The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. On today's episode, a conversation with public health policy consultant, Melissa Maitin-Shepard. Melissa has worked in the health, public health, and nutrition policy space for nearly two decades, first joining large organizations to support their work, and now working as an independent consultant. Through her firm, MMS Health Strategies, Melissa builds impactful teams, supports complex projects with many stakeholders, and works to create health-promoting policies that aim to make the healthier choice the easier choice.To learn more about Melissa and her work, or to connect with her, find her on LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/mmaitinshepard/For more information on Melissa's work with the GW Global Food Institute- https://globalfoodinstitute.gwu.edu/melissa-maitin-shepardEmail Melissa- mmshealthstrategies@gmail.comConnect with Marian on Linked In- https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/Learn more about our sponsor- www.informedsolutionsconsulting.comLearn more about Marian- www.marianflaxman.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. On today's episode, Marian sits down with author, scientist, fermenter, advocate, and chef, Rich Shih. They discuss Rich's path to the kitchen, how and why he first learned to cook, and how he came to discover that fermentation could be harnessed to make food more delicious, more nutritious, and more sustainable. Marian and Rich met at The Georgetown University Food as Medicine and the Microbiome Conference, where Rich spoke about the power of koji to transform food scraps into delicious condiments and more. Since then, they have found a shared calling for promoting the use of fermentation to improve human health, and prevent food waste. Rich is the co-author of the book Koji Alchemy, which can be found here. Rich is the co-organizer of an event that teaches about fermentation- KojiKon. You can find tickets to this event, and learn more, here. Follow Rich on Instagram - @ourcookquest For more about Marian, please visit www.marianflaxman.com Follow Marian on Instagram- @marianff Connect with Marian on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/ Learn more about our sponsor - www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast! On today's episode, Marian speaks with Dr. Brad Moore about the current healthcare landscape, the future of "food as medicine", and the importance of shifting a patient's overall lifestyle to promote healing.Dr. Moore is passionate about being a doctor and supporting his patients. Years ago, he noticed that his patients were not getting better when he simply followed the western medicine rulebook, prescribing medications and sending them on their way. He looked at his own life, where he used nutrition and physical activity to manage his health, and became curious about how he might integrate this approach into his medical practice.Dr. Moore is now Board Certified in Lifestyle Medicine, and he teaches, and practices, Lifestyle Medicine at George Washington University. He is also an advocate for the integration of nutrition into healthcare, or "food as medicine", and he and I first met while visiting Capitol Hill to advocate for these policies. Dr. Moore in a high integrity physician, who leads by example and cares deeply about the future of health. In this conversation, he shares a vision for how Lifestyle Medicine could transform the way medicine is practiced in the US, and how policy could play a role in promoting this transformation. For more information about Dr. Brad Moore- https://gwdocs.com/profile/brad-mooreFor more information on Lifestyle Medicine, and to find a Lifestyle Medicine doctor near you- https://lifestylemedicine.orgFollow Marian on Instagram- @marianffConnect with Marian on LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/Work with Marian- www.marianflaxman.comMore information on our sponsor- www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast! On today's episode, a conversation with Melissa L Jones, aka The Edible Activist. Back in the early 2000's, Melissa had an experience that changed her entire perspective on food and health. In her words, she realized she had been "duped" by the food system. This experience started her on a journey of understanding where her food comes from, how it is produced, who is involved in the food system, and how it is impacting her health, the health of her loved ones, and the health of the planet. It also sent her down a path that would lead her to create a podcast focused on the intersection of food and social justice- The Edible Activist Podcast.Melissa is an activist who is as passionate as she is informed, and she is a gifted interviewer and conversationalist. Her podcast has reached nearly 200 episodes, and she has interviewed farmers, food producers, business owners, and policy makers. In today's conversation, she shares about some of her favorite podcast episodes, how her journey began, why she is so passionate about bringing people of color into the food justice conversation, and how thinking about food more deeply has shaped her life. Find Melissa and her podcast on Instagram- @edibleactivistTo listen to The Edible Activist Podcast, including the episodes discussed on today's episode, please click hereLearn more about Marian and connect- www.marianflaxman.comFollow Marian on Instagram- @marianffLearn more about our sponsor- www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to the Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. On today's episode, Marian speaks with Kristin Sukys, a strategist and consultant who has spent nearly a decade working on the development of food as medicine policies. Kristin once thought she wanted to be a doctor, and her desire to help and heal people has led her down various paths, including forays into working with food, agriculture, and eventually policy. She has been able to combine her education and interests into meaningful and impactful work, at the forefront of figuring out