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PODCAST

Sigma Nutrition Radio

Discussions about the science of nutrition, dietetics and health. The podcast that educates through nuanced conversations, exploring evidence and cultivating critical thinking. Hosted by Danny Lennon.

health & fitness nutrition

All Episodes

02:00:12

#600: Finite Knowledge, Infinite Ignorance

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/03/31

"The more we learn about the world, and the deeper our learning, the more conscious, specific, and articulate will be our knowledge of what we do not know, our knowledge of our ignorance. For this, indeed, is the main source of our ignorance — the fact that our knowledge can be only finite, while our ignorance must necessarily be infinite." – Karl Popper To mark Sigma Nutrition's milestone 600th episode (and 12-year anniversary), Danny and Alan examine several areas in which their views have

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01:18:33

#599: Does Unprocessed Red Meat Increase Diabetes...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/03/24

This episode examines whether unprocessed red meat has a causal role in (1) type 2 diabetes risk and intermediate measures of glucose intolerance (insulin resistance, beta cell dysfunction, glycemic markers) and (2) cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. While there is commonly observed risk signal from observational cohorts, there exist short-term randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that show largely null effects on glucose homeostasis. This had led to differing opinions and interpretations of the

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44:24

#598: How Do Exercise & Diet Interact to Improve...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/03/17

This episode examines how exercise and nutrition interact to influence glycaemic control, with particular focus on the postprandial period (i.e., the hours after eating) and on "time-efficient" exercise strategies such as low-volume interval training. Dr. Jenna Gillen outlines the physiological basis for why muscle contraction can acutely reduce post-meal glucose excursions, why repeated sessions can accumulate into longer-term improvements in insulin sensitivity, and why the nutrition context (pre-

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51:43

#597: Behavioral Psychology in Diet & Health...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/03/10

In clinical practice effective nutrition, exercise, and obesity care is rarely about identifying the single "best" plan on paper. Instead, sustainable change depends on behavioral psychology: understanding the person's context, motivation, barriers, and patterns, then co-designing practical steps that can actually be implemented in real life. David Creel PhD, RD is a clinical psychologist and registered dietitian working in weight management at the Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Creel discusses how

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01:06:11

#596: Why Do Omega-3 Trials Show Mixed Results?

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/03/03

Omega-3 fatty acids (particularly EPA and DHA) have a long history in nutrition and cardiovascular medicine, yet the clinical trial literature is often perceived as inconsistent. This episode examines why some randomized trials show clear benefit while others show null or mixed findings, and how differences in trial design, dose, population risk, and outcome selection can materially change what we observe. A key theme is separating (1) the persistent cultural narratives around omega-3s (including

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38:21

#595: Neuroplasticity and Reducing Risk of Cognitive...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/02/24

Conversations about brain health have been dominated by a competing mix of fatalism and over-promising, with aging framed as inevitable decline and "brain optimisation" sold through weak evidence. So how should we think about cognition across the lifespan? In this episode, we explore the idea that neuroplasticity does not disappear in adulthood, but instead continues to respond, for better or worse, to repeated behaviours and exposures. Much of what is labelled age-related cognitive decline may in

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20:45

How Much Dietary Fiber Do We Need to be Healthy? (SNP48)

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/02/17

This is a Premium-exclusive episode of the podcast. To listen to the full episode you need to be subscribed to Sigma Nutrition Premium. This episode examines dietary fiber through the lens of a practical, clinically relevant question: if higher fiber intakes are consistently associated with reduced chronic disease risk, what intake level should we be aiming for to meaningfully improve health outcomes? The discussion deliberately spans from common online claims that fiber is "not essential" (and

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49:02

#594: Can Muscle Still Adapt Positively When Training...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/02/10

Dr. José Areta and colleagues recently carried out a human intervention study examining how a pronounced, short-term energy deficit interacts with an aerobic training stimulus to shape endocrine, metabolic, and skeletal muscle proteomic adaptations. The core premise is that "low energy availability" is often discussed in a largely unidirectional risk framework, yet human physiology evolved under intermittent energy scarcity, and therefore adaptive responses may be more nuanced than "energy deficit

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51:28

#593: Can We Define Hyper-Palatable Foods? And Is...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/02/03

While the term "hyperpalatable" has been used frequently for considerable time to refer to foods that are so appealing and tasty that they drive overeating, this term hasn't been well-defined nor has there been a universal standard for what it means. One researcher who set out to create an objective definition for hyper-palatable foods (HPFs) is Dr. Tera Fazzino. Using specific defined thresholds of sugar, fat and salt combinations, Dr. Fazzino and colleagues have looked at the impact of consumption

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01:26:11

#592: How Much Protein is Actually Healthy? – Eric...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/01/27

In this episode, the discussion turns to a deceptively simple question that sits at the centre of countless nutrition debates: how much protein do we actually need? On one side, there are confident claims that very high protein intakes are not just beneficial but essential for maximising strength, performance, and muscle mass. On the other, equally strong assertions that the current RDA is entirely sufficient for most people, and that going beyond it is unnecessary or even harmful. Dr. Eric Helms

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52:31

#591: Maintaining Functional Capacity with Age –...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/01/20

Maintaining the ability to carry out everyday tasks and live independently is often described as a cornerstone of healthy ageing. But what actually happens to muscle strength, power, and functional ability as we get older? And how inevitable is their decline? At what point do changes in muscle function really begin to matter for day-to-day life? Is loss of strength an unavoidable consequence of ageing itself, or does it reflect something more modifiable? If declines are not fixed, what kinds of

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41:09

#590: Is the Nutrient Density of Crops Declining? –...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/01/13

Nutrient density refers to the concentration of vitamins and minerals in crops relative to their yield. There are widespread claims that today's fruits, vegetables, and grains contain fewer micronutrients than in decades past, often linked to modern farming practices or soil degradation. This issue is important because if staple crops become less nutritious, it could silently undermine dietary quality and contribute to micronutrient deficiencies ("hidden hunger") in populations. Dr. Edward Joy is

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17:53

Does Processing Really Make Food Unhealthy? (SNP47)

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2026/01/06

This is a Premium-exclusive episode of the podcast. To listen to the full episode you need to be subscribed to Sigma Nutrition Premium. Recently we (Danny Lennon & Alan Flanagan) were invited to 'Processing the Evidence', a "behind closed doors" workshop to discuss the latest scientific evidence on the role of processed foods in human health. The event was organized by Professors Ciarán Forde and Vincenzo Fogliano of Wageningen University in the Netherlands. The workshop attendees included a range

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01:01:24

#589: Causal Inference in Nutrition Science – Daniel...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2025/12/30

This episode explores how asking better questions and using stronger methods can resolve much of the confusion in nutrition science. Dr. Daniel Ibsen discusses why nutrition research often produces conflicting results and how careful methodological thinking can clarify true diet-disease relationships. Nutrition science has unique challenges – diets are complex, people self-report their food intake imperfectly, and we can't easily run long-term diet experiments on people. Dr. Ibsen explains how

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46:14

#588: Menstrual Cycle "Syncing": Do the Claims Hold...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2025/12/23

How much do hormonal fluctuations really influence performance and recovery? Should women be adjusting their training and nutrition based on the menstrual cycle? And do female athletes need different protein strategies or recovery protocols than men? These are questions that have fuelled countless online claims, from rigid "cycle syncing" programmes to supposedly gender-specific nutrition rules. But how much of that is actually grounded in evidence? In this episode, the conversation tackles those

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44:07

#587: How Should Nutrition Be Taught in Medical...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2025/12/16

This episode centers on the critical gap in nutrition education within medical training and efforts to bridge it. Guest Akash Patel, a medical student who led a pilot nutrition curriculum, discusses why doctors receive little formal training in nutrition despite poor diet being a major driver of disease. With diet-related conditions (obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, etc.) contributing heavily to morbidity and healthcare costs, the conversation highlights a pivotal push to better equip

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01:07:20

#586: The Manufactured Collapse of Expertise

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2025/12/09

Never before has there been greater access to information about nutrition and health. But never before has there been such a low barrier to being seen as an "expert". There are large numbers of people getting information from, and basing their health decisions on, people who don't have direct expertise in the field in which they are talking about. Moreover, some promote the lack of domain expertise as a feature, not a bug. They claim that those that were conventionally seen as domain experts are

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09:40

SNP46: Reviewing Six Key Insights from the Year's...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2025/12/02

This is a Premium-exclusive episode of the podcast. To listen to the full episode you need to be subscribed to Sigma Nutrition Premium. Each year, the conversations on Sigma Nutrition Radio aim to examine the ideas that shape how we understand nutrition, health, and human behavior. This episode brings together the key insights from those discussions, revisiting the most important themes, emerging evidence, and shifts in understanding from the past year. Across topics such as dietary guidelines,

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58:44

#585: Why We Think Poorly: Reason, Emotion, and...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2025/11/25

We take a look at critical thinking in science and healthcare, examining how we often fall prey to cognitive biases, emotional reasoning, and flawed thinking. Drawing from six different experts in their respective fields, the episode explores why we sometimes believe we are being rational when in fact our conclusions aren't truly evidence-based. The discussion spans what genuine evidence-based practice means, how domain expertise matters, and how factors like identity, beliefs, and emotions can

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59:19

#584: EAT-Lancet: Does the Planetary Health Diet...

Sigma Nutrition Radio ·

2025/11/18

How should we think about diets that claim to optimise both human and planetary health? Can a single "reference diet" really balance the complex trade-offs between nutrition adequacy, chronic disease prevention, and environmental sustainability? These questions have gained renewed attention with the release of the 2025 update to the EAT-Lancet Planetary Health Diet. The original 2019 report proposed a mostly plant-based dietary pattern designed to improve population health while staying within

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