The Queen of Fats: Omega-3

This week on How on Earth, Beth speaks with Susan Allport, an award-winning writer who has written extensively on science. They talk about her book on omega 3 fats, The Queen of Fats, namely the touted omega-3 fatty acid. These essential fats can’t be synthesized by the human body and must be obtained from our diets. The conversation ranges widely, including details as to why they are so critical to health and some of the unique evolutionary history of our species that makes them so necessary. You can find out more about these amazing molecules at Allport’s site, and read about her experiment to replace dietary omega-3 with omega-6, an experiment millions of Americans are unwittingly engaging in.
Executive Producer Susan Moran
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
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Walking Doesn’t Have to Get Old

In this week’s show Beth talks to author Annabel Streets. Her book 52 WAYS TO WALK, takes you week by week, through a smorgasbord of walks in silence, rain, mud, or wind, as well as sunshine, scents and birdsong. She explains exactly how our bodies and minds benefit from a wide mix of terrain and styles of walking. She also details when to set out alone and when to share a walk with others, and the best walking techniques for women, children, the elderly and the time-pressed. And, she presents a cornucopia of science underpinning the many physical, emotional and cognitive benefits you can reap by doing walking.

Executive Producer: Susan Moran
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Headlines: Joel Parker and Shelley Schlender

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The Science of Heartbreak

Heartbreak in Our  Bodies: (start time: 6:58) This week on How On Earth, host Susan Moran talks with science journalist Florence Williams about her newly published book, Heartbreak: A Personal and Scientific Journey, in which she goes on a quest to understand why, and how, the heartbreak she felt when her marriage fell apart was wreaking havoc on her body. The book, and this interview, also explore various methods of healing and the science behind them.

Host: Susan Moran
Engineer: Rossana Long
Headline contributors: Beth Bennett, Shelley Schlender

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The Fentanyl Epidemic: Why It’s Growing and Some Solutions

This week on How On Earth, we welcome Benita Lee who brought up the growing problem with fentanyl – a new street drug that’s killing many. Benita talks with DEA agent David Olesky about the scope of the problem and what the agency is doing to combat it. Beth talks with pharmacologist and policy maker Robert Valuck about how the drug affects the brain, causes death, and the protective effect of the blocking drug naloxone.
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Additional Contributions: Benita Lee

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Can Cattle Reduce Climate Change?

This week on How on Earth, Beth talks with Professor Fred Provenza, author of the book Nourishment: What Animals Can Teach Us about Rediscovering our Nutritional Wisdom. He returns to discuss his current venture into the utility of grazing animals in regenerating soil and reducing our carbon footprint. Yes, cows may actually reduce the rate of climate change.
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Producer: Beth Bennett

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Building Bones without Drugs

On today’s show, Beth talks with Dr John Jaquish about his novel method for treating osteoporosis, using ‘osteogenic’ loading. His method has been shown in clinical trials to build bone without drugs, and consequently without the serious side effects of these drugs. The loading method has been validated in using the classic DEXA screening method as well as blood markers such as NTX or CTX (which measure bone breakdown) and P1NP (which measures bone formation).
Show Producer: Beth Bennett

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It’s A Dog’s World!

Ever wonder what the world would be like without us humans? Professor Marc Bekoff and Jessica Pierce answer that question from a dog’s eye perspective in their book, A Dog’s World. In addition to speculating about the future of our canine friends without us, they provide a thorough and well-researched look at all aspects of dog biology.
Show Producer: Beth Bennett

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Microscopic ‘antennae’ use quantum mechanics to harvest heat energy

In this episode of How on Earth, Beth talks with Dr Amina Belkadi about her groundbreaking work developing the microscopic ‘rectennas’ (pictured here in a scanning EM photo) to harvest heat energy from their surroundings. This novel approach could revolutionize energy technology.
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Additional contribution: Shelley Schlender

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Ready for RoundUp?

Today on how on earth, Beth talks to MIT scientist Stephanie Seneff about her book, Toxic Legacy. Dr Seneff takes us on a fast paced tour of the large range of toxicities produced by glyphosate. Glyphosate is the active ingredient in Roundup, the most commonly used weedkiller in the world. Nearly 300 million pounds of glyphosate-based herbicide are sprayed on farms—and food—every year. Although the herbicide is claimed
to be safe for humans, animals, and the environment, Seneff summarizes research showing otherwise.
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett

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A New Way to Measure Aging

This week on How on Earth, Beth talks with Professor Tom LaRocca, professor in the department of Health and Exercise Science at CSU in Fort Collins. His background is in molecular biology and physiology, but he is particularly interested in translational research (using laboratory science to develop practical applications or treatments that can help people). He is especially interested in the biology of healthspan, the period of life during which we are healthy and productive, and in research on ways to increase healthspan. He talks particularly about some of his recent work which has identified genetic marks of our biological age, as opposed to our chronological age or the number of years one has under their belt. You can see his website as well as the Healthy Aging website he and his colleagues maintain.
Executive Producer:
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
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