Health is Real

Let's reduce the burden of cancer in Ohio! Christin Brown from the American Oncology Network and our own Layla Abraham are here to discuss a statewide coalition called Ohio Partners for Cancer Control. And later, friend of the pod Mary Nern is back to talk about trending foods for summer, adult rec league soccer, and much more!

We talked with a professor on our last show, now it’s time to meet the students! We have two public health interns here to chat about their experiences working and studying, and what made them discover they wanted to be in the field of public health. We also play a fun Jeopardy game to test our Millennial and Gen-Z knowledge. And later, we welcome quite the "character" to Health is Real: Coach Ron Fast stops by to draw up a play for us to eat healthy.

Class is now in session! Our guest today is Rob Braun, Professor of Public Health at Otterbein University. He talks about what it’s like teaching the next generation of public health workers and how things have changed in the last few years. And later, which fruits and vegetables are trending right now? We debut our fun new "Learn with Nern" segment featuring healthy food expert Mary Nern.

A double dose of FCPH experts! First, we chat with Alex Jones about her role with infectious disease control and response, and we have some fun coming up with vaccines ideas to prevent some of humanity’s worst flaws! And later we speak with Mary Nern about healthy food access, and we share some healthy food options from every color in the rainbow.

No matter the season, our parks are a great place to improve your health! We love chatting with people who are passionate about what they do, and that’s exactly what we have today: Tim Moloney from Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks! We discuss the incredible health benefits of parks, the current Winter Hikes series and learn some of the best kept parks secrets right here in central Ohio!

The acronym of the day is CHAT! That stands for Community Health Action Teams, and our own Kevida Bowry is here to talk about what they do, the CHAT Summit happening this year, and some projects that you might recognize in your community. And later, we read some public health headlines including news about takeout food, measles in Ohio, and creative ways you can help your brain. We welcome a variety of fun voices to help us make sense of it all!

Happy New Year! Health is Real is starting off 2026 by chatting with Health Commissioner Joe Mazzola as well as Ken Wilson, the County Administrator for Franklin County Board of Commissioners. We learn a little about them, find out the biggest moments in Franklin County from the last year and look ahead to what’s happening in 2026.

OUR HOLIDAY SPECIAL! So much festive fun! We chat with our own Kristin Howard about the best and worst holiday music—get ready for some hot takes! Plus so much more: we have trivia, holiday party experts, bros, Bostonians, and plenty of ghosts. We even share an unforgettable Christmas song of our own!

Libraries offer so many public health benefits to our communities! Today we chat with two wonderful guests—Ben Zenitsky from Columbus Metropolitan Library and Katy Hite from the State Library of Ohio—about what’s going on at our local libraries and why literacy is so important. We also answer important questions like: If you had a biography written about you, what would the title be?

We have apps to find food trucks, so why not have an app to find mobile healthcare? Today’s guest Lauren Van Petten from Nationwide Children's Hospital has all the details about the new Mobile Health Locator app, how to access it and where it’s going in the future. And later, spooky season is a great time to talk about our biggest fears and look at some of the most common phobias, such as heights, snakes and...Spider Man?

When we think of public health, we may not always consider the role that technology plays. Three of our IT experts, Sondra Burns, Nik Shipman, and DeAngela Watson join the podcast today to talk about protecting your digital health, keeping devices safe at home, and how AI factors in to public health. We even get a quick visit from our own unique AI chatbot! Later we discuss grilling, tailgating, and what old technology we still stand by today.

Today's guest, Josh Poland, is the stadium voice of the Columbus Crew as well as the Chief Communications and Marketing Officer with the city of New Albany! We discuss all the wonderful things happening in New Albany and Josh shares some of his favorite Columbus Crew stories! And later, we take a look back at our school days with talk of cornfields, Caligula, and Clifford the Big Red Dog.

September is Emergency Preparedness Month and today we chat with our own expert Julio Reyes Gomez about how you can be prepared and the most important things you’ll need in an emergency. We also discuss what a certain 90s action movie can teach us about all this. And later: When were erasers added to pencils? It’s back to school trivia time so get ready for a pop quiz!

