Please note: This is the last episode in this season as I’m taking a break from the podcast while I move back to the UK. If you’d like to get in touch please find me at @holistichealingproject or via my website

www.drlaurenmacdonald.com

In this episode we discuss:

-     What we mean by Integrative Medicine

-     Dani’s journey to working with cannabis

-     The endocannabinoid system in the human body

-     The cannabis plant and key cannabinoids including CBD and THC

-     The various uses for industrial hemp

-     Current indications for medical cannabis eg. chronic pain, epilepsy, MS, chemotherapy-related nausea etc

-     The challenges prescribers in the UK currently face

-     Cannabis and cancer

-     Over-the-counter CBD, potential uses and the wellness industry

-     Dani’s new book The CBD Bible [out now]

-     And so much more…

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this rapidly growing industry. Have you tried CBD oil? Let me know @holistichealingproject.

Find out more about Dani at: www.drdanigordon.com and @drdanigordon.

The CBD Bible is available to buy at all good bookshops now. Please support local booksellers whenever possible.

A Fascinate Productions podcast

In this episode we discuss:

-    Julian’s journey from physiotherapist to oyster mushroom farmer

-    The process of setting up urban mushroom farms using coffee waste

-    Key medicinal mushrooms [AKA functional mushrooms] including chaga, turkey tail, lions mane and reishi

-    How medicinal mushrooms can be used to support the immune system

-    The research showing psilocybin [“magic mushrooms”] may help reduce depression and anxiety in terminally-ill cancer patients

-    Mushrooms as a planet-friendly meat replacement

-    The importance of soil health and regenerative agriculture

-    Mycelium biotechnology and the circular economy business model

-    The ethos behind Life Cykel and advice for would-be business owners

-    And so much more…

Please note: Where possible I advocate for a whole-foods diet rather than using supplements. Mushrooms are among the few natural sources of dietary vitamin D - essential for maintaining overall health, especially for bones, teeth and muscle. A simple hack for increasing the vitamin D content in your culinary mushrooms is to place them on a windowsill in the sunshine for 15 minute before cooking. Culinary mushrooms like shiitake are nutritionally rich and may support the immune system but mushrooms alone are not a cure-all . Instead, they should be included as a vital part of a healthy diet and lifestyle. With regards to COVID, several fungi experts, including Paul Stamets, suggest that you might want to stop using medicinal mushrooms if you get a fever and show symptoms of COVID-19. Some mushrooms may increase the production of inflammatory compounds in the lungs. These compounds are called cytokines, and the body may release them as a natural response to some polysaccharides found in fungi. Please consult a medical professional to discuss this fully if you become unwell. One last thing, please avoid eating foraged mushrooms unless they can be properly identified - some mushrooms are poisonous.

www.drlaurenmacdonald.com

Find out more about Life Cykle: https://lifecykel.com

Connect with Life Cycle on Instagram @LifeCykel

A Fascinate Productions podcast

Professor David Nutt is a neuropsychopharmacologist who has spent his career making the argument for a rational, evidence-based approach to drug policy and drug use. Since 2019 he’s also headed up the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College London alongside Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris. This episode explores the latest research in the field of psychedelics as well as the historical war on drugs and the ongoing challenges that come with studying psychedelics.

In this episode we discuss:

-    Why psychedelic research is so important

-    The War on Drugs as one of the worst examples of censorship of research in the history of science

-    How current drug policy that does not reflect the truth about the majority of illegal drugs

-    The societal impact of poorly informed drug policy

-    The therapeutic potential for a range of psychedelics

-    Psilocybin for the treatment of depression and end of life anxiety

-    LSD, MDMA and ayahuasca (DMT)

-    How psychedelics can expand our understanding of consciousness itself

-    The evidence for microdosing

-    Medicinal cannabis

-    The detrimental impact of alcohol on health

-    And so much more…

I’d love to hear how this episode lands with you. Please get in touch to let me know your thoughts @holistichealingproject.

Find out more about Drug Science: www.drugscience.com

Connect with Professor David Nutt on Twitter @ProfDavidNutt

and on The Drug Science Podcast.

Professor Nutt is Director of the Neuropsychopharmacology Unit at Imperial College London, President of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology, and Chair of the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs. He is also the current Edmund J Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology at Imperial College London.

www.drlaurenmacdonald.com

A Fascinate Productions podcast