Health is Real

Today’s episode is all about real people, real stories, and real recovery! We welcome two great guests: first Dana Brock, he’s an advocate for our Recover for Life campaign and he has a truly amazing story and message of hope. And then we speak with Kirstin Buckner, founder of Uni5d Outcomes, which helps prevent future problems by connecting youth with positive role models and mentors. Two great c...

We love taking the show on the road, and today we’re coming to you from the Statehouse in downtown Columbus! We're joined by two healthcare professionals who also happen to serve in state government: Representative Anita Somani and Senator Beth Liston! We ask them how they balance their roles and what their health priorities are as legislators. And we also talk about some of our favorite plac...

In this fun new series, we look at movies from a public health lens! In this episode we discuss 2005's "Waiting..." and chat about what we like about it and what we can learn from it. Joining us today is James D. Smith, FCPH's Food and School Safety Supervisor. You'll never guess how many health violations he found!

Let's reduce the burden of cancer in Ohio! Christin Brown from the American Oncology Network and our own Layla Abraham are here to discuss a statewide coalition called Ohio Partners for Cancer Control. And later, friend of the pod Mary Nern is back to talk about trending foods for summer, adult rec league soccer, and much more!

We talked with a professor on our last show, now it’s time to meet the students! We have two public health interns here to chat about their experiences working and studying, and what made them discover they wanted to be in the field of public health. We also play a fun Jeopardy game to test our Millennial and Gen-Z knowledge. And later, we welcome quite the "character" to Health is Real:...

Class is now in session! Our guest today is Rob Braun, Professor of Public Health at Otterbein University. He talks about what it’s like teaching the next generation of public health workers and how things have changed in the last few years. And later, which fruits and vegetables are trending right now? We debut our fun new "Learn with Nern" segment featuring healthy food expert Mary Ner...

A double dose of FCPH experts! First, we chat with Alex Jones about her role with infectious disease control and response, and we have some fun coming up with vaccines ideas to prevent some of humanity’s worst flaws! And later we speak with Mary Nern about healthy food access, and we share some healthy food options from every color in the rainbow.

No matter the season, our parks are a great place to improve your health! We love chatting with people who are passionate about what they do, and that’s exactly what we have today: Tim Moloney from Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks! We discuss the incredible health benefits of parks, the current Winter Hikes series and learn some of the best kept parks secrets right here in central Ohio!

The acronym of the day is CHAT! That stands for Community Health Action Teams, and our own Kevida Bowry is here to talk about what they do, the CHAT Summit happening this year, and some projects that you might recognize in your community. And later, we read some public health headlines including news about takeout food, measles in Ohio, and creative ways you can help your brain. We welcome a varie...

Happy New Year! Health is Real is starting off 2026 by chatting with Health Commissioner Joe Mazzola as well as Ken Wilson, the County Administrator for Franklin County Board of Commissioners. We learn a little about them, find out the biggest moments in Franklin County from the last year and look ahead to what’s happening in 2026.

OUR HOLIDAY SPECIAL! So much festive fun! We chat with our own Kristin Howard about the best and worst holiday music—get ready for some hot takes! Plus so much more: we have trivia, holiday party experts, bros, Bostonians, and plenty of ghosts. We even share an unforgettable Christmas song of our own!

Libraries offer so many public health benefits to our communities! Today we chat with two wonderful guests—Ben Zenitsky from Columbus Metropolitan Library and Katy Hite from the State Library of Ohio—about what’s going on at our local libraries and why literacy is so important. We also answer important questions like: If you had a biography written about you, what would the title be?

We have apps to find food trucks, so why not have an app to find mobile healthcare? Today’s guest Lauren Van Petten from Nationwide Children's Hospital has all the details about the new Mobile Health Locator app, how to access it and where it’s going in the future. And later, spooky season is a great time to talk about our biggest fears and look at some of the most common phobias, such as hei...

