Sep 24, 2026 · 1 hr 6 min · 10 segments
Why is the role of food and nutrients so often underappreciated or overlooked in mental health care when it has the potential to transform lives? Professor Julia Rucklidge has challenged this question…
Julia RucklidgeGuest
Benjamin BrownHost
And and in this in this journey, Ben, I've learned I've also learned why partly why it's kind of the way it is.
But ultimately, one of the defining features of a supplement, which when you hear this, your listeners might not know, they cannot, at least in New Zealand, and you can confirm whether this is the same in the UK, they cannot prevent or treat disease by law.
So, which means, that they cannot ever say that they prevent scurvy when we know vitamin C can prevent scurvy, but you can't advertise that.
So you cannot ever say that it's got actually some kind of a therapeutic benefit.
So all they can do is talk about it in a more holistic, random, really kind of vague way, like supports your immune system.
or improves mood or you know these these very vague things that are completely unhelpful for the consumer and like i i always i look at the saint john's wart which has got some of the best research i think i mean i'm sure you actually you probably know the herbs way better than i do but that's an example and it's just sold as a supplement in new zealand supports mood and you're like but it's as good as or better with fewer side effects than antidepressants.
How did this happen? So as a, just this naive person who comes to this field, you know, from outside in a way, cause I don't have any training in dietetics.
Why is the government regulating it this way? And so I've been shaking the tree for the last two years, partly because daily essential nutrients has been, moved from being a supplement to what's called an unapproved medicine.
And so I've been asking these very obvious questions, like why can't supplements, if they've been shown with, you know, studies to have a therapeutic benefit, Why can't they be sold that way and not be regulated as a medicine? Because they don't fit in the medicine paradigm.
And and in this in this journey, Ben, I've learned I've also learned why partly why it's kind of the way it is.
But ultimately, one of the defining features of a supplement, which when you hear this, your listeners might not know, they cannot, at least in New Zealand, and you can confirm whether this is the same in the UK, they cannot prevent or treat disease by law.
So, which means, that they cannot ever say that they prevent scurvy when we know vitamin C can prevent scurvy, but you can't advertise that.
So you cannot ever say that it's got actually some kind of a therapeutic benefit.
So all they can do is talk about it in a more holistic, random, really kind of vague way, like supports your immune system.
or improves mood or you know these these very vague things that are completely unhelpful for the consumer and like i i always i look at the saint john's wart which has got some of the best research i think i mean i'm sure you actually you probably know the herbs way better than i do but that's an example and it's just sold as a supplement in new zealand supports mood and you're like but it's as good as or better with fewer side effects than antidepressants.
How did this happen? So as a, just this naive person who comes to this field, you know, from outside in a way, cause I don't have any training in dietetics.
Why is the government regulating it this way? And so I've been shaking the tree for the last two years, partly because daily essential nutrients has been, moved from being a supplement to what's called an unapproved medicine.
And so I've been asking these very obvious questions, like why can't supplements, if they've been shown with, you know, studies to have a therapeutic benefit, Why can't they be sold that way and not be regulated as a medicine? Because they don't fit in the medicine paradigm.
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