From Netflix recommendations to tweaking the microbiome. All for a healthier life: we’re happy to share that the second season of the podcast series “(De)F√ormule”, produced by the Universiteit van Nederland and the EWUU Institute 4 Preventive Health, is now o Spotify!

In this new season, scientists from the EWUU alliance, search for the secret recipes for a healthy life. They explore current and sometimes controversial topics: from the dangers of health influencers and the workings of the microbiome to the influence of Netflix algorithms on your eating behaviour and the widening health gap. 

Listen to the episodes below (in Dutch):

“Listen to this podcast and lose 10 kilos #UvNLfluencer” 

Raw meat, “healthy” supplements and anti-wrinkle cream with… lead. Influencers on Instagram and TikTok act like they hold the ultimate key to health. But how far are they allowed to go? And what can you do if you’re harmed by following their advice? In this episode, Margje Camps and Catalina Goanta (Utrecht University) explain how influencers try to seduce you — and how you can protect yourself. 

Hay fever? Obesity? Learning difficulties? The cause might be in your gut 

In the first thousand days of your life, millions of microbes in your gut lay the foundation for your health: your microbiome. In this episode, Clara Belzer (Wageningen University & Research) explains how that microbiome develops and why it matters so much. We also visit Manon Benders (UMC Utrecht) in the neonatal ward to see how doctors care for the disrupted gut microbiome of premature babies. 

How can Netflix recommendations help you eat healthier? 

Discovering your favourite Netflix series through a recommendation? According to Martijn Willemsen (Eindhoven University of Technology), these kinds of recommendation systems can also encourage healthier choices — for example, in online supermarkets. In this episode, you’ll hear how these systems work and how Ellen van Kleef (Wageningen University & Research) tests them in real-life settings. 

Less money = less healthy. How to solve that?

 

People in vulnerable circumstances often become ill up to 25 years earlier and live an average of 8 years shorter. Scientists are doing everything they can to close this “health gap”, but research often fails to reach the people who need it most. In this episode, Carlijn Kamphuis (Utrecht University) and Margret Franssen (Wageningen University & Research) explain why. They take listeners to meet the people who help researchers make their studies better match real-life practice. 

Curious about all episodes in the series? Check out the podcast channel on Spotify.