When we think of public health, we may not always consider the role that technology plays. Three of our IT experts, Sondra Burns, Nik Shipman, and DeAngela Watson join the podcast today to talk about protecting your digital health, keeping devices safe at home, and how AI factors in to public health. We even get a quick visit from our own unique AI chatbot! Later we discuss grilling, tailgating, a...

Today's guest, Josh Poland, is the stadium voice of the Columbus Crew as well as the Chief Communications and Marketing Officer with the city of New Albany! We discuss all the wonderful things happening in New Albany and Josh shares some of his favorite Columbus Crew stories! And later, we take a look back at our school days with talk of cornfields, Caligula, and Clifford the Big Red Dog.

September is Emergency Preparedness Month and today we chat with our own expert Julio Reyes Gomez about how you can be prepared and the most important things you’ll need in an emergency. We also discuss what a certain 90s action movie can teach us about all this. And later: When were erasers added to pencils? It’s back to school trivia time so get ready for a pop quiz!

Did you know that Reynoldsburg, Ohio is the birthplace of the commercial tomato? Today we head to the Reynoldsburg Tomato Festival and speak with Mayor Joe Begeny about the big event and the long, proud tradition of throwing tomatoes at others. (That sounds like fun!) And later, what apps do you use the most? We look at the most popular apps in the country and decide that we should focus more on b...

We’re all about active living! Our own Natalie Martin stops by to chat about being an Active Living Coordinator, what all is involved in public health education, and some of the projects she’s most proud of. And we can’t talk about active living without bringing up our favorite workout songs! And later, we debunk some old wives’ tales. Swimming after eating? Do bulls really hate the color red? And...

It’s so important to be educated about the disease of addiction. Today we’re joined by Victoria Shields, our Naloxone Education & Distribution Coordinator, to chat about Naloxone, some misconceptions about addiction, and how the landscape around the issue has changed. We also discuss what an ACE is and the upcoming ACEs PACEs and Addiction Summit. And later, is it good for kids to be bored som...

We Ohioans love our sports, and there’s a big in-state rivalry in soccer between Columbus Crew and FC Cincinnati! Today we welcome Health Commissioners from Cincinnati and Hamilton County, Grant Mussman and Greg Kesterman, to chat about the friendly rivalry and what they’re focused on with their health departments. And later, who has a big sports memory from their childhood? From touchdowns on the...

Our guests today are Jonathan Thomas from ADAMH and Beth Plummer from Recovery Innovations, who discuss the new Franklin County Crisis Care Center! What is it? Who’s it for? And how is it different from going to a hospital? We also chat about how the mental health landscape has changed over the years, and the different techniques you can use to improve your mental wellbeing.

CHW Day is June 6th! Today we chat with our expert, Devon Abdon, about his journey to public health. He discusses what a Community Health Worker does and how he remains optimistic in the face of challenges. And because CHWs are modern day superheroes, we each decide to pick our own superpowers. Will we choose to benefit humanity...or not?

Water quality affects everyone! Expert Alyssa Suto is here to talk about what she does for the residents of Franklin County, and also discusses the difference between filtered water, tap water, and bottled water. Also, let's get ready for festival season! We chat about some upcoming local festivals and come up with a few of our own, including a one-of-a-kind idea from Zach that features a cer...

The Asian Festival is coming up! Today’s guest is Dr. Greg Lam from Ohio Health, the Ohio Asian American Health Coalition & the Asian Festival Corporation. We talk about all the upcoming events celebrating AAPI Heritage Month including dragon boat races, table tennis tournaments, and free health screenings. Dr. Lam also talks about health disparities in the Asian community and shares some powe...

Have you heard about Beautiful Beginnings? It’s a home visiting program for new families offering safe sleep education, postpartum care, and more. Today we’re joined by public health nurse supervisor Breana Francis to learn more and chat about Black Maternal Health Week. And later: “When you’re here, you’re family!” We all have a favorite restaurant (whether it's healthy, or not so much) but...