how to integrate nutrition and food access into health care.For more information on Kristin and her work in the "food is medicine" policy landscape, visit www.fimstrategies.comFor more information on Marian, please visit www.marianflaxman.comFor more information on our sponsor, please visit www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to the Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. On today's episode, Marian speaks with Dr. Janel Gordon, MD. Dr. Gordon is Board Certified in Family Medicine, Obesity Medicine, and Lifestyle Medicine, and she is also the medical expert for WISH-TV.Dr. Gordon always knew that she wanted to be a doctor, but it wasn't until medical school that she chose family medicine. As she witnessed the many factors that impact a person's health, she saw that treating the whole family could be more beneficial to her patients than trying to treat them in isolation, without any knowledge of how their relationships and home life were contributing to their health. Following this approach, and allowing her patients' questions lead the way, she found herself more interested than ever in the role that nutrition plays in health.In this episode, Dr. Gordon shares so much about her experience as a physician, and also about her journey as a curious person who is always willing to ask questions, do further research, and try new things. She shares stories of times when a patient's question, and her subsequent research, caused her to totally change her mind, as well as her own diet.Finally, Dr. Gordon talks about public health, and the role that policy, and people, can and should play in creating a healthcare and food system that work for all of us.For more information on Dr. Janel Gordon, please visit https://www.linkedin.com/in/drjanelgordon/To learn more about her work with WISH-TV, please visit https://www.wishtv.com/news/getting-to-know-dr-janel-gordon-wish-tvs-new-medical-expert/To learn more about Marian, visit www.marianflaxman.comConnect with Marian: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/To learn more about our sponsor, visit www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to the Marian Flaxman Network! On today's episode, Marian speaks with Emily Callahan RD MPH. Emily is a consultant working in the "food is medicine" research and policy development space. he currently works with the Food is Medicine Institute at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University to advance the conversation about integrating food and nutrition into health care.As a kid, Emily loved to read, write, and perform. She imagined that she might become an author, or perhaps an actress. However, she also loved pouring over nutrition and physiology textbooks, and learned at an early age that eating well had the power to improve a person's overall health. She found herself on a path to becoming a dietitian, and soon learned that by getting involved in advocacy and policy, she could reach more people than would typically be reached in a 1-1 clinical relationship.Emily is a devoted mom to 4 young kids, and she and Marian discuss the ups and downs of juggling an exciting career in a field you are truly passionate about, while also carving out the time and attention to be a present mom and wife.For more information on Emily, please visit https://www.linkedin.com/in/emily-a-callahan-mph-rdn-250a9a7/For more information on the exciting work Emily is doing with Tufts, please visit https://tuftsfoodismedicine.orgFor more information on Marian, please visit www.marianflaxman.comFor more information on our sponsor, please visit www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast! We are kicking off season two, committed as always to reintroducing personal narratives into critical public health topics.Perhaps the most critical public health topic, broadly speaking, is food. Food touches so many areas of human life and society. It fuels our bodies, provides the building blocks for our minds, entertains us, drives the economy, and contributes to human health and disease. The way we grow and process food also impacts the climate, and environmental pollution. Laborers are exploited in the food system, plastic waste is created for the food system, and antibiotic resistance is driven, in part, by the use of antibiotics within the food system. Food is the epicenter of public health.This season, we will speak with chefs, policy pros, doctors, dietitians, farmers, and others who work at the intersection of human and planetary health, and food. We will hear from doctors who prescribe food as medicine, and from activists who promote healthy food access for all. Throughout these conversations, we will learn how food is more than "just food", and how we cannot tackle the topic of improving public health without talking about the changes that need to be made to the systems that support us, starting with how we grow and distribute food. In this episode, Marian introduces season two, the complexities of the food system, and discusses how everything is connected.To learn more about Marian, visit www.MarianFlaxman.comFor more information on Marian's consulting group, Informed Solutions, visit www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. On today's episode, Marian speaks with the Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer at Viome Life Sciences, Momo Vuyisich. When he was in graduate school, Momo struggled with a mysterious autoimmune disease. He realized that doctors and drugs did not offer him any solutions and, empowered by his background in scientific research, got curious about the role that the gut microbiome was playing in his illness. He then went on to work for more than a decade as a researcher at Los Alamos National Laboratory, where he and his team made discoveries about how to analyze and identify components of the microbiome, their interactions, and their functions.Understanding the power of this technology, and seeing the potential to shift the healthcare landscape and help millions of people, Momo founded Viome, a company that empowers consumers to understand and improve their health. On this episode, Marian and Momo talk about the role of the microbiome in health, and about the importance and complexity of diet-microbiome interactions. They discuss how companies like Viome can help bring clarity to the often confusing advice to "eat healthy", and about their shared experiences overcoming autoimmune disease by reconditioning their microbiomes and tailoring their diets, As they look ahead to the future of health, Marian and Momo talk about Viome's latest products, which are designed to promote the health of the oral microbiome, and Momo explains the role that the oral microbiome plays in total-body health and disease.For more information about Marian, please visit www.marianflaxman.comFollow the Podcast on Instagram - @themarianflaxmannetworkTo learn more about Viome, please visit www.viome.comFollow Viome on Instagram- @viomeProduced by - @lucasashbysbraintrustSponsored by- www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to the Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. On today's episode, Marian speaks with the founder and owner of Simple Kneads Gluten Free Sourdough Bread, Tristaun LeClaire.As a child, Tristaun faced a series of traumatic setbacks that led him to feel angry at the world. He turned to self-indulgent, self-destructive behaviors as a coping mechanism, before having a wakeup call that changed the course of his life.When his first son was born, Tristaun experienced another wakeup call, when he realized that his plant-based diet was not working for his son's body, and the whole family would need to go gluten free. Scouring the grocery store shelves for a healthy gluten free bread option, Tristaun was horrified by what he found- sugar-filled, fiber-depleted junk foods that did not align with the diet he wanted to feed his family. So, he began to innovate. After many long hours in the kitchen, Simple Kneads was born.Marian and Tristaun discuss the issues with the current food system, and related issues in the healthcare system. They also address the many challenges faced by small businesses, and why "carbs" are not inherently problematic until they are heavily refined.For more information on Tristaun and his company, Simple Kneads, please visit: https://www.simplekneads.comTo read the Simple Truths Blog, please visit: https://www.simplekneads.com/simple-truths/Follow Simple Kneads on Instagram: @simplekneads_gfFollow Marian on Instagram: @marianffConnect with Marian on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman

Welcome back to the Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. Today's guest is Gabriele Nicolet, a professional speech language pathologist and parenting coach, and the host of the Complicated Kids podcast. This conversation brings together nutrition and neurological function, behavior and survival instincts, and discussions about walking a winding path through life, and finding your passion and purpose. Gabriele was a French major in college, passionate about language learning and communication. Ultimately, that passion for communicating with others led her to return to school to train as a speech language pathologist, working with young children who are struggling to communicate with those around them. During her time in this field, Gabriele has witnessed remarkable changes and advances, including the growing understanding of the role that neurological function plays in speech development, and the role that the gut microbiome plays in neurological function. For more information on Gabriele and her impactful work, please visit: https://www.speechkids.com/ For Gabriele's broader coaching business, please visit: https://www.raisingorchidkids.com/ Follow Gabriele on Instagram- @speechkidsdc Follow Marian on Instagram- @marianff Connect with Marian on LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/ Learn more about our sponsor: www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast, a podcast dedicated to reintroducing personal narratives into critical public health topics. On today's episode, a conversation about consumer product safety with "professional myth buster" Keith Rhoades. When Keith was a kid, he knew that he either wanted to be an astronaut, or a product safety professional. Grounded here on earth, he has thrown himself into an exciting and productive career in product safety. With a degree in engineering, he landed his first job in the realm of toy safety, and found a career that captured his interest, his skills, and his desire to make the world a safer place.Keith is the founder of the Global Injury Research Collaborative (https://www.globalirc.org), a non-profit dedicated to injury prevention through education, outreach, and research activities. As a platform, GIRC enables medical professionals to anonymously report relevant details of injuries that occur in their patients, which supports injury prevention research.Keith is also one of the minds behind a mentorship program for future consumer product safety professionals, run by ICPHSO, or the International Consumer Product Health and Safety Organization (https://icphso.org/). Through this program, Keith has establish relationships with colleges across the country, finding students who are passionate about design, engineering, safety, and public health, and connecting them with the consumer product safety industry. It was through this mentorship program that Marian and Keith first connected, and realized their shared passion for promoting health and safety. Connect with Keith on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithrhoades/ Connect with Marian on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/ Follow Marian on Instagram- @marianff Learn more about our sponsor- https://www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. On today's episode, a conversation with author and researcher, Dr. Ian Myles, MD, MPH. Dr. Myles runs a lab at NIH where he investigates the link between environmental contaminants, the skin microbiome, and eczema. He is a trained allergist and immunologist, who also has a fascination with the nervous system, and during this conversation he details many of the ways that those two systems connect and overlap. Additionally, he discusses the many issues that he sees with the field of population genetics research. This type of research has become a favorite of the media, who splash headlines that seem to connect genetics with all sorts of attributes, from intellect to food preferences. However, this type of research often lacks the basic scientific controls expected of all other research, and shades uncomfortably close to racist and eugenicist tropes about genetic pre-determinism. In this conversation, Marian and Dr. Myles discuss his book, Gattaca Has Fallen, dive into some especially troubling examples of this type of "research", and highlight the ethical issues with funding this field.For more information on Dr Ian Myles, visit https://www.niaid.nih.gov/research/ian-myles-md-mphTo purchase his book, Gattaca Has Fallen, go to https://amzn.to/44NafheFollow Marian on Instagram @marianffConnect with Marian on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/Learn more about the work of our sponsor www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. Today's episode is a quick introduction to "food as medicine". Have you heard this phrase circulating in the news, across social media, or on previous episodes of this podcast? What does it mean? Who does it impact? Why is Marian so passionate about this topic? The answers to these questions, and much more, can be found within this brief episode. On May 9th and 10th, Marian is co-chairing the first ever Food as Medicine Conference at Georgetown University School of Medicine, with a special focus on the role of fermented foods, and the microbiome. The event is free of charge, and can be accessed online. Click here to register!Connect with Marian on LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/Follow Marian on Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/marianff/Learn more about our sponsor- www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast! On today's episode, a conversation with Taylor Winkleman, MPH, DVM. Dr. Winkleman is a military veteran, and a doctor of veterinary medicine. She is passionate about making the world a better place, and she achieves this mission through a wide variety of personal and professional means. As a consultant, she works for organizations such as the WHO, developing policies that promote global health. As a professor, she teaches students how to write and advocate for evidence-based policies. As a mentor, she supports and nurtures the next generation of scientists, policy makers, and leaders. She is also a gifted public speaker, who shares her wisdom and knowledge so eloquently throughout this conversation. There is something for everyone in this episode, and if you're wondering what to do next in your life- this one is especially for you.For more information about our guest, Dr. Taylor Winkleman, and her passion for science policy, please visit https://www.thevannevargroup.orgConnect with Dr. Winkleman on LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/taylor-winkleman-94a46814/For more information about our host, Marian, please visit www.marianflaxman.comConnect with Marian on LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/Follow Marian on Instagram- @marianffFor more information about our sponsor, please visit www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast! On this episode, Marian speaks with Dr. Sona Vasudevan, the Program Director of the Systems Medicine master's program at Georgetown University. They discuss Dr. Vasudevan's background, including her lifelong interest in science, and how her journey through education, research, and life, brought her to the DC area, and to Georgetown. She explains the concept of "Systems Medicine", and how it relates to other popular health topics like "functional" medicine and "precision" medicine. She also shares about her personal passion for nutrition, the microbiome, and traditional practices such as acupuncture and Ayurveda.Dr. Vasudevan is a wealth of knowledge and wisdom, and she generously shares her thoughts, experiences, and insight throughout this episode, weaving together personal stories with fascinating scientific information. Although many people believe that "personalized medicine" and "public health" are at odds with each other, Marian and Sona discuss the many ways in which these frameworks overlap, and how they can be used to support and benefit each other.For more information on studying with Dr. Vasudevan and the master's degree in Systems Medicine, please visit https://systemsmedicine.georgetown.eduIf you have any questions or comments for Dr. Vasudevan, you can email her at sv67@georgetown.eduFollow Marian on Instagram @marianffConnect with Marian on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/Learn more about the work of our sponsor www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to the Marian Flaxman Network Podcast!On today's episode, Marian speaks with political strategist, foreign policy expert, and former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Joel Rubin. Joel fell in love with history, politics, and policy at a young age, spending time in the library researching world events while most kids were home watching cartoons. Raised in Pittsburgh, PA, his family had roots in both NYC and Israel, and he saw himself as a global citizen from a young age, and doubled down on this identity when he joined the Peace Corps after college. Joel has since worked in the Obama White House, run for Congress twice, and served on his Town Council. He is also a father of three, and has a loving, bipartisan marriage in which he, a registered Democrat, and his wife, a registered Republican, bring their love and mutual respect into challenging conversations.In this episode, we talk about many difficult topics- abortion access, the war between Israel and Palestine, freedom and democracy, and the role that stress plays in the bipartisan divide. Joel brings decades of experience and wisdom to critical public health topics, and also shares his own personal experience with the insurance gaps he discovered when he was unexpectedly diagnosed with a brain tumor.For more information on Joel, please visit www.joelrubin.netFollow Joel on Social Media - @joelmrubinFor more information on Marian, please visit www.marianflaxman.comFollow Marian on Instagram - @marianffConnect with Marian on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/Learn more about our sponsor- www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to the Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. What do farmers worry about, and what is the relationship between agricultural policy, nutrition access, and the health of society? Over the course of this episode, you will hear interviews with three people who work intimately within the food and agriculture space. Heather Sanford is a former full-time farmer, who now works as a consultant and advocate, helping farmers and sustainable food businesses succeed. James Black is the CEO of GivLyfe, a soil microbiome company that helps farmers restore and protect the health of their soil, and the future of their farms. Katherine Carestio is a cattle farmer located in the Finger Lakes region of New York. She and her husband bought land that was overrun with invasive species, and transformed it into a productive farm with the help of ruminant animals and holistic land management. Their farm produces grass-fed beef and partners with other local businesses to improve the food security of their community, while also growing the local economy. These lived-experience experts share their insight alongside their own struggles and concerns, and also discuss the farm bill, or the bulk of legislation that allocates funding and other resources to farmers in the United States. Citing numerous sources, Marian discusses issues with the farm bill, including how it fails to support the needs of the growing "food as medicine" movement, and what might be done to rethink and reform it. Finally, Marian and her guests share their thoughts on what the average citizen can do to support the future of farms, food, and health in America. For a list of references used in today's episode, please see the extended show notes, found here.For more information on Heather, please visit https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-sandford/For more information on James and his work, please visit https://givlyfe.com/For more information on Katherine and her farm, please visit https://www.backbonefarm.org/ For more information on Marian, please visit www.marianflaxman.comFollow Marian on Instagram- @marianffFollow the show on Youtube- @TheMarianFlaxmanNetworkConnect with Marian on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/For more information on our sponsor, please visit www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to The Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. Today, 2/21, is World Kombucha Day, and we are celebrating by wrapping up a three part series of episodes about kombucha, and the people who produce and promote it. Today's conversation is with Hannah Crum, the founder of Kombucha Kamp and Kombucha Brewers International.Hannah dives into her history with kombucha, explains why she is so passionate about fermented foods, and examines the role that kombucha, and other live-cultured foods, play in public health, including improving digestive health, promoting robust immunity, and boosting mood. Never ones to stick to the small picture, Hannah and Marian zoom out, discussing how we can learn from live-cultured foods, and how we can use our understanding of our co-dependence on microbes to reframe our understanding of ourselves as humans.For more information on Hannah Crum, and her work, please visit www.kombuchakamp.comFor more information about KBI, the kombucha brewers trade union, please visit www.kombuchabrewers.orgFollow Hannah on Instagram - @kombuchakampFollow KBI on Instagram - @kombuchabrewersFor more information on Marian please visit www.marianflaxman.comFollow Marian on Instagram- @marianffConnect with Marian on LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/For more information on our sponsor please visit www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com

Welcome back to the Marian Flaxman Network Podcast. Keeping with our February theme of kombucha producers leading up to World Kombucha Day on 2/21, today's episode features a conversation with the owner and brewer at Boochy Call Kombucha, Eric Kelchlin. Eric was an avid beer brewer until he realized that he had developed a dangerous addiction, and needed to quit drinking completely. He got sober, and fell in love with kombucha as a replacement beverage, and hobby. After receiving a ton of positive feedback about the palatability of his brew, Eric decided to take the plunge and open his own kombucha company. He now serves kombucha to his community, selling at farmers markets, through door to door delivery, and his kombucha is on tap at local bars and restaurants. In this conversation, Marian and Eric tackle many topics that are critical to public health, including access to nutritious foods and the health benefits of fermented foods, mental health, addiction, potential improvements to local food systems, and how public health professionals and healthy food producers could shift their communication strategies so that people feel drawn into health conversations, rather than rejected by them. For more information on Marian please visit www.marianflaxman.comFollow Marian on Instagram- @marianff Connect with Marian on LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/marian-flaxman/ For more information on Eric Kelchlin and his company, Boochy Call Kombucha, please visit https://boochycall.com/ Follow Boochy Call on Instagram @boochy_call_kombucha For more information on our sponsor please visit www.informedsolutionsconsulting.com