Supplement safety is often discussed in very general terms, but in practice the risks depend heavily on the individual. A supplement that is reasonable for one person may be inappropriate for another based on their medications, health conditions, dose, formulation, or the other products they are already using.

This becomes especially important when supplements interact with medications or underlying medical conditions. Some interactions can change how a drug is absorbed, metabolised, transported, or cleared from the body. Others can amplify or oppose the drug's clinical effect, such as increasing sedation, lowering blood pressure or blood glucose, or affecting bleeding risk.

In this episode, Giulia Guerrini, a GPhC-registered pharmacist and researcher at Examine, talks about how clinicians and practitioners can think more systematically about supplement safety, side effects, contraindications, and drug–supplement interactions.

• [02:39] Interview start
• [05:21] Why context matters
• [06:38] Timing and formulation
• [12:58] Rating interaction risk
• [22:39] Berberine benefits and interactions
• [27:33] Adaptogens quality concerns
• [30:15] Melatonin safety questions
• [36:30] Stacking supplements risks
• [41:50] Quality control and regulation
• [55:35] Key ideas segment (premium-only)

Links:

• Free trial of Examine Clinician Edition – For health & nutrition professionals. Includes the Supplement Navigator (safety and interaction checking), plus all other Examine tools (study summaries, supplement database, in-depth guides, etc.)
• Free trial of Examine+ – For anyone wanting to make evidence-based decisions about supplements and health. Includes: 100+ study summaries a month. The full supplement database. In-depth guides. ExamineAI. Doesn't include the Supplement Navigator.
• Go to episode page
• Subscribe to Sigma Nutrition Premium

In nutrition and health coaching, one of the central challenges is understanding how people actually change, particularly when life is complex, motivation fluctuates, and behaviour is shaped by emotion, identity, environment, and relationships.

In this episode, Dr. Krista Scott-Dixon discusses the human skills that underpin effective coaching practice. We discuss the importance of the coach–client relationship, the role of therapeutic alliance, and how concepts from counselling and psychology can be used appropriately within scope of practice.

The discussion also explores autonomy-supportive coaching, self-regulation, compassion, acceptance, feedback, and the meta-skills practitioners need in order to improve over time.

• [06:10] What makes a competent practitioners?
• [11:17] Scope of practice line
• [17:49] Therapeutic alliance
• [23:33] Applying compassion and acceptance
• [31:18] LLMs vs human connection
• [34:40] Meta skills for practitioners
• [38:51] Getting better feedback
• [44:23] Collaboration and autonomy
• [55:44] Key ideas recap

Links:

• Go to episode page
• Join the Sigma newsletter for free
• Subscribe to Sigma Nutrition Premium
• Enroll in the next cohort of our Applied Nutrition Literacy course
• Past episode #326: Adaptability & Autonomy in the Nutrition Coaching Process
• Krista's website: kristascottdixon.com
• Instagram: @stumptuous
• 1% Better Academy
• The textbook: Applied Nutrition Coaching and Counseling:
  • ebook version
  • US
  • Canada
  • UK
  • International

Electrolytes have become one of the most heavily marketed areas of modern sports nutrition and wellness. What was once a relatively specific tool for certain endurance athletes has increasingly been reframed as an everyday requirement for hydration, energy, focus, productivity, and general health optimisation.

But how much of this messaging is grounded in physiology, and how much is an example of industry taking a real mechanism and extending it far beyond the evidence?

In this episode, we examine why many common use cases are unlikely to require an electrolyte product. Along the way, we explore how wellness marketing, biohacking culture, diet communities, and social media narratives can turn narrow sports nutrition applications into broad claims that many people come to accept as true.

To discuss this topic, Danny is joined by Zoe Rom, a science and environmental journalist, and Kylee Van Horn, a sports dietitian, to discuss how these claims are shaped by marketing, culture, and the attention economy.

Timestamps:

• [04:00] Interview start

• [07:03] Wellness industry rebrand

• [09:16] Electrolytes 101

• [16:02] Fear marketing and vague symptoms

• [22:50] When athletes actually need them

• [28:19] Salt fix and anti science narratives

• [33:53] Keto biohacking and identity

• [43:42] How to evaluate your need

• [48:43] Who should skip electrolytes

Links:

• Go to episode page
• Join the Sigma newsletter for free
• Subscribe to Sigma Nutrition Premium
• Enroll in the next cohort of our Applied Nutrition Literacy course
• Your Diet Sucks podcast
• Fly Nutrition – Endurance Sports Nutrition