Did you know that Reynoldsburg, Ohio is the birthplace of the commercial tomato? Today we head to the Reynoldsburg Tomato Festival and speak with Mayor Joe Begeny about the big event and the long, proud tradition of throwing tomatoes at others. (That sounds like fun!) And later, what apps do you use the most? We look at the most popular apps in the country and decide that we should focus more on building real life connections. See if you agree!

We’re all about active living! Our own Natalie Martin stops by to chat about being an Active Living Coordinator, what all is involved in public health education, and some of the projects she’s most proud of. And we can’t talk about active living without bringing up our favorite workout songs! And later, we debunk some old wives’ tales. Swimming after eating? Do bulls really hate the color red? And what do we think of the 5-second rule?

It’s so important to be educated about the disease of addiction. Today we’re joined by Victoria Shields, our Naloxone Education & Distribution Coordinator, to chat about Naloxone, some misconceptions about addiction, and how the landscape around the issue has changed. We also discuss what an ACE is and the upcoming ACEs PACEs and Addiction Summit. And later, is it good for kids to be bored sometimes?

We Ohioans love our sports, and there’s a big in-state rivalry in soccer between Columbus Crew and FC Cincinnati! Today we welcome Health Commissioners from Cincinnati and Hamilton County, Grant Mussman and Greg Kesterman, to chat about the friendly rivalry and what they’re focused on with their health departments. And later, who has a big sports memory from their childhood? From touchdowns on the playground to buzzer beaters to left-footed goals, we have some stories to tell!

Our guests today are Jonathan Thomas from ADAMH and Beth Plummer from Recovery Innovations, who discuss the new Franklin County Crisis Care Center! What is it? Who’s it for? And how is it different from going to a hospital? We also chat about how the mental health landscape has changed over the years, and the different techniques you can use to improve your mental wellbeing.

CHW Day is June 6th! Today we chat with our expert, Devon Abdon, about his journey to public health. He discusses what a Community Health Worker does and how he remains optimistic in the face of challenges. And because CHWs are modern day superheroes, we each decide to pick our own superpowers. Will we choose to benefit humanity...or not?

Water quality affects everyone! Expert Alyssa Suto is here to talk about what she does for the residents of Franklin County, and also discusses the difference between filtered water, tap water, and bottled water. Also, let's get ready for festival season! We chat about some upcoming local festivals and come up with a few of our own, including a one-of-a-kind idea from Zach that features a certain Hollywood actor!

The Asian Festival is coming up! Today’s guest is Dr. Greg Lam from Ohio Health, the Ohio Asian American Health Coalition & the Asian Festival Corporation. We talk about all the upcoming events celebrating AAPI Heritage Month including dragon boat races, table tennis tournaments, and free health screenings. Dr. Lam also talks about health disparities in the Asian community and shares some powerful stats and stories.

Have you heard about Beautiful Beginnings? It’s a home visiting program for new families offering safe sleep education, postpartum care, and more. Today we’re joined by public health nurse supervisor Breana Francis to learn more and chat about Black Maternal Health Week. And later: “When you’re here, you’re family!” We all have a favorite restaurant (whether it's healthy, or not so much) but what restaurant slogan sticks in your head the most? We discuss!

National Public Health Week is a great time to highlight topics that are important everyone in our community! Today we chat with Susan Polan from the American Public Health Association about climate action, health equity, advocacy, and the future of public health. And later, how much coffee is too much? Our wide-awake co-hosts discuss their favorite caffeinated drinks, including some from days gone by. (Surge, anyone?)

Art is everywhere in Franklin County! Today we chat with Lydia Simon and Lauren Emond from the Columbus Museum of Art about the many connections between art and public health. We learn about the history of the museum and what they’re doing to improve public health and accessibility. Also, find out who wants to make a paper mache basketball shoe!

Community Health Workers help our community every day! We chat with our expert Cassie Baker about how CHWs empower residents to take control of their own health. Also, can listening to music before bed help you get better sleep? What about listening to a public health podcast? (We think so.) Angela and Zach go head-to-head in a sleep quiz, and we learn about everything from how to prevent snoring to lifestyle factors that affect your sleep.

Public health means everyone is included! But how do we make sure we bring everyone to the table? Today we chat with Lisa Dent, Associate Director of Equity and Inclusion at Franklin County Public Health about what DEI means for public health and some important takeaways as we celebrate Black History Month. Also, we discuss some simple things we can all do every day to be more inclusive in our communities!

