may prevent us from pursuing health promoting activities like social interactions, going to the gym, or seeking help. What brain regions are involved, what types of embarrassing scenarios exist, what personality traits are associated with hi...