Mind Body Plants: Recent Episodes
Tommy Moore
The Mind Body Plants Podcast, hosted by Tommy Moore, explores the science and philosophy of the human brain and body. Tommy is a qualified Nutritionist and Exercise Scientist, and passionate Spiritual & Mental Health Advocate.
Adam Verwey is a founder and managing director at Future Super, Australia's first 100% fossil fuel-free superannuation fund.
Many traditional super funds invest in fossil fuels, gambling, detention of asylum seekers and for-profit prisons, weapons, live animal exports, uranium mining, alcohol, fast food, even pornography. Many of us are well-versed in the ethics of waste and energy, like carrying a keep-cup to reduce waste, or having shorter showers, or installing solar panels, but did you know that you can choose to put your money into ethical and responsible investment options? Have you ever considered how ethical your super fund is or where your super is being invested?
Future Super
Tom Earls is a beekeeper and educator in Surf Coast, Victoria, and the founder of Coastal Nectar.
Subscribe to the podcast
Specifically, we discuss:
- Why we need to protect bee populations
- Role in the ecosystem
- Pesticides and insecticides
- Medicinal properties of honey
- How to help local bee populations thrive
Coastal Nectar links:
Coastal Nectar on Facebook
Coastal Nectar on Instagram
Mind Body Plants links:
Mind Body Plants on Instagram
Education and further resources:
Bringing bees back to Australian backyards
Supporting native bee populations
Ensuring our food security
Bees are dying. What can we do about it?
Worldwide, bee populations are on the decline. This is caused by the use of pesticides and herbicides, climate change, loss of habitat, and agriculture services like monoculture farming, contributing to a loss in plant biodiversity. Without plant biodiversity for bees to pollinate or feed on, bees are hindered to provide their colony and subsequently, the ecosystem at large. Why do we need to protect bee populations? Bees are keystone species, meaning they are an organism that helps hold the system together. Without keystone species, the ecosystem would be drastically different or cease entirely. If bees die off it will end most life. Throughout nature, animals depend on bees for their survival because their food sources, things like berries, fruits, seeds, and nuts, rely on insect pollination. Pollination is needed for the growth of flora, providing the habitat and nutrition for animals.
Jeff Chilton, raised in the pacific north-west, studied ethno-mycology in the late 1960s. In 1989 he founded Nammex, a business that introduced medicinal mushrooms to the nutritional supplement industry in the United States. Nammex extracts are used by many supplement companies and are noted for their high quality based on scientific analysis of the active compounds.
In this conversation, we explore mushroom composition and anatomy, and their medicinal properties, including their immunological benefits. We discuss adaptogens and bringing harmony to our body and health, and also psychedelic mushrooms and healing.
Specifically, we cover:
- Mushroom cultivation
- Beta-glucans and triterpenoids
- Mushroom composition and anatomy
- Mycelium and fruiting body
- Ensuring mushroom quality and what to look for
- Immunological benefits and properties of mushrooms
- Adaptogens and bringing harmony and balance
- Psychedelic mushrooms and healing
- Self-transcendence
Nammex
Mind Body Plants
Robert grew up on a farm in Corvallis, Oregon where he adopted a vegan lifestyle in 1995 at age 15, weighing just 120 pounds.
Today he is the author of four books, Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness, Shred It!, Plant-Based Muscle, and the new release, The Plant-Based Athlete.
As a two-time natural bodybuilding champion, Robert is considered one of VegNews magazine's Most Influential Vegan Athletes.
Robert is the founder and president of Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness and maintains the popular website, VeganBodybuilding.com.
He is a regular contributor to No Meat Athlete, Forks Over Knives, and Vegan Strong, is a multi-sport athlete, entrepreneur, and has followed a plant-based diet for more than 25 years.
Vegan Bodybuilding and Fitness
The Plant-Based Athlete
Robert Cheeke Website
@robert.cheeke
@veganbodybuildingandfitness
@mindbody_plants
Overview of the conversation:
- Opportunities And Innovations With Climate Change
- The Benefits Of Eating More Plants
- Fibre, Mood, And Serotonin
- Addressing Climate Change
- Land Use, Water Use, And Waste
- The Biggest Impact On Climate Change
- Methane And Carbon Dioxide
- Nutrient Absorption Optimisation Techniques
- Impact Of Food Waste And Ways To Reduce It
- The Biomechanics Of Minimalist Running
Links:
@plant.paradigm
The Plant Paradigm Podcast
@mindbody_plants
This episode covers definitions and discussions of tonic herbs, medicinal mushrooms, and adaptogens.
