Thriving Minds with Alberto Zandi

Doctor Tim Spector is one of the world's leading scientists in nutrition, gut health, and its relationship with the brain and overall health.

He is Professor of Genetic Epidemiology and Head of Department at King's College London, has published more than 900 scientific papers, is one of the world's most cited scientists, co-founded ZOE and is the bestselling author of multiple books on nutrition and health.

Now, Tim returns to Thriving Minds to explore what the latest science tells us about the relationship between food, our gut and our brain.

In this episode, you will learn:
• Why the food you eat affects the signals reaching your brain
• How your gut and immune system influence mood and mental health
• Why antibiotics can disrupt your gut microbiome for months or years, and when taking them is actually necessary
• Why protein, calorie counting and most supplements remain overhyped, and what matters more for long-term health
• The foods and supplements that actually can improve your gut and support your brain
• Why Dr Spector Tim has changed his mind on nutritional advice including vitamin D, and why changing your beliefs when the evidence changes is fundamental to good science

We also explore sleep, exercise, GLP-1 weight loss drugs, inflammation, children's nutrition and why looking healthy does not necessarily mean being healthy.
But this conversation is also deeply personal.

Dr Spector opens up about his mother's dementia and how watching her no longer recognise him has intensified his determination to understand what we can do earlier in life to protect our future health.

After decades studying genetics, ageing and disease, his message has become increasingly simple:
The food choices we make every day shape far more than our weight.
They shape our body, our mood and our brain.

Follow Dr. Spector:
⁠https://www.instagram.com/tim.spector/
⁠⁠https://twitter.com/timspector⁠⁠
https://www.linkedin.com/in/timspector/⁠

Dr. Spector Books:
⁠https://amzn.to/4m1KJND⁠

Follow ZOE:
⁠https://www.youtube.com/c/ZOE-health⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/zoe/⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/joinzoe1/⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@join_zoe⁠⁠https://zoe.com/zoeverse⁠

#GutHealth #Microbiome #Nutrition #HealthyEating #Wellness #TimSpector #Podcast #HealthScience #FoodMatters #ZOE #thrivingminds
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Kaspar Basse founded Joe & The Juice in Copenhagen in 2002 with a few thousand dollars and an ambition that was anything but small: he wanted to build something that could compete with Starbucks.
Two decades later, Joe & The Juice has grown into a global brand with over 500 locations and was valued at $1.8 billion in 2026.
But Kaspar believes one of the biggest mistakes companies make happens precisely when they become successful.
As businesses grow, they introduce managers, processes, controls and layers of approval to protect what they have built.
And in doing so, they can gradually remove the very thing that made them successful in the first place: culture, and quality.
Kaspar does not believe great company culture comes from music, office perks, parties or paying slightly more than your competitors.
It comes from people feeling agency, challenged, trusted, capable of improving and proud of what they do.

In this episode, you will learn:
• The real Joe & The Juice story like never shared before
• Why Kaspar believes entrepreneurs should be naively ambitious about their vision but brutally realistic about their finances
• The “Don't Blame The Weather” philosophy he used to build a culture of responsibility instead of excuses
• Why too much management and control can make great employees stop thinking like owners
• Why “hire the best people” is an incomplete strategy, and how businesses can develop ordinary people into exceptional performers
• What more than 20 years of entrepreneurship taught him about money, private equity, impatience, ambition and knowing when to step away

Kaspar also speaks unusually openly about money.
He admits that financial success has always mattered to him. Even today he is not sure he would ever know how much money is enough for him.
Yet his perspective on success has also changed.

After decades of building, he says there is something strangely liberating about recognising that most of the things we obsess over do not matter nearly as much as we think.

A great family. Great friends. Good health. And, in Kaspar's words, a wonderful restaurant in which to have a martini.

This episode will teach you many things, including; how to take responsibility for what you can control, become resourceful enough to find a way forward, and stop wasting your life blaming the weather.

Follow Jo & The Juice:
⁠https://www.instagram.com/joeandthejuice
⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/kasparjuice⁠

#ThrivingMinds #AlbertoZandi #KasparBasse #JoeAndTheJuice #Entrepreneurship #HospitalityBusiness #RestaurantIndustry #ScalingBusiness #DataDriven #LuxuryRestaurants #BusinessStrategy #StartupAdvice
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Professor Giles Yeo MBE has spent 30 years studying one of the most misunderstood questions in health: why some people feel hungrier, gain weight more easily and find it much harder to keep weight off than others.

He is Professor of Molecular Neuroendocrinology at the University of Cambridge, where his research focuses on how our genes, hormones and brain control appetite and body weight. In 2026, he was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences for his internationally recognised work on the genetics and neuroscience of obesity.

And one of his central messages challenges the way many of us think about weight.
Two people can be faced with exactly the same food, but experience very different levels of hunger, fullness and reward. Your biology does not remove personal responsibility, but it can dramatically change how difficult the same decision feels.

In this episode, you will learn:
• Why your brain actively fights weight loss, increasing hunger and changing your metabolism when you lose weight
• Why two people can eat the same food but experience completely different levels of appetite and food noise
• What calories fail to tell you about food, and why protein, fibre and ultra-processed foods affect your body differently
• How Ozempic and other GLP-1 drugs actually work, why weight often returns after stopping them, and the risks people need to understand
• Giles's simple 16:30:5 framework for eating enough protein and fibre to lose weight while reducing free sugar without obsessing over individual meals

Giles also speaks personally about his son's experience with obesity and GLP-1 medication, and admits that even after spending his career studying obesity, he still had to fight the human instinct to blame.

Follow Prof Giles Yeo:
⁠https://uk.linkedin.com/in/giles-yeo-2062969
⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/gilesyeo/
⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/giles.yeo/⁠

#ThrivingMinds #AlbertoZandi #GilesYeo #Neuroscience #AppetiteScience #BrainHealth #WeightLoss #HungerHormones #NutritionScience #ObesityResearch #HealthPodcast #MetabolicHealth #FoodScience
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Jay Sean is one of the most successful and influential artists in modern pop music.

His global hit “Down”, featuring Lil Wayne, reached No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100, making him the first South Asian solo artist to top the chart. In 2026, the record was certified Diamond in the United States after surpassing 10 million units, making Jay the first South Asian artist to ever receive an RIAA Diamond certification.

But his journey began with a decision almost everyone around him thought was crazy.

Jay was studying medicine when he walked away from a safe career in front of him to pursue music.
Then, after finally becoming successful, he walked away again.

His record label wanted him to become an artist he did not recognise. Jay chose to leave, invested his own money into his music and expected another label to come calling.

Nobody did.
He remembers sitting alone in his car, crying, convinced he had ruined his career.
What happened next changed his life.
In this episode, Jay explains:
◼ Why he left medicine for an uncertain career in music, and how to know when to trust your own instinct over everyone else’s opinion
◼ Why he walked away from a major record deal at the height of his early success, and what his lowest moment taught him about life
◼ How he rebuilt independently, eventually signed in America and created the song that would take him to No.1
◼ Why fame, money and social media comparison can distort your definition of success, and how he now protects his peace
◼ What being bullied for his weight, decades of body image pressure and becoming a father taught him about health, happiness and what actually matters

Jay also speaks with remarkable honesty about fame.
He explains why making one of the biggest songs in the world could have become a psychological trap if every future achievement had to measure up to it, and why he eventually learned to stop chasing other people’s lives and focus on becoming a better version of himself.
And towards the end of the conversation, the definition of success changes completely.
Jay says that being a father is his favourite role, and that when his children look back, he would rather they remember that their dad was there than remember him as a great pop star.

This is not simply a conversation about becoming successful.

It is about having the courage to walk away when success no longer feels aligned with you.

FOLLOW JAY:
YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuLaLS3QYnCWFT5hd3m2w3w
YouTube Music:
https://music.youtube.com/channel/UC5IMokurjvYCO1AWiCOskYg
Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/artist/4pADjHPWyrlAF0FA7joK2H
Apple Music:
https://music.apple.com/gb/artist/jay-sean/23172423
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/jaysean/
X:
https://twitter.com/jaysean
YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/user/jayseanworldwide
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/jaysean/

#ThrivingMinds #AlbertoZandi #JaySean #BodyImage #MentalHealth #FitnessCulture #WellnessJourney #SelfLove #HealthyMindset #PersonalGrowth #MusicArtist
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Touker Suleyman is one of Britain’s best known entrepreneurs and investors, with more than 50 years of experience building, buying and transforming businesses.
But long before millions knew him from Dragons’ Den, Touker lost everything.

In his twenties, he was already chairman of two public companies, driving an Aston Martin and enjoying extraordinary early financial success.
Then one disastrous investment triggered a domino effect.
His businesses collapsed.
He lost his home.
And he had to start again.

In this conversation, Touker explains:
◼ Why early success can be dangerous, and the mistake that taught him the importance of due diligence
◼ How he rebuilt after losing everything and eventually created businesses employing thousands of people
◼ How he bought Hawes & Curtis for just £1, took on its debts and rebuilt the brand to be worth millions
◼ The negotiation principles he has used across more than 50 years in business
◼ Why entrepreneurs often ask for investment when what they actually need is better cash flow
◼ Why you do not need a completely original idea to build a successful company

Touker also explains why, after 10 years, he has decided to leave Dragons’ Den and what he wants the next chapter of his life to look like.
At 73, he is still launching companies, still chasing new challenges and still asking himself how far an idea can go.
His definition of success has changed too.
It is not simply about money.
It is about freedom, reputation, purpose, happiness and leaving something behind.
And after everything he has experienced, his advice remains remarkably simple:
Be honest. Work hard. Never give up.

Follow Touker:
⁠https://www.instagram.com/touker_suleyman⁠⁠
https://www.linkedin.com/in/touker-suleyman-a009a815/⁠
⁠https://twitter.com/toukersuleyman⁠

#ThrivingMinds #AlbertoZandi #Suleyman #DragonsDen #Entrepreneur #BusinessStrategy #Startup #FashionBusiness #RetailBusiness #Leadership #BuildingBrands #SerialEntrepreneur #BusinessMindset #Investing
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