Eat Move Think

The point of preventive cardiology is to inform people they’re on a path toward developing heart disease and other cardiovascular problems—so that they can change their lifestyle and delay the onset of any issues. Recent advances in cardiology like new hs-Troponin testing are helping doctors detect heart health risks earlier than ever before. Heading into February’s Heart Health month, guest host Dr. Peter Nord talks about these advances with Dr. Beth Abramson, Medcan’s director of cardiology. For complete show notes and a full episode transcript go to www.eatmovethinkpodcast.com. Link: https://www.eatmovethinkpodcast.com/podcast/ep50-preventive-cardiology   Episode Notes Guest bio: Dr. Beth Abramson is associate professor of medicine at the University of Toronto. She is director of cardiac prevention and rehabilitation, and women’s cardiovascular health, at St. Michael’s Hospital. Learn more. Links, references and highlights: February is Heart Month. Learn about ways to control your heart health from the CDC and Canada’s Heart & Stroke. Learn more about women’s heart health at a complimentary Medcan Presents webinar hosted by Dr. Beth Abramson. Date: Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2021, at 12:30 p.m. Register here. The Canadian Women’s Heart Health Centre is promoting Wear Red Day for women’s heart health. It’s happening Feb. 13. Learn more here. Drs. Abramson and Nord discussed four innovative ways to predict whether you’re headed toward heart disease. Including: CIMT—Predicts future cardiac risk by examining the thickness of the carotid artery in the neck. CIMT stands for Carotid Intima-Media Thickness. Learn more about the test here or here. hs-Troponin I—The High Sensitive Troponin-I test measures blood concentration of a biomarker that scientists believe is associated with stress on the heart muscle. The test can predict risk of future heart disease even in healthy people. (Medcan is the first clinic in Canada to provide it.) Learn more about the test in this article by Dr. Nord. TMAO—The trimethylamine N-oxide test (TMAO) screens for a biomarker in the blood that is produced when digesting red meat, full-fat dairy, egg yolks and certain dietary supplements. Higher levels in the blood are associated with elevated risk for developing cardiovascular disease. Learn more about TMAO here. Lp(a)—What Dr. Abramson refers to as “LP-little-a” is the short form of “lipoprotein-a,” a type of cholesterol in the blood. Doctors may order a test to measure levels of this cholesterol if you have normal cholesterol levels but a strong family history of cardiovascular disease. If your lp(a) levels are high, you too may be at elevated risk of developing heart disease. Learning that early enough can spur lifestyle changes that may help decrease your risks. Learn more here. Dr. Beth Abramson helped to develop an app called My HeartPath. Here’s the news release about it. Download it at the Apple App Store or Google Apps. The book Dr. Beth Abramson wrote is called Heart Health for Canadians.

Many of us want to transform our lives—yet something stops us from actually doing it. University of Victoria exercise psychologist Dr. Ryan Rhodes has devoted his academic career to figuring out what prevents people from making the changes they know will improve things. He’s also an expert at the techniques that will set us up for success. In this interview with Medcan’s Dr. Jack Muskat, Dr. Rhodes provides pointers designed to help us all cross the chasm. Find the full transcript and complete show notes at www.eatmovethinkpodcast.com. Link: https://www.eatmovethinkpodcast.com/podcast/ep49-intention-behaviour-gap Interview guest is Dr. Ryan Rhodes Guest Webpage: https://www.uvic.ca/research/labs/bmed/home/home/about/index.php

In Eat Move Think’s ongoing series about lifestyle change, we explore the story of Karma Brown, the best-selling novelist whose new non-fiction book, The 4% Fix, represents a compelling case study in the way small changes can lead to big effects. Years ago, as a working journalist and new mom, Karma Brown dreamed of writing her first novel. But between diapers and tight deadlines, she felt overstretched. How she achieved her life goal contains lessons for all of us.  Find the full transcript and complete show notes at www.eatmovethinkpodcast.com

Eat Move Think continues to explore behavioural change, this time with new Medcan psychology team lead Dr. Jack Muskat and executive producer Christopher Shulgan. The two men use their own personal experiences with lasting lifestyle change to extract lessons for those looking to use the new year, and the next phase of the pandemic, as an opportunity to improve one’s life. Find complete show notes at https://www.eatmovethinkpodcast.com/podcast/ep47-change-is-possible According to Dr. Jack Muskat, a great book on stress is Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers by Robert M. Sapolsky. For more science on how to work out the mechanics of habit formation, consider checking out The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. Check out Dr. Jack Muskat’s e-book: Leadership and All The S#!t That Comes With It. The first volume in our “how to change” series featured Dr. David Macklin in conversation with host Shaun Francis in episode 45. Learn more about Medcan’s psychology services.  Follow Shaun Francis on Twitter and Instagram, and Medcan @medcanlivewell. Eat Move Think is produced by Ghost Bureau.

As people begin to think about new year lifestyle change, Eat Move Think reposts one of our best-loved episodes. Medcan Director of Food and Nutrition Leslie Beck calls them “calorie blunders”—those little mistakes that can add up to significant weight gain. The good news is, those blunders can be beaten with easy behavioural tweaks. Here, Beck describes those fixes. Find complete show notes see www.eatmovethinkpodcast.com. For complete show notes, visit eatmovethinkpodcast.com.   Visit Leslie’s website at lesliebeck.com. Follow her on Twitter @lesliebeckrd.  See Leslie’s Globe and Mail columns. Leslie Beck also did a webinar on Common Calorie Blunders for Medcan which is archived on YouTube. Here’s the link.  Eat Move Think is produced by Ghost Bureau. Follow Shaun Francis on Twitter and Instagram, and Medcan @medcanlivewell.

As we start to think about New Year’s resolutions, host Shaun Francis talks to Dr. David Macklin, who helps people manage their weight. Here, Dr. Macklin applies the tips he’s developed to help people eat better, and applies them to the creation of other positive habits, such as how to become more physically active. Tip number one, Dr. Macklin says, involves exploring the reason you want to change in the first place. Plus: The value of long-term thinking, and how to avoid getting derailed by slip ups.  This episode is based on a webinar. See the archive on YouTube.  For complete show notes, visit eatmovethinkpodcast.com.   Dr. David Macklin obtained his medical degree at the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg and completed his family medicine residency at the University of Toronto. He is a certificant of the College of Family Physicians of Canada. Dr. Macklin has focused his career on weight loss, metabolism and obesity management. He is the Founder of Weightcare Clinics, co-founder of PatientTalk in Toronto and one of Canada’s leading physicians in weight care management. He has committed his career to helping others change their behaviour, develop a healthy lifestyle and manage their weight. Dr. Macklin has extensive clinical experience in the management of obesity and preventive medicine with a focus on the behavioural aspects of obesity. Dr. Macklin is a member of the Canadian Obesity Network and American College of Lifestyle Medicine. He was a co-author of Canada's clinical practice guidelines for obesity. Listen to Dr. Macklin’s interview of Dr. Arya Sharma in episode 32.  Follow Shaun Francis on Twitter and Instagram, and Medcan @medcanlivewell.  Eat Move Think is produced by Ghost Bureau.

What a time to debut a wellness podcast! Host Shaun Francis wanted to break down the latest advice from scientists, MDs and academics in terms everyone could understand. In 2020 we explored nutrition, fitness and mental health—as well as a little virus known as COVID-19. This year-in-review session sees Shaun and producer Christopher Shulgan look back on Eat Move Think’s first 43 episodes, using the show’s 10 best moments to explore highlights, lowlights and fascinating exchanges in one of recent history’s most eventful 12 months ever.

Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca—their vaccines and others will dominate the public discussion for months to come. Are they safe? When will they start to change our lives? And what can employers do to make a difference in the fight against the pandemic? In an episode hosted by Medcan chief medical officer Dr. Peter Nord, occupational health experts Dr. Jason Abrams, Dr. Matthew Burnstein and Dr. Alain Sotto sound off.

The Quarantine Backyard Ultra is a diabolically cruel running race that requires its contestants to run four miles per hour—for as long as they can. The winner is the last person standing. The fact that it’s an endurance contest with no clear finish line makes it a proxy for the coronavirus pandemic, argues running columnist Alex Hutchinson, who reviewed the science of races without finish lines to extract lessons that may help us all navigate the next few months.

What actions create a healthy lifestyle? What preventative health measures should we all take to ensure a long, happy and active life? It’s all in here. With the help of such Medcan experts as chief medical officer Dr. Peter Nord, nutritionist Leslie Beck, fitness trainer Stephen Salzmann and psychologist Dr. Jonathan Danson, host Shaun Francis and producer Chris Shulgan distill the recommendations in a tidy half hour.