Brief overview of the conversation:
- Science and Spirit
- Limitations to Western Medicine and research
- Definitions & discussion of tonic herbs, medicinal mushrooms, adaptogens
- Symbiosis and interconnectedness of earth
- Mushroom anatomy
- Daoism
- Self-regulation
- Psychedelic science
- Psilocybin's main therapeutic mechanisms: Neuroplasticity, functional connectivity, and modulation of The Default Mode Network
- Rumination in neuroscience and psychology
- Rumination in Daoism
- Enhancing inner work, exercise performance, and longevity
Links:
SuperFeast
The SuperFeast Podcast
SuperFeast instagram
Stats on mental illness in Australia, psilocybin, and MDMA - psychological phenomena and scientific evidence, antidepressants / SSRIs and common pharmaceutical treatments, the reinforcement of mental illness through diagnosis, destigmatizing drugs and the word "drug", the context of psychedelic psychotherapy including its set and setting, TGA updates - how drug and medicinal laws work on a federal and state level, and much more.
Mind Medicine Australia
Mind Body Plants (Instagram)
Dr. Matthew Nagra ND is a Naturopathic Doctor who is a passionate advocate for evidence-based nutrition. He adopted a plant-exclusive diet when he had health problems during his childhood and subsequently improved nearly every health concern he had. Matthew is incredibly knowledgeable within the scientific literature. Through social media, public speaking, his volunteer work with Nutritionfacts.org, and his clinical practice, he aims to educate people to help them gain control of their health through nutrition and lifestyle. This episode is jam-packed with information. Matthew talks us through nutritional concerns of the carnivorous diets like saturated fat. How much is too much? What is LDL? He also dispels some of the many myths surrounding the inadequacy of a plant-exclusive diet from iron and calcium to vitamin D3 and K2, as well as omega 3 fatty acids (ALA/EPA/DHA) and phytates, lectins, and oxalates.
Alison Tierney is a registered dietitian, nutritionist, and board-certified in oncology nutrition and started her business, Wholesome LLC in 2015. Alison is multi-passionate in nutrition and her expertise goes beyond cancer and involves helping others with the management of chronic diseases such as: heart diseases, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and autoimmune diseases. In this episode, we speak about some of the clear and obvious benefits of adopting a plant-focused or plant-predominant diet, how it can help with hormone regulation, fertility, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). We chat about what hormones and other compounds found in dairy and meat products are doing to our hormone balance, and clear up some of the confusion surrounding soy phytoestrogens. Finally, we discussed some of the benefits of the many thousands of plant compounds that are responsible for altering gene expression, and how that can make you live longer and healthier. Links: www.wholesomellc.com @wholesomellc
Carlo Cirillo is the creator of The Conscious Podcast, which is approaching 100 episodes I thought it'd be a perfect opportunity to break down the word "conscious". What does it mean to be conscious? Is it the same as mindfulness? Of course, we all have our own subjective definitions of these words, but hopefully this episode will inspire you to trust your intuition, listen to your body, find what motivates or excites you and be the best version of yourself. Friends, we are very blessed with today's guest, Carlo is a connection and mindset mentor, a keynote speaker, entrepreneur, meditation teacher and podcast host. He accelerates growth and transformation within individuals on a mental, physical and spiritual level. A really great, open, honest conversation. Please enjoy. Links: @carlo_cirillo www.carlocirillo.com
Tania De Jong is an inspirational speaker, singer, business woman and social entrepreneur who has founded a number of successful businesses including Creative Universe, leading innovation conference Creative Innovation Global, Inspiring Minds leadership programs, MTA Entertainment and Events, Dimension5 co-working space and acclaimed singing group Pot-Pourri, started 3 charities in Creativity Australia, With One Voice, The Song Room and in relevance to today's episode Mind Medicine Australia. Tania performs, speaks and presents leadership workshops across the globe. As the title suggests, this episode is about the therapeutic potential for psychedelic medicines. I've wanted to talk about them for a long time now. I've been researching them for a number of years now and after finding Mind Medicine Australia, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to do so. Before we get into this conversation, I want to provide you with a bit more of an understanding of what conventional psychedelics are doing on a physiological basis. In clinical research settings across the globe, investigations are taking place for the use of psychedelic substances, particularly psilocybin, for treating illnesses such as addiction, depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Since the termination of research from the 1970, most psychedelic substances were classified as "drugs of abuse". And unfortunately, due to the government propaganda from this time, psychedelics were considered unsafe for human consumption and of no therapeutic use. Central to the revival is reestablishing it's set and setting, set being mindset, psychological expectations and intentions for using these substances, and setting being the physical environment, as well as the therapeutic clinician-patient relationship. Set and setting are crucial elements for facilitating paradigm shifting mental patterns and recognizing positive outcomes. The general public is certainly well-versed on the potential harms, and the dangers are absolutely real, however much of this is from cases involving patients who used illicit substances in uncontrolled, undesirable, unsupervised non-medical contexts. Currently, 1 in 5 Australian adults have a chronic mental illness. That's 4.8 million of us. 1 in 8 are on antidepressants and over 45% of Australians will experience mental illness in their lifetime. There has been no improvement in treatment in mental illness for decades. 50 years, in fact. This screams for innovation. The FDA has now granted psychedelic medicines as "breakthrough therapy designation" to fast-track the approval process. This is not just a preposterous idea, but a potentially quantum leap forward for mental illness. Links: @mindmedicine.au mindmedicineaustralia.org
Indigenous Healer Allira Potter and I "open the conversation". Note - this was recorded 1 week after the death of George Floyd - a huge week for the world and particularly for people of colour, so at times it was a difficult conversation, but one that needed to be had. Talking to your relatives, friends and immediate family can be challenging and scary when talking about racism and systemic racism. That even if no one was racist, people of colour are still at a disadvantage. When we're speaking to our folks, it's important to be mindful of how we go about the conversations. If we want to teach people about this, we need to act as teachers. This requires understanding, patience, vigilance. There are 2 types of people; those who are uninformed and those who are bigoted. Bigoted just means that they're unreasonably attached to a particular belief or belief system and are essentially intolerant to other people's beliefs. The discussion is never easy, but doable. We can't just wait around for the boomers to die out. We need them, and with the right strategy, respect, patience, we can teach them. Let's start with the uninformed folks, all you need to do is inform them BUT be careful with language and tone. Please don't say "Educate yourself" it's not the right way of doing it, instead say "here are some materials you can read and watch" and leave it at that. For those who are bigoted, this is a little more challenging. It comes down to a lack of empathy. You must understand the mindset. When someone isn't affected by a problem, they can have trouble understanding why anyone would care about it. They struggle imaging being hurt, or putting themselves in another perspective or another person's shoes. So we need to talk to them about these concepts in ways they can understand, and framing the ideas with language they resonate with. Instead of saying things like "white privilege" or "black lives matter" use phrases like "Your life has been hard, but the colour of your skin didn't make it harder" or "everyone's life must be protected, but right now black people are in danger and they need our help". It may be uncomfortable to let go of words you identify with often. Never tell them they're wrong, but say things like "that's what they mean when they use the word privilege" instead of "that's privilege". Conversations don't have to be 60 minute conversations like this, but it's just a matter of opening the conversation. Believe in people; that we can all grow and learn and adapt. Connect with Allira - @allira.potter
Fiona Tuck is one of the most well-respected skincare and nutrition experts in Australia. She has over 25 years of experience in the professional skincare and wellness industry and is known in the media as 'the myth buster'. Fiona takes a forensic and often challenging approach into all things nutrition and skincare. Fiona is an Author, Nutritional Medicine Practitioner, Skincare Expert, member of the British Dermatological Nursing Group and an accredited member of the Australian Traditional Medicine Society. Fiona's extensive experience in the professional skincare industry includes roles as International Training Manager for Dermalogica, Corporate Trainer for Aspect and Cosmedix Cosmeceuticals, Managing Director of Skinstitut and founder of Vita-sol nutraceuticals. Her experience ranges from nutrition client consulting, hands on skin treatments, industry educator to product innovation and development culminating in both brand and company development. Fiona founded Vita-sol in 2017 with a mission to support skin, health and well-being with the highest quality natural wholefoods without the use of synthetic vitamin supplements, fillers, excipients or petrochemicals. Fiona hosts a fortnightly podcast called "The Forensic Nutritionist" and her in-depth knowledge and insight into future trends within the wellness industry has made her a sought-after media commentator and one of Australia's most televised nutrition and skin experts. An impressive resume. In this episode I really wanted to zone in on gut health. I've talked about the gut and the gut microbiota in other episodes but I wanted to get a full understanding of gut health from the ground up. Fiona and I talk about fiber, prebiotics, probiotics, postbiotics, what causes inflammation and intestinal permeability, FODMAPs, some skin conditions and their relationship to gut health, the importance of plant based diversity, hormone appetite, hunger regulation and so on. LINKS: @fionatucknutrition www.fionatuck.com
Tris Alexandra is a nutritional medicine practitioner and health coach (Bach. HS & Nutritional Medicine.). We talk about all things fasting, aging and longevity. We discuss the hallmarks of aging, different types of fasting, the benefits of fasting and calorie restriction, the epigenome and genome, 'survival circuits', sirtuins, autophagy, ketogenesis and ketosis. If you wish to connect with Tris, you can find her on instagram @trisalexandranutrition
Annelise Van Rooye is a plant-based health coach. Annelise and I talk through the importance of a holistic approach, total daily energy expenditure, energy balance, the problem with the 'if it fits your macros' (IIFYM) approach to weight loss. We also chat about the calorie and nutrient density of food, high protein vs adequate protein, managing stress, why 'mindfulness' is a loaded term, intermittent fasting and much more. To connect with Annelise you can follow her on instagram @mykindofawesome. She also posts lots of great information online at www.mykindofawesome.com
Steph Watson is a certified nutrition coach, beauty therapist and expert all things plant-based nutrition. We sit down and address some of the reasons why people are avoiding a plant-based diet, including some of the "nutrients of concern" for a plant-exclusive or plant-predominant diet. These nutrients included vitamin b12, iron, omega 3 (ALA/EPA/DHA), vitamin D, iodine, choline, and protein. To connect with Steph, you can follow her on instagram @stephw_thrive DISCLAIMER: Always seek the guidance of your doctor or other qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition.