In this special 800th episode, Monica takes a look back at how much nutrition science has changed since the podcast started in 2008. From low-carb diets and the protein craze to the rise of the microbiome and personalized nutrition, she breaks down the biggest trends and what they mean for the future.
In this special 800th episode, Monica takes a look back at how much nutrition science has changed since the podcast started in 2008. From low-carb diets and the protein craze to the rise of the microbiome and personalized nutrition, she breaks down the biggest trends and what they mean for the future.
Hello and welcome to the Nutrition Diva podcast. I’m your host, Monica Reinagel, and when we launched this podcast back in 2008, I never imagined I’d still be here 16 years and 800 episodes later. It’s been such a great challenge and privilege to be in this role, helping you make sense of nutrition science, sift through diet trends, and build a healthier relationship with food.
Over these years, I think my approach and philosophy has stayed relatively consistent—it’s always been about cutting through the noise to zero in on the things that actually matter, and translate them into practical advice. But the world of nutrition science? That’s a different story. We’ve come a long way, baby.
So today, to mark this milestone, I want to take a look back at five of the most profound shifts in how we understand food, health, and nutrition since this podcast began–starting with the rise and fall of low carb diets.
In 2008, low-carb diets were all the rage. Atkins, who originally put low-carb dieting on the map, had been joined by other low-carb diets like the South Beach Diet and the Dukan Diet. And the ketogenic diet was beginning to make waves. The idea of cutting carbs to lose weight and improve health was incredibly compelling to many people—and in some cases, effective.
In an interesting side note, a recent study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics found that among people who say they follow a low-carb diet, when you actually analyze their dietary records, fewer than 2% of them actually do. So, while it once seemed like everyone was on a low-carb diet back then—in reality, almost no one actually was.
Fast forward to today, and while keto still has its devotees, low-carb diets have largely fallen out of favor. But they’ve left their mark on the way we think about food—and not necessarily in a positive way. One lingering misconception from the low-carb era is the way we use the word 'carbs' to refer almost exclusively to starchy foods like bread and potatoes. In fact, some of the healthiest foods in our diets—fruits and vegetables—are virtually 100% carbohydrates. We’re still working on rehabilitating that word (and nutrient) from the low carb days.
Another big shift over the last 16 years has been the rise of protein from a background player or afterthought to center stage. In 2008, protein was seen as important for athletes and bodybuilders, but for the average person, it wasn’t a major concern.
Today, we have a greater appreciation for the essential role that protein plays, not just in building muscle but for healthy aging, metabolism, appetite control, and even bone health. We now recognize that getting adequate protein, particularly as we age, is crucial for maintaining muscle mass and preventing frailty. There are even researchers petitioning the government to increase the recommended daily allowance for protein for certain populations.
The focus on protein has predictably led to an explosion of high-protein snacks, shakes, and fortified foods. And, it's gotten pretty ridiculous: you can now buy high protein water, coffee, even beer! But the protein craze has also run head-long into another major trend: the move toward plant-based or plant-forward eating for environmental or ethical reasons.
Now, it is absolutely possible to meet your protein needs with plant-based sources. However, plant-based sources of protein generally deliver significantly less protein--and more calories--per serving. It can also take more total plant-based protein to equal the higher biological availability of animal-based proteins. So, those trying to leverage the advantages of a higher protein diet on a strictly plant-based diet will definitely have to do a little more planning than those who are willing to incorporate animal sources, which can also include eggs, dairy, in addition to meat, poultry, and fish.
While I think the current protein craze will eventually calm down a bit (it's hard to believe that high protein beer is really here to stay), I think our expanded appreciation of protein's role in a healthy diet--particularly for older individuals and others at risk of muscle loss--is here to stay.
Another huge shift in the way we think about diet and nutrition has been the explosion of research and interest in the microbiome. My own nutrition education (in the aughts) focused primarily on how food interacted with our bodies: our metabolism, our digestive system, our organs, and tissues. The idea that food might also be affecting trillions of microbes living in our gut--and that they, in turn, were basically running the show--wasn’t really part of the conversation.
Today, we understand that our microbiome plays a crucial role in digestion, immunity, metabolism, and even mental health. We also now recognize that what we eat has a direct impact on the health and composition of these microbial communities. And this has completely changed how we think about certain foods.
For example, we used to look at fiber mostly in terms of its effects on digestion and regularity. Now, we understand that fiber is actually food for beneficial gut bacteria—helping them thrive and, in turn, supporting our overall health. And what foods are highest in fiber? Fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains—all of which happen to be carbohydrate-rich foods.
In fact, this may have been one of the final nails in the low-carb coffin. As our appreciation for gut health grew, so did our awareness that carbohydrate foods are the sole source of fiber—a critical component of a healthy microbiome. Suddenly, cutting out entire food groups didn’t seem like such a great idea anymore.
The rise of the microbiome has also driven interest in probiotics, fermented foods, and even personalized nutrition based on gut bacteria analysis. While some of these trends are grounded in solid science, others have outpaced the research and become overhyped. Not every probiotic supplement is helpful. Not every gut microbiome test can provide meaningful insights. But the fundamental shift remains: our understanding of nutrition now goes beyond just how nutrients affect our tissues to how our food affects the ecosystem inside us.
And speaking of personalized nutrition, this is another realm that has been utterly transformed in the time I've been doing this podcast. Sixteen years ago, personalized nutrition centered around things like the Blood Type Diet or those somewhat silly plans that were based on whether you were shaped like an apple or a pear.
Fast forward to today, and the concept of personalized nutrition has become much more sophisticated—at least in theory. Advances in genetic testing, microbiome analysis, and continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) have made it possible to collect vast amounts of individualized data. The promise is that by analyzing this data, we can tailor diets to optimize health, prevent disease, and even improve athletic performance.
While there’s exciting potential in these technologies, the reality is that much of personalized nutrition is still in its infancy. Direct-to-consumer DNA tests may tell you whether you have a genetic variant that affects how you metabolize caffeine or store fat, but they offer very little in terms of actionable dietary changes that would dramatically improve your health. Similarly, while CGMs can provide interesting insights into how different foods impact blood sugar levels in various scenarios, they’re being marketed to populations that don’t have diabetes, in ways that may not be particularly useful.
Similarly, the idea that we can (or should) be tailoring diets based on a microbiological analysis of a stool sample is still far ahead of the science. The composition of the gut microbiome fluctuates daily, and we’re still learning what a truly “optimal” microbiome looks like--much less how to manipulate it.
That’s not to say personalized nutrition isn’t valuable—it absolutely can be, especially for managing certain conditions or optimizing athletic performance. And I don't doubt that these technologies will continue to evolve in ways that might make them much more useful in the future. But right now, I think that we're a little bit out over our skis on this.
And the final change that I want to mention may be the most impactful of all. Sixteen years ago, obesity was primarily framed as a lifestyle issue, something that could be solved with the right combination of willpower, diet, and exercise. While we certainly recognized that genetics and metabolism played a role, the prevailing narrative was that weight loss was simply a matter of eating less and moving more.
Today, our understanding of and approach to obesity has been completely transformed by the rise of GLP-1 receptor agonists—drugs like Wegovy and Mounjaro. These medications, which help regulate appetite and metabolism, have not only been a game changer for people who have struggled for years to lose weight and keep it off. They've also transformed our understanding of obesity as a complex, chronic disease.
Obesity rates declined for the first time ever. Snack food companies and fast-food operations are seeing a decline in sales. And the list of other medical conditions that may be positively impacted by these mediations includes everything from kidney disease to sleep apnea to alcohol use disorder. I can't really think of another pharmaceutical advance in my lifetime that has had this scale or scope of impact--one that we're still too close to fully appreciate.
I suspect that we are entering a period where we're going to be seeing a lot more innovations that will profoundly transform our understanding and approach to nutrition and health. For example, I think we are going to see the emergence of ground-breaking new food technologies--things like lab-cultured meats, bioengineered fats, even 3-D printed foods.
These kinds of things may sound futuristic (or even a bit unwholesome) to us now. But on a rapidly warming and increasingly crowded planet, these types of technological breakthroughs could play a key role in creating a more sustainable and secure food future.
Either way, as this brave new world unfolds, we'll navigate it together. Thanks for being along for the ride--especially those of you who have been listening since episode 1! I'll be back next week with episode #801.
If you’d like to find out about having me speak at your live or virtual event, check out my new website at wellnessworkshere.com
Nutrition Diva is a Quick and Dirty Tips podcast. Our team includes Brannan Goetschius, Nathan Semes, Davina Tomlin, Holly Hutchings, and Morgan Christianson.and Nathaniel Hoopes.