Thinking Nutrition

If you’ve ever been stopped dead in your tracks during exercise by a muscle cramp, you know you’ll try almost anything to make it stop. There have been countless theories and remedies put forward to explain and treat a dreaded muscle cramp, but science still has a bit of catching up to do. But there is one particular treatment that has been gaining traction by athletes as a secret weapon to treat cramps. And it is one that sounds more like a pregnancy craving than a sports supplement: it is pickle juice. Is this just another passing fad, or is there actual science behind downing a shot of pickle brine to uncramp a muscle? In this podcast episode, I’ll cut through the noise to look at the evidence and the surprising mechanism of how it may work and spoiler alert: it has nothing to do with electrolytes.
Links referred to in the podcast
Pickle juice ingestion in electrically induced muscle cramps  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19997012
AIS fact sheet on pickle juice https://www.ausport.gov.au/ais/nutrition/supplements/group_b/tastants/transient-receptor-potential-channel-agonists
Episode transcript
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Athletes are always on the lookout for a new sports supplement that could give them an edge. And there certainly are some sports supplements that deliver on their promises: creatine and caffeine are two clear examples. But a new supplement is starting to gain traction for its performance benefits: and that’s the humble mushroom. There's now emerging science suggesting that certain functional mushrooms, particularly the varieties of Cordyceps and reishi (also known as Ganoderma lucidum), may offer genuine benefits for endurance, recovery and immune function in athletes. In this podcast, I unpack the research behind these fungal supplements to see what's real, what's hype and whether these mushrooms deserve a spot in your supplement arsenal.
Links referred to in the podcast
Review of the effect of mushroom supplementation on performance in athletes https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1670416/full
Episode transcript
To access the full episode transcript, go to the following link and select the individual podcast episode and then click on the ‘Transcript’ tab https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com
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If hearing that athletes are downing shots of beetroot juice to improve their performance makes you exclaim: “What sorcery is this?”, you’re not alone. But this isn’t just another passing fad - there’s some solid science showing that the nitrates found in beetroot juice can boost sports performance. From improving blood flow to enhancing muscle efficiency, beetroot juice has gained traction among endurance athletes and sprinters alike. In this podcast episode, I take a dive into what the research says about this vibrant supplement, its likely benefits, and what it might mean for your performance goals.
Links referred to in the podcast
IOC consensus statement on dietary supplements and the high-performance athlete https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/52/7/439
Review of beetroot juice and physical performance https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40573069
Sports Dietitians Australia  www.sportsdietitians.com.au
Episode transcript
To access the full episode transcript, go to the following link and select the individual podcast episode and then click on the ‘Transcript’ tab https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com
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Cinnamon is a spice that has been used around the world for thousands of years. In addition to its use as a culinary ingredient, cinnamon contains bioactive compounds that have attracted attention for their potential health effects. One of these effects is how it can influence blood sugar levels which could have relevance for people with diabetes. In this podcast episode, I’ll look at what the clinical trials have to say on how cinnamon may help people with diabetes to keep their blood sugar levels under better control.
Links referred to in the podcast
Review of cinnamon supplementation on metabolic markers in people with T2DM https://academic.oup.com/nutritionreviews/article-abstract/83/2/249/7699031
Episode transcript
To access the full episode transcript, go to the following link and select the individual podcast episode and then click on the ‘Transcript’ tab https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com
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Have you heard any of the buzz about NAD supplements? NAD is a molecule found in nearly every cell and sits at the heart of energy production and DNA repair. Our levels of NAD though can decline with age which has led to the idea that this could be one cause of many age-related diseases, chronic inflammation and cognitive decline. Enter the idea of boosting NAD levels by supplementing with NAD itself or its precursors called NMN and NR. A surface level reading of this topic will soon bring someone across all sorts of claims about benefits including extending lifespan, improving metabolic health and many more. In this podcast episode, I explain what these NAD family of molecules are and critique the clinical evidence to see how it stacks up in front of the health claims.
Links referred to in the podcast
Review of effect of NR supplementation in humans https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adi4862
Review of NMN and NR supplementation on muscle mass and function https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12022230
Episode transcript
To access the full episode transcript, go to the following link and select the individual podcast episode and then click on the ‘Transcript’ tab https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com
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X CroweTim