Podcasts have changed my life. Repeated trips to the gym or walks along the same route would once have driven me potty with boredom, but now I actually look forward to them. Or rather, I look forward to listening to an interesting podcast and being educated and entertained at the same time.
When it comes to health, nutrition and wellbeing podcasts, there is a wealth of choice out there but I’ve managed to whittle it down to a list of my top five. And best of all, they are all available on iTunes for free.
My 5 Favourite Health and Wellbeing Podcasts
All in the Mind – ABC Radio National
All in the mind is a health podcast from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation which focuses on the mind, brain and behaviour. It features interviews with experts on subjects as diverse as depression, creativity, language and self-harm.
Recent programmes have explored hypnotic delusion, the psychology of technology and social anxiety.
I love the relaxed and friendly style of the presenter, Lynne Malcolm, the powerful personal stories of interviewees and the fascinating subject matter.
All the Mind ABC Radio National Website
iTunes Preview of All in the Mind Podcast
Food is Medicine With Patrick Holford
I’m a great fan of Patrick Holford and his work at the Institute of Optimum Nutrition so I was thrilled when he began his Food is Medicine podcast. The podcasts are packed with really useful information on how to combat diseases such as cancer, diabetes and arthritis with a nutritional approach. He also discusses issues such as metabolic syndrome and allergy testing.
Unfortunately, it hasn’t been updated in the last couple of months but I’m hoping there’ll be more to follow. And be prepared for Patrick Holford to plug his numerous books, but it’s worth putting up with in order to access excellent information in bite-sized chunks.
iTunes Preview of Food is Medicine with Patrick Holford
Medical Matters
Medical Matters is a BBC Radio 4 health podcast that combines items from the Inside Health programme presented by Dr Mark Porter and All in the Mind with Claudia Hammond.
It looks at health stories behind the headlines in the areas of mental health, psychology and neuroscience. Compared to Health Check, another BBC Radio health programme, it has more of a UK focus.
Recent episodes have featured items on how our ‘Gaydar’ works, self-harm and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, or CBT, without medication in the treatment of psychosis.
The BBC Radio 4 Medical Matters website
iTunes Preview of Medical Matters by BBC Radio 4
The Dr Christiane Northrup Podcast
Dr Christiane Northrup is the author of the bible on menopause: The Wisdom of Menopause. In her short and informative podcasts she addresses many health issues of concern to women.
If you’ve only got 5 minutes to spare then Dr Northrup’s podcasts are the perfect way to digest small snippets of health information. I love the way she is direct and manages to pack so much useful information into a short space of time.
Previous podcasts include episodes which focus on the effects of stress on the body, a guide to the G-spot and bio-identical hormones.
Dr Christiane Northrup’s Podcast page
iTunes Preview of the Dr Christiane Northrup Podcast
Health Check
Health Check is the BBC World Service’s weekly round up of health stories and topical issues in medicine from around the world.
Presented by Claudia Hammond, it takes a global perspective on health and medical issues. Recent episodes have examined issues as diverse as why malaria will not be combatted with phone Apps, attempts to control cholera in Cameroon and how recycling medical devices from dead Americans is prolonging life in India.
It’s a good way to stay up to date with medical developments across the globe.
iTunes Preview of Health Check by the BBC World Service
The BBC World Service Health Check page
Happy listening! And if you have any health podcasts that you love and would like to share with Write Health readers, please leave a comment in the box below.
Podcast logo image: Thanks to Colleen AF Venable on Flickr.com
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