Happy American Heart Month! Today we chat about the importance of good heart health with Nancy Tobbe and Dr. Amrita Karve from the American Heart Association. They discuss warning signs, the importance of prevention and unique risk factors for both men and women. Also...we hear terms like whole grain, organic and free range all the time, but what do these healthy buzzwords actually mean and which ones matter (or don't matter!) to your health?

The numbers don’t lie! Today we have not one but TWO data experts here to talk about why data is so important in public health and give some examples of where it’s made a difference in people’s lives. We play some games—of course!—and also check out the FCPH Data Hub to learn more about what’s happening in our communities. The best news is…anyone can use the data hub! Find it here: https://fcph-data-hub-fca.hub.arcgis.com/

In the digital age, vital information is available at our fingertips – but so is a lot of misinformation. This raises important questions for everyone, including public health professionals: Whose responsibility is it to monitor the information we see online? How do we avoid falling victim to our own biases? What role does AI play moving forward? We have an in-depth conversation about these topics with Dr. Kelly Garrett, Professor and Director of the School of Communication at The Ohio State University.

It’s the end of the year already! Can you believe it? Today we chat with Franklin County Health Commissioner Joe Mazzola about all the great things that have happened at the health department this year. He talks about what a health commissioner does and some of the most rewarding parts of his job. Plus: his thoughts on holiday parties, Secret Santa, and boss titles he does (and doesn’t!) want to be called.

You know what’s good for your health? Enjoying the holiday season! We have so much to discuss in this special episode. What are the best side dishes and pies on Thanksgiving? What about some must-see holiday movies and our favorite Christmas memories? Plus, we learn about unique family traditions this time of year and even take a page from Seinfeld and chat about Festivus. It’s holiday fun all around!

We see dates listed on food all the time: Use by, sell by, best by…but what do those really mean in terms of food safety? Our expert Mike Hils is here to fill us in and discuss how to cook safely at home whether you’re headed out to tailgate or just cooking dinner for the family. Plus, do you think chili is a soup? What about if it’s on a hot dog? We break down these VERY important questions and chat about some of our favorite Fall foods!

Voting is more than just your right, it’s also good for your health! Today we learn more about the benefits of voting and play a game where we guess real and fake laws from around the country…some of these laws are pretty interesting to say the least! Plus, we talk with Franklin County Public Health’s Medical Director, Dr. Miller Sullivan, about the shifts he’s seen in the public around preventative care and what we should all be aware of this flu season.

We take a trip to the Franklin County Coroner’s office and chat with Dr. Nate Overmire about the importance of breaking down stigmas and bringing awareness to issues like gun violence prevention and overdose prevention. Plus, in honor of spooky season, we test our Halloween candy IQ with a quiz from the New York Times. What’s the most popular Halloween candy? And which candy from years gone by do we think should make a comeback?

Tomatoes, pumpkins, and…hazelnuts? Test your knowledge in a rapid-fire game as we discover why some foods are classified as fruits while others are vegetables. Plus, we take a trip to Zucchini Fest and chat with Obetz Mayor Angela Kirk! We discuss the rich history of the festival, some notable musicians who've performed there, and (of course) our favorite zucchini dishes!

How can we limit our risk of infectious diseases? We chat with Radhika Iyer, Infectious Disease Program Epidemiologist & Supervisor at Franklin County Public Health about how we collect information and report on diseases. She also shares how she stayed motivated during the COVID-19 pandemic and what the process was like behind the scenes. Plus, we have a little fun with some trivia! Play along with us and see how well you know nutrition labels!

Let’s get sustainable! What goes in your recycling bins, and what can you compost? Learn about the air quality sensors installed throughout Franklin County, as well as the many health benefits of tree canopy (including a 20-degree difference in temperature!) Also, why does the TV show Captain Planet still resonate with people today? We chat about all this and more with Jennie McAdams, Environmental Health Supervisor at Franklin County Public Health.

Why does it seem like every year is “the year of the cicada?” Are mosquitos only attracted to certain blood types? What repellant should you use to protect yourself? And what can the hit 90’s song “Waterfalls” teach us about ticks? We chat with bug expert Zach Holbert-Watson, Vector Program Coordinator at Franklin County Public Health, about the many insect pests of central